Discover Ponta do Sol & Jewish Heritage

Name: Discover Ponta do Sol & Jewish Heritage
Address: Cape Verde

Activities Guided tours Tours Culture & history Architecture Sightseeing

Discover with your local guide the history and influence of the Jews in the city of Ponta do Sol in Santo Antao, its two-storied houses, Boca de Pistola port, cemetery and houses and shopping centers.

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Highlights

Meet the stories that marked the beginning of the arrival of Jews here
Discover the Origins of the Most Influential Jews
Explore the city built by Jews and Europeans at the same time

Description

We will meet you at the old fishing port, mouth of Pistola, in front of the hotel tiduca and we will start our journey from there, we will visit the first houses built by the Jews, the Jewish streets, the Catholic church, the Jewish cemetery and the old airfield. Ultimately the Cape Verde Jewish Heritage Project plans to take this story of mutual tolerance – by both the Jews and the Cape Verdeans who welcomed them – and transform it into a teaching tool that can be used to educate as well as to attract tourists and investors, and therefore economic growth, to Cape Verde. Almost all Jews who settled in Cape Verde were Sephardim from Morocco or Gibraltar. In the 19th century, they immigrated to Cape Verde – then a Portuguese colony – seeking economic opportunities, as the archipelago was an important transatlantic commercial hub. Most Jews were single males. Because they were few in number, they quickly assimilated into the larger Catholic society through intermarriage. Since the Jewish community in Cape Verde was small, it was probably deemed more important to create Jewish burial grounds than to build a house of worship. The story of the Jews of Cape Verde is a continuation of the larger Sephardic/Moroccan Jewish Diaspora. Sephardim in general and Moroccan Jews in particular tend to be accepting and tolerant of people from different religions and backgrounds. Throughout history, they have displayed a knack for blending into other societies.