History of the Jews in Quebec: 9 (Canadian Studies) - Softcover

Pierre Anctil

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0776629484 ISBN 13: 9780776629483

Publisher: University of Ottawa, 2021

Synopsis

The presence of Jews in Quebec dates back four centuries. Quebec Jewry, in Montreal in particular, has evolved over time, thanks to successive waves of migration from different regions of the world. The Jews of Quebec belong to a unique society in North America, which they have worked to fashion. The dedication with which they have defended their rights and their extensive achievements in multiple sectors of activity have helped foster diversity in Quebec. This work recounts the different contributions Jews have made over the years, along with the cultural context that encouraged the emergence in Montreal of a Jewish community like no other in North America. This is the first overview of a history that began during the French Regime and continued, through many twists and turns, up to the turn of the twenty-first century. This book won the J.I. Segal Award (Jewish Public Library, Montreal), as well as the Governor General's Literary Awards (Translation).

About this title

About the Author

Pierre Anctil is an award-winning author, a member of the Royal Society of Canada since 2012 and a full professor at the Department of History of the University of Ottawa, where he teaches contemporary Canadian history and Canadian Jewish history. He has written at length on the history of Montreal’s Jewish community and on the current debates on cultural pluralism in Canada. His most recent English-language titles are Jacob Isaac Segal: A Montreal Yiddish Poet and His Milieu (2017) and A Reluctant Welcome for Jewish People: Voices in Le Devoir’s Editorials, 1910–1947 (2019), both at the University of Ottawa Press.

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Judith Weisz Woodsworth is Professor of Translation Studies in the Département d’études françaises at Concordia University. She has published widely on the history and theory of translation and has translated novels by Quebec authors Pierre Nepveu and Abla Farhoud.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

This book focuses on Quebec society and the City of Montreal as sites of a distinct Jewish identity, which stands out from Jewish identities as they have evolved elsewhere in Canada. The approach is unique in that it makes use of French and Yiddish sources, which are copious in the case of Montreal’s Jewish population. One of the characteristics of this field of research is that it requires a command of several languages and dialects and a deep understanding of the different religious traditions that came into contact with one another over a long period of time. The history of Montreal Jews is striking in that it highlights the role of the city as a crossroads at which successive generations of immigrants have converged.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Ottawa
• Publication date: 2021
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0776629484
• ISBN 13: 9780776629483
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 488