Part ofa series on the |
|---|
| History ofDjibouti |
 |
| Prehistory |
| Antiquity |
|
| Middle Ages |
|
| Colonial period |
|
| Modern period |
| Republic of Djibouti |
.svg) Africa portal History portal |
In thehistory of theJews inDjibouti, the Jews of Djibouti are classified as part of the widerYemenite Jewish community similar to those inEritrea andAden. Originally settling inObock, and finallyDjibouti City, in the wake of the British succession of theGulf of Tadjoura to the French in 1884.[1] The vast majority of the community madealiyah toIsrael in 1949.
Though situated between the historic homelands of the ancient communities of theBeta Israel andYemenite Jewery and geographically serving as the main link betweenArabia and theHorn of Africa there is no documented major presence of Jews in Djibouti until the 1800s. The history of the settlement of Jews in Djibouti begins primarily with the development of the portcity of Djibouti at the end of the nineteenth century by theFrench, in the territory then calledCôte Française des Somalis, which Jews would play a key role in helping to build.[2]
The first documented Jews to permanently settle in Djibouti came fromAden, which had been a British colony since 1839. They were Jews from Yemen, a region where a large and diverse Jewish community existed at the time. It is unknown if the Djiboutian Jews are from theAdeni community or areBaladi from the north having just passed through Aden, as they haveminhagim (customs) that reflect both. Their arrival is concomitant with the arrival of a large number of Yemeni Muslims.
There were fifty Jewish families in Djibouti in 1901 and 111 in 1921.[3] With a slowing of migration between Yemen and Djibouti in the early 20th century much of the community consisted of native Djiboutians who converted and married into the established families. The French authorities counted eleven Jewish traders in 1902, and indicated that they mainly worked as jewelers and craftsmen. They had severalsynagogues, including the grand synagogue in the city center on Rue deRome. TheHahamim of Djibouti were sought for theirhalakhic expertise and skill throughout the region. One of the lastRabbi's of Djibouti, Haham Yoseph Moshe would travel to Jewish communities as far asAddis Ababa andAsmara who sought out his skills as a mohel.[4]
The Jews were distinguished from their Muslim neighbours by their wearing of long sidelocks calledpayot and whitefringed garments, similar to that of Yemenite Jews.
AfterIsrael's independence in 1948, the state organizedOperation Magic Carpet in 1949 which evacuated about 45,000 Yemenite Jews threatened by political unrest from Yemen to Israel. Two hundred Jews from Djibouti were included in the evacuation operation. Moshe Sion, a member of the Djibouti Jewish community recalls “a plane came from Aden and we all got on and flew to Israel.” Prior to moving to Israel, his father had served as aposek, hazzan, mohel andsofer of the Djibouti community.[5]
After the mass aliyah of 1949, the community never recovered. Over the decades, the remaining families gradually left Djibouti in favor of Israel or France. Following their departure, most Jewish properties were settled by the localIssa people. A modest cemetery and the grand synagogue (which was renovated into office spaces in 2012, leaving only the original outside facade) are the only two Jewish structures still standing in the country.[5]
Nowadays, the Jews that live in Djibouti are mostly Frenchexpatriates with Jewish origins and the native population of “just a few isolated, unaffiliated Jews.”[4]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)