News About Jewish Genealogy, Jewish History, and Jewish Culture
Editor: Phil Goldfarb, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
- What is New, Upcoming and Exciting at MyHeritage? Watch the video of MyHeritage Founder & CEO Gilad Japhet’s Session at RootsTech 2025 from their blog: MyHeritage Founder & CEO Gilad Japhet’s Session at RootsTech 2025
- What’s New at Ancestry® in 2025. Watch the video from IAJGS Board Director Crista Cowan, also at RootsTech2025: What’s New at Ancestry® in 2025 Also Ancestry announces the release of a new collection of voter registers from 1915 to 1956 in Manhattan, New York. The records were digitized from the original bound volumes and indexed using a proprietary handwriting recognition process—the first-ever non-census records to be processed and published using this cutting-edge technology. Read more from their blog: New Manhattan Voter Registers Available on Ancestry
- What to Expect from FamilySearch in 2025 from their blog: What to Expect from FamilySearch in 2025
- What Happens to Your Data if 23andMe Collapses? I. Glenn Cohen, faculty director of the Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School, explains the legal landscape surrounding genetic data, the reasons for more consumer protection laws, and the steps for consumers to protect their personal and genetic data. From EOGN: Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter – What Happens to Your Data if 23andMe Collapses? – Also an alert from the California Attorney General on 23andMe on how to delete your data and revoke permission to use: (USA) California Attorney General Urges Issues Consumer Alert for 23andMe Customers Thanks to Jan Meisels Allen, Chairperson, IAJGS Public Records Access Monitoring Committee for this alert.
- The world’s oldest Jewish book is on display in New York City. Dating to the year 700 CE, the Afghan Liturgical Quire is on view at the Jewish Theological Seminary Library’s exhibit, “Sacred Words: Revealing the Earliest Hebrew Book.” Read more from New York Jewish Week: The world’s oldest Jewish book is on display in New York City – New York Jewish Week
- Why Nazis spent World War II in a luxury West Virginia resort. The strange, forgotten history of the Greenbrier hotel, where German diplomats and their families were treated to gourmet meals and spa treatments. Read this unusual story from The Forward: Why Nazis lived at Greenbrier in West Virginia during WWII – The Forward
- Dirty jokes and sacred texts: YIVO marks 100 years of preserving Yiddish culture. Artifacts from 1,000 years of Ashkenazi Jewish life including literary transcripts, Herzl’s diary, everyday notes and children’s scrawls connect prewar Jews with generations to come. Read more from The Times of Israel: Dirty jokes and sacred texts: YIVO marks 100 years of preserving Yiddish culture | The Times of Israel Also from The Forward on YIVO: A Yiddish institute tuns 100 — Jews are still finding themselves there – The Forward
- The Story of Russian Jewry. The territories of the former Russian Empire were the cradle of Jewish modernity, the birthplace of Zionism and Jewish socialism, and a major center of the Hasidic movement. Read the story from My Jewish Learning: The Jews of Russia | My Jewish Learning
- The secret Jewish history of St. Patrick’s Day. If you are Jewish and you feel drawn somehow to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, there are more than a dozen good reasons why. Read why from The Forward: The secret Jewish history of St. Patrick’s Day
- Images Found on Jewish Gravestones and What They Mean. Common Jewish cemetery iconography explained. Read the story and see the symbols from My Jewish Learning: Images Found on Jewish Gravestones and What They Mean | My Jewish Learning
- Tracing the Genealogy of a House. Have you ever been curious about the history and genealogy associated with a house…maybe your ancestral home? Here are 10 ideas help you trace the lineage of a home. Read more from Legacy Tree: How I Traced the Genealogy of a House | Legacy Tree Genealogists
- Comedian Iliza Schlesinger Discovers Her Family’s Unknown Holocaust History in ‘Finding Your Roots.’ Shlesinger, who has been outspoken about her Jewish pride, didn’t know her family had a connection to the Holocaust. Read more from Kveller: Comedian Iliza Schlesinger Discovers Her Family’s Unknown Holocaust History in ‘Finding Your Roots’ – Kveller
- How the discovery of a secret tunnel inspired a film about Jewish resistance. The PBS documentary ‘Resistance’ surfaced the often-unsung stories of how Jews fought back against the Nazis. Read about the documentary from The Forward: How a secret tunnel inspired a film about Jewish resistance – The Forward
- 10 Times Jews Got the Upper Hand on Nazis in Pop Culture. These films, series and books all serve up some delicious resistance and revenge vibes. Read the story from Kveller: 10 Times Jews Got the Upper Hand on Nazis in Pop Culture – Kveller
- The Nazis loathed modern art. They launched a war against it. “Degenerate Art,” an exhibition in Paris on modern art’s greatest crisis, is about culture wars and where they can lead. The term “degenerate art” — or “entartete Kunst” — was coined by the Nazis as part of a public campaign to destroy modern art, which they said was produced by “idiots,” the “mentally ill,” “criminals,” “speculators,” “Bolsheviks” and “Jews.” Read more from The Washington Post: The Nazis’ war on ‘degenerate art’ was modern art’s greatest crisis – The Washington Post
- Study: Nearly a million Israelis live abroad, changing the face of European Jewry. While most live in the US, Europe is now home to some 30% of Israelis abroad, bringing ‘significant transformation’ to local communities, Institute for Jewish Policy Research says. Read more from The Times of Israel: Study: Nearly a million Israelis live abroad, changing the face of European Jewry | The Times of Israel
- Orthodox Union marks 125 years of building a religiously vibrant community. Orthodox Union’s celebrates its milestone anniversary and its work supporting Jewish life, innovation and community growth at its biennial convention and gala. Read the story from JNS: OU marks 125 years of building a religiously vibrant community – JNS.org
- Gal Gadot is first Israeli actor to receive star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. Speaking at the ceremony, Gadot referred several times to her Israeli roots, even speaking some Hebrew. “I’m just a girl from a town in Israel,” drawing loud cheers from her supporters in the audience. “To all the young people, especially the young girls, if a girl from Rosh Ha’ayin can get a star on Hollywood Boulevard, anything is possible.” Read more from The Times of Israel: Gal Gadot is first Israeli actor to receive star on Hollywood Walk of Fame | The Times of Israel
- Jewish coaches lead 4 of 8 top seeds in the NCAA’s March Madness tournaments. The men’s basketball teams at Duke, Auburn and Florida all have Jewish coaches, as does USC’s women’s team. Read about them from JTA: Jewish coaches lead 4 of 8 top seeds in the NCAA’s March Madness tournaments – Jewish Telegraphic Agency
- UJA’s Swag Shop has new items to help you celebrate Passover in style. Whether you’re looking for cozy comfort or something for Fido, they’ve got you covered.100% of profits support UJA’s critical work in Israel, New York, and around the world. Check this unusual store out: Swag Shop | UJA-Federation New York – UJA-Federation of New York
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About The Weekly News Nosh
The Weekly News Nosh contains news about Jewish Genealogy, Jewish History and Jewish Culture. The Nosh is published on Sundays and distributed by the L’Dor V’Dor Foundation on its website and social media platforms. “A Family Without The Understanding Of Their Past History, Foundation And Ethnicity Is Like A Tree Without Roots.” Subscribe to receive future announcements.