Isabella Henríquez ( – between 1680 and 1684), also known as Isabella Enríquez, was a Sephardi Jewish poet. Henríquez belonged to the ''

converso A ''converso'' (; ; feminine form ''conversa''), "convert", () was a Jew who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries, or one of his or her descendants. To safeguard the Old Christian po ...

'' community in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, where she distinguished herself in the different academies.

Isaac Cardoso Isaac (Fernando) Cardoso was a Jewish physician, philosopher, and polemic writer. Life He was born of Marrano parents at Trancoso, near Celorico, in the province of Beira, Portugal in 1603 or 1604 and died at Verona in 1683. He was an older br ...

dedicated to her his work, ''Panegyrico y excelencias del color verde'' (Madrid, 1634), and included a hymn of praise to her in his ''Parténope Ovante''. She left Spain sometime around 1635 to settle in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, where she openly embraced Judaism. She became active in the literary circles of the Spanish and Portuguese Jewish community. It is reported that Henríquez distributed

amulets An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word amuletum, which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects ...

alleged to protect against physical harm. Her only-known surviving work is a '' décima'' dedicated to Rabbi Isaac Aboab, from her manuscript ''Obras Poeticas''. The poem is quoted by

Daniel Levi de Barrios Miguel Barrios (a.k.a. Daniel Levi de Barrios; c. 1625 – 1701) was a poet and historian from a converso family who joined the community of Spanish and Portuguese Jews in Amsterdam. He was born in Montilla, Spain and died in Amsterdam. Miguel was t ...

, who dedicated two poems to her (reprinted in his 1686 work ''Bello monte de Helicona'').

References

17th-century births 1680s deaths Jewish poets Writers from Madrid Jewish women writers Writers from Amsterdam Dutch Sephardi Jews Immigrants to the Dutch Republic Spanish emigrants Conversos Jewish Dutch writers 17th-century Sephardi Jews Spanish Jews {{Netherlands-poet-stub