The expul­sion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 gave rise to a series of rich, diverse dias­po­ras that were inter­con­nect­ed through a com­mon vision and joie de vivre. The exo­dus took these Sephardim to oth­er Euro­pean coun­tries; to North Africa, Asia Minor, and South Amer­i­ca; and, even­tu­al­ly, to the Amer­i­can colonies. In each com­mu­ni­ty new lit­er­ary and artis­tic forms grew out of the meld­ing of their Judeo-Span­ish lega­cy with the cul­tures of their host coun­tries, and that process has con­tin­ued to the present day. This mul­ti­lin­gual tra­di­tion brought with it both oppor­tu­ni­ties and chal­lenges that will res­onate with­in any con­tem­po­rary cul­ture: the sta­tus of minori­ties with­in the larg­er soci­ety; the ten­sion between a civ­il, demo­c­ra­t­ic tra­di­tion and the anti-Semi­tism ready to under­mine it; and the oppos­ing forces of reli­gion and sec­u­lar­ism. This anthol­o­gy con­tains fic­tion, mem­oirs, essays, and poet­ry from twen­ty-eight writ­ers who span more than 150 years.