Jewish figures in the history of Barcelona.

Barcelona’s Jewish history is rich with influential figures who shaped the city’s intellectual and cultural life, especially during the medieval period.

One of the most notable was Rabbi Shlomo ben Adret (Rashba), a towering legal authority and philosopher of the 13th century, who led the Jewish community and presided over one of the most important Talmudic academies in Europe.

Another key figure was Samuel ha-Sardí, a scholar and poet whose Hebrew inscription still survives in the city, offering a rare glimpse into the spiritual life of the time. These individuals were part of a thriving Jewish quarter known as El Call, where Jews served as doctors, merchants, and advisors to the Crown of Aragon.

Despite the tragic expulsion and violence of 1391, their legacy endures in the city’s architecture, inscriptions, and the quiet resilience of memory etched into Barcelona’s stones