The expression of Sephardic Jews refers to the descendants of the ancient Jews and traditional Jewish communities of the Iberian peninsula. Sefarad, in Hebrew, means Spain, thus, Sephardic means Spanish. A major influx of Jews arrived in Portugal from Spain after 1492 when the Alhambra Edict was enacted, ordering the expulsion of practising Jews from the territory of Aragon and Castile. Besides settling in Portugal, many spread to North Africa, Italy, France and the Ottoman Empire (today’s Greece, Bulgaria, etc.). In Portugal the already existing Jewish community was integrated into the majority Portuguese society and its cultural and economic life. The new arrivals increased the number of Jews in Portugal with almost 100,000.