Michel Sarach

Michel Sarach ( Russian Михаил Семёнович Сарач / Michail Semjonowitsch Saratsch; born April 19, 1909 in Moscow , † August 14, 2000 in Paris ) was a Russian - French lawyer , entrepreneur, publisher and folklorist .

Life

Sarach's wealthy family belonged to the Judeo-Karaean minority in Crimea . His grandfather Mordechai Simowitsch Saratsch (1845-1903) was Gabbai of the Karaean community of Evpatoria . In 1920, Michel Sarach and his family emigrated first to Turkey, then to Yugoslavia, where he attended a cadet school . Finally he went to France. He studied at a Jesuit school for Russian-speaking immigrants. In 1936 Sarach graduated from the Law Faculty of the University of Paris . Like many other Russo-Karean migrants, he converted to Christianity in France. Besides his work as a lawyer, he led in Paris, the company Paris-Smart for Cachenez and ties, worked with the fashion house Nina Ricci S.á.rl together. During the Second World War , Sarach fought as a sergeant on the French side, was arrested, but escaped and, as a result, participated in the resistance movement. For a long time Sarach worked as a secretary and then as chairman of the Karaean Society in Paris. Despite everything, Sarach wanted to remain true to his roots and was thus the initiator, editor-in-chief and sponsor of the multi-volume Encyclopedia of the Karaean People (Russian Караимская народная энциклопедия, Karaimskaya narodnaya entsyklopediya, ISBN 5201142583 ). He also supported the Karaean associations in the Ukrainian, Russian and Lithuanian Soviet republics in the early 1990s. This included financial support for the Moscow newspaper Karaimskiye Vesti , which was devoted to the beliefs and history of the minority. With the financial help of Michel Sarach, the long-established community in Evpatoria has rebuilt the two most important Karaite churches (Kenessas). These are also the main attractions for tourists in Crimea. The Kenessas have a cultural center with a library and a Karaean restaurant.

Michel Sarach was u. a. Honorary member of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. He is the author of several publications on the assumed Khazar roots of the Karaites.

Web links

• Entry about Michel Sarach on dommuseum.ru (Russian)