Jacob Tirado

Jacob Tirado (* around 1540 in Portugal, † 1620 in Jerusalem) was one of the founders of the first Sephardic community of Amsterdam.

Life

Jacob Tirado was born as Jaime Lopes da Costa in 1540 into a family of Marranos in Portugal. Since 1598, he lived in Amsterdam, where he had returned to Judaism. Tirado was Da Costa worked primarily with Portugal and Venice on the market under his Christian name. In his private house initially the Jewish service was held. Tirado applies together with Samuel Pallache and Jacob Israel Belmonte as the founder of the first Sephardic community ( or Casa de Beth Jacob Jacob 1608) of Amsterdam. He was named one of the first parnassim. After 1612 he left Amsterdam to Venice. From there he moved on to Palestine. He spent his last years probably in Jerusalem, where he died in 1620.

According to legend, Tirado Portugal had to leave in 1593, along with ten other Marranos and four children. They landed with their two ships in Emden ( Ostfriesland). Looking for a fat goat for supper they met the established Ashkenazi Rabbi Moses Uri Halevi. This advised the Portuguese refugees, not to settle in Emden and moved to Amsterdam with them. There, the Marranos were circumcised and met in a private home to pray. When the authorities heard of the arrival of the conversos, they arrested the Rabbi Halevi and his son and wanted to know who had allowed them to practice the Jewish religion in Amsterdam. They replied that this was in honor of the city and Amsterdam will thus become a center of attraction of other rich Jews. Only when Tirado, who could converse with the authorities in Latin, was called in, the Jews were given the right of establishment permission. The legend of Jacob Tirado counts how the story about Maria Nunes to the founding myths of the Amsterdam Jewish community. She was held for the first time in writing by the grandson of Rabbi Uri Halevi 's 1711.