"There is neither Greek nor Jew," words of Archbishop
Damaskenos, in a letter of protest to the Germans after the
deportation of Jews There have been organized Jewish communities
in Greece for more than two thousand years. The oldest and the
most characteristic Jewish group that has inhabited Greece are
the Romaniotes, also called "Greek Jews" by many. However, the
term "Greek Jew" is predominantly used for any person of Jewish
faith that lives in or originates from Greece. The majority of
the Jews in Greece are Sephardim whose ancestors had left Spain
after the 1492 expulsion. Most of them installed in
Thessaloniki, the city which was to be named "Mother of Israel"
in the years to come. Besides the Sephardim and the Romaniotes,
small Ashkenazim communities had existed as well, in
Thessaloniki and elsewhere. Retrieved from
"http://en.wikipedia.org "