User:Akevoth

Amutat Akevoth
Amutah = registered foundation in Israel \ Akevoth = traces

Research of the family history and the family inheritance of Dutch Jewry
The aim of the foundation Akevoth is to collect, research and to save relevant data in order to publish the history of the Dutch-Jewish families and their heritage.

Website Akevoth: The website of Akevoth contains a vast amount of material and it is characterized by its accessibility for the visitor and its quick reaction to queries related to its content. The sources of the website are the registrations of births, circumcisions, deaths, funerals and marriages (including those conducted in synagogues), and also the results of censuses, data of membership of ANDB (the General Diamonds League), permits for market stands in Amsterdam. The collection contains Portuguese/ Spanish as well as Ashkenazi data. A large space has been allocated for the collection of family trees, historical-demographical region descriptions, which are also connected to Jewish families of Dutch origin. Part of the displayed material is the contribution of private historians and genealogists, whose research, when they meet the criteria of the foundation, was given in trust to Akevoth for publishing. In order to manage the large quantity of data efficiently, a clear sub-division has been made in the following way: data about Jews in Amsterdam, the pulsating heart of Dutch Jewry, are classified under the submenu “Mokum”, and the rest of the data can be found under the submenu “Mediene”.

Activities: The activities of Akevoth are only based on the work by devoted volunteers based in Israel, the Netherlands, Belgium and the USA. Contact between these co-operators is only maintained by means of the Internet. Also the secretariat provides, as virtual office, services via Internet.

Cooperation Connections: Akevoth has cooperation connections with her sister organization in the Netherlands (NKvJG), the Ashkenazi rooted Jewish community in the Netherlands (NIK), the Portuguese Jewish community in Amsterdam (PIG), the Foundation for Research of the History of Dutch Jewry in Jerusalem and the foundation “Morasha”, the friends circle in the Netherlands.

Beth Haim Cemetery Database: A database of the persons who where buried in the world famous cemetery of the Amsterdam Sephardi Jewish community “Beth Haim” in Ouderkerk aan de Amstel (with photographs of part of the gravestones) can be found on the site. This project was a result of the before mentioned cooperation with the PIG.

In Memoriam: Akevoth shows under the submenu “In Memoriam” in close cooperation with the Foundation for War Graves in The Hague, the list of the Dutch Jewish victims, who perished during WW II and of whom the location of their graves is unknown. This is in addition to a second database of the deceased of whom the location of burial is known.

The Stone Archives: A lengthy project started in the beginning of 2008 and stretching over years to come, carried out by a special team, partly in close cooperation with NIK, is the digitalization of the still existing gravestones in all Jewish (Ashkenazi) cemeteries. This grand scale project includes the digital photography of the gravestone, the translation of the Hebrew text on the stone and the adding of genealogical data, partly with the help of the databases, which Akevoth has available and other relevant external sources. The goal of this project intends to be a possible source for further research, as well as it being a memorial.

Kehilloth (Communities)/Famous Persons/Well-Known Institutions: A new section in progress with the purpose to serve genealogical research with auxiliary material, was recently added. It will be composed of three parts: kehilloth (communities), famous persons, and well-known Dutch-Jewish institutions, now extinct.

Genealogical Library: Except for its Internet activities, Akevoth has a genealogical library, for reference and research, as well as for lending. It is situated in Jerusalem.

Dutch Jewry is characterized by its small (but not be neglected) size. It is relatively unique in comparison with world Jewry, its specific relations with the society around it and the assimilation process within it. In addition, a large amount of genealogical and historical literary registrations, which go back to the offshoots of the 17th century, have been saved in the Netherlands. These special circumstances offer Akevoth the possibility to map out the past of the Jewish Dutchmen as extensively as possible.