 sepharad, or sefarad, or sfard, is a biblical place name of uncertain location. it is mentioned only once in the bible, in the book of obadiah . there are, however, old persian inscriptions that refer to two places called saparda (alternative reading: sparda): one area in media and another in asia minor. it is speculated that sepharad could have been sardis, whose native lydian name is sfard. since the period of 2nd century roman antiquity, spanish jews gave the name "sepharad" to the iberian peninsula. the descendants of iberian jews refer to themselves as sephardi jews (hebrew, plural: sephardim) and identify spain as "sepharad" in modern hebrew. ==version comparisons== * obadiah 1:20 (trans. judaica press) "and this exiled host of the children of israel who are [with] the canaanites as far as zarephath and the exile of jerusalem which is in sepharad shall inherit the cities of the southland" - chabad.org. * obadiah 1:20 (nkjv) "and the captivity of this host of the children of israel, that are among the canaanites, even unto zarephath, and the captivity of jerusalem, that is in sepharad, shall possess the cities of the south." * obadiah 1:20 (vulgate) et transmigratio exercitus huius filiorum israhel omnia chananeorum usque ad saraptham et transmigratio hierusalem quae in bosforo est possidebit civitates austri. ==see also== * nusach sefard * sephardic law and customs ==references==  ==external links== * sefarad, journal on hebraic, sephardim and middle east studies, ilc, csic (scientific articles in spanish, english and other languages)
Anatolia Hebrew_Bible_places Hebrew_words_and_phrases Jewish_Portuguese_history Jewish_Spanish_history Judaism_in_Spain Sephardi_Jews_topics