How an ancient language helped a survivor escape the Holocaust
In short: Can a language save your life? This documentary explores how Moris Albahari used Ladino, a 15th-century Sephardic Jewish tongue, to navigate the dangers of World War II.
The film follows the story of Moris Albahari, born in Sarajevo in 1930, who used his mother tongue, Ladino (also known as Judeo-Spanish), as a tool for survival. After escaping a train bound for Nazi death camps, Albahari used the language to communicate with an Italian Colonel, which facilitated his escape to a Partizan refuge.
The power of this linguistic connection continued in 1944, when Albahari spoke Ladino to a Spanish-speaking US pilot. By communicating in Ladino, he successfully directed the US aviator and his UK and US teammates towards a secure partisan airfield.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Saved by Language
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