us-005578-irn42588-irn43754
type: RecordSet
archival history: The medal was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2011 by Jamila Kolonomos.
biographical history: Jamila (Zamila) Kolonomos was born on June 18, 1922 in Bitola, Yugoslavia (now North Macedonia), to a Jewish couple, Isak and Esterina Fransez Kolonomos. Jamila had an older sister, Bela (b. 1920) and 3 younger siblings, Kalef (b. 1925), Menahem (b.1927) and Rachela (b.1930.) Isak was born in 1893 in Monastir (now Bitola), to Kalef and Djamila Kasorla Kolonomos. Isak’s family was Romaniote, Greek Jews that had lived in Ioannina (Yannina) Greece, since Roman times and moved to Monastir in the late 1800s. During the Ottoman period the town was called Monastir, when Macedonia was annexed by Serbia in 1913, it was renamed Bitola, the Jews however, continued calling it by its old name. Esterina was from Skopje, Macedonia where her father was a hakham at a synagogue. Isak served in the Bulgarian Army during World War I, where he met his future wife. In 1920 the Kolonomos family moved to Bitola where Isak worked at the Banque Franco-Serbe, later becoming director. Jamila’s family observed the Jewish holidays, but was not very religious and spoke Ladino, Greek, French, Serbian and Turkish. She was a member of Hashomer Hatzair, a Zionist youth organization that prepared Jewish youth for a life in Palestine. Esterina died of heart disease in March 1941. On April 6, 1941, Germany and Italy invaded Yugoslavia, supported by Hungary and Bulgaria. Yugoslavia quickly capitulated and Bitola was occupied by Germany, then Bulgaria. Bulgarian authorities passed many anti-Semitic laws that restricted the everyday lives of the Jewish community. In October 1941 Jews were banned from engaging in industry or commerce, later in 1941 Jews were forced to live in the poor side of Bitola, establishing a ghetto. Jamila’s sister, Bela married Moise Kassorla on November 16, and the couple moved to Skopje. In July 1942 all Jewish households were ordered to hand over 20% of the value of their assets and in autumn 1942 Jews were denied citizenship and were forced to wear Star of David buttons. Jewish …
physical characteristics and technical requirements: a. Circular, silver and gold colored metal medal with a relief image and a notched edge. The center is a raised depiction of a male partisan fighter standing in uniform, facing forward, looking and leaning left, with a rifle slung over his right shoulder holding a flagpole with a waving banner in his left hand. He is displayed on a raised silver colored 5 pointed star with raised rays shooting out from between the arms to the notches in the edge and starburst grooves extending to the perimeter. The back has a centered screw back pin with a disc shaped backer. b. Worn, blue, rectangular, hinged, cardboard clamshell box. Bottom has gray paper glued to it. The interior lid is padded, covered with a white satiny cloth, and connected to the base by a cloth hinge. The base is lined with white cardboard and has a cardboard insert covered in dark blue plush cloth with a depression for the medal. c. Certificate with Cyrillic text printed in black ink on medium weight, light brown paper. There are 4 lines of text in the top left corner and a centered title with a 3 line text block below. The center lines have blank areas that have been filled in. At the bottom there is a circular, blue stamp in the middle and signatures on the left and right. d. Gold colored metal bar pin with crimped sides covered with a grosgrain ribbon with 5 vertical stripes: wide red, blue, red, blue, and wide red. On the back, a plate with a safety clasp pin is adhered between the sides of the bar and over the ribbon ends. c. bottom center, stamped, blue ink : ПРЕЗИДИУМ НАРОДНЕ СКУПШТИНЕ / ФЕДЕРАТИВНЕ НАРОДНЕ / РЕНУБЛИКЕ ЈУГОСЛАВИЈЕ / КАНЦЕЛАРИЈА ОРДЕНА [President of the National Assembly / of the Federative National / Republic of Yugoslavia / Office of Order]
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
has beginning date: 1941-01-01
has end date: 1945-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: bos
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn43754
is or was included in: us-005578-irn42588
record resource extent: a: Height: 1.625 inches (4.128 cm) | Width: 1.625 inches (4.128 cm) | Depth: 0.500 inches (1.27 cm) | Diameter: 2.000 inches (5.08 cm) b: Height: 3.750 inches (9.525 cm) | Width: 3.000 inches (7.62 cm) | Depth: 1.125 inches (2.858 cm) c: Height: 5.875 inches (14.923 cm) | Width: 8.250 inches (20.955 cm) d: Height: 0.250 inches (0.635 cm) | Width: 1.375 inches (3.493 cm) | Depth: 0.125 inches (0.318 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Yugoslav Order of Merit to the Nation (People), 2nd class, awarded to Jamila (Zamila) Kolonomos in recognition of her service as a partisan during the Axis occupation of Yugoslavia from 1941-1945. The medal was awarded to those who distinguished themselves in the struggle for liberation and merit in securing and organizing the Yugoslav government and army, and for achievement in the economic, cultural and social spheres. This medal was awarded to 39534 people. On April 6, 1941, the Axis powers, Germany, Italy, Hungary, and Bulgaria, invaded and partitioned Yugoslavia. The Macedonian region, including Bitola where Jamila and her family lived, was occupied by Bulgaria. Jamila worked with resistance groups to fight the occupation and was forced to hide at night for her safety. On March 9, 1943, from her hiding place, Jamila witnessed the roundup and deportation of the Jewish community of Bitola. After a month in hiding, she went to the mountains and joined a partisan detachment. In August 1943, Jamila’s group became part of the Macedonian Partisan Battalion, which liberated a prisoner camp in Greece. In June 1944, a separate Macedonian brigade was formed. In August, Jamila was injured during a battle. On October 30, Jamila’s group liberated the towns of Ohrid and Struga, and a month later Macedonia was liberated. In December, Jamila served as an official at the Second Congress of Anti-Fascist Youth in Skopje. Jamila married a fellow partisan Chede Filipovski. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945. Jamila returned to Bitola and discovered that her entire family had been deported and murdered at Treblinka killing center. In June Chede was killed in a motorcycle accident. In June 1947, Jamila married Avram Sadikario.
title: Orden Zasluge Za Narod 2nd class awarded to a Macedonian Jewish partisan woman