New Christian, Marrano, Jew

Adequate discussion of the role played by Jews in the making of the New World depends on prior clarification of a difficult question—that of defining precise and unambiguous criteria for establishing whether and in what sense a given individual is to be regarded as a Jew. This question does not arise in relation to Jews from Central and Eastern Europe; it can be answered in relatively straightforward terms in the case of Jews of Iberian origin who, before leaving Europe or after arrival in America, were members of formally recognized or tacitly tolerated Jewish communities. But in the case