There are now more than 6,000 names that have been documented from several sources—Lists of Inquisition victims in Mexico, Lists of people who came and founded not only areas in Mexico, such as Nuevo Leon (Monterrey), Lists of Soldiers who helped found south Texas and New Mexico with Juan Perez Narizhonda De Onate around 1597 and others .

(Much information can be found through other websites like, Sephardim.org).

There is much history that families have hidden, so you may start by talking to your relatives in relation to their known past history. You will have to do much research as to your own family background (This is sometimes difficult, as family members were usually told to keep this a “secret”).

Some of these families came from such areas as Nuevo Reyno de Leon, northeastern Mexico(such as Guadarajara, Zacatecas, etc. Many of these hidden Sephardim migrated to south and central Texas and parts of New Mexico. Here are some other historical and common indications, among others: 

• The use of the Ladino language(or Ledezmo, not necessarily “correct Spanish” that was an archaic type Spanish spoken by the Sephardim, ie: mercar for comprar, ueno for bueno, semos for somos, parientes for padres, ansina for asina, etc.
• The Sephardic custom of giving biblical names to the children(ie, Natanael, Raquel, Josue, etc. Dietary practices such as, throwing an egg away if it had a spot of blood on it, avoiding blood in meat, testing the special knives on the edge of a fingernail or hair, etc.—many more.
• Avoiding churches with idols or icons, cleaning the house and bathing for the Sabbath, circumcising their male infant on the eighth day, Jewish objects in the home, etc.
• Other birth and practices, like throwing a silver a coin in a new baby’s bath water, the marrying of “our own kind”, etc.
• Female members covered their head with a scarf, purifying of the house after a death, cover mirrors in the house of the deceased, sweeping the dirt to the middle of the floor instead of out the door, etc.

These practices and many more have been kept secret for at least four hundred years. These traditions and others were continued, yet the meaning of many of the old customs was lost.