Blurb:

Crypto-Judaism refers to the secret practice of Judaism while outwardly adopting another religion, typically Christianity or Islam, due to persecution. It emerged during the medieval Iberian Peninsula under Byzantine rule and continued through the Spanish Inquisition. Many Jews, known as conversos, outwardly converted to Catholicism but maintained Jewish traditions privately. Over time, crypto-Jewish communities also developed in Portugal, the Ottoman Empire, and beyond. These groups, including the Salonican Dönme, shaped both Jewish and non-Jewish societies through their religious, social, and economic activities, often maintaining strong internal cohesion despite external pressures.