The Jewish community of Aleppo Syria is one of the oldest in the world. The Jews of that community identify their city as the Biblical Aram Tzova and call it in short “Aretz.” There was a very ancient synagogue in the city which served the community for hundreds of years until it was burned by the Arabs during the anti-Jewish disturbance, which followed the United Nations decisions of November 29,1947 to partition Palestine.
In this synagogue were kept old Bible manuscripts including the famous Aleppo Codex which was written more than one thousand years ago. During the anti-Jewish disturbances the codex was desecrated and damaged. It is now in Jerusalem.
Great scholars resided in Aleppo. Here taught Baruch Ben Shmuel of Aleppo (known also as Rabbi Baruch of Greece), an early commentator of the Talmud who came to Aleppo from Southern Europe. Here settled Rabbi Yoseph ben R. Yehuda, a disciple of the Rambam. For him, and such like him, Maimonides wrote the Guide of the Perplexed.
Rabbis and Kabbalists who were active in Aleppo during the last five hundred years include. Mordechai HaKohen, author of Siftei Kohen a commentary on the Pentatuech. R. Hayyim Kohen, who wrote Mekor Hayyim, a Kabbalistic commentary on the Shulhan Arukh, and members of the Laniado family among them. Rabbi Shmuel popularly known as Baal HaKeilim on account of his Keli Hemda., Keli Yakar and Keli Paz, commentaries on various books of the Bible and Rabbi Rafael Shlomo, author of Beth Din Shel Shelomo, (responsa) and HaM’alot LiShelomo (homiletics).
For a period, Aleppo was a very important trading center. Descendants of exiles from Spain and Jews who had emigrated from Southern Europe, especially from France and Italy were very prominent in the city’s commerce. Like many old communities Aleppo Jews have some unusual customs. On Shavuot for example they read in addition to the Book of Ruth, the Book of Proverbs (Mishlei).
The descendants of the Spanish exiles who settled in Aleppo used to light on Hanukkah an additional light which they placed near the Shamash. Their procedure was as follows: On the first night they kindled one light and two shamashim, on the second night they lit two lights and two shamashim and so forth. On the last night eight lights and two shamashim were kindled.
I heard of this custom many years ago from two Jerusalem Rabbis who hailed from Aleppo. The late Rabbi Ovadia Hadaya, the author of several books and longtime members of the Chief Rabbinate of the land of Israel and of the late Rabbi Nathan Salem, whose father was a well known Jerusalem Kabballist.
They told me of a tradition according to which the ancestors of the Sefardi Jews of Aleppo wandered for months- after their expulsion from Spain- in search of a place of refuge. When finally they settled in Aleppo, they decided to light an additional light on Hanukkah in thanksgiving to the Almighty.
Many Aleppo Jews of Sefardi descent continue to observe this custom. Even in New York there are families who kindle the additional light.
However there are others who stopped keeping this Minhag. “I stopped observing this custom when I didn’t find it mentioned anywhere,” I was told by the late Rabbi Ezra Attiye who headed Yeshiva Porat Yosef of Jerusalem and was a descendant of Aleppo Sefardim.
Another custom of the Aleppo Jews is to light twelve lights every morning during the days of Hanukkah (but of course not on Shabbat) in the synagogue They are called Nerot HaNessi’im — The “Lights of the Chieftains” for on Hanukkah we read from the Torah about the sacrifices offered by the chieftains of the twelve tribes at the dedication of the Tabernacle.
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