Jacob Rodrigues Pereira
Encyclopedia
Jacob Rodrigues Pereira or Jacob Rodrigue Péreire (April 11, 1715 – September 15, 1780) was an academic and the first teacher
of deaf-mute
s in France
.
Born Jacob Rodrigues Pereira in Peniche, Portugal
, he was a descendant of a Marrano
(Portuguese Crypto-Jews
) family and was baptized with the name of Francisco António Rodrigues. He returned to Judaism
together with his mother. His parents were Magalhães Rodrigues Pereira and Abigail Ribea Rodrigues. After his father's death his mother fled with her son from Portugal to escape the Portuguese Inquisition
and the charge that she had relapsed into heresy, and about 1741 she settled at Bordeaux
.
Jacob Rodrigue Péreire formulated signs for numbers and punctuation and adapted Juan Pablo Bonet
's manual alphabet by adding 30 handshapes each corresponding to a sound instead of to a letter. He is therefore seen as one of the inventors of manual language for the deaf and is credited with being the first person to teach a non-verbal deaf person to speak. In 1759, he was made a member of the Royal Society of London.
A lifelong devotee to the well-being of the Jews of southern France
, Portugal
, and Spain
, beginning in 1749 he was a volunteer agent for the Portuguese Jews
at Paris
. In 1777, his efforts led to Jews from Portugal receiving the right to settle in France.
In 1876 Pereira's remains were transferred from the Cimetière de la Villette (where he had been buried the year in which that cemetery was opened) to that of the Cimetière de Montmartre.
In Bordeaux the street "Rodrigues-Pereire" was named in his honor.
His grandsons, the Péreire brothers
, Emile Péreire (1800–75) and Isaac Péreire (1806–80), were well-known French
financiers and bankers during the second empire who encouraged the construction of the first railway in France
in 1835. In 1852, they founded the Société Générale du Crédit Mobilier.
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
of deaf-mute
Deaf-mute
For "deafness", see hearing impairment. For "Deaf" as a cultural term, see Deaf culture. For "inability to speak", see muteness.Deaf-mute is a term which was used historically to identify a person who was both deaf and could not speak...
s in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Born Jacob Rodrigues Pereira in Peniche, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, he was a descendant of a Marrano
Marrano
Marranos were Jews living in the Iberian peninsula who converted to Christianity rather than be expelled but continued to observe rabbinic Judaism in secret...
(Portuguese Crypto-Jews
Crypto-Judaism
Crypto-Judaism is the secret adherence to Judaism while publicly professing to be of another faith; practitioners are referred to as "crypto-Jews"...
) family and was baptized with the name of Francisco António Rodrigues. He returned to Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
together with his mother. His parents were Magalhães Rodrigues Pereira and Abigail Ribea Rodrigues. After his father's death his mother fled with her son from Portugal to escape the Portuguese Inquisition
Portuguese Inquisition
The Portuguese Inquisition was formally established in Portugal in 1536 at the request of the King of Portugal, João III. Manuel I had asked for the installation of the Inquisition in 1515 to fulfill the commitment of marriage with Maria of Aragon, but it was only after his death that the Pope...
and the charge that she had relapsed into heresy, and about 1741 she settled at Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
.
Jacob Rodrigue Péreire formulated signs for numbers and punctuation and adapted Juan Pablo Bonet
Juan Pablo Bonet
Juan Pablo Bonet was a Spanish priest and pioneer of education for the deaf. He published the first book on deaf education in 1620 in Madrid....
's manual alphabet by adding 30 handshapes each corresponding to a sound instead of to a letter. He is therefore seen as one of the inventors of manual language for the deaf and is credited with being the first person to teach a non-verbal deaf person to speak. In 1759, he was made a member of the Royal Society of London.
A lifelong devotee to the well-being of the Jews of southern France
History of the Jews in France
The history of the Jews of France dates back over 2,000 years. In the early Middle Ages, France was a center of Jewish learning, but persecution increased as the Middle Ages wore on...
, Portugal
History of the Jews in Portugal
The history of the Jews in Portugal reaches back over two thousand years and is directly related to Sephardi history, a Jewish ethnic division that represents communities who have originated in the Iberian Peninsula .-Before Portugal:...
, and Spain
History of the Jews in Spain
Spanish Jews once constituted one of the largest and most prosperous Jewish communities under Muslim and Christian rule in Spain, before the majority, together with resident Muslims, were forced to convert to Catholicism, be expelled or be killed when Spain became united under the Catholic Monarchs...
, beginning in 1749 he was a volunteer agent for the Portuguese Jews
Spanish and Portuguese Jews
Spanish and Portuguese Jews are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardim who have their main ethnic origins within the Jewish communities of the Iberian peninsula and who shaped communities mainly in Western Europe and the Americas from the late 16th century on...
at Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. In 1777, his efforts led to Jews from Portugal receiving the right to settle in France.
In 1876 Pereira's remains were transferred from the Cimetière de la Villette (where he had been buried the year in which that cemetery was opened) to that of the Cimetière de Montmartre.
In Bordeaux the street "Rodrigues-Pereire" was named in his honor.
His grandsons, the Péreire brothers
Péreire brothers
The Péreire brothers were prominent 19th century financiers in Paris, France who were rivals of the Rothschilds. Like the Rothschilds, they were Jews, but unlike them the Péreire brothers were Sephardi Jews of Portuguese origin....
, Emile Péreire (1800–75) and Isaac Péreire (1806–80), were well-known French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
financiers and bankers during the second empire who encouraged the construction of the first railway in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1835. In 1852, they founded the Société Générale du Crédit Mobilier.