Chief Rabbi David Asseo (1914 – July 14, 2002) was the

hakham bashi ''Haham Bashi'' (chachampasēs) which is explained as "μεγάλος ραβίνος" or "Grand Rabbi". * Persian: khākhāmbāšīgarī is used in the Persian version of the Ottoman Constitution of 1876. Strauss stated that there was a possibili ...

(or

chief rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...

) of the

Republic of Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

from 1960 until his death in 2002. Chief Rabbi David Asseo was the second longest serving of the chief rabbis in Europe (after

Moses Rosen Moses Rosen (known in Hebrew as David Moshe Rosen, ) (July 23, 1912 – May 6, 1994) was Chief Rabbi (Rav Kolel) of Romanian Jewry between 1948–1994 and president of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Romania between 1964–1994. He led th ...

of Romania). In his career, he spent 40 years as chief rabbi and spiritual leader of Turkey. His deputy of seven years,

Ishak Haleva Ishak Haleva (born 1940 in Istanbul, Turkey) is the current Hakham Bashi (Chief Rabbi) ( tr, Hahambaşı) of Turkey. Chief Rabbi Haleva was the deputy to David Asseo for seven years and became the new Hakham Bashi after his death in 2002.

, became the new hakham bashi after his death in 2002. He was laid to rest at the Ulus Sephardi Jewish Cemetery in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

References

1914 births 2002 deaths 20th-century Turkish rabbis Chief rabbis of Turkey Rabbis from Istanbul 21st-century Turkish rabbis 20th-century Sephardi Jews 20th-century Turkish Jews Turkish Sephardi Jews {{Turkey-rabbi-stub