Did you know?
It has been suggested that the word ghetto is Italian in origin and was perhaps used for the first time in Venice, circa 1516, to describe a neighborhood on the site of the city’s foundry. It denoted a walled-off and gated section of the city to which Jews were restricted. Because they were viewed as cultural minorities owing to their non-Christian beliefs in a Renaissance Christian environment, Jews were placed under strict regulations throughout many European cities.