Mizrahi Jews (יהדות מזרח Yahadut Mizrah)
Total population
3. 0 to 3. 5 million (estimate)
Regions with significant populations
Israel <3,000,000  France 400,000  United States 200,000-300,000  Canada 35,000  Iran 25,000  Chile 2,700  Argentina 2,170
Languages
Hebrew, Dzhidi, Judæo-Arabic, Gruzinic, Bukhori, Judeo-Berber, Juhuri and Judæo-Aramaic
Religions
Judaism
Related ethnic groups
Ashkenazi Jews, Sephardi Jews, other Jewish ethnic divisions and Arabs. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Judæo-Persian or Jidi ( IPA: /ʤiːdiː/ also spelled as Dzhidi) is the Jewish language spoken by the Jews living in Iran The Judæo-Arabic languages are a collection of Arabic dialects spoken by Jews living or formerly living in the Arab world; the term also refers to Judæo-Georgian (also known as Kivruli and Gruzinic) is the traditional language spoken by the Georgian Jews, the ancient Jewish community Bukhori (also known as Bukhari, Bukharic, Bukharan, or Bukharian) is an Indo-Iranian language. Judeo-Berber is a term used primarily for the Berber varieties traditionally spoken by the Jewish communities of certain parts of central and southern Morocco Juhuri, Juvuri or Judæo- Tat is the traditional language of the Juhuro or Mountain Jews of the eastern Caucasus Mountains Judæo-Aramaic is a collective term used to describe several Hebrew -influenced Aramaic and Neo-Aramaic Languages History Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim ( Hebrew: אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים, ˌaʃkəˈnazim sing Sephardi Jews ( Hebrew: ספרדי, Standard Səfardi Tiberian Səp̄arədî; plural See also Judaism by country Jewish ethnic divisions refers to a number of distinct communities within the world's ethnically Jewish population The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding

Part of a series of articles on Jews and Judaism           Who is a Jew? · Etymology · Culture Judaism · Core principles God · Tanakh (Torah, Nevi'im, Ketuvim) · Mitzvot (613) · Talmud · Halakha · Holidays · Prayer · Tzedakah · Ethics · Kabbalah · Customs · Midrash Jewish ethnic diversity Ashkenazi · Sephardi · Mizrahi Population (historical) · By country Israel · USA · Russia/USSR · Iraq · Spain · Portugal · Poland · Germany · Bosnia · Latin America (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Venezuela)  · France · England · Canada · Australia · Hungary · India · Turkey · Greece · Africa · Iran · China Republic of Macedonia · Romania Lists of Jews · Crypto-Judaism Jewish denominations · Rabbis Orthodox · Conservative · Reform · Reconstructionist · Liberal · Karaite · Humanistic · Renewal  · Alternative Jewish languages Hebrew · Yiddish · Judeo-Persian · Ladino · Judeo-Aramaic · Judeo-Arabic History · Timeline · Leaders Ancient · Temple · Babylonian exile · Jerusalem (in Judaism · Timeline) · Hasmoneans · Sanhedrin · Schisms · Pharisees · Jewish-Roman wars · Relationship with Christianity; with Islam · Diaspora · Middle Ages · Sabbateans · Hasidism · Haskalah · Emancipation · Holocaust · Aliyah · Israel (History) · Arab conflict · Land of Israel · Baal teshuva Persecution · Antisemitism History of antisemitism · Political movements · Zionism Labor Zionism · Revisionist Zionism · Religious Zionism · General Zionism · The Bund · World Agudath Israel · Jewish feminism · Israeli politics v • d • e

Mizrahi Jews or Mizrahim, (Hebrew: מזרחים, Standard Mizraḥim Tiberian Mizrāḥîm ; "Easterners"), also referred to as Edot HaMizrach (Communities of the East) are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia and the Caucasus. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut " Who is a Jew? " (Mihu Yehudi? ?מיהו יהודי is a basic question about Jewish identity. This article focuses on the Etymology of the word Jew. Biblical and Middle Eastern origins The Jews in their land The Jewish ethnonym in Secular Jewish culture embraces several related phenomena above all it is the Culture of secular communities of Jewish people but it can also include Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut Although Jews and religious leaders share a core of monotheistic principles Judaism has no formal statement of principles of faith such as a Creed or Catechism In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title See also Old testament, Septuagint, Targum, Peshitta The Tanakh (תַּנַ"ךְ (taˈnax or; also Tenakh or Tenak is term " Torah " ( Hebrew: תּוֹרָה "teaching" or "instruction" sometimes translated as "Law" most commonly refers to Nevi'im (נְבִיאִים "Prophets" is the second of the three major sections in the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, between the Ketuvim (כְּתוּבִים "writings" is the third and final section of the Tanakh ( Hebrew Bible) after Torah and Nevi'im This article is about commandments in Judaism For the Jewish rite of passage see Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah Mitzvah ( Hebrew: מצוה See also Mitzvah See also Biblical law in Christianity The 613 Mitzvot ("commandments" (also " 613 Mitzvos The Talmud ( Hebrew: he תַּלְמוּד is a record of Rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history Halakha ( הלכה; alternative transliterations include Halocho and Halacha) is the collective body of Jewish Religious law For the Gregorian dates of Jewish Holidays see Jewish holidays 2000-2050. Jewish services ( Hebrew: תפלה, tefillah; plural תפלות, tefillos or tefillot; Yinglish: davening Tzedakah ( צדקה) is a Hebrew word commonly translated as charity, though it is based on a root meaning Justice Jewish ethics stands at the intersection of Judaism and the Western philosophical tradition of Ethics. Kabbalah (קַבָּלָה lit "receiving" is a discipline and school of thought discussing the mystical aspect of Judaism. Minhag ( Hebrew: מנהג "custom" pl minhagim) is an accepted tradition or group of traditions in Judaism. Midrash ( Hebrew: מדרש plural midrashim, lit "to repeat" is a Hebrew term referring to the not exact but comparative ( homiletic See also Judaism by country Jewish ethnic divisions refers to a number of distinct communities within the world's ethnically Jewish population Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim ( Hebrew: אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים, ˌaʃkəˈnazim sing Sephardi Jews ( Hebrew: ספרדי, Standard Səfardi Tiberian Səp̄arədî; plural Jewish population refers to the number of Jews in the world Precise figures are difficult to calculate because the definition of " Who is a Jew " remains a Jewish population centers have shifted tremendously over time due to the constant streams of Jewish refugees created by expulsions persecution and officially sanctioned killing This article deals with the practice of Judaism and the living arrangement of Jewish people in the listed countries The History of the Jews in the Land of Israel begins with the ancient Israelites (also known as Hebrews) who settled in the Land of Israel. The history of the Jews in the United States has been influenced by waves of immigration primarily from Europe inspired by the social and economic opportunities of the United Iraqi Jews are Jews born in Iraq or of Iraqi heritage The history of the Jews in Iraq is documented from the time of the Babylonian captivity c Spanish Jews once constituted one of the largest and most prosperous Jewish communities under Muslim and Christian rule in Spain, before they The history of the Jews in Portugal is directly related to Sephardi history a Jewish ethnic division that represents communities who have originated The history of the Jews in Poland dates back over a Millennium. Jews have lived in Germany, or " Ashkenaz " at least since the early 4th century, through both periods of tolerance and spasms of The Jewish community of Bosnia and Herzegovina has a rich and varied history surviving World War II and the Yugoslav Wars, after having The history of the Jews in the Americas dates back to Christopher Columbus and his first cross- Atlantic voyage on August 3, 1492 The history of the Jews of Argentina harks back to the days of the Spanish Inquisition and Portuguese Inquisition when Jews fleeing persecution settled in what A Brazilian Jew ( Portuguese: Judeu Brasileiro) is a Brazilian person of full partial or predominantly Jew ancestry or a Jew-born person residing in Brazil Jewish immigration to Latin America began with seven sailors arriving in Christopher Columbus 's crew Jewish Cubans, Cuban Jews, or Cubans of Jewish heritage, have lived on the island of Cuba for centuries Jews have been present in El Salvador since the early 19th Century. Jews have lived in Mexico since the times of the Inquisition. Jewish Nicaraguans or Nicaraguan Jews (Judío Nicaragüense are Nicaraguans of Jewish Ancestry who were born in or have immigrated to Nicaragua The History of the Jews in Venezuela dates to the middle of the 17th century when records suggest that groups of Marranos (Spanish and Portuguese descendants of baptized The Jewish community in France presently numbers around 600000 according to the World Jewish Congress and 500000 according to the Appel Unifié Juif de France and is The first written records of Jewish settlement in England date from the time of the Norman Conquest, mentioning Jews who arrived with William the Conqueror Canada has the world's fourth-largest Jewish population According to the Canada 2001 Census, there are an estimated 351000 Jews currently living in Canada The history of the Jews in Australia began with the transportation of a number of Jewish Convicts aboard the First Fleet in 1788 when History of the Jews in Hungary concerns the Jews of Hungary and of Hungarian origins Indian Jews are a religious minority of India. Judaism was one of the first non- Dharmic religions to arrive in India in recorded history Jews {ref|name|§}} have lived in the geographic area of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) for more than 2400 years There have been organized Jewish communities in Greece for more than two thousand years Since Biblical times the Jewish people have had close ties with Africa beginning with Abraham 's sojourns in Egypt, and later the Israelite captivity under The beginnings of Jewish history in Iran date back to late biblical times Jews and Judaism in China' have had a long history Jewish settlers are documented in China as early as the 7th or 8th century CE, but may The history of Jews in the territory of the present-day Republic of Macedonia began in Roman times when Jews first arrived in the region in the The history of Jews in Romania concerns the Jews of Romania and of Romanian origins from their first mention on what is nowadays Romanian territory By type List of Jewish historians List of Jewish scientists and philosophers List of Jewish nobility Crypto-Judaism is the secret adherence to Judaism while publicly professing to be of another faith people who practice crypto-Judaism are referred to as "crypto-Jews" Rabbi (pronunciation, although in English usually) in Judaism, means a religious ‘teacher’ or more literally ‘my great one’ when addressing any master Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized Conservative Judaism (also known as Masorti Judaism in Israel and Europe) is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently subjected to vandalism and the insertion of personal opinions Reconstructionist Judaism is a modern American-based Jewish movement based on the ideas of the late Mordecai Kaplan (1881 – 1983 Karaite Judaism or Karaism (ˈkærəˌaɪt ˈkærəˌɪzəm) is a Jewish movement NOTE The word sect should not be used without defining it first and Humanistic Judaism is a movement within Judaism that emphasizes Jewish culture and history—rather than belief in God—as the sources of Jewish identity Jewish Renewal is a recent movement in Judaism which endeavors to reinvigorate modern Judaism with mystical, Hasidic, Musical and Alternative Judaism or Agnostic Judaism refers to a variety of groups whose members while identifying as Jews in some fashion nevertheless do not practice Rabbinical The Jewish languages are a set of Languages that developed in various Jewish communities around the world more notably in Europe, West Asia, and Yiddish (yi [[wiktייִדיש ייִדיש]] yidish or yi [[wiktאידיש אידיש]] idish, literally "Jewish" is a nonterritorial High Judæo-Persian dialects are a subgroup of Persian dialects spoken by the Jews of Iran Judæo-Aramaic is a collective term used to describe several Hebrew -influenced Aramaic and Neo-Aramaic Languages History The Judæo-Arabic languages are a collection of Arabic dialects spoken by Jews living or formerly living in the Arab world; the term also refers to Jewish history is the History of the Jewish people, faith, and culture. This is a timeline of the development of Judaism and the Jewish people. Jewish leadership has evolved over time Since the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE there has been no single body that has a leadership The history of Ancient Israel and Judah is known to us from classical sources including Judaism 's Tanakh or Hebrew Bible (known Etymology The Hebrew name given in Scripture for the building is Beit HaMikdash or "The Holy House" and only the Temple in Jerusalem is referred to by this name The Babylonian captivity, Babylonian exile, is the name typically given to the deportation and exile of the Jews of the ancient Kingdom of Judah to Jerusalem (יְרוּשָׁלַיִם, he-Latn Yerushaláyim; Arabic: ar القُدس, ar-Latn al-Quds) is the See also Religious significance of Jerusalem Since the 10th century BCE Jerusalem in Judaism has been the holiest city, focus and spiritual centre of This is a partial timeline of major events in the History of Jerusalem:; 1800 BCE: The Jebusites build the wall Jebus ( Jerusalem The Hasmoneans (/hæzməˡniən/ חשמונאים Hashmonaiym, Audio were the ruling dynasty of the Hasmonean Kingdom ( 140 &ndash 37 BCE The Sanhedrin (סנהדרין συνέδριον ''synedrion'', "sitting together" hence " assembly " or "council" was an assembly Schisms among the Jews are cultural as well as religious They have happened as a product of historical accident geography and Theology. The word Pharisees ( lat. pharisæ|us, - i) comes from the Hebrew פרושים perushim from פרוש parush, meaning "separated" This article discusses the traditional views of the two religions and may not be applicable all adherents of each The historical interaction of Judaism and Islam started in the 7th century CE with the origin and spread of Islam in the Arabian peninsula. The Jewish diaspora ( Hebrew: Tefutzah, "scattered" or Galut גלות "exile" Yiddish: tfutses) the presence The History of Jews in the Middle Ages (approximately 500 CE to 1750 CE can be divided into two categories Also not to be confused with Subbotniks or Sabbatarians. Note Most Sabbateans during and after Sabbatai Zevi were Jews Hasidic Judaism (also Chasidic, etc from the Hebrew: he '''''חסידות''''', Chassidus, meaning "piety" from the Hebrew Haskalah ( Hebrew: השכלה "enlightenment" "education" from sekhel " Intellect " "mind") the Jewish Enlightenment Jewish question Jewish emancipation was the abolition of discriminatory laws as applied especially to Jews in Europe in the nineteenth century the recognition of Jews The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as Aliyah ( refers to Jewish Immigration to the Land of Israel (and since its establishment in 1948 the State of Israel) For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. The State of Israel (מדינת ישראל Medinat Yisrael) was established in 1948 after nearly two thousand For other uses see Israel (disambiguation The Land of Israel ( Hebrew: אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל Eretz Yisrael) is Note This article is about the movement See Orthodox outreach, Reform outreach, and Conservative outreach for more information about the rabbis See also Antisemitism, History of antisemitism, New antisemitism The persecution of Jews has occurred many times in Jewish history. Antisemitism (alternatively spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism; also rarely known as judeophobia) is the Prejudice against or hostility The history of antisemitism, hostile actions or discrimination against Jews as a religious or ethnic group goes back many centuries Jewish political movements refer to the organized efforts of Jews to build their own political parties or otherwise represent their interest in politics outside of History of Zionism|Timeline of Zionism|World Zionist Organization|Zionist political violence Zionism is an international political movement that originally supported the Labor Zionism ( Labour Zionism, ציונות סוציאליסטית tsionut sotsialistit) can be described as the major stream of the Left wing of the Revisionist Zionism is a nationalist faction within the Zionist movement Religious Zionism, or the Religious Zionist Movement (a branch of which is also called Mizrachi) is an ideology that combines Zionism and religious The General Zionists (ציונים כלליים Tzionim Klalim) were centrists within the Zionist movement and a political party in Israel World Agudath Israel (The World Jewish Union usually known as the Aguda, was established in the early twentieth century as the political arm of Ashkenazi Torah Judaism Jewish feminism is a movement that seeks to improve the religious legal and social status of women within Judaism and to open up new opportunities for religious experience Politics of Israel takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic Republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Israel is Tiberian Hebrew is an extinct (yet very well documented Oral tradition of pronunciation for ancient Hebrew, especially the Hebrew of the Tanakh, that was PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. North Africa or Northern Africa is the Northernmost Region of the African Continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East With the exception of Yemenite Jews, who are sometimes included but more often considered a separate group, the Mizrahi category includes Jews from the Arab world and adjacent countries, primarily Muslim-majority, including Iraqi Jews, Syrian Jews, Lebanese Jews, Persian Jews, Bukharian Jews, Maghrebi Jews, Berber Jews and Kurdish Jews, as well as communities such as Mountain Jews and Georgian Jews, and among the Jews of India and Pakistan the Baghdadi Jews (descendants of relatively recent Iraqi Jews settled in the last few centuries, in contrast to Jewish communities of the Indian subcontinent established millenia earlier). Yemenite Jews ( Hebrew: תֵּימָנִים, Standard   Temanim Tiberian   Têmānîm Iraqi Jews are Jews born in Iraq or of Iraqi heritage The history of the Jews in Iraq is documented from the time of the Babylonian captivity c Syrian Jews ( Arabic, يهود سوريون) derive their origin from two groups those who inhabited the region of today's Syria from the ancient times The Lebanese Jews are traditionally a Mizrahi community living in the present-day country of Lebanon, mostly in and around the city of Beirut. |||} Persian Jews or Iranian Jews are Jews historically associated with the Persian Empire or Iran. Bukharan Jews, also Bukharian Jews or Bukhari Jews, ( בוכרים, Bukharim) are Jews from Central Asia who speak Maghrebim ( or) are Jews who traditionally lived in the Arab-Berber Maghreb region of North Africa ( al-Maghrib Berber Jews are the Berber Jewish communities inhabiting the region of the Maghreb in North Africa. Kurdish Jews or Jews of Kurdistan (יהדות כורדיסתאן Kurdên cû are the ancient Jewish communities inhabiting the region known as Kurdistan Mountain Jews, Juvuro, Juhuro, are Jews of the eastern Caucasus, mainly of Azerbaijan and Dagestan. The Georgian Jews ( Georgian: ქართველი ებრაელები qartveli ebraelebi, Hebrew: יהודי גאורגיה Yehudei Indian Jews are a religious minority of India. Judaism was one of the first non- Dharmic religions to arrive in India in recorded history Jews ( Urdu: یہودی pronounced "Yehudi") are a very small religious group of Pakistan. The Baghdadi Jews are one of the main Jewish communities of India. This article deals with the geophysical region in Asia For geopolitical treatments see South Asia.

Despite their heterogeneous origins, Mizrahi Jews generally practise traditional Sephardic Judaism (a fact which complicates the prevalent Israeli nomenclature as discussed below) with some differences among the minhagim of the particular communities. Sephardic Judaism is the practice of Judaism as observed by the Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews, so far as it is peculiar to themselves and not shared with other Jewish Mizrahi Jews or Mizrahim, ( also referred to as Edot HaMizrach (Communities of the East are Jews descended Minhag ( Hebrew: מנהג "custom" pl minhagim) is an accepted tradition or group of traditions in Judaism.

Contents 1 History and usage 2 Other designations 3 Language 4 Post-1948 dispersal 5 Transitioning into Israeli society 5.1 Disparities and integration 6 Prominent Mizrahi figures 6.1 Politicians 6.2 Writers and Academics 6.3 Entertainers 6.4 Business people 6.5 Religious figures 6.6 Others 7 References 7.1 Notes 7.2 Literature 8 See also 9 External links 9.1 Organizations 9.2 Articles 9.3 Particular communities

History and usage

"Mizrahi" is literally translated as "Eastern", מזרח (Mizrach) being 'East" in Hebrew. The original use of the terms "Mizrahi" and "Edot ha-Mizrach" was as a translation of the Arabic term Mashriqiyyun (Easterners), referring to the people of Syria, Iraq and other Asian countries, as distinct from those of North Africa (Maghrabiyyun). This article is about the Mashriq region For other uses see Mashriq (disambiguation The Mashriq or Mashreq (also in use Mashrek The Maghreb (المغرب العربي al-Maġrib al-ʿArabī) also rendered Maghrib (or rarely Moghreb) meaning "place of Sunset

In modern Israeli usage, it refers to all Jews from North African and West Asian countries, particularly Arabic-speaking Muslim-majority countries. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. The term came to be widely used by Mizrahi activists in the early 1990s, and since then has become a widely accepted designation. ^[1]

Many Mizrahim today reject this (or any) umbrella description and prefer to identify themselves by their particular country of origin, or that of their immediate ancestors, e. g. "Iranian/Persian Jew", "Iraqi Jew", "Tunisian Jew", etc. Another description sometimes heard is "Oriental Jews". This term is still frequently used by people in the western hemisphere. The Western Hemisphere, also Western hemisphere or western hemisphere, is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies West

Other designations

Many speakers, especially in Israel, identify all non-Ashkenazi Jews as Sephardim. Sephardi Jews ( Hebrew: ספרדי, Standard Səfardi Tiberian Səp̄arədî; plural The reason for this classification is that most Mizrahi communities use much the same religious rituals as Sephardim proper. In the same way, "Ashkenazim" is used for "Jews of the German rite", whether or not they originate from Germany. Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim ( Hebrew: אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים, ˌaʃkəˈnazim sing This broader definition of "Sephardim" as applying to all Mizrahi Jews is also common in Jewish religious circles, especially those associated with the Shas political party. Shas (ש״ס is a political party in Israel, primarily representing Haredi Sephardi and Mizrahi Judaism.

Additionally, many of the Sephardic Jews exiled from Spain resettled in small and large numbers in Arabic-speaking countries such as Syria and Morocco. The Alhambra Decree (also known as the Edict of Expulsion) was an edict issued on 31 March, 1492 by the joint Catholic Monarchs of Syria ( سوريّة or) officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic ar الجمهورية العربية السورية Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa In Syria, for example, most eventually intermarried with and assimilated into the larger established community of Arabic-speaking Jews. Syria ( سوريّة or) officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic ar الجمهورية العربية السورية Antisemitism in the Arab world|Jewish exodus from Arab lands|Arabization Arab Jews ( Arabic: اليهود العرب Al-Yahūd al-`Arab, Hebrew While in Morocco, where they came to outnumber the pre-existing Arab and Berber Jews, it was some of the latter that assimilated into the more prosperous and prestigious Sephardic community. Berber Jews are the Berber Jewish communities inhabiting the region of the Maghreb in North Africa. Either way, it led to the popular designation and conflation of most non-Ashkenazic Jewish communities from the Middle East and North Africa as "Sephardic", whether or not they are actually descended from Spanish Jews, which is what the terms "Sephardic Jews" and "Sepharadim" refer to in the ethnic as opposed to the religious sense.

In many Arab countries, older Arabic-speaking communities distinguished between themselves and the newer arrivals speaking Judeo-Romance languages, that is, Sephardim expelled from Spain in 1492 and Portugal in 1497. Judeo-Romance languages are Jewish languages derived from Romance languages, spoken by various Jewish communities (and their descendants originating in Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. The established Arabic-speaking Jews called themselves Musta'arabim (Arabic for Arabizers), while the newer Sephardi arrivals called them Moriscos (Ladino for Moorish). Musta'arabi Jews ( Arabic, "Arabized" are a group of Arabic-speaking Jews who lived in the Middle Eastern lands prior to the expulsion of the Jews from Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language A morisco (Spanish " Moor -like" or mourisco (Portuguese was any Muslim of Spain or Portugal The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of Muslim (and earlier non-Muslim people of Berber and Arab descent

Language

Main article: Judeo-Arabic languages

Mizrahi communities spoke a number of Judeo-Arabic dialects such as Maghrebi, though these are now mainly used as a second language. The Judæo-Arabic languages are a collection of Arabic dialects spoken by Jews living or formerly living in the Arab world; the term also refers to Maghrebi Arabic is a cover term for the varieties of Arabic spoken in the Maghreb, including Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Most of the many notable philosophical, religious and literary works of the Mizrahim were written in Arabic using a modified Hebrew alphabet. Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language The Hebrew alphabet (אָלֶף-בֵּית עִבְרִי alephbet ’ivri) consists of 22 letters used for writing the Hebrew language.

Among other languages associated with Mizrahim are Judeo-Persian (Dzhidi), Gruzinic, Bukhori, Kurdish, Judeo-Berber, Juhuri, Judeo-Marathi, Judeo-Malayalam and Judeo-Aramaic dialects. Judæo-Persian dialects are a subgroup of Persian dialects spoken by the Jews of Iran Judæo-Persian or Jidi ( IPA: /ʤiːdiː/ also spelled as Dzhidi) is the Jewish language spoken by the Jews living in Iran Judæo-Georgian (also known as Kivruli and Gruzinic) is the traditional language spoken by the Georgian Jews, the ancient Jewish community Bukhori (also known as Bukhari, Bukharic, Bukharan, or Bukharian) is an Indo-Iranian language. The Kurdish language (Kurdish Kurdî or کوردی is a term used for the language spoken by Kurds. Judeo-Berber is a term used primarily for the Berber varieties traditionally spoken by the Jewish communities of certain parts of central and southern Morocco Juhuri, Juvuri or Judæo- Tat is the traditional language of the Juhuro or Mountain Jews of the eastern Caucasus Mountains Judæo-Marathi (जुदाव मराठी is a form of Marathi spoken by the Bene Israel, a Jewish ethnic group that developed a unique identity Judeo-Malayalam is the traditional language of the Cochin Jews (also called Malabar Jews) from Kerala, in southern India, spoken today by about Judæo-Aramaic is a collective term used to describe several Hebrew -influenced Aramaic and Neo-Aramaic Languages History Most Persian Jews speak standard Persian. |||} Persian Jews or Iranian Jews are Jews historically associated with the Persian Empire or Iran.

Aramaic is a close sister of Hebrew. It is identified as a "Jewish language", since it is the language of major Jewish texts such as the Talmud and Zohar, and many ritual recitations such as the Kaddish. The Jewish languages are a set of Languages that developed in various Jewish communities around the world more notably in Europe, West Asia, and The Talmud ( Hebrew: he תַּלְמוּד is a record of Rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history For the village in southern Israel see Tzohar The Zohar (זהר lit Splendor or Radiance) is widely considered the most important Kaddish (קדיש Aramaic: "holy" refers to an important and central prayer in the Jewish prayer service. Traditionally Aramaic has been a language of Talmudic debate in yeshivoth, as many rabbinic texts are written in a mixture of Hebrew and Aramaic. Yeshiva or yeshivah (jəʃi'və ( Hebrew: ישיבה "sitting (n As spoken by the Jews of Kurdistan, Jewish Neo-Aramaic dialects are descended from Jewish Babylonian Aramaic, as could be seen from its hundreds of reflexes in Jewish Neo-Aramaic. Kurdish Jews or Jews of Kurdistan (יהדות כורדיסתאן Kurdên cû are the ancient Jewish communities inhabiting the region known as Kurdistan Judæo-Aramaic is a collective term used to describe several Hebrew -influenced Aramaic and Neo-Aramaic Languages History Jewish Babylonian Aramaic is the form of Middle Aramaic employed by Jewish writers in Babylonia between the 4th century and the 11th century CE In addition to Judeo-Aramaic, some Kurdish Jews speak an unrelated language called "Judeo-Kurdish" which is a "Jewish" form of the Indo-European Kurdish language. The Kurdish language (Kurdish Kurdî or کوردی is a term used for the language spoken by Kurds.

By the early 1950s, virtually the entire Jewish community of Kurdistan — a rugged, mostly mountainous region comprising parts of Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and the Caucasus, where Jews had lived since antiquity — relocated to Israel. The vast majority of Kurdish Jews, who were primarily concentrated in northern Iraq, left Kurdistan in the mass aliyah (emigration to Israel) of 1950-51. This ended thousands of years of Jewish history in what had been Assyria and Babylonia. Early history The most Neolithic site in Assyria is at Tell Hassuna, the center of the Hassuna culture Babylonia was an Amorite state in lower Mesopotamia (modern southern Iraq) with Babylon as its capital

See also Mizrahi Hebrew language. Mizrahi Hebrew or Oriental Hebrew refers to any one of the pronunciation systems for Biblical Hebrew used liturgically by Mizrahi Jews, that is Jews

Post-1948 dispersal

Main article: Jewish exodus from Arab lands

After the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and subsequent establishment of the state of Israel, most Mizrahi Jews emigrated to the new state where they could become citizens. Antisemitism in the Arab world|Islam and Antisemitism The Jewish exodus from Arab lands refers to the 20th century expulsion or mass departure of Jews primarily of Sephardi For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics.

Anti-Jewish actions by Arab governments in the 1950s and 1960s, including the expulsion of 25,000 Mizrahi Jews from Egypt after the 1956 Suez Crisis, led to the overwhelming majority of Mizrahim leaving Arab countries. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, (أزمة السويس - العدوان الثلاثي Crise du canal de Suez מבצע קדש Kadesh They became refugees. In the course of history Jewish populations have been expelled or ostracised by various local authorities and have sought asylum from Antisemitism numerous times Most went to Israel. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. Many Moroccan and Algerian Jews went to France. Thousands of Lebanese, Syrian and Egyptian Jews emigrated to the United States.

Today, as many as 40,000 Mizrahim still remain in communities scattered throughout the non-Arab Muslim world, primarily in Iran, but also Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and Turkey ^[2]. The term Muslim world (or Islamic world) has several meanings For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( Uzbek: O‘zbekiston Respublikasi or Ўзбекистон Республикаси is a doubly Azerbaijan ( English; Azərbaycan officially the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azərbaycan Respublikası is the largest and most populous country in the South Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches There are few remaining in the Arab world. About 5,000 remain in Morocco and fewer than 2,000 in Tunisia. Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. Other countries with remnants of ancient Jewish communities with official recognition, such as Lebanon, have 1,000 or fewer Jews. Lebanon (ˈlɛbənɒn Arabic: ar لبنان Lubnān) officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic (ar الجمهورية اللبنانية A trickle of emigration continues, mainly to Israel and the United States. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A number have been arrested, mostly for alleged connections with Israel and the United States. Some have been executed, with religious intolerance often cited as the main contributing factor. ^[3]

Transitioning into Israeli society

Refuge in Israel was not without its tragedies: "in a generation or two, millennia of rooted Oriental civilization, unified even in its diversity,” had been wiped out, writes Mizrahi scholar Ella Shohat. ^[4] The trauma of rupture from their countries of origin was further complicated by the difficulty of the transition upon arrival in Israel; Mizrahi immigrants and refugees were placed in rudimentary and hastily-erected tent cities and later sent to development towns on the peripheries of Israel. Settlement in Moshavim (cooperative farming villages) was only partially successful, because Mizrahim had historically filled a niche as craftsmen and merchants and most did not traditionally engage in farmwork. Moshav ( is a type of Cooperative Agricultural Community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second An artisan, also called a Craftsman, is a skilled manual worker who crafts items that may be functional or strictly decorative including furniture clothing Merchants function as professionals who deal with Trade, dealing in commodities that they do not produce themselves in order to produce Profit.

Mizrahi immigrants arrived with many mother tongues. Many, especially those from North Africa and the fertile crescent, spoke Arabic dialects; those from Iran spoke Persian; Baghdadi Jews from India and Gruzinic arrived with English; Mizrahim from elsewhere brought Georgian, Tajik, Juhuri and various other languages with them. The Baghdadi Jews are one of the main Jewish communities of India. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Judæo-Georgian (also known as Kivruli and Gruzinic) is the traditional language spoken by the Georgian Jews, the ancient Jewish community Georgian (ka ქართული ენა kartuli ena) is the Official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus. The Tajik language, or Tajik Persian, or Tajiki, (sometimes written Tadjik or Tadzhik; тоҷикӣ, tg-Latn ''tojikí'') is a modern Juhuri, Juvuri or Judæo- Tat is the traditional language of the Juhuro or Mountain Jews of the eastern Caucasus Mountains Hebrew had historically been a language of prayer only for most Jews not living in Israel, including the Mizrahim. Thus, with their arrival in Israel, the Mizrahim retained culture, customs and language distinct from their Ashkenazi counterparts, but with time they became more assimilated, creating a new, Israeli identity. Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim ( Hebrew: אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים, ˌaʃkəˈnazim sing

Disparities and integration

The cultural differences between Mizrahi and Ashkenazi Jews impacted the degree and rate of assimilation into Israeli society, and sometimes the divide between European and Middle Eastern Jews has been quite sharp. Segregation, especially in the area of housing, limited integration possibilities over the years. ^[5] Intermarriage between Ashkenazim and Mizrahim is now relatively common in Israel, however, it has been found that intermarriage does not tend to decrease ethnic differences in socio-economic status. ^[6]

It appears that despite increased social integration, disparities persist. A study conducted by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (ICBS), Mizrahi Jews are less likely to pursue academic studies than Ashkenazi Jews. Less than 10% of total doctoral students are Arabs or Mizrahi Jews,^[7] and Ashkenazi immigrants are up to 10 times more likely to study in a university than Israeli-born Mizrahim. ^[8] Furthermore, the percentage of Mizrahim who seek a university education remains low compared to second-generation immigrant groups of Ashkenazi origin, such as Russians. ^[9] According to a survey by the Adva Center^[10], the average income of Ashkenazim was 36 percent higher than that of Mizrahim in 2004. ^[11] This difference is declining as the communities integrate.

Prominent Mizrahi figures

Politicians

• Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, current Israeli minister of Infrastructure, former minister of Defense and Israel Labor Party chairman, (Iraqi Jew), commonly called by his Arabic name "Fuad"
• Rabbi Aryeh Deri, former leader of Shas Party and minister of Internal Affairs, (Moroccan Jew)
• Yisrael Yeshayahu Sharabi, Minister of Post and Speaker of Knesset 1970s and 80s, ethnicity/country of origin: Yemen
• Dalia Itzik, current Knesset speaker
• Avigdor Kahalani, former minister of Internal Security and decorated IDF tank commander
• Moshe Katsav, former President of the State of Israel and minister of Transportation, ethnicity/country of origin: Iran
• David Levy, former minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister
• Shaul Mofaz, former Israeli Minister of Defense and chief of the IDF General Staff, ethnicity/country of origin: Iran
• Yitzhak Mordechai, retired IDF general, former minister of Defense and minister of Transportation, ethnicity/country of origin: Iraq
• Dorrit Moussaieff, First Lady of Iceland
• Yitzhak Navon, fifth president of Israel and former minister of Education
• Amir Peretz, current Knesset member and former Israeli Minister of Defense, Labor Party chairman, and chairman of the Histadrut, ethnicity/country of origin: Morocco
• Silvan Shalom, former Israeli minister of Foreign Affairs, minister of Treasury and Deputy Prime Minister, ethnicity/country of origin: Tunisia
• Meir Sheetrit, current Israeli minister of Internal Affairs and former Deputy Prime Minister, minister of Treasury and of Education

Writers and Academics

• Shimon Ballas, author
• Sami Michael, author
• Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, author
• Yehouda Shenhav, professor
• Saba Soomekh, professor/writer
• A.B. Yehoshua, author and professor
• Ella Shohat, author and professor

Entertainers

• Elliott Yamin, American singer (Jewish Iraqi father)
• Jerry Seinfeld, American actor and comedian (mother is a Jew from Damascus, Syria)
• Paula Abdul, American singer, dancer, television personality, jewelry designer & actress (Jewish Syrian father)
• Zohar Argov, Israeli born King of Mizrahi music (Yemenite)
• Gali Atari, Israeli singer and actress, won the Eurovision Song Contest (Yemenite family)
• Yizhar Cohen, Israeli singer, won the Eurovision Song Contest (Yemenite family)
• Shoshana Damari, Israeli singer (Yemen born)
• Boaz Sharabi Israeli singer (born, Yemenite, Tunisian & Moroccan ancestry)
• Dana International, Israeli pop singer, won the Eurovision Song Contest (Yemenite family)
• Ninette Tayeb, Israel singer, won "A Star is Born" (Kokhav Nolad) Contest (Moroccan/Tunisian descent)
• Ofra Haza, Israeli pop and oriental singer (Yemenite family)
• Shoista Mullodzhanova, Bukharian Shashmakon singer (People's Artist of USSR)
• Farhat Ezekiel Nadira (Nadira), Bollywood actress of the 1940s and 50s (Baghdadi Jew from India)
• Achinoam Nini, Israeli born, Yemenite pop singer
• Rita, Iranian born, Israeli pop singer
• Bahar Soomekh, Persian Jewish-American actress
• Subliminal, Israeli rapper of Persian/Tunisian descent
• Harel Skaat, Singer and Kokhav Nolad contestant (Yemenite descent)
• Chemda Khalili, singer and co-host of Keith and the Girl

Business people

• Charles Saatchi, advertising executive and art collector (born in Iraq)
• Maurice Saatchi, Baron Saatchi, advertising executive and chairman of the British Conservative Party
• Michael Kadoorie, prominent businessman from Hong-Kong
• Shlomo Moussaieff, Jewellery Designer/ Judaic Collector and Expert (Bukharian)
• Lev Leviev, Israeli businessman of Bukharian descent [3]
• David and Simon Reuben, British businessmen born in India, from a family of Baghdadi Jews
• Edmond Safra, banker from Lebanon

Religious figures

• Ovadia Yosef, former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel and current spiritual leader of Shas
• Mordechai Eliyahu, former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel
• Ben Ish Chai was a leading Hakham (Sephardic Rabbi), authority on Jewish law (Halakha) and Kabbalist
• Amnon Yitzhak, is a well-known Orthodox Haredi Israeli rabbi of Yemenite origin
• Shlomo Moussaieff (rabbi), Co-founder of Bukharian Jewish Quarter in Jerusalem

Others

• Isaac Mizrahi, fashion designer
• J. F. R. Jacob, celebrated Indian Army officer and participant in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 (Baghdadi Jew from India)

References

Notes

Literature

• Ella Shohat, "The Invention of the Mizrahim" in: Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 29, No. 1. (Autumn, 1999), pp. 5-20.

See also

• Arab Jews
• Arab Jewish tribes
• Bukharian Jews
• Georgian Jews
• Indian Jews
• History of the Jews under Muslim rule
• History of the Jews in Algeria
• History of the Jews in Egypt
• History of the Jews in Iran
• History of the Jews in Iraq
• History of the Jews in Morocco
• History of the Jews in Tunisia
• History of the Jews in Syria
• Jews of the Bilad el-Sudan (West Africa)
• Mountain Jews
• Palestinian Jew
• Persian Jews
• Sephardi Jews
• Syrian Jews
• Yemenite Jews
• Mizrahi Music
• Iran-Israel relations
• Israeli Black Panthers
• Jewish ethnic divisions
• Jewish exodus from Arab lands
• To my Sister, Mizrahi Feminist Politics

External links

Organizations

• World Organization of Jews from Arab Countries
• JIMENA Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa
• Loolwa Khazzoom - Multiculturalism movement for non-European Jewish history, heritage & social justice
• Multiculturalism Project - Middle Eastern and North African Jews
• Hakeshet Hademocratit Hamizrachit - An organization of Mizrahi Jews in Israel

Articles

• Mizrahi Wanderings - Nancy Hawker on Samir Naqqash, one of Israel’s foremost Arab-language Mizrahi novelists
• The Middle East's Forgotten Refugees A chronicle of Mizrahi refugees by Semha Alwaya
• The Forgotten Refugees
• Moshe Levy The story of an Iraqi Jew in the Israeli Navy and his survival on the war-ship Eilat
• My Life in Iraq Yeheskel Kojaman describes his life as a Mizrahi Jew in Iraq in the 50s and 60s
• Audio interview with Ammiel Alcalay discussing Mizrahi literature
• Excerpt from The Jews of Arab Lands in Modern Times by Norman Stillman
• Etan Bloom, The Reproduction of the Model ‘Oriental’ in the Israeli Social Space; the 50s and the speedy immigration. Tel-Aviv Univ. Antisemitism in the Arab world|Jewish exodus from Arab lands|Arabization Arab Jews ( Arabic: اليهود العرب Al-Yahūd al-`Arab, Hebrew The Arab Jewish tribes are the Arab tribes professing the Jewish faith that inhabited the Arabian Peninsula before and during the advent of Islam Bukharan Jews, also Bukharian Jews or Bukhari Jews, ( בוכרים, Bukharim) are Jews from Central Asia who speak The Georgian Jews ( Georgian: ქართველი ებრაელები qartveli ebraelebi, Hebrew: יהודי גאורגיה Yehudei Indian Jews are a religious minority of India. Judaism was one of the first non- Dharmic religions to arrive in India in recorded history Aside the regions of Israel and Judea Jews have lived in the Middle East at least since the Babylonian Captivity ( 597 BCE, about 2600 years Jews and Judaism have a rather long history in Algeria. However following the brutal conflict of the 1990s there – in particular the rebel Armed Islamic Egyptian Jews constitute perhaps the oldest Jewish community outside Israel in the world The beginnings of Jewish history in Iran date back to late biblical times Iraqi Jews are Jews born in Iraq or of Iraqi heritage The history of the Jews in Iraq is documented from the time of the Babylonian captivity c Moroccan Jews constitute an ancient community Before the founding of Israel in 1948, there were about 250000 Jews in the country but fewer Tunisia has had a Jewish minority since Roman times. In 1948 the Jewish population was an estimated 105000 but by 1967 most Tunisian Jews had Syrian Jews derive their origin from two groups those who inhabited Syria from early times and the Sephardim who fled to Syria after the expulsion of the Jews from Jews of the Bilad al-Sudan ( Judeo-Arabic) describes West African Jewish communities who were connected to known Jewish communities from the Middle Mountain Jews, Juvuro, Juhuro, are Jews of the eastern Caucasus, mainly of Azerbaijan and Dagestan. A Palestinian Jew is a Jewish inhabitant of Palestine throughout certain periods of Middle Eastern history |||} Persian Jews or Iranian Jews are Jews historically associated with the Persian Empire or Iran. Sephardi Jews ( Hebrew: ספרדי, Standard Səfardi Tiberian Səp̄arədî; plural Syrian Jews ( Arabic, يهود سوريون) derive their origin from two groups those who inhabited the region of today's Syria from the ancient times Yemenite Jews ( Hebrew: תֵּימָנִים, Standard   Temanim Tiberian   Têmānîm This article is about the music of the Mizrahi Jews For the main article on secular Jewish music see Secular Jewish music. The Black Panthers (הפנתרים השחורים HaPanterim HaShhorim) are an Israeli protest movement of second-generation Jewish immigrants from Middle Eastern See also Judaism by country Jewish ethnic divisions refers to a number of distinct communities within the world's ethnically Jewish population Antisemitism in the Arab world|Islam and Antisemitism The Jewish exodus from Arab lands refers to the 20th century expulsion or mass departure of Jews primarily of Sephardi To My Sister Mizrahi Feminist Politics (לאחותי פוליטיקה פמיניסטית מזרחית is an Anthology of Poetry, short stories, M. A in the Unit for Culture Research, 2003. (Hebrew, with summary in English. )

Particular communities

• PersianRabbi.com An online forum for the Persian Sephardic Jewish Community
• Kurdish Jewry (יהדות כורדיסתאן) An Israeli site on Kurdish Jewry (in Hebrew)
• The Babylonian Jewry Heritage Center Disseminating the rich 3000 year old heritage of Babylonian Jewry (in English and Hebrew)
• Iraqi Jews (יהודי עיראק - يهود العراق) Iraqi American Jewish Community in New York. Perpetuating the history, heritage, culture and traditions of Babylonian Jewry.
• The Jews of Lebanon
• Historical Society of Jews from Egypt
• Harissa.com Tunisian Jewish site (in French)
• Zlabia.com Algerian Jewish site (in French)
• Dafina.net Moroccan Jewish site (in French)

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