LEADERS IN THEIR COMMUNITY

LEADERSHIP in the Jewish communities of the Crown of Aragon did not differ essentially from that in the rest of the medieval Jewish world. All medieval Jewish communities shared common characteristics and traditions of self-rule which exercised a profound impact on patterns of leadership that had to be adjusted to exilic conditions. To be a leader under almost absolute obedience to the ruler of the land was a universal Jewish feature. In such circumstances all leaders had to assert their authority in their communities. In some, traditions of royal or princely descent helped immensely to establish authority and command respect. In others, leaders had to rely heavily on well-developed Jewish concepts of leadership. In all forms, the authority of Jewish leaders was ultimately dependent on the nature and extent of support lent to them by the non-Jewish rulers. This close relationship between the Gentile government and the Jewish leadership was an important factor that distinguished between the leaders of different communities. Leaders and leadership in the Jewish communities in the different parts of the Crown of Aragon were affected by local practices and conditions; and yet at the same time all were subjected to the policies and preferences of a single ruler. These contradictory trends in the external influences on Jewish leadership necessitate careful analysis to identify those features common throughout the Crown and those specific to each of the component territories.

TERMINOLOGY

Various names in different languages are used in the sources to describe the leaders of the Jewish communities in the Crown of Aragon. The Hebrew, Latin, Catalan, and Aragonese names are confusing and are not necessarily synonymous. So far no definitive description has been given, and a discussion of the terms employed is necessary. The Hebrew texts employ the following terms: berurim, ne'emanim, muqademin, and yo ‘azim. In Latin sources we find probi homines, procuratorii, adenantati, and secretarii. Their almost-equivalents in Catalan and Aragonese sources are respectively sindichs, prohomens, adelantats, secretaris and procuradores, adelantados or delantados, and secretarios.

It is very difficult to establish the equivalence between the Hebrew terms and the terms in the other languages. An examination of the Hebrew sources seems to indicate that the term baror (plural berurim) had the widest and the most general meaning.