This talk will address the various issues connected to the introduction of civil marriage in Italy and its effects on Jewish communities, and on Jewish women in particular. Civil marriage represented a cultural shock and — at the same time — a threat to the authority of the Jewish communal institutions, since it would limit their control on marriage practices and on the life choices of Jewish women.

About the Speaker: CARLOTTA FERRARA DEGLI UBERTI earned her PhD in Contemporary History at the Scuola Normale Superiore (Pisa, Italy) in 2006.She has studied the history of Italian Jews from the end of the 18th century to WWI from an institutional and cultural perspective. Amongst her other research interests: 19th century’s Italian racism and anti-Semitism; the contemporary history of European Jewry in a comparative perspective; nationalization and nationalism in 19th century Europe; the history of marriage and divorce. Among her publications: La «Nazione ebrea» di Livorno dai privilegi all’emancipazione (1815-1860), Le Monnier 2007 and Fare gli ebrei italiani. Autorappresentazioni di una minoranza (1861-1914), Il Mulino 2011.