Moroccan Jewry
The Jewish community of Morocco was the largest of all the Jewish communities in the Islamic countries. Over generations, the Moroccan Jewry developed a rich cultural and spiritual heritage expressed in literature, poetry, music, Jewish thought and many other fields. In 1948, between 250,000 to 300,000 Jews lived in Morocco. Since then, most of Morocco's Jews have immigrated to Israel and some to other countries. In the year 2020, around 2,000 Jews were still living in Morocco.
The exact origins of the Moroccan Jewish community are unclear, but Jews likely had a communal presence in the country as early as the first century BCE. Moroccan Jews experienced periods of prosperity as well as periods of persecution, depending on the attitude of the authorities in power at the time.
Moroccan Jewry was composed of many groups that differed in terms of their cultural and religious identities. The “toshavim” (lit. inhabitants) were Jews who had lived in Morocco since ancient times—some lived among the Berbers in the Atlas Mountains, and others emigrated from the Land of Israel and the Arabian Peninsula. The “megurashim” (lit. exiles) were descended from exiled Jews from Spain and Portugal who began arriving in the 15th century and who contributed greatly to the community’s cultural and spiritual flourishing. These groups were joined by immigrants from Europe and the Middle East who began to arrive in the 19th century. Despite the cultural diversity, a “Moroccan-Jewish” (“Mughrabi”) Arabic dialect developed, whose usage became commonplace among most of the community.
The first “mellah,” a local term for a closed Jewish quarter, was established in the 15th century in the city of Fez in Morocco. In the following centuries, Jews in many cities were required to live in a mellah. In many cases, the Jews were forced to move in, against their will. Their situation improved with the French conquest of Morocco in 1912, with many Jews moving to the larger cities and integrating into senior positions in the kingdom.
The Great Aliyah
Over the years, Jews from Morocco immigrated to Israel, but the mass waves of immigration began after the establishment of the State of Israel. Between 1948 and 2016, around 270,000 members of the community immigrated to Israel. This is the highest number of immigrants from among all the Islamic countries.
The National Library of Israel houses many of Moroccan Jewry’s important spiritual treasures. The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People, which operates within the Library, contains an extensive collection of personal and family documents, private collections of community figures as well as community records such as documents on education and welfare, rabbinical court ledgers, halakhic and rabbinical material and property deeds. On the Library website, you can find interesting stories, poignant photographs, research, rabbinical literature, posters, interviews, books, cultural works and press clippings, all of which reveal diverse aspects of Moroccan Jewry’s rich heritage.