Thehistory of the Jews in Alexandria dates back to the founding of the city byAlexander the Great in 332 BCE.[1]Jews inAlexandria played a crucial role in the political, economic, cultural and religious life ofHellenistic andRoman Alexandria, with Jews comprising about 35% of the city's population during the Roman era.[2][3]
In the Ptolemaic period, Alexandrian Jews played a central role in the development ofHellenistic Judaism and were instrumental in the translation of theTorah fromHebrew toKoine Greek, which produced theSeptuagint. Many important Jewish writers and figures came from or studied in Alexandria, such asPhilo,Ben Sira,Tiberius Julius Alexander andJosephus. The position of Alexandria's Jewry began deteriorating during the Roman era, as deepantisemitic sentiment began developing amongst the city'sGreek andEgyptian populations. This led to the subsequentAlexandrian pogrom in 38 CE and theAlexandria riot in 66 CE, which was in parallel with the outbreak of theFirst Jewish–Roman War. Alexandria's Jewry began to diminish, leading to a mass immigration of Alexandrian Jews toRome, as well as otherMediterranean andNorth African cities.[citation needed] It appears that the Jewish community of Alexandria was completely eradicated by the end of theDiaspora Revolt in 117 CE,[4] with variousrabbinic legends associated with the final destruction of the community.[5]
By the beginning of theByzantine era, the Jewish population had again increased, but suffered from the persecutions of theChristian Church. During the subsequentMuslim conquest of Egypt, the number of Jews in Alexandria increased greatly, with some estimates numbering around 400,000.[6][7] Following the establishment of theState of Israel in 1948, and the ensuingSix-Day War in 1967, almost all of Alexandria's Jewish population were expelled from the country and immigrated to Israel.[8]
According to Josephus, Jews had inhabited Alexandria since its founding, and most historians agree that Jews lived in the city since at least the beginning of the third century BCE. UnderPtolemaic rule, a separate section of the city was assigned to the Jews, so that they might not be hindered in the observance of their laws by continual contact with the pagan population. ThisJewish Quarter was one of the five sections of the city, each named after a letter of theGreek alphabet, with the Jewish quarter being namedDelta.
During this time, the Jews in Alexandria enjoyed a greater degree of political independence and prominence, serving as the city's moneylenders, premium merchants andalabarchs. The Jewishethnarchs were also established during this time, along with a council of 71 elders. According toStrabo, the ethnarch was responsible for the general conduct of Jewish affairs in the city, particularly in legal matters and the drawing up of documents. The city also established a largeBet Din known as the "archion". The Great Synagogue of Alexandria (mentioned in theTalmud)[9] was also established during this time. During the period of theSecond Temple the Jews of Alexandria were represented inJerusalem by a sizeable community.
DuringHerod’s reign several prominent Alexandrian Jewish families lived in Jerusalem, such asSimeon the Just who was appointedhigh priest by Herod. Alexandria's Jewish population served as secular public officials and as soldiers for the Ptolemaic army. Rich Jews occasionally held the office of alabarch, such asAlexander the Alabarch. However,Ptolemy VII was hostile towards the Jews because when he strove to wrest the throne of Egypt from Cleopatra, the Jews, led by the general Onias, fought on the side of Cleopatra. During theMaccabean Revolt, an Alexandrian Jew probably wrote2 Maccabees which defends Hellenism and criticizes theSeleucids, as opposed to1 Maccabees which was written inJudea and criticizes the entire Hellenistic ideology.[6][7][10][11][12][13]
Strabo (64/63 BCE–c.24 CE) described the Jewish community in Alexandria as having substantial autonomy, with anethnarch that "governs the people and adjudicates suits and supervises contracts and ordinances just as if he were the head of a sovereign state." Contemporary studies affirm that the community had its own established social and legal institutions, operating with the consent of Ptolemaic and later Roman authorities.[14] The Jews of Alexandria commemorated the translation of the Jewish Scriptures into Greek with an annual festival held on the island of Pharos, the site of theLighthouse of Alexandria, and traditionally associated with the translation event. During this celebration, a sizable Jewish crowd, along with some non-Jewish visitors, would gather on the beach for a grand picnic.[15]
Following theRoman conquest of Egypt, intense antisemitism became widespread throughout Alexandria's non-Jewish populations. Many viewed Jews as privilegedisolationists. This sentiment led to theAlexandrian Pogrom in 38 CE, led by the Roman governorAulus Avilius Flaccus. Many Jews were murdered, their notables were publicly scourged, synagogues were defiled and closed, and all the Jews were confined to one quarter of the city. Riots again erupted in 40 CE between Jews and Greeks. Jews were accused of not honouring the emperor, and Jews were angered by the erection of a clay altar and destroyed it. In response,Caligula ordered the erection of a statue of himself in theTemple of Jerusalem. Philo wrote that Caligula "regarded the Jews with most especial suspicion, as if they were the only persons who cherished wishes opposed to his."[16][17][18]
Following the First Jewish–Roman War, many Romans in Alexandria questioned the loyalty of the city's Jewry. Violence occurred in 66 CE, when the Alexandrines had organized a public assembly to deliberate about an embassy toNero, and a great number of Jews came flocking to theamphitheater. When the Alexandrines saw the Jews,they attacked them; the majority of Jews were killed, and those who were captured were burned alive. Following this event was the second Alexandrian pogrom.Tiberius Julius Alexander, the governor of Alexandria (who was born Jewish, but left the religion) was able to calm the riots. However, most Jews saw the rising antisemitism and emigrated out of the city, mostly to Rome and other Mediterranean and North African cities.[6][19][7]
During theDiaspora Revolt (115–117 CE), Jewish communities in the Roman provinces of Egypt,Cyrenaica, andCyprus rose in rebellion while EmperorTrajan was in the east, engaged in his campaign against theParthians.[20] Papyrological evidence shows that the Roman garrison in Alexandria experienced setbacks in the summer of 116 CE.[4] Jewish forces targeted the shrine ofNemesis, which housedPompey's head, possibly in retaliation for Pompey'sdesecration of the Temple in Jerusalem in 63 BCE.[20] Damage to other significant structures, such as theSerapeum of Alexandria, was likely inflicted by Jewish groups from Egypt and Cyrenaica rather than by Alexandria's own Jewish inhabitants.[21]Eusebius's later account of Alexandria being "overthrown" and needing reconstruction by Hadrian is, however, considered exaggerated.[21] Finally, the Roman suppression of the uprising in the city was aided by Greeks fleeing from Jewish attacks in other parts of the country.[4]
By the end of the conflict in late summer 117 CE, it is highly unlikely that Jews remained in Alexandria.[4] The Great Synagogue, celebrated in theTalmud, was destroyed,[22][21][23] and the city's Jewish court might have been abolished.[20] Surviving Jews would have faced assaults by mobs, official reprisals, and possible executions ordered byHadrian.[4] The extensive confiscation of Jewish lands indicates that the Jewish elite, including those in Alexandria, were not spared.[4] The only Alexandrian Jews who might have survived were likely refugees who had fled to other regions at the onset of the revolt.[4]
By the beginning of the Byzantine era, the Jewish population had again increased, but in 414Cyril expelled the Jews from the city. According to contemporary Christian historianSocrates Scholasticus, the expulsion was a response to a Jewish-led massacre against some Christians. Historians are divided on whether the expulsion was wholesale or just against those who had perpetrated the violence.[10][24]
There is evidence for Jews from Alexandria settling inMilan, Italy in late antiquity.[25]
Following the Muslim conquest of Egypt starting in 641, Jews were allowed to return to the city; according to some Arab sources, the city had some 400,000 around the time of the conquest. However,Benjamin of Tudela who visited the town in about 1170, speaks of only 3,000 Jews living in Alexandria. Nevertheless, throughout theMiddle Ages, Alexandria had a small but significant community of Jewish rabbis and scholars. The community is mentioned in several documents in theCairo Genizah, some of which relate to Alexandrian Jews' reaction to the controversialSar Shalom ben Moses.[citation needed]
During the 12th century,Aaron He-Haver ben Yeshuah Alamani served as the community's spiritual leader. During the Arab period, Alexandrian Jewry kept a close relationship with other Egyptian communities inCairo,Bilbeis,El Mahalla El Kubra as well as several others. It was during this time that Alexandria had two synagogues, one of which was called "the Small Synagogue of Alexandria". The Jews of Alexandria were engaged in the international trade centered in their city, and some even held government posts.[6][10]
UnderMamluk rule, the Jewish population of Alexandria began to decline.Meshullam of Volterra, who visited it in 1481, states that he found only 60 Jewish families, but reported that the old men remembered the time when the community numbered 4,000. In 1488,Obadiah of Bertinoro found 25 Jewish families in Alexandria. Following theAlhambra Decree of 1492, a large number ofSephardic Jews immigrated to Alexandria. The historianJoseph Sambari mentions an active Jewish community in Alexandria during the 17th century. After theChmielnicki massacres, someUkrainian Jews settled in Alexandria.
In the 1660s some members of the community began to follow the Jewish mysticShabbetai Zvi, while the majority adamantly opposed him. In 1700, some Jewish fishermen fromRosetta moved to Alexandria in hopes of better economic opportunities. During theFrench conquest of Egypt,Napoleon imposed heavy fines on the Jews and ordered the ancient synagogue, associated with the prophetElijah, to be destroyed. Under the rule ofMuhammad Ali of Egypt, Jews began to experience great social and economic development.[6][7][26]
During World War I, many Jews living in Ottoman Palestine were exiled to Alexandria underOttoman rule. In 1937, 24,690 Jews lived in Alexandria. Following the establishment of theState of Israel in 1948, and the ensuingSix-Day War, almost all of Egypt's Jewish population were expelled from the country and immigrated to Israel. As of 2017, only 12 Jews currently live in Alexandria.[6][26] In February 2020, 180 Jews fromEurope,Israel and theUnited States arrived in Alexandria to attend religious ceremonies at the historicEliyahu Hanavi synagogue, which was renovated by the Egyptian government as part of a program to protect Jewish heritage sites.[27]
Many of the Jews expelled in 1956 ended up in Italy, France and England. Others managed to get to North America as well as Central and Latin America. Only a minority of the Jews expelled by Nasser in 1956 actually went to Israel.[28]