Brock professor emeritus makes mark on prestigious historical encyclopedia

Since his retirement in 2003, Leonard Rosmarin has shown no signs of slowing.

The momentum around his work outside the classroom, where he once shared his knowledge as a Brock French Professor, has continued to grow, as has his reputation as an expert in his field.

The 85-year-old Professor Emeritus recently spent time contributing to Histoire juive de la France, a prestigious French encyclopedia documenting the history of Jewish people in Europe. Published by famed French publisher Albin Michel under the direction of Sylvie Anne Goldberg, the project spans from Roman times up to the 21st century.

The only Canadian invited to contribute, Rosmarin wrote 10 articles for the publication alongside authors from the Sorbonne, Oxford University, Cornell University, Berkeley, Yale and Princeton, among others.

In October, he attended the publication launch at the Musée d'art et d'histoire du judaïsme (Museum of Judaic Art and History) in Paris, France, which brought together international contributors and editors to celebrate the accomplishment with the public.

"The launch was a memorable, glittering affair and an important cultural event that included authors, media personalities as well as representatives from other publishing houses," he said.

Since retiring from Brock, Rosmarin has written 10 books - releasing one every other year - including critical studies, translations and a novel. He has also delivered many guest lectures at various educational institutions, including the Sorbonne.

When Rosmarin began teaching French at Brock in 1969 in the Department of Romance Languages - now the Department of Modern Languages, Literatures and Cultures in the Faculty of Humanities - he felt he was making a difference in people's lives through his teaching.

"Being a professor was inspiring and motivating work that I loved to do," he said.

Supported by his parents, Rosmarin learned from a young age about education's life-altering potential.

"My parents knew that knowledge was your liquid capital, and something you could never be stripped of no matter where you went or what happened to you," said Rosmarin, who would go on to receive his PhD in French from Yale. "This concept gave me the strength to be the best I could be."

He excelled as part of Brock's faculty, going on to chair his department three times.

"I have had a wonderful life and career, I look back at it very fondly," Rosmarin said.

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