Jewish Life in Morocco

When we first started on our trip through Morocco I understood that there was a long history of Jews in Morocco. Every time we had a guide they would talk about the Jewish influence on life in Morocco for many centuries. It wasn't because this was a Jewish heritage tour. Jews in Morocco had an outsized importance to the country. So the question was, why did all (between 250,000 and 350,000 population) leave the country before the 1960s. There are 5000 Jews left in Morocco, which is still more than any other country in the Arab world.

We get glimpses of what Jewish life was like as we travel through the country. Almost everywhere there are abandoned Jewish quarters, many of which are disintegrating or being restored and lived in by Berber or Arab Moroccans.

The king of Morocco was asked by the French during WWII to turn over the Jews and his response was that he would not turn over "Moroccan citizens". So the question we kept asking was, if Morocco was so "accepting and welcoming" and if most Jews in Morocco were middle class why did most of them leave? The answer is of course complex, but here are a few factors:

Arab riots in conjunction with the establishment of Israel in 1948, the withdrawal of the French in 1956 and new laws that were restrictive to Jews in travel made the Jewish community fearful. In 2011, in response to the Arab Spring, Morocco's king established a new constitution that specifically acknowledged the importance of the Jewish people to Morocco and calling for rehabilitation of all Jewish sites.

A family portrait in the synagogue museum in Casablanca. This would have been from the 1920s as most of the Jewish population emigrated to Israel in 1948, or to France or elsewhere in 1956 when the French departed.

This decorative element nailed to the side of a building used to serve as the eternal light at the Tiferet Israel synagogue which has just opened as a Jewish museum.

We encountered this name (Haim Pinto) twice, once in Casablanca where his family members have returned to reclaim his home and work to improve Jewish life there. Casablanca is home to most of the Jewish population in Morocco now. The other place we encountered this name was in Essaouira which we learned was 2/3 Jewish at one time.

Tifferet Israel Synagogue in Casablanca has been converted to a Jewish Museum, the only one in the Arab world.

The artifacts in the Jewish museum in Casablanca include this embroidery describing the chair of Elijah, upon which the godfather sits when a boy is circumcized at 8 days old.

This embroidery is a wedding contract.

In Fes, the Jewish community that was forced to flee Spain in 1492 were given special treatment by the king to settle and you can see that the architecture shows the Spanish influence of balconies, wrought iron fencing and embellishments.

The Jewish cemetery in Fes is the oldest in Morocco, possibly some graves as old as the 7th century. It is well maintained even without much of a Jewish presence in the city. It can be seen from the roof of the synagogue.

The Mellah (means salt as this was a heavily traded commodity) is located very close to the king's palace in Fes. Every town that had a Jewish quarter called it the Mellah.

Many Jews were engaged in gold and silver handicraft. The owners of the businesses are gone but their names sill adorn the businesses which still thrive in the neighborhood.

Maimonides, the famous Jewish scholar and rabbi lived in Fes with his family at an early age. At the address that is considered his, you can find a Chinese restaurant that bears his name.

In the valley of the roses in the Atlas mountains we came upon this Jewish cemetery which unfortunately was locked. It contains graves as early as the 15th century.

In Tinerhir on the way to the Sahara we saw a whole neighborhood that had been filled with Jewish residents, now abandoned though satellite dishes seem to sprout from some of the rooftops they are being repaired and reoccupied. Yes, there were Berber Jews who were living in Morocco as early as the 6th century.

The port and resort city of Essaouria has fewer than 20 Jewish residents though there are two synagogues maintained there. This one is much simpler in design and adornment than the ones you saw in the previous post about synagogues and is very small but is lovingly restored.

There is a human caretaker as well though this lovely creature seemed to want to give us the tour.

The ark is restored but contains no torah scrolls as there are no services held here. They are in Rabbi Pinto's synagogue down the street.

A photograph from 2008 before the ark was restored.

The caretaker, who is so proud to be carrying on her role as "shomeret/guard" of Rabbi Pinto's synagogue. She is Muslim and her father and grandfather before her took on this role.

When they can gather enough people there is a weekly service, mostly made up of tourists.

This space is even smaller and again, very simple. The wood is a native wood called Thuya which has an interesting pattern.

The most comfortable women's section I've ever seen in a synagogue.

Rabbi Pinto's home is downstairs from the synagogue. This is looking down on it.

A photo of the illustrious Rabbi Pinto who lived 1748-1845. Approximately 1500 people come to Essaouira every year on the anniversary of his death to visit his grave. He is said to have had the ability to pray so sincerely that miracles resulted.

One of his grandsons who is a rabbi in France.

Rabbi Pinto's grandson as a child in Essaouria and as a leader in France.

A view of Rabbi Pinto's home with the large Elijah's chair up against the wall.

Some of the leaders of the Jewish community welcoming the king to Essaouria.

On the other side of the wall is the sea. This was the heart of the mellah before the Jewish community abandoned it. It's obviously been bulldozed and in the distance you can see that there are people squatting in tent shacks along the wall.

This is how the neighborhood looked at the turn of the century.

After World War II

The upper windows you see on the right are Rabbi Pinto's synagogue, otherwise this is basically what's left of the Mellah now.

What used to be the yeshiva is a clinic for alzheimer's patients, a massage parlor (legitimate one), and a school upstairs for local children.

The entry card to the yeshiva for Simon Cohen, the son of Salamon whose profession is working in a cafe

A class roll book

The caretaker of the school building. Between he and Jeff is a tablet that looks like it came from the cemetery.