Espressioni del volgare italiano scritte in ebraico nei diari di viaggio di Meshullam da Volterra e Mosheh Basola (secoli XV-XVI)

This paper deals with the presence of “Italian” words written in Hebrew characters in travelogues of the 15th and 16th centuries. I have examined the travelogue of Mešullam of Volterra, a wealthy Jewish banker and merchant, and that of Mosheh Basola, also a banker and a merchant, as well as a rabbi, head of the yeshivah of Ancona, and a fairly appreciated kabbalist. While I have concentrated on the “Italian” words in Mešullam’s travelogue, I have also tried to point out the importance of a correct trans-literation for the understanding of the text, also discussing a few mistakes of interpretation in the English translation of Basola. The work is still in progress and the remarks are therefore only a first step towards a better understanding of the intellectual personality of some Jewish travellers of the Renaissance.