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Into the Heart of Ashkenaz
Into the Heart of Ashkenaz
Most North American Jews identify as Ashkenazim, tracing their family roots to Eastern Europe (today’s Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia). Yet the term Ashkenaz originally referred to a different area altogether—the Rhineland region in Germany. At its heart were the “ShUM Cities” of Speyer, Worms, and Mainz, which for centuries formed the vibrant epicenter […]