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Jewish History Nerds: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Unpacked
Whoever said history was boring clearly never heard these stories…Welcome to Jewish History Nerds! Join hosts Yael and Schwab each week as they take a dive into some deep cuts of Jewish history. From the Jewish Da Vinci Code to mass suicide pacts, explore true stories that feel larger than life.
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- 6 days ago21 min
After the Execution: The Rosenberg Boys (Director’s Cut)
Please join the conversation. Leave a comment wherever you get your podcasts and send us your video reaction to nerds@unpacked.media. When Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed in 1953, they left behind two young sons. This outtake from our episode on the Rosenbergs follows Michael and Robert from the Jewish institutional system to the couple who gave them a new name, Meeropol. Yael and Schwab also revisit the Venona cables, where every Soviet spy had a code name except Ethel, and ask what the Jewish community’s near-silence on the Rosenbergs says about the golden age of American Jewry. We want to hear from you, Nerd Nation! Please join the conversation. Comment wherever you get your podcasts. And, we're trying something new. Please send us your audio or video comments to nerds@unpacked.media with your thoughts. Should the fact that Julius and Ethel Rosenberg would leave behind two young boys have factored into the sentencing decision? What other children became the victims of their parents’ fame and alleged crimes? Here's a link to the full episode: Ethel and Julius Rosenberg: The case that divided American Jews. Heir to an Execution: A Granddaughter's Story, by Ivy Meeropol. An Execution in the Family: One Son’s Journey, by Rober Meerpol. We Are Your Sons: The Legacy of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg Here is an image of the Rosenbergs' grave. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out our videos on youtube and Spotify. Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount. ----------- For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out: Borderlines with That Semite Soulful Jewish Living Stars of David with Elon Gold Unpacking Israeli History Wondering Jews
- 1 weeks ago13 min
Snakes, Synagogues, and Sand Floors: The Director’s Cut
We’re back with a Director’s Cut of Jewish History Nerds, the 2x Signal Award winner, including the Listener’s Choice Award! This time, Yael and Schwab are digging into the mystery of sand floors in Caribbean synagogues and exploring how Jewish communities have picked up customs from their neighbors, adapting them to create their own local flavor. Here is a link to the full episode: Jewish Pirates and the Caribbean. Do you have your own theories, customs, or stories from your travels? Comment wherever you get your podcasts and send us a video at nerds@unpacked.media. We want to hear from Nerd Nation! This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out our videos on youtube and Spotify. Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount. For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out: Borderlines with That Semite Soulful Jewish Living Stars of David with Elon Gold Unpacking Israeli History Wondering Jews
- 2 weeks ago40 min
Was Jabotinsky the Father of Likud and the Israeli Right? Revisited
Jewish History Nerds is now an award-winning podcast! We took home two Signal Awards for history: Gold and Listener’s Choice. Thank you, Nerd Nation for coming out to vote. Speaking of elections, Israelis are gong to the polls. So we decided to revisit one of our favorite episodes, the story of Ze’ev Jabotinsky. The founder of Revisionist Zionism is widely claimed as the ideological father of Likud and the Israeli right. But what did he actually believe? Jabotinsky predicted the Holocaust, fought for Jewish self-defense, and built the movement that shaped modern Israel. This is the origin story of the Israeli right, and it’s not what you think. Email us at nerds@unpacked.media. We want to hear from you. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out our videos on youtube and Spotify. Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount. For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out: Borderlines with That Semite Soulful Jewish Living Stars of David with Elon Gold Unpacking Israeli History Wondering Jews
- 4 weeks ago49 min
How 1492 Launched the American Jewish Story (Last Day to VOTE)
Today is the last day to vote for Jewish History Nerds in the Signal Awards Listener’s Choice competition. Cast your vote at unpacked.bio/VoteJHN2026 after creating a free log in. Find detailed instructions below. We decided to revisit the episode we submitted for their consideration. In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. That same year, Jews were expelled from Spain. Those two events are more connected than you think, and together they explain why the first Jewish community in the Americas ended up exactly where it did. It wasn’t New York. Here's how you can vote for Jewish History Nerds for a Listener Choice Signal Award: Go to this link https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting#/2026/shows/genre/history Create an account or sign in with your email at the top right of the page. Select Jewish History Nerds in the History category. Questions? Email us at nerds@unpacked.media. We're happy to help. Thank you and as always, if you enjoy this show, please leave a comment and review wherever you get your podcasts. We will be back soon with a brand new season of episodes. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out our videos on youtube and Spotify. Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount. For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out: Borderlines with That Semite Soulful Jewish Living Stars of David with Elon Gold Unpacking Israeli History Wondering Jews
- Oct 9, 202647 min
"Bronx Man Leads Russian Revolution": Trotsky Revisited
Head to unpacked.bio/VoteJHN2026 to cast your vote for Jewish History Nerds in the Listener Choice Award for History Podcast before October 15th. Leon Trotsky was one of the most consequential figures of the 20th century, and one of history’s most reluctant Jews. Born Lev Bronstein in Ukraine, he rejected his Jewish identity his entire life, yet it followed him everywhere. With the anniversary of what's known as the October Revolution coming up, Yael and Schwab are revisiting one of our most popular episodes. It’s so packed with surprising twists and details that it’s worth a second listen even if you caught it the first time around. How to vote for Jewish History Nerds for a Listener Choice Signal Award: Create an account or sign in with your email at the top right of the page. Select Jewish History Nerds in the History category. Questions? Email us at nerds@unpacked.media. We're happy to help. Thank you.
- Oct 6, 20262 min
Vote Now for Jewish History Nerds
Head to unpacked.bio/VoteJHN2026 to vote before October 15th. Jewish History Nerds is a finalist for a Signal Award for History Podcast, and now we need Nerd Nation’s help! Vote for Jewish History Nerds in the Listener Choice Award by October 15 and help us spread the word about Jewish history.
- Oct 1, 202613 min
Before Jews Danced With the Torah: The Lost Simchat Torah Tradition
Jewish History Nerds is a Signal Awards finalist. Vote for us in Listener's Choice by Thu 15 Oct: https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting#/2026/individual-episodes/genre/history More than 400 years ago, Rivka Tiktiner wrote the earliest known full-length published work by a Jewish woman. She also created a Simchat Torah poem that reveals how women helped prepare Torah scrolls for the holiday in Prague. For Simchat Torah, Jonathan Schwab and Yael Steiner explore Rivka Tiktiner's extraordinary learning, the evolution of Jewish customs, and whether it makes sense to call this mysterious historical figure a feminist. Here's a link to the full episode on Rivka Tiktiner: The First Jewish Woman to Publish a Book. Here is a link to our episode on Ray Frank, mentioned in the episode: Here is the episode submitted to the Signal Awards for this year's competition. The First Jews in the Americas, Fleeing the Inquisition. Jewish History Nerds is a is a Signal Awards finalist in the history category. As a reminder, please vote for Jewish History Nerds Listener's Choice award by Thursday October 15. Just login and search for the show to cast your ballot. And please spread the word by sharing this link: https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting#/2026/individual-episodes/genre/history Be in touch. Write to us at nerds@unpacked.media. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out our videos on youtube and Spotify. Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount. For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out: Borderlines with That Semite Soulful Jewish Living Stars of David with Elon Gold Unpacking Israeli History Wondering Jews
- Sep 10, 202654 min
The Jewish History Hiding in Japan and Korea
How did Jews escaping the Spanish and Portuguese Inquisitions end up in Japan? Dr. Henry Abramson joins Yael and Schwab for a special bonus episode to uncover the surprising story of Jewish life in the Far East. While Europe persecuted Jews, Japan’s religious landscape offered a strikingly different environment, shaped by Shinto, Buddhism, trade, migration, and a remarkably tolerant reception for some Jewish refugees seeking safety abroad. Plus, they explore South Korean's fascination with the Talmud. If you like this show, please rate and write a review wherever you get your podcasts. And be in touch. Write to us at nerds@unpacked.media. To learn more about Dr. Henry Abramson's trip to Japan and South Korea, check out his lectures on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TYJtzL_4y4&t=3s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpCjuQMk4H0 Birth of Beate Sirota Gordon, who wrote equality into the postwar Japanese constitution. Talmud as a New Intellectual Project by Sarit Kattan Gribetz The Talmud in Korea: A Study in the Reception of Rabbinic Literature by Sarit Kattan Gribetz, Claire Kim This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out our videos on youtube and Spotify. Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount. For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out: Borderlines with That Semite Soulful Jewish Living Stars of David with Elon Gold Unpacking Israeli History Wondering Jews
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About Jewish History Nerds
Whoever said history was boring clearly never heard these stories…Welcome to Jewish History Nerds! Join hosts Yael and Schwab each week as they take a dive into some deep cuts of Jewish history. From the Jewish Da Vinci Code to mass suicide pacts, explore true stories that feel larger than life.
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