 The word for Spain in Hebrew is Sepharad, and people who trace their ancestry to Sepharad are called Sephardic Jews. A quick word of explanation. There are two branches of Judaism, Sephardic and Ashkenazic. Ashkenaz is Hebrew for Germany, and I am an Ashkenazic Jew. Growing up, I knew there was this other branch, but now I'm on a journey to Sepharad to find out more.