The Retrospective

Translator’s Note

In Hebrew, the title of this book is Hesed Sefaradi. Hesed (with a guttural h) eludes precise translation and connotes compassion, kindness, love, and charity; a fair equivalent is the Latin caritas. Sefaradi means “Spanish” but also “Sephardic,” referring specifically to Jews whose ancestors were expelled from Spain in 1492 and more broadly to “Oriental” Jews from Arabic-speaking countries in North Africa and the Middle East. The double meaning helps the reader get the picture.