Guide to the Elli Kohen Papers,
undated, 1999-2002

ASF AR 22

Processed by Michael D. Montalbano

as part of the Leon Levy Archival Processing Initiative, made possible by the Leon Levy Foundation

American Sephardi Federation

Center for Jewish History

15 West 16th Street

New York, NY 10011

Phone: (212) 294-8350

Fax: (212) 294-8348

Email: info@AmericanSephardiFederation.org or
Rbelinfante@ASF.CJH.org

URL: http://www.americansephardifederation.org

© February 2010. American Sephardi Federation. All rights reserved.

Center for Jewish History, Publisher.

Electronic finding aid was encoded in EAD 2002 by Michael D. Montalbano on February 16, 2010. Description is in English.

Biographical Note

Elli Kohen, was born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1930. Earning his medical degree from the University of Istanbul in 1954. He served in the Turkish Army before pursuing a Ph.D. in pathology from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden in 1973. As an expert in photobiology and cell imaging using fluorescence microscopy he published numerous articles and books, and taught at the University of Miami’s Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine and the Department of Biology and conducted research at the Papanicolaou Cancer Research Institute. After serving the University of Miami community as teacher and researcher for nearly forty years he was named professor emeritus of the Department of Biology.

In addition to being a prolific researcher in his primary field of medicine, Elli Kohen found time to write on the history of Sephardic and Turkish Jews, create, with his daughter, a Ladino-English dictionary, wrote a book on the history and myths of cats throughout the world, and even, with his daughter, a novel.

He passed away in December of 2007 and was survived by his wife Cahilde, daughter, Dahlia Kohen-Gordon, and son-in-law, Sean Gordon.

In addition to his works on photobiology, unlisted in this finding aid, here is a list of his works relating to other topics:

• Elli Kohen, Dahlia Kohen-Gordon. Ladino-English, English-Ladino: Concise Encyclopedic Dictionary (Judeo-Spanish). New York: Hippocrene Books, 2000.
• Elli Kohen and Dahlia V. Kohen-Gordon. La Concierge. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse, 2001.
• Elli Kohen, Dahlia Kohen-Gordon, Jacques Ovadia, Joseph G. Hirschberg. Dr. Nissim Joseph Ovadia: A Pillar of World Sephardi Judaism and a Scholar: He Completed what Napoléon Started. Coral Gables, FL: Elli Kohen, 2002.
• Elli Kohen. World History and Myths of Cats. Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press, 2003.
• Elli Kohen. The Kohens del de Campavias: A Family's Sweet and Sour Story in the Ottoman and Republican Turkey. Istanbul: Isis Press, 2004.
• Elli Kohen. History of the Turkish Jews and Sephardim: Memories of a Past Golden Age. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2007.
• Elli Kohen. History of the Byzantine Jews: A Microcosmos in the Thousand Year Empire.Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2007.

The above material was pieced together from the following sources: Elli Kohen’s Curriculum Vitae The blog In My Heart – Jewish Memories has a copy of his obituary. And various tributes in University of Miami newsletters E-Veritas and the Spring 2008 College of Arts and Sciences magazine, Arts & Sciences.

Scope and Content Note

This collection contains the writings of Elli Kohen as they relate to Sephardic and Turkish Jews throughout history. In addition there is some correspondence related to the donation of these papers to the American Sephardi Federation and several diskettes containing his research files.

Arrangement

This collection has been arranged in alphabetical order by document type and then by subject.

• Folder 1: Contributions - Turkish Chronicles - Erensia Sefardi
• Folder 2: Correspondence wth American Sephardi Federation
• Folder 3: Essays - Rediscovery of a Golden Age - The History of Turkish Jews - Chapter 16 - Mehmed IV
• Folder 4: Essays - Rediscovery of a Golden Age - The History of Turkish Jews - Chapter 17 - Suleyman II
• Folder 5: Essays - Rediscovery of a Golden Age - The History of Turkish Jews - Chapter 18 - Ahmed III
• Folder 6: Essays - Turkish Sephardic Biography - Algazi
• Folder 7: Essays - Turkish Sephardic Biography - Danon
• Folder 8: Essays - Turkish Sephardic Biography - Ovadia
• Folder 9: Essays - Turkish Sephardic Biography - Tekin Alp
• Folder 10: Essays - Turkish Sephardic Biography - Yehezkal Gabay
• Folder 11: Essays - Turkish Sephardic Folklore
• Folder 12: Research Files - Diskettes

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to researchers.

Use Restrictions

There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact:

American Sephardi Federation, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY, 10011

email: RBelinfante@ASF.CJH.org

Related Material

The holdings of the American Sephardi Federation at the Center for Jewish History has an abundance of material related to not only Sephardic Jews, but also Turkish Jews and Turk-Jewish relations. These include the following of Elli Kohen’s works:

• Elli Kohen. History of the Turkish Jews and Sephardim: Memories of a Past Golden Age. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2007.
  Local Call Number - ASF DS135.T8 K64 2007
  
  
• Elli Kohen, Dahlia Kohen-Gordon, Jacques Ovadia, Joseph G. Hirschberg. Dr. Nissim Joseph Ovadia: A Pillar of World Sephardi Judaism and a Scholar: He Completed what Napoléon Started. Coral Gables, FL: Elli Kohen, 2002.
  Local Call Number - ASF BM755 .O9 K63 2002
  
  
• Elli Kohen. History of the Byzantine Jews: A Microcosmos in the Thousand Year Empire. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2007.
  Local Call Number - ASF DS135.M43 K64 2007
  
  
• Elli Kohen, Dahlia Kohen-Gordon. Ladino-English, English-Ladino: Concise Encyclopedic Dictionary (Judeo-Spanish). New York: Hippocrene Books, 2000.
  Local Call Number - ASF PC4813.4 .K64 2000
  
  

Preferred Citation

Published citations should take the following form:

Identification of item, date (if known); Elli Kohen Papers; (location); folder number; American Sephardi Federation.

Access Points

• Individuals:

  • Ahmed III, Sultan of the Turks, 1673-1736
  • Algazi, Solomon ben Abraham, 1610?-ca. 1683
  • Danon, Abraham
  • Gabbay, Yehezkel, 1825-1898
  • Kohen, Elli
  • Mehmed IV, Sultan of the Turks, 1642-1693
  • Ovadia, Nissim Joseph, 1890-1942
  • Süleyman II, Sultan of the Turks, 1642-1691
  • Tekinalp, Munis, 1883-1961

• Subjects:

  • Byzantine Empire--Civilization
  • Byzantine Empire--History--Jews
  • Jews, Turkish
  • Sephardim

• Places:

  • Selânik (Turkey)
  • Turkey

• Document Types:

  • biographies
  • correspondence
  • essays
  • floppy disks

Container List