Hi, Dainy, thank you for your question. Your instinct is on target: Sephardic rite (נוסח ספרד/nusaḥ Sefarad) is not to be confused with the rite of Sefaradim, Jews of the Orient and North Africa, called ʻAdot ha-Mizraḥ. Unfortunately, both are described with the same preferred title, in your case, Maḥzor (Sephardic). |p High Holidays. Indeed, looking in LC's catalog for this title, you'll find a conflation of the two types of Sefarad/Sepharadi. This is a known issue that was last discussed in the Cataloging Committee's meeting in 2012<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://rascat.pbworks.com/w/page/55517046/Minutes*202012__;JQ!!KGKeukY!wKVVqcZuNdic0euuGbUIjFz40c3ZTqn8AvN67oYh-a3g9Eo_S6TtRn7W2jkEdIl6GEJQpYOHOHwQPbdoYuDFNQ$ >. The minutes record: "3) Action, if any, to be taken regarding Nusaḥ Sefarad: The group considered issues that were first raised by Ella Ruderman of Yeshiva University, who questioned the Library of Congress (LC) practice of using the qualifier “Sephardic” for liturgical works identifying themselves as either “Nusaḥ Sefarad” or “Minhag ha-Sefaradim ṿa-'Adot ha-Mizraḥ.” It was acknowledged that the two rites differ, and that “Nusaḥ Sefarad” is used by various Ashkenazic communities, Hasidic and non-Hasidic, so the current usage of the qualifier “Sephardic “ may be misleading in many cases. It was noted that the Encyclopaedia Judaica (EJ) distinguishes between the two rites, using "Sefarad" for “Nusaḥ Sefarad” and "Sephardi" for “Minhag ha-Sefaradim…” Discussion covered a number of the alternatives suggested in the LC notes document (NusahSefarad.doc<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://rascat.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/54443295/NusahSefarad.doc?force_download=1__;!!KGKeukY!wKVVqcZuNdic0euuGbUIjFz40c3ZTqn8AvN67oYh-a3g9Eo_S6TtRn7W2jkEdIl6GEJQpYOHOHwQPbdKRjMgAA$ >). Members commented on the need for extensive bibliographic file maintenance if any change in practice is implemented, including that of ceasing to qualify by rite altogether. The problem of distinguishing between Sefarad and Ari rites, was also noted, as these rites are considered to be related and similar, but not identical. The question was posed about how important these distinctions are to users, and there was general agreement that doing away with distinctions by rite would be a loss to users. The National Library of Israel’s practice is to provide information about the rite in a note, rather than in the uniform title. There was general agreement that in many cases, it is not realistic to expect catalogers to have the time or knowledge to be able to distinguish rites more finely than is currently done. Action item: The decision was made to maintain current practice; however, LC will update the appropriate authority records to clarify that the single qualifier “Sephardic” is used to signify both rites." I will let the current cataloging committee decide if they'd like to reconsider the matter.
Other documentation related to liturgy that is found on the wiki includes Distinguishing between Ashkenazic and Sephardic liturgical rites<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://rascat.pbworks.com/w/page/161003130/Ashkenazi*20vs*20Sefaradi*20liturgy__;JSUl!!KGKeukY!wKVVqcZuNdic0euuGbUIjFz40c3ZTqn8AvN67oYh-a3g9Eo_S6TtRn7W2jkEdIl6GEJQpYOHOHwQPbcHo1cCvA$ >; Subject Heading Patterns for Jewish Liturgical Works (e.g. Haggadah, Maḥzor, and Siddur)<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://rascat.pbworks.com/w/page/152220933/Subject*20Heading*20Patterns*20for*20Jewish*20Liturgical*20Works__;JSUlJSUl!!KGKeukY!wKVVqcZuNdic0euuGbUIjFz40c3ZTqn8AvN67oYh-a3g9Eo_S6TtRn7W2jkEdIl6GEJQpYOHOHwQPbcfyIPfcg$ >. Please don't hesitate to reach out with further questions. Thanks, Jasmin ________________________________ From: Heb-naco <[email protected]> on behalf of Dainy Bernstein via Heb-naco <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, September 5, 2025 2:07 PM To: [email protected] <[email protected]> Subject: [Heb-NACO] Siddur / mahzor nusah Hi all, I'm working on a Rosh ha-Shanah/Yom Kippur mahzor (OCLC 31984821) which has the word ספרד on the title page, but includes instructions in Yiddish. The call number assigned to this title is BM674. 47, which is specifically for Sephardic Hi all, I'm working on a Rosh ha-Shanah/Yom Kippur mahzor (OCLC 31984821) which has the word ספרד on the title page, but includes instructions in Yiddish. The call number assigned to this title is BM674.47, which is specifically for Sephardic mahzorim. But I'm not convinced it is actually Sephardic as in Edot ha-Mizrah - based on the Yiddish, and some digging around in the included/excluded phrases and tefilot, I think this is "nusah Sephard," which is a definitely Ashkenazic nusah used by Hasidic congregations and has nothing to do with Sephardim or Mizrahim. I couldn't find any information about this confusion in terminology. If documentation for that exists, I'd be grateful if anyone knows of it and can share it. Otherwise... any thoughts? Dainy Dainy Bernstein ey/they Hebraica Library Specialist University of Pennsylvania Libraries --- Book reviews for Shelf Awareness and AJL<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://dainy-bernstein.com/book-reviews-by-dainy-bernstein__;!!KGKeukY!zwXi4nnxfMwUAFN5BPVfDl6mbydx4poB19ZaWLgocVv-9lu39EXjlFJxT9v2ShICAnoMGSn1Bnv9de-Tw9lSEPnKOgZLZQ$> --- Artifacts of Orthodox Jewish Childhoods<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.benyehudapress.com/books/artifacts-of-orthodox-childhoods/__;!!KGKeukY!zwXi4nnxfMwUAFN5BPVfDl6mbydx4poB19ZaWLgocVv-9lu39EXjlFJxT9v2ShICAnoMGSn1Bnv9de-Tw9lSEPlpW1WVzA$> [Artifacts of Orthodox Jewish Childhoods: Personal and Critical Essays: Bernstein, Dainy: 9781953829252: Amazon.com: Books]
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