The 'Secret Jews' of San Luis Valley

In Colorado, the gene linked to a virulent form of breast cancer found mainly in Jewish women is discovered in Hispanic Catholics

By Jeff Wheelwright
Photographs by Scott S. Warren
Smithsonian magazine, October 2008, Subscribe

For some people in the region (Chapel of All Saints, San Luis, Colorado), the DNA results have been a revelation. (Scott S. Warren)

One September day in 2001, Teresa Castellano, Lisa Mullineaux, Jeffrey Shaw and Lisen Axell were having lunch in Denver. Genetic counselors from nearby hospitals and specialists in inherited cancers, the four would get together periodically to talk shop. That day they surprised one another: they'd each documented a case or two of Hispanic women with aggressive breast cancer linked to a particular genetic mutation. The women had roots in southern Colorado, near the New Mexico border. "I said, 'I have a patient with the mutation, and she's only in her 40s,'" Castellano recalls. "Then Lisa said that she had seen a couple of cases like that. And Jeff and Lisen had one or two also. We realized that this could be something really interesting."

Curiously, the genetic mutation that caused the virulent breast cancer had previously been found primarily in Jewish people whose ancestral home was Central or Eastern Europe. Yet all of these new patients were Hispanic Catholics.

Mullineaux contacted Ruth Oratz, a New York City-based oncologist then working in Denver. "Those people are Jewish," Oratz told her. "I'm sure of it."

Pooling their information, the counselors published a report in a medical journal about finding the gene mutation in six "non-Jewish Americans of Spanish ancestry." The researchers were cautious about some of the implications because the breast cancer patients themselves, as the paper put it, "denied Jewish ancestry."

The finding raised some awkward questions. What did the presence of the genetic mutation say about the Catholics who carried it? How did they happen to inherit it? Would they have to rethink who they were—their very identity—because of a tiny change in the three billion "letters" of their DNA? More important, how would it affect their health, and their children's health, in the future?

Some people in the valley were reluctant to confront such questions, at least initially, and a handful even rejected the overtures of physicians, scientists and historians who were suddenly interested in their family histories. But rumors of secret Spanish Jewry had floated around northern New Mexico and the San Luis Valley for years, and now the cold hard facts of DNA appeared to support them. As a result, families in this remote high-desert community have had to come to grips with a kind of knowledge that more and more of us are likely to face. For the story of this wayward gene is the story of modern genetics, a science that increasingly has the power both to predict the future and to illuminate the past in unsettling ways.

Expanding the DNA analysis, Sharon Graw, a University of Denver geneticist, confirmed that the mutation in the Hispanic patients from San Luis Valley exactly matched one previously found in Ashkenazi Jews from Central and Eastern Europe. The mutation, 185delAG, is a variant of a gene called BRCA1. When normal and healthy, BRCA1 helps to protect breast and ovarian cells from cancer. An extremely long gene, it has thousands of DNA letters, each corresponding to one of four chemical compounds that make up the genetic code and run down either strand of the DNA double helix; a "misspelling"—a mutation—can occur at virtually any letter. Some are of no consequence, but the deletion of the chemicals adenine (A) and guanine (G) at a site 185 rungs into the DNA ladder—hence the name 185delAG—will prevent the gene from functioning. Then the cell becomes vulnerable to a malignancy. To be sure, most breast and ovarian cancers do not run in families. The cases owing to BRCA1 and a similar gene, BRCA2, make up less than 10 percent of cases overall.

By comparing DNA samples from Jews around the world, scientists have pieced together the origins of the 185delAG mutation. It is ancient. More than 2,000 years ago, among the Hebrew tribes of Palestine, someone's DNA dropped the AG letters at the 185 site. The glitch spread and multiplied in succeeding generations, even as Jews migrated from Palestine to Europe. Ethnic groups tend to have their own distinctive genetic disorders, such as harmful variations of the BRCA1 gene, but because Jews throughout history have often married within their religion, the 185delAG mutation gained a strong foothold in that population. Today, roughly one in 100 Jews carries the harmful form of the gene variant.

Meanwhile, some of the Colorado patients began to look into their own heritage. With the zeal of an investigative reporter, Beatrice Wright searched for both cancer and Jewish ancestry in her family tree. Her maiden name is Martinez. She lives in a town north of Denver and has dozens of Martinez relatives in the San Luis Valley and northern New Mexico. In fact, her mother's maiden name was Martinez also. Wright had been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000, when she was 45. Her right breast was removed and she was treated with chemotherapy. Later, her left breast, uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries were removed as a precaution. She had vaguely known that the women on her father's side were susceptible to the disease. "With so much cancer on Dad's side of the family," she said, "my cancer doctor thought it might be hereditary." Advised by Lisa Mullineaux about BRCA testing, she provided a blood sample that came back positive for 185delAG.

When Wright was told that the mutation was characteristic of Jewish people, she recalled a magazine article about the secret Jews of New Mexico. It was well known that during the late Middle Ages the Jews of Spain were forced to convert to Catholicism. According to a considerable body of scholarship, some of the conversos maintained their faith in secret. After Judaism was outlawed in Spain in 1492 and Jews were expelled, some of those who stayed took their beliefs further underground. The exiles went as far as the New World.

Mullineaux contacted Ruth Oratz, a New York City-based oncologist then working in Denver. "Those people are Jewish," Oratz told her. "I'm sure of it."

For the first time Wright connected this history to memories of conceivably Jewish customs, such as sweeping dust into the center of a room and covering mirrors while mourning a loved one's death. She read up on the Spanish "crypto-Jews" in the library and on the Internet. In 2001, she and her husband made an extended visit to the valley and northern New Mexico. Tracking down as many of her paternal relatives as she could find, she alerted them to their dangerous genetic legacy and their ethno-religious heritage. "I have 60 first cousins, some I never knew I had," she says. "So I went fact-finding. I made the trek because I needed to know where I was from. 'Did you know about our Jewish heritage?' I said. It wasn't a big deal to some of them, but others kind of raised an eyebrow like I didn't know what I was talking about."

Part of New Mexico Territory until the U.S. government delineated the Colorado Territory in 1861, the San Luis Valley lies between two chains of mountains, the San Juans to the west and the Sangre de Cristos to the east. The Rio Grande begins here. The town of San Luis—the oldest in Colorado—is the Spanish heart of the valley. With an old church on the central plaza and a modern shrine on a mesa overlooking the town, San Luis bristles with Catholic symbols. It seems a short step back in time to the founding of the New Mexico colony, when picaresque gold-hungry conquistadors, Franciscan friars and Pueblo Indians came together, often violently, in a spare and sunburnt land. As Willa Cather put it in Death Comes for the Archbishop, perhaps the best novel about the region, the sunsets reflected on the Sangre de Cristo Mountains are "not the colour of living blood" but "the colour of the dried blood of saints and martyrs."

The discovery of the 185delAG mutation in the valley and subsequently in New Mexico hints at a different story, with its own trail of blood and persecution. The significance of the genetic work was immediately recognized by Stanley M. Hordes, a professor at the University of New Mexico. During the early 1980s, Hordes had been New Mexico's official state historian, and part of his job was assisting people with their genealogies. Hordes, who is 59, recalls that he received "some very unusual visits in my office. People would drop by and tell me, in whispers, that so-and-so doesn't eat pork, or that so-and-so circumcises his children." Informants took him to backcountry cemeteries and showed him gravestones that he says bore six-pointed stars; they brought out devotional objects from their closets that looked vaguely Jewish. As Hordes began speaking and writing about his findings, other New Mexicans came forward with memories of rituals and practices followed by their ostensibly Christian parents or grandparents having to do with the lighting of candles on Friday evenings or the slaughtering of animals.

Hordes laid out his research in a 2005 book, To the End of the Earth: A History of the Crypto-Jews of New Mexico. Following the Jews' expulsion from Spain, crypto-Jews were among the early settlers of Mexico. The Spanish in Mexico periodically tried to root out the "Judaizers," but it is clear from the records of trials that Jewish practices endured, even in the face of executions. According to Hordes' research, settlers who were crypto-Jews or descended from Jews ventured up the Rio Grande to frontier outposts in New Mexico. For 300 years, as the territory passed from Spanish to Mexican to United States hands, there was almost nothing in the historical record about crypto-Jews. Then, because of probing by younger relatives, the stories trickled out. "It was only when their suspicions were aroused decades later," Hordes writes, "that they asked their elders, who reluctantly answered, 'Eramos judíos' ('We were Jews')."*

But were they? Judith Neulander, an ethnographer and co-director of the Judaic Studies Program at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, was at first a believer of Hordes' theory that crypto-Judaism had survived in New Mexico. But after interviewing people in the region herself, she concluded it was an "imagined community." Among other things, Neulander has accused Hordes of asking leading questions and planting suggestions of Jewish identity. She says there are better explanations for the "memories" of unusual rites—vestiges of Seventh-Day Adventism, for example, which missionaries brought to the region in the early 20th century. She also suggested that perhaps some dark-skinned Hispanics were trying to elevate their ethnic status by associating themselves with lighter-skinned Jews, writing that "claims of Judaeo-Spanish ancestry are used to assert an overvalued line of white ancestral descent in the American Southwest."

Hordes disagrees. "Just because there are some people who are wannabes doesn't mean everybody is a wannabe," he says. But he acknowledges that Neulander's criticisms have made him and other researchers more cautious.

Hordes, pursuing another line of evidence, also pointed out that some of the New Mexicans he was studying were afflicted by a rare skin condition, pemphigus vulgaris, that is more common among Jews than other ethnic groups. Neulander countered that the same type of pemphigus vulgaris occurs in other peoples of European and Mediterranean background.

Then the 185delAG mutation surfaced. It was just the sort of objective data Hordes had been looking for. The findings didn't prove the carriers' Jewish ancestry, but the evidence smoothly fit his historical theme. Or, as he put it with a certain clinical detachment, it's a "significant development in the identification of a Jewish origin for certain Hispano families."

"Why do I do it?" Hordes was addressing the 2007 meeting, in Albuquerque, of the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies, a scholarly group he co-founded. "Because the fabric of Jewish heritage is richer in New Mexico than we thought." His research and that of others, he said at the gathering, "rip the veneer off" the accounts of Spanish-Indian settlement and culture by adding a new element to the conventional mix.

One conference attendee was a Catholic New Mexican who heartily embraces his crypto-Jewish heritage, the Rev. Bill Sanchez, a local priest. He says he has upset some local Catholics by saying openly that he is "genetically Jewish." Sanchez bases his claim on another genetic test, Y chromosome analysis. The Y chromosome, handed down from father to son, provides a narrow glimpse of a male's paternal lineage. The test, which is promoted on the Internet and requires only a cheek swab, is one of the more popular genealogy probes. Sanchez noted that the test suggested he was descended from the esteemed Cohanim lineage of Jews. Still, a "Semitic" finding on this test isn't definitive; it could also apply to non-Jews.

Geneticists warn that biology is not destiny. A person's family tree contains thousands of ancestors, and DNA evidence that one may have been Hebrew (or Armenian or Bolivian or Nigerian) means very little unless the person decides to embrace the implication, as Sanchez has done. He sees no conflict between his disparate religious traditions. "Some of us believe we can practice rituals of crypto-Judaism and still be good Catholics," he says. He keeps a menorah in a prominent place in his parish church and says he adheres to a Pueblo belief or two for good measure.

At the Albuquerque meeting, the new evidence about 185delAG prompted discussion not only among academics but also among some of the subjects. Robert Martinez, no immediate relation to Beatrice Wright, teaches history at a high school near Albuquerque. During his summer vacations he helps Hordes sift through municipal and church records in Latin America and Europe, studying family histories and looking for references to Judaism. He traces his roots to members of the first expedition to New Mexico, led by Juan de Oñate, in 1598. The Spanish explorer himself had converso relatives, Hordes has found, and included conversos in the expedition.

When he went to work as Hordes' assistant ten years ago, Martinez, who is 45, was well aware of the disease in his family: several relatives have had breast or ovarian cancer. "Of course, I'd always heard about the cancer in our family on our mom's side," he says. "And then two of my sisters were diagnosed within months of each other." Both women tested positive for 185delAG and have since died. "I carry the mutation too," he says.

The Jewish connection caused no stir in his family, he says. "Me, I'm open. I want to know, Who am I? Where am I? We're a strange lot, New Mexicans. We refer to ourselves as Spanish, but we have Portuguese blood, Native American, some black too. We descend from a small genetic pool, and we're all connected if you go back far enough."

Teresa Castellano, the genetic counselor, has spent time in the San Luis Valley explaining BRCA to community leaders, patients and others. BRCA carriers, she tells them, have up to an 80 percent risk of developing breast cancer, as well as a significant risk of ovarian cancer. If a woman tests positive, her children would have a 50-50 chance of acquiring the flawed gene. BRCA mutations are passed down by men and women alike. If a family has mainly sons, the threat to the next generation may be masked.

A year and a half ago, Castellano got a call from a laboratory technician advising her of another patient with a connection to the 185delAG mutation. The patient's family had roots in the San Luis Valley and northern New Mexico. Their name was Valdez. At the top of the pedigree were eight siblings, two of whom, sisters, were still living. In the next generation were 29 adult children, including 15 females. Five of the 15 women had developed breast or ovarian cancer. Then came an expanding number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, who were as yet too young for the disease but who might have the mutation. Only one or two members of the disparate clan still lived in the valley.

Ironically, Castellano's initial patient, Therese Valdez Martinez, did not carry the mutation herself. Her breast cancer was a "sporadic" case, not associated with a known mutation. But Therese's sister Josephine and her first cousin Victoria had died of ovarian cancer. Their DNA, retrieved from stored blood samples, tested positive for 185delAG. "Something's going on with our family," Therese said. "We need to wake up."

Castellano offered to hold counseling sessions with members of the Valdez extended family in April 2007. With Therese's backing, she sent out 50 invitations. A total of 67 people, including children, attended the session in a hospital conference room in Denver. Therese said, "One cousin—he won't come. He doesn't want to know. To each his own."

The tables were arranged in a U-shape, rather like the mountains around the valley. Castellano stood at the open end. She pointed out that in addition to breast and ovarian cancer the Valdez family had several cases of colon cancer. "There's some risk, it appears," Castellano said, "and therefore everyone in the family should have a colonoscopy at age 45." That caused grumbling among her listeners.

"This family has a lot of ovarian cancer," she went on, "but appears not to have a breast cancer case under age 35. So we think the age for women for starting their annual mammograms should be 30 to 35. We recommend that our '185' families do it by MRI every year. And if you do have 185," she added bluntly, "get your ovaries out at age 35."

A silence, then a question from a young woman in her 20s: "Can't a healthy lifestyle help? Do you have to have your ovaries out at 35?"

"Taking them out will decrease your risk but not eliminate it," Castellano said. Looking for support for this harsh measure, she smiled down the table at Angelita Valdez Armenta. Angelita had undergone the operation, called an oophorectomy. "Angie is a great example of how someone here is going to get old!" Months after the meeting, Angelita had her DNA tested and learned she was indeed a carrier of 185delAG.

The point of the meeting, which Castellano came to quickly enough, was to encourage family members to sign up for the DNA test. "Do you have to be tested?" she said. "No. But then you have to pretend you're positive and be more proactive about your health and your screening." Noting that the men were also at some risk of breast cancer, Castellano urged them to check themselves by inverting the nipple and feeling for a pea-sized lump.

Shalee Valdez, a teenager videotaping the session, put down her camera. "If you have the mutation," she wanted to know, "can you donate blood?" Yes. "Can it get into other people?" No, you had to inherit it. Shalee looked pleased. Castellano looked satisfied. As of this writing 15 additional Valdezes have undergone testing for the 185delAG mutation, with six of them testing positive.

Even Stanley Hordes, whose two decades of historical research has been bolstered by the 185delAG findings, says that the greatest value of the genetic information in New Mexico and Colorado is that it "identified a population at risk for contracting potentially fatal diseases, thus providing the opportunity for early detection and treatment." In other words, genes are rich in information, but the information that matters most is about life and death.

As she prepared for the Valdez family meeting, Castellano recalled, she wondered how the group would respond to what she had to tell them about their medical history. Then she plunged into her account of how 185delAG originated in the Middle East and traveled to New Mexico. The revelation that the Valdezes were related to Spanish Jews prompted quizzical looks. But, later, Elsie Valdez Vigil, at 68 the oldest family member there, said she wasn't bothered by the information. "Jesus was Jewish," she said.

Jeff Wheelwright, who lives in Morro Bay, California, is working on a book about the 185delAG breast cancer mutation.
Photographer Scott S. Warren is based in Durango, Colorado.

*Editor's Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly translated 'We were Jews' as 'Erasmos judios.' Smithsonian apologizes for the error.

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Additional Sources

"Identification of Germline 185delAG BRCA1 Mutations in Non-Jewish Americans of Spanish Ancestry From the San Luis Valley, Colorado," Lisa G. Mullineaux et al., Cancer, August 1, 2003

Comments (64)

It's posible that about 20% of the Spanish population have Jewish DNA although many Spanish including Spaniards with the Jewish DNA findings are to this day Jew-hating. The last time I visited Spain (Malaga)In 1972 I asked a passerby who happened to be a Priest where the Synagogue was (at that time it was in an appartment block) he ther priest insulted me, he spat at the ground and intimated that there were no longer any Jews in Spain (there were 12,000 then now around 50,000). I would never viit that country again.

Posted by Samir S. Halabi on April 28,2013 | 05:55 AM

I'm sorry to say this is tabloid at best, look at the genetic studies. Hispanics have a great Mediterranean component, to which both Sephardic and Askenazi Jews share. Here's the genetic dilemma Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jewish people are not as related to each other as they are with other host populations. There are plenty of studies that show this, Behar, Avshalom Zoossmann-Diskin 2010 "The origin of Eastern European Jews revealed by autosomal, sex chromosomal and mtDNA polymorphisms" shows that Ashkenazi Jews are related to Italians, at least 40%. And another study by Underhill et al... This then becomes an easy connection, Italians are most related to Spaniards. Ash are most related to Italians... Spaniards have a large historical connection with Rome... There is no need to create a complicated secret history to explain this medical issue.

Posted by Aaron on March 31,2013 | 12:54 AM

I was born in Alamosa, 1939. The Catholic Encyclopedia identifies which names are Jewish and De Herrera and Herrera are Jewish (Saphardic not Ashkenazi Jews) I have read. There is NEVER any talk of 'Jewish origin' in any of the Spanish families. We arrived in New Mexico in 1598 (Onati Expedition). I don't recall any 'breast cancer' in the De Herreras. My mother died of breast cancer, her family was "King or Konig" of Swiss origin. jdh

Posted by John De Herrera on March 3,2013 | 10:34 PM

Palestine is the roman designation for the land of Israel.

Posted by Anthony on July 21,2012 | 11:53 PM

VERY INTERESTING ARTICLE. I'M A REGISTERED SONOGRAPHER. THE HOSPITAL HAS AN OUTPATIENT CLINIC WHICH OFFERS MAMMOGRAM AND BREAST SONOGRAM DIAGNOSTIC SERVICES. THE FEMALE SONOGRAPHERS ASSIGNED TO THIS CLINIC OFTEN EXPRESS THEIR CONCERNS OF POSITIVE BREAST CA ON THE MOSTLY HISPANIC PATIENTS SENT FOR THESE EXAMS. IT'S A FACT THAT THE SEPHARDIC JEWS SETTLED HERE IN THE TEXAS RIO GRANDE VALLEY BEFORE MIGRATING NORTH. MAYBE SOMEONE MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN COMING DOWN TO SOUTH TEXAS AND DO SOME RESEARCH ON THESE FINDINGS. I FEEL VERY CONFIDENT THAT SOMEONE WILL FIND A LINK BETWEEN THESE WOMEN AND THOSE IN SAN LUIS VALLEY. TKS JOSE A. LUNA , DESCENDANT OF THE SEPHARDIC JEWS.

Posted by JOSE A. LUNA on May 6,2012 | 03:50 PM

Fascinating article. To further expand your research and to bolster the connection between the humanities and the sciences, I would recommend looking into cases of thalassemia in the San Luis Valley and the linguistic particulars of the people of this region. The language has been preserved, to some extent, and shows a strong connection to that of Ladino or "Djudeo espanyol."

Posted by Francisco Macias on May 3,2012 | 08:09 AM

I was just reunited with my brother in northern new Mexico after being separated for 50 years. I was given the family tree with the name Valdez and Martinez on the family tree. My birth mother was a Valdez. This is an important article and I appreciate knowing this since I have two daughters. Read our article in the Seattle times. "a brothers search, a family reunited" Thank you, J Kach

Posted by Janna Kach on March 30,2012 | 12:44 AM

Shortly after my father passed away last year I came across of a sephardic TANAKH that he was studying in Hebrew and Spanish. This made me investigate some more into my family history in northern New Mexico, particularly Taos and Arroyo Hondo and Arroyo Seco. To my surprise my grandmother casually mentioned that we were Jews once, and that my grandfather (who descends from the original Silva family that settled New Mexico in the 1690s) was a secretly practicing Jew. I recently converted to Judaism and am now practicing. Whenever I visit my father's grave in Arroyo Seco I place a rock there as is the Jewish custom. The last time I visited his grave I was surprised to see that along with the rocks I've placed there, dozens more were placed as well.

Posted by Silva on February 13,2012 | 12:13 AM

just to add to the interesting info, I seem to remember Dr. Stan Hordes saying he was looking into a link between gallbladder cancer (common to Jews) & northern NM people.

Posted by marsha on December 17,2011 | 07:03 PM

I am a decendent of the Martinez - Gomes bloodline that lived in the San Luis Valley specifically "Las Mesitas". I have a cousin who did research into this and told our family we may very well be Crypto-Jews. I am interested in finding out how to get this test done to find out if I have this marker. If someone could contact me regarding obtaining the test i can be reached at: Spokegal@frontiernet.net

Posted by Jessica Martinez Brown on July 20,2011 | 05:50 PM

Go to www.facingourrisk.org and you will find all the information you need regarding the gene and where you can get tested. It's important to do the testing thru a genetic specialist and you can plug your zip code in and the website will tell you where you can find a specialist in your area.

Posted by Roberta Smith on May 23,2011 | 09:48 AM

everyone should know about the data on vitamin D in the prevention and possible treatment of breast cancer. www.vitaminD3world.com has some good summaries of the data

Posted by toby lee on April 24,2011 | 07:41 AM

My parents were born in "El Valle", my father in San Luis and my mother in San Pablo. My Christian pastor teaches that after the Assyrian captivity the "ten lost tribes" of Israel migrated over the Caucasus Mountains into Europe. The tribe of Manasseh eventually settled into Canada and the United States of America. In Hebrew Manasseh means "causing to forget". 35 miles SW of Albuquerque, NM at Hidden Mountain the Ten Commandments are scribed in rock in Paleo-Hebrew. This implies that a Hebrew-Schemetic people inhabited this area about 100 years before Christ was born. On the internet type in Hidden Mountain,NM!

Posted by John Trujillo on February 14,2011 | 07:46 PM

When I was 12 or 13 years old, I overheard my mother and one of her female cousins discussing our Jewish roots. It turned out that I wasn't supposed to find out about them. To this day, if I mention our Jewish ancestry to my mother, she'll just ignore me. I later found out that in many families there are designated bearers of the "secret", often exclusively women. Others in the family are kept in the dark. This level of secrecy, excluding even family members, may seem strange, but it's a kind of habitual discretion left over from centuries of living in fear of the Inquisition.

As an adult I learned that whispered hints of Jewish ancestry have long been a part of life for many Hispanic families in New Mexico and south Texas, particularly those with roots in Monterrey or Saltillo. I did some genealogical research a while back and was astounded by how many branches of my family tree lead back to one of those two cities. It got to be almost absurd after a while.

Posted by Phil on September 29,2010 | 03:57 AM

Hello everyone. I came upon this site while searching for family members in Monterrey. My mother's maiden name is Valdez. My family originated in Spain and moved to Monterrey, Mexico. Many of them have stayed in Mexico and the rest that I know well live here in Texas. Mainly Houston, Tx. I am also aware that I have family that moved to California and other US states. This is all so very interesting. I am not too familiar with most of my family because we have such a large family. I was born in Texas and do not know very much spanish so I don't really know too much about my family and their story. Most of my this side of my family speak little english. I am at the age now though where I want to learn more about where my family and I came from and our family history and geneology. Could there be a possibility that this is the case with my family.. I am not sure about medical issues in my family but I have heard that some of them had different types of cancer. I myself have a chance of getting cervical cancer because in the past I had Human Pappiloma Virus..and my mom went through the same thing years ago. I am just so curious now and I really want to look more into this. If anyone can help me in finding more information please email me at laura.jeffers1@verizon.net . Thank you all so much.

Posted by Laura on July 1,2010 | 02:27 PM

This makes complete sense. From a social religious point of view it should be noted that the Penitentes, a 'Catholic Cult' of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, particularly the SLV were/are known to practice several rituals unique only to themselves and medieval Judaism. I don't think that is mere coincidence. The late Dr. Robert Buchanan of Adams State College in Alamosa did a lot of research on this and even was part of PBS documentary on it int he 70's or 80's.

Posted by Joseph Sheader on June 22,2010 | 06:22 PM

My grandparents we believe were part of the secret Jews in Spain. My grandmother maiden last name was Merchior, she was Portuguese/spanish my grandfather was Italian/ Spanish my grandmother married name was Medrano, who knows may have been changes from what we have learned the Jews in Spain were called Marrano Jews, to Medrano to disquise who they truly were. If anyone has infomation on how one can be DNA tested please let me know by email. My father died of cancer and it is important to be tested to see if we are linked to a particular genetic mutation. Snuggles4you@aol.com

Rebecca Medrano-Adkins

Posted by Rebecca on February 15,2010 | 04:57 PM

My father's ancestry can be traced back to southwest France (Pyrenees Atlantique). DNA findings indicate that someone in my father's line crossed paths with Jews in the area of Poland, Romania, Hungry, Lithuania, Austria, Russia, etc. If I have genetic links to Jews, it's OK with me. It's not going to change my life but I do want others in the family to know in the event that they have symptoms that could be explained by genetic mutations waaaaaaaaaay back. If having info about my blood line can save another person's life, then I want to help out in any way that I can.

Posted by Frank Lostaunau on December 27,2009 | 05:22 PM

It is amazing to me how so many of the commentors distorted the meaning of the article.

The article tells the story of how the observation of clustering of a certain type of cancer which has a genetic basis led to the idea that this population which did not identify itself as Jewish might have had some genetic connection to Jews. Basically, a medical event, that is clustering of a type of cancer, gave insight into some historical and cultural events. Some people might have ignored, or embraced this bit of Jewish ancesry in various ways. Then some Mormon comes in and tries to use this to prove what is written in the book of Moroni. Well, the book of Mormon claims that Jews came to America after 586 BCE despite teh fact that there is no genetic evidence for any connection between Native Peoples and Jews. In fact, the genetic evidence is that Native Americans came from Asia. Then another commentor tried to prove or praise Jesus because of all this. Look, it is really quite simple, there has been all sorts of genetic and cultural exchange, and Pre-Vatican II Catholicism and especially, Medevial Catholicism forced Jews to convert and did some other horrible things. But that does not mean that the Mormon premise or the Christian fundamental premise is true. All it means is that genetics reveals things about the cultural past that people sometimes have forgotten or ignored.

Posted by Dr. Yusuf Al-Kindi on November 27,2009 | 09:31 AM

Jewish or not, Spanish or not, every woman should take Vitamin D supplements because it has been PROVEN to eliminate breast cancer. Pharmaceutical companies would lose a lot of money if everybody took Vitamin D which has no side effects and cannot be overdosed at all. Spanish Jews do not get enough sunshine to create their own. Most people do not unless they live in Mexico or Spain and lay out in the sun at least 15 minutes per day even in Winter. MUCHAS GRACIAS!

Posted by VicktheChick on October 29,2009 | 01:50 PM

I spend a lot of time working on my and others' genealogy and came across your article. I find it fascinating as I always have suspected the Jewish ancestry which is now being confirmed by many researchers.

I was born in San Luis, Colorado in an adobe house belonging to my grandmother who lived there all of her life. She was a Vigil and married a Trujillo and died of certical cancer. I have just in the last week been diagnosed with Invasive Left Breast Adenocarcinoma. My father's ancestors, Sanchez, migrated to the Trinidad, Colorado area and his grandfather's name was David.

I would appreciate your advice as to DNA testing, etc.

Thank you. Christine

Posted by Christine Sanchez on September 29,2009 | 01:54 AM

I wondered if you would be interested in reading the "Book of Mormon" of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It is a history of the Jewish people who came to America. The Prophet Lehi was warning the Jews that Jersualem was to be destroyed if they did not repent and turn away from their sin.(Jersualem was destroyed later because of their sin)Lehi was being persecuted and other prophets had been killed and he prayed to Heavenly Father for his and his families safety. God warned him to go and take his family into the wilderness and he would take them to a promised land where they would be safe. God led him to America and after many years his seed were scattered upon the American continent. It could very well be that these people are related to him. He had a son Nephi and if you read the book you can trace the "ancestry" of these men of God. It would be interesting to see if these people are their seed. Glad to have come across this site. Happy hunting. Let me know what you find out. Shirley

Posted by Shirley Smith on September 25,2009 | 01:16 AM

I AM AN ANCESTOR OF THE VACA'S. MY GRANDMOTHER'S FAMILY WAS THE VACA'S FROM VACAVILLE, CALIFORNIA. I HAVE DONE MUCH RESEARCH ALL THE WAY BACK TO 1212 WHERE THE NAME CABEZA DE VACA ORIGINATED. I AM CURIOUS IF VACA THE SPANISH EXPLORER {ALVAR NUNEZ} WAS EVER MARRIED OR FATHERED ANY CHILDREN. ALSO WAS WONDERING EXACTLY HOW AND WHEN HE DIED AND WHERE HE WAS BURIED. IF ANYONE OUT THERE KNOWS PLEASE LET ME KNOW. ALSO I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHO TO CONTACT ABOUT EITHER HOMESTEADING OR GETTING A LAND GRANT SINCE I AM AN ANCESTOR. BLESSINGS TO ALL KAILACAZ@AOL.COM

Posted by gail gugino on September 2,2009 | 07:43 AM

please contact me on DNA information . Thanks jose

Posted by Jose L. Gutierrez on August 30,2009 | 05:04 PM

I have studied the history of sephardim for several years, but my theory is more along the lines of the christian text of the jewish (jesus) "the story of the prodigal" which I believe to be "ephrayim the lost children of the house of Israel spoken of by the prophets, who would return to his brother Judah.

Posted by john jimenez on March 19,2009 | 12:56 AM

I really enjoyed this article. I have found that there are many Jewish lines that cross into my genealogy, and I'm not surprised. I think going back to ones roots has taken off all over the world, people want to know where they come from. Although, when we started keeping the feast and customs of the "Jews", I didn't know I had any Jewish blood for sure, only comments my father had made to me about a Jewish grandmother. And comments my mother made to me about Jews in her family and being related to the indians. I have found Martins, Martyns, and Martinez's are all related. Through my genealogy research, they supposedly spread to different areas and added or took away parts of their name. And learning I have Spanish ancestry further up the line doesn't surprise me at this point, but it is good to know considering the possibility of cancer. My great grandmother died of breast cancer, and she was indian and jewish. It gives me pause and something to consider having this information come to light. Thanks again for the article... And let the People say "Baruch Ha Ba BeShem Adonai" Amein

Posted by JC on March 15,2009 | 12:53 AM

I am speechless. I live in Kansas City MO, but my maternal relatives are out of Colorado and New Mexico....I immediately thougt of my 8 year old nephew who has a genetic disorder referred to as San Luis Valley syndrome and my 40 year old brother who has Pemphigus, my maternal grandmother passed from cancer when I was very young....I have emailed this article to my siblings...we have never researched our ancestors...I wouldnt even know where to begin.

Posted by Tina Alvarez on March 5,2009 | 06:14 PM

Thank you for such an informative article. My father was from the San Luis Valley, San Pablo to be exact. Two years ago, my brother went to Israel and stood at the praying wall and he said he got this feeling as he looked around him. He said everyone looked like his family and every time he went from one place to another they asked what his Jewish name was. We were raised Catholic but were told we we secretly Jewish all of our lives. We had a ritual of dinner on Fridays that we were not to ever miss but never knew until my brother came back from Israel and we had our DNA tested.

I grew up in a Jewish neighborhood in West Denver and Jewish mothers of friends spoke to me in Yiddish when they first met me. I went to the synagogue for Bar Mitzvahs and the like and felt at home. I am a Christina but now attend a Messianic service. I am very happy there and explore my Jewish heritage everyday.

Posted by Desiree Pacheco-DiTommaso on February 1,2009 | 09:14 PM

My mom's family is from San Francisco, Colorado which is about 15 miles east of San Luis, CO. My grandma's maiden name and married name is Martinez. She and grandpa are in fact 3rd or 4th cousins. My mom's youngest sister died of a rare and agressive form of cervical cancer at age 32. A number of relatives have battled and or died from uterine, ovarian, colon, or breast cancer. Another medical mystery is the genetic vasucular malformations in the brain that run in our branch of the family and my tia Rebecca's family. She also married a 3rd or 4th cousin. These malformed veins in the brain leak and cause stroke like symptoms and problems. My dad's family is from the Taos, New Mexico and Vadito/Penasco, New Mexico regions. Maternal surnames are Graham and Olonia which we believe lost its original spelling over time. The Paternal last name is Pacheco which is said to be from a line of Portuguese. On my dad's maternal side there has been brain tumors and testicular cancer in young men and stomach or bladder cancer in others as well as melanoma and blood disorders. Many family members are now investigating the connection between family anscestory and medical predisposition. This article helps focus the investigation.

Posted by Alexandria Sanchez on January 31,2009 | 12:04 AM

Remember the old Make Room For Daddy show when Danny Thomas would spit coffee when he was shocked. I spit out Manshevitz. This is awesome and makes total sense. My god...what if we are prejudice against our own people? It causes pause. We are so ignorant. Ignorant in prejudice in history to do things to people and ignorant of history. Thank you Smithsonian. In these times, we should embarce and come together to figure out things rather than point fingers. Whaddya say? Lachiam. Shalom. In HIS NAME. YHVH

Posted by Michael Chernik on January 9,2009 | 08:08 PM

My family has been from the San Luis Valley for many generations, of Ute and Apache ancestry mixed with a variety of genetic banks. The Spanish came, then the Mexicans and then the Gringos. It is a mixed and rich heritage and there have always been hints of Jewish ancestry. I became more aware of this when I spent four years as a social worker in the charming town of San Luis, Colorado. My family was from Mogote, a few miles from Antonito whose land was taken by land speculators who didn't respect the law as prescribed by the TREATY OF GUADALUPE HIDALGO and my family, all eleven, ended up in Monte Vista. In November, the seventh of my eight older sisters, Rebecca Sandoval, died of ovarian cancer and prior, to her demise, she had lost a breast to cancer. I found this to be a most fascinating and educational article and I hope that the research continues. juanoaxaca@gmail.com

Posted by Juan Antonio Sandoval Jr. on January 7,2009 | 07:39 PM

I am very thankful of this info. my grandmother died of stomach cancer so they say but maybe it was ovarion my cousin pased away of ovarian cancer at a tender age of 33 my mother passed away of brest cancer, now my cousin has ovarian cancer at a tender age of 50. My father passed away in 1999 of pacratic cancer and most of his bothers have died of cancer, when a person goes for a check up what test should a person ask to be given, I am 54 and have been very healthy so far but want to make sure that I can get ahead of the game. Thank you so much for all the updated information should you have any questions please contact me, madian name was maes, mothers madian was martinez and my grandmother was lovato. I have also lost two 3rd cousin who were sisters last name martinez to ovarian cancer.

Posted by Beatrice on December 21,2008 | 04:31 PM

This is a very interesting and useful article. However covering mirrors upon the death of a family member is not exclusively Jewish. In Albion's Seed; Four British Folkways in America, by David Hackett Fischer, the custom along with several others often found on the Internet as being Jewish, is fully explained as English. For info about Jewish customs be sure your source is reliable.

Posted by Janet Crain on November 15,2008 | 11:09 AM

To correct the article - 2000 years ago there was no Palestine. It was called Judea or Israel. Palestine was a name given by the Romans after the Jewish revolt was defeated by the Romans circa 130 AD as to wipe away the Jewish link to the land. The erroneous term 'Palestine' is used to this day.

Posted by Amitai on November 11,2008 | 01:00 PM

Mr. Wheelwright's compelling article, along with the numerous heart-felt responses from readers, so wonderfully demonstrates a surging public desire for research, exhibitions and publications that would further unvail and demystify the significant contribution that persons of Jewish ancestry made to European exploration, settlement and trade within what has been Federally recognized as the "Old Spanish National Historic Trail" corridor. The Old Spanish Trail Association, a 501c3 non-profit organization, would welcome hearing from anyone interested in contributing both scholarly and personal research, as well as, family legacies related to this important part of our nation's rich cultural heritage. Please contact me at manager@oldspanishtrail.org or visit www.oldspanishtrail.org. Donald Davidson Association Manager Old Spanish Trail Association

Posted by donald davidson on November 11,2008 | 12:53 PM

Thank you Jeff for all your hard work and also for finding out that our family is part of God's chosen people. I find this to be an AWESOME discovery even more so than the cancer mutation gene. Not being catholic since I was a teenager and being a born again Christian and now knowing that God's chosen people are the Jewish people is so exciting for me!!! We are now also part of that family! This gene has taken many of my family members, as you know, and I miss them very much. Again thank you for all your hard work and meeting with us in San Luis to answer our questions.

Posted by Debbie Crane on November 7,2008 | 12:41 AM

It is a known fact that some of Spain's most famous and important historical figures had one or more Jewish ancestors. St. Teresa of Avila, was the grandaughter of a Jew from Toledo, who had moved to Avila and changed his surname to Sánchez. Yet, she was an ardent Christian. King Ferdinand "The Catholic" himself had a Jewish ancestor on his mother's side (the Enríquez lineage). The Gran Duque de Alba, Pedro Alvarez de Toledo, had Jewish ancestors. I sincerely doubt that those "Secret Jews" of San Luis Valley were crypto-Jews, they were probably Conversos or even Christians by the time those territories were settled. They were soldiers, carpenters, sailors, cooks, on the payroll of the Crown of Castille, mostly in the days of King Philip II. They mostly arrived to these territories with military scouts, two generations after Columbus - Colón - himself of probable Jewish origin from the Barcelona region. Do read up on Coronado, Ponce de León, Menéndez de Avilés, Cabeza de Vaca, etc.

Posted by Teresa on October 29,2008 | 05:56 PM

I've read Dr. Hordes' book, which is very interesting. The question is not whether or not there were Crypto-Jews in New Mexico. Converted Sephardic Jews came to the New World to escape persecution by the Spanish Inquisition. And the Spanish Inquisition followed them here. Spanish records show that many were accused of being "heretic" Jews. Most likely, many of them were. Stanley Hordes shows how a certain group of Jews did come to New Mexico to escape persecution that they were receiving in Nuevo Espana (Mexico). But the Inquisition followed there here, too. The true question is whether the descendants of Crypto Jews continued to practice Jewish customs throughout more than a dozen generations. That is less certain. Although many arcane Catholic customs continued in New Mexico up into the twentieth century(such as Penitente rites in Northern New Mexico), I think it is less likely that Jewish customs would have survived. The Jewish customs would have had to have been hidden throughout these generations. I just don't think they could have survived over the years. There would have been too much intermarriage among other groups, such as Native Americans and Spanish, for these customs to have survived. I think that many people have "found" their Jewish heritage after finding out that they were descended from Jews. I'm probably descended from Jewish ancestors, and, although the thought of being so is very intriguing, I know that my family did not practice their Jewish heritage throughout the centuries.

Posted by Robert J. C. Baca on October 24,2008 | 11:59 PM

It has always been an inside joke in my family, Mexican-American. My uncle one time received a rod iron menorah for Christmas, from my cousin. The fact of of the matter is that In the 1490's some Jews had no choice but to go East from Spain, or to board a ship and what else is going on in the world.

Posted by Paul Magdaleno on October 24,2008 | 08:31 PM

This is truly timely for my research and supports the DNA results that I received from the National Geographic Genetic DNA test that my cousin received. It shows many markers of both Ashkenazi and Shepardic Jewish tracers. From my historical understanding, the Inquisition spread from Spain to Mexico and then to Santa Fe. Former Jewish families or conversos continued to flee the inquisition by volunteering to move to the furthest frontiers albiet New Mexico or south to Central and South America. More research is needed, and yes it is okay to be Christian with former Jewish ancestory. Ya are what ya are!..

Posted by Paul Douglas Gonzales on October 24,2008 | 07:51 PM

What amazes me is that people are amazed. It has been a rather well-known fact in south Texas that many of the people of northern Mexico, esp. around Monterrey and Saltillo, with the last names of birds (Falcon, Garza, etc) have Jewish blood in them. Why do you think they say people of Monterrey are "de codo" (meaning tight with their money), why there is a bread is called "semita" (Semite), that flour tortillas are unleavened bread, that there was an Inquisition in Saltillo to root out the "marranos" ("pigs"...the name Spanish Catholics called Jews who were supposed to have converted but they believed really hadn't)?

Posted by Doug Hall on October 24,2008 | 07:26 PM

Very interesting--- my mother died of ovarian cancer in 1984 and she was a Russian Jew? I found the article informative. I have not had any cancer problems, but I have a daughter that has dealt with the problem. Does it skip a generation? Thanks, Shirl

Posted by Shirl on October 24,2008 | 07:09 PM

The article is very unclear on whether the mutant gene is found in Palestine today, or in human remains containing this mutation in Palestine, or whether it is just the author's speculation that "2,000 years ago among the Hebrew Population of Palestine" the mutation occurred. I say, unless there is some proof of the variant originating in Palestine, this mutation occurred in Europe, among the converted Jews of Khazaria. That's REALLY what the evidence indicates, isn't it?? DNA testing has PROVEN the aboriginal "Jews" of present day Palestine (Sephardic Jews) are DNA matches for present day Palestinians. Same people. Unrelated to the converted Jews of ancient Khazaria (Turkey and Russia) presently making up the majority population of present day occupied Palestine. Does the present day Palestinian population also have this mutation? If not, then it originated in Europe. DNA PROVES it.

Posted by farang on October 24,2008 | 07:01 PM

"More than 2,000 years ago, among the Hebrew tribes of Palestine..." This is so politically sensitive that I have to comment. Calling the ancient region Palestine before it even had that name is a common mistake in articles, but still a mistake. Palestine was the name the Romans gave the region after their fights with the Israelites in the first century AD (or CE if you prefer), kind of as a snub since the name comes from the Philistines, ancient invaders from Greece who were enemies of the Israelites.

Posted by Adam on October 24,2008 | 06:16 PM

I have to pass this on from my mother who passed away in 1991 at age 88: "Va, mas antes naiden querian ser indios y ahora todos Oy vey!

Posted by auline Chavez Bent Bent on October 24,2008 | 04:00 PM

I am from Monte Vista, Colorado. This is a small town in the San Luis Valley. My family has lived here all our lives. My father died from Acute Myloid Leukemia in 1995 and 5 years later 1999 I was diagnosed with the same kind of Leukemia. I under went a bone marrow transplant and I am now cured. While I was getting my treatment in Denver there were 5 of us from the San Luis Valley with different kinds of cancers and 2 of us had the same kind (AML). My mother's side of the family has colon cancer. I know alot of people from the San Luis Valley with different kinds of cancer. My mother's Grandfather was a Spanish Sheep Settler that settled here in the San Luis Valley. I have an article about him and his family. This is a very interesting article, I am very interested in finding out how we developed this type of cancer. Thank you for sharing this interesting article.

Posted by Yvonne Miranda on October 22,2008 | 01:53 PM

the jews who remained in spain after 1492 were forced to convert to catholicism, and were the prime targets of the spanish inquisistion, who accused and tortured to death, thousands of innocent victims. whether the converts sincerely converted, or practiced judaism in secret, the inquisition was a powerful incentive to get as far away from spain as possible. even 500 years, the terms "new christians" and "old christians" are still used in some parts of spain! but this article fails connect the dots. specifically, if this brca mutation is found among ashkenazic jews, what is the connection to spain? is this same mutation found among the millions of sephardic jews around the mediterranean basin? (i.e. among the descendants of the spanish jews who fled spain instead of converting.) and it also neglects the "founder effect", where, given enough generations, almost everyone shares common ancestors. the converse of which is that any individual, after sufficient generations, will either have no descendants (as in the case of infertility), or be everyone's ancestor. in this case, the brca mutation may "indicate" what we already know: that many hispanic catholics are descended from one or more converted jews. it's probably equally as likely that they are descended from charlemagne!

Posted by tom on October 22,2008 | 09:44 AM

Note from the editors:

We have received several letters and comments saying that we were mistaken to report that a genetic mutation found in Ashkenazi Jews from Central and Eastern Europe could also be found in the descendants of Sephardic Jews from Spain. But we weren't in error. In fact, scientists say the mutation arose among Jewish people before they split into Ashkenazi and Sephardic groups. At least one study, from the British Journal of Cancer (http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v79/n7/abs/6690208a.html) has found the mutation in a Spanish woman of Sephardic descent. As our story said: “More than 2,000 years ago, among the Hebrew tribes of Palestine, someone's DNA dropped the AG letters at the 185 site. The glitch spread and multiplied in succeeding generations, even as Jews migrated from Palestine to Europe.”

Posted by Sarah Zielinski on October 20,2008 | 09:23 AM

I have been researching myself on our heritage and believe that the Dispora of Spain in 1492 was the crew who came with (Colon)Columbas to find a new world and be free to practice their religion. Colon needed the funds from the Catholic Kingdom so conversos were an absolute must if they wanted to rebuild their lives in the Americas.But the Basques(Vascos) Viscayas play a huge role as well. Which they are believed to also be Jewish because of the covering of the head as they always were(berets).. The blood genes O factor, Rh Neg like I carry. We are all rich in heritage and all connect in some way. Plus I am proud of the native as well that most Hispanics carry. Beatriz

Posted by Beatriz Veloz De Rodriguez on October 19,2008 | 11:20 AM

The article is facinating. I am a Cuban Jew of Ashkenazi background (my parents immigrated to Cuba between the World Wars) and I had an uncle who researched the geneology and artifacts of some of the oldest Cuban-Spanish families (which arrived in the 1500's) and discovered that most of the original Spanish families in Cuba were "Conversos" gaging by customs such as lighting candles on Friday and the making of braided egg bread for the Friday night meal. Also he showed me the photograph of a type of traditional chair where circumcisions are performed. He also told me that some of the families where not big on Church going, but that they particularly paid attention to the "Old Testament" and not the New. Why they had these customs? The answer invariably was that "they did not know why, but it is a family tradition." One additional point I would like to clarify regarding the reader's comment that Spanish Jews were given a choice to convert or be deported. In point of fact there was no choice. If the Jew was deemed necessary to the crown, he was told that he could leave but without his children. The fact that many Jews who remained continued Jewish practices and in many instances sought safe refuge far from the mainstream of Spanish influence evidences that the conversions were not voluntary. Finally, I am gratified to learn that a possible answer to the question where my forebears (Ashkenazi or European Jews) came from is from Spain.

Posted by L. S. Konski on October 18,2008 | 08:41 PM

I often tell people(even Arabs)that we are all possibly Jews if we are true sons of Abraham.My maternal family name is Matias which is one letter short of Mathias as in St.Mathias.One branch of my mothers family (Matias)was P.R. Pentecostal and so orthodox strict that lip stick,movies,TV,liquor and so much more was forbidden that they appeared to be more like Orthodox Jews rather than Christians.My aunt,the super religious matriarch of this branch of my family died of ovarian cancer at about the age of 45.I wonder if she carried the 185 gene?Although we are Puerto Ricans,she appeared to look more like an Eastern European but my intimate associations with Israelis draws a different picture to me of what a true Jew looks like and that could be anyone,Ashkenazim or Sharon;the latter is how Israelis refer to light and dark Jews as opposed to our "Black and white" description,they use family names to denote color.I always suspected that Israelis find the discussion of color as distasteful and crude and that is why they prefer,if left without a choice,to use a family name.

Posted by T.Maysonet on October 16,2008 | 01:02 AM

I am a 4th generation Spaniard from New Mexico. A Co-Worker recently gave me this article. My mother died from Ovarian Cancer in June 2001. My sister was diagnosed with Cervical Cancer at the same time as well as another sister who had the cancerous cells frozen. I find this article very interesting and maybe that explains the Cancers in the Southwest. Thank you Smithsonian for writing this article.

Posted by Jeanette on October 16,2008 | 02:17 PM

Mrs.Estella Guzman comment Jew's were to convert or die by the Catholic church is incorrect the Jews of Spain were given the option to convert or expelled from Espana, It's important for the readers to learn that during the time of Christopher Columbus, Espana had the largest Jewish population in Europe. The Moor's had occupied Iberia over seven hundred years and after the reqonquista Espana did not want to be threatened by outside forces. The Sephardi Catholic Jews of Norther New Mexico and Southern Colorado are a very blessed people.

Posted by Rodrigo Vivar on October 13,2008 | 11:48 PM

This is an amazing article because my family, both sides are actually from that part of Colorado and New Mexico. Both families did homestead and both were given Spanish Land Grants. I always knew that they married within the community of Spanish families and they spoke Spanish differently than those from Mexico. My mother's maiden name was Valdez (originally Valdes) and she married my father who was also a Valdez. They couldn't marry until the Church made sure that they were not 1st, 2nd or 3rd cousins. I left that area when I was a child and really didn't learn the language or the customs. I do however understand Spanish, but can not speak it. I have to hear it or see it written before I can pick out the words which I know but cannot say correctly or put in the proper sequence. I have been to Spain and knew about the Jews & Muslims told to either convert, leave or die. When Queen Isabella and King Fernand came into power and united Spain. I just didn't put it all together until I heard from family members recently, while visiting New Mexico, that they had read about the Jewish link between the early Spanish Settlers. I was totally amazed when I received the Smithsonian Magazine in the mail a week after returning from New Mexico. Amazing! My family has had several deaths because of Ovarian and other cancers mentioned in the Article. Vangie Edson

Posted by Vangie Edson on October 13,2008 | 06:56 PM

Fascinating article! Thank you. This past summer my mother’s father’s family held its first family reunion of all the descendents of the surname family of Roybal who are from the San Luis Valley. Reading the article made the information extremely personal. I called my mother who resides still in Colorado and share some of the myths and religish Jewish customs and practices, stated in the article where she responded to yes, I remember my parents and grandparent covering mirrors while mourning a death. Growing up Hispanic/ American Indian from the northern Pueblos your article helped to provide another piece of my genealogical heritage. I have also shared this article to my new found Aunts and female cousins. I’m sure there is a reason why this information came to us. Many thanks – PJ Bell, Eagle River, Alaska.

Posted by Pj Bell on October 7,2008 | 07:16 PM

In my county in New York,there is a town with a large "Hispanic" poulation. The Language chmn. at Rocland Comm. College has heard stories of women in the town, over the yrs, who put clean white tablecloths on table Friday nites. They also lit candles with the curtains closed. Messuzas were passed down.Burial practices were different. They didn't know why.

Posted by Rebecca Kraushaar on October 7,2008 | 01:56 PM

Since the gene dates back to the time the Jews were in Palestine, it adds another nail in the coffin of the argument that the ashkenazi were descended from the khazars.

Posted by Antonio Aguado on October 5,2008 | 03:21 PM

I have found this article truly fascinting. Historically The terrible Inquisition of Spain around 1492 was one in which many , many Jews were murdered, many Jews left for to save their Families and Lives and Many went into hiding, adopting Catholicism in order to live, but secretly carrying on their Jewish traditions. Those Jews, and descendents of Jews carrying out the ancient traditions(Menorahs, Lighting Sabbath Candles, circumcision )were found amongst Spanish Colonies throughout North and South America. While I enjoyed the article,I must bring to Your attention, that the Jewish People, and Hebrew Tribes came from Erstz Israel( The Land of Israel ) not "Palestine". The word Palestine was created by the Romans when they conquered the Land of Israel and the Jewish People. It was used to try to deligitimize the Land of Israel belonging to the Jeweish People, and to addd "Palestine to their conquests" as a Colony.Their never was any legitimite Palestine nor a Palestinian State at any time in History. There was Turkish Rule.There was British Mandate Occupation using the term Palestine, to give the Land Back to the Jews as a Promise and to take it away giving two thirds to Trans Jordan and creating then Jordan. one third remaining whereas the British witheld Jewish immigration before World War 2 and during World War 2 and after to prevent Jewish immigration from the survivors of the Shoah in Europe. In the meantime they opened the gates of British Occupied Israel which they called Palestine to large Arab migrations from other lands to Israel and putting Jewish Refugees trying to come to Israel into British Concentration Camps on Cyprus.Now the World Powers in their infinite cruelty are trying to deligitimize the one third of Israel that remains. May it NEVER come to fruition.

Posted by Michael Gorinsky on October 4,2008 | 09:50 PM

It comes as no surprise that many catholics are of Jewish decent as it was the Catholic church that gave the ultimatum of convert or die. Many Jews converted under the threat of death and now we are seeing their decedents finely come to know their roots and family history and where they came from and many are returning to their original faith. Ashkenazi Jews, are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities of the Rhineland in the west of Germany. Sephardi is a Jew with family origins in the Iberian Peninsula (modern Spain and Portugal). This includes both the descendants of Jews expelled from Spain under the Alhambra decree of 1492, or from Portugal by order of King Manuel I in 1497 and the descendants of crypto-Jews who left the Peninsula in later centuries.

Posted by Estella Guzman on October 4,2008 | 04:57 PM

From the example of yet another mutation that is distructive to showing how intimately the origin of mankind is linked genetically, on a larger scale atleast, this article favors creationism and the story of Genesis to the religion of Evolutionism. We all, ultimately, link back to 3 people and we are all related. We did not "evolve" from humanoid entities and then mutate to where we are today. We grew,traveled, interbreded, and keep moving around the earth.

Posted by John on October 4,2008 | 02:50 PM

My sister just found out she has breast cancer.We are from the San Luis valley. I read the article the secret jews of New Mexico and Colorado I will inform my sisters about BRCA1 gene. We will look into Ashkenazi jews in our family history.

Posted by Alonzo Espinoza on October 2,2008 | 03:15 AM

I want to thank you for your fascinating piece on the rich history of San Luis Valley Hispanos. Yes, not everyone with a Spanish last name is Mexican or Latino. Many Hispano families (Hispanos being the direct descendents of Spanish settlers in the American Southwest)have been in America longer than families who trace their lineage to the Mayflower Pilgrims and American Revolution era. I am a direct descendent of San Luis Hispanos. Our family originally settled the northern New Mexico towns of El Rito and Abiquiu (of Georgia O'Keeffe fame) in the early 1700s. Like so many Hispano families, they lost their Spanish land grant after New Mexico became an American territory and resettled in Colorado's San Luis Valley. I am not sure if my family carries this gene, but your article should serve to make Hispanos more aware of possible cancer risks, especially for women and future women of our families. As a health care practicioner, I strongly urge Hispanos, especially women, to at least be aware of this increased risk of cancer and have early checkups and make providers aware of our ancestral risk. And of course, be proud of our rich, ancestral history.

Posted by M. Montoya on September 30,2008 | 11:56 AM

What about the people of Northeastern Mexico who can also trace their heritage to Portuguese and Spanish Jews? What about people that have Italian heritage such as myself. They may not know that these Italian relatives may have been Jewish. They may not even know that they have Portuguese or Italian heritage, etc. as it has always been told to us that Mexicans are a mixure of Spanish and Indian. Some Jews from Spain and Portugal and maybe from other places moved to Northern Italy where for a time were not bothered by the other people there. Some of these Italian relatives also came to Mexico about the time of the Inquisition as they were explorers, merchants, founders of many towns, etc. and perhaps were looking for a place where being Jewish was tolerated. Some of the Jewish people from Mexico went to the furthest part of what was then the outskirts of Mexico - parts of Calif., Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and also Colorado. There was also an Inquisition in Mexico. My mother always told me that she heard that her maiden name of Rodriguez was changed from Montemayor. Well, I checked and we are descendants of not only Diego de Montemayor who founded Monterrey, Mexico but many other Jewish people. My grandmother lit candles on Friday nights and they covered up mirrors if people in their family died. I really don't think they knew why they had these customs. It is scary to think that we may also have these cancer genes. Thank you.

Posted by Rosalinda Egge on September 29,2008 | 01:45 AM

how interesting.!!!! my grandfather a catholic was called Judeo.,just because he had a big nose.( I thought) didn't know what a big nose has to do with being Jewish. my mom, his daughter died of ovarian cancer. her sister died of breast cancer. He died of TB.His son also died of TB. I always test positive for TB. so Dr. advised me not to take TB test.I wonder if the TB gene is also attributed to being Jewish.

Posted by juana baca on September 29,2008 | 06:03 PM

Amazing article, so well researched and well written, this article is personal for me and my family as this is our story of descent. If I may there are several books available online at www.lulu.com available to people of hispanic origin with cryto-jewish genealogies which take the guess work out of their genealogical descent and history. This may help them see if they should be tested for the 185delAG gene.

Posted by P. Pena on September 29,2008 | 11:22 AM

Loved the article! It is no surprise if how many of us R Jewish... Sephardic or Crypto or... Didn't we all descend from 1 Man & 1 Women? The fact is: We need to take the initiative & care for ourselves & mankind... That is 1 purpose of geneology! As we progress up the ancestory ladder Family ties cross all lines somewhere! Know Ur family history! My people came from Spain in 1598 & perhaps sooner; some with Colon(Christopher Columbus). I've read the Queen Isabela's treasurer was Jewish. He played a great part in financing that gr8t voyage for Colon?! And Colon? Do U Know? We will find Jews in most parts of the world... Secretly practicing or Openly practicing! Thanks for the gr8t work being done! In my immediate family I know of no occuring cancer. Praise my Jesus & help all others!!! "GiGi"

Posted by "GiGi" Encinias on September 28,2008 | 02:32 PM

Five months ago I atended an Elderhostel progrm in New Mexico on the subject "The Crypto Jews of New Mexico". This study is an incredible addition of information. I will pass it along to the head of the program. Many, many thanks. The article was found by my son, who searched it out because of a possible connection to my family. Our family background is exclusively ashkenazic, of Polish ancestry....Please send any additional relevant information. Norma S. Arbit REmatchmaker@juno.com

Posted by Norma S. Arbit on September 28,2008 | 11:42 AM

This article is riveting! I have always been interested in the tales of Crypto-Jews. Now this story of genetics makes it even moreso.

Posted by RoseShirley Goodman on September 27,2008 | 08:46 PM

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The 'Secret Jews' of San Luis Valley