The Catalan Nusach

The Catalan Nusach 02

Nusach Catalonia is the ancient liturgical tradition of the Jews of Catalonia, Valencia and Mallorca. In the wake of the 1391 pogroms and the expulsion in 1492, the Jews of Catalonia migrated to North Africa, Italy, the Ottoman Empire and the Land of Israel, and with them their ancient Nusach and traditions. Except for a few Machzorim for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the Catalan Nusach was never printed and was only preserved in manuscript. The Siddur Catalonia – published in Jerusalem in 2018-19 – is primarily based on six manuscripts from the fourteenth to sixteenth centuries. The earliest of these is from around 1352 (more than a century before the Expulsion), and the latest is from 1507 (about 50 years afterwards).