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Porte du Mellah (Mellah gate), Essaouira, Morocco

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Background on the Mellah of Essaouira

Essaouira was established by Alaouite Sultan Sidi Mohammed ben Abdellah in 1764 on the site of a former Portuguese fortress. [1, 2] It quickly became a major domestic and international trading post, attracting many Jewish merchants, traders, and workers. [3, 4] In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Essaouira was home to one of the largest Jewish communities in the country. At one point, Jews made up about 40 percent of Essaouira’s population, growing so much that an addition to the mellah had to be built to accommodate them. [5, 6] 

Mellahs, separate Jewish quarters, were established in multiple cities by an 1807 Sultan-issued dahir (decree). [7] Before then, Jews and Muslims lived together in the neighborhoods of Essaouira. [8] The name mellah comes from the salt marsh area in Fez where the first mellah was created. [9] Following the decree, poorer Jews populated the mellah while elite Jewish families resided in the casbah quarter outside the mellah walls. [10] The separation of casbah and mellah generated tensions between elite and lower-class Jews. [11] In Essaouira, “division was really a division of class and not of religion,” with intermarriage being widely acepted and places of worship were even shared amongst Muslims and Jews. [12]

Today, only a handful of Jews remain in Essaouira. [13] One of the reasons for this is the impact of French Protectorate (1912-1956), during which the French  developed Casablanca and Agadir as seaports, limiting economic opportunities in Essaouira and incentivizing migration to larger hubs [14, 15]. Another, larger, exodus took place following the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, after which only about 2 percent of the Jewish population remained. [16, 17] 

The Jewish quarter of Essaouira stands as a testament to the significant role of Jewry in the development of one of Morocco’s major port cities. Many sites of historical significance, including synagogues and old Jewish businesses, have been demolished or otherwise dilapidated over time. [18] Current Essaouira residents and others work to preserve remaining sites and redevelopment efforts are underway. [19, 20, 21] 

The Porte du Mellah

The Gate: The way into Mellah's main street, rue Mellah, is through the stone Porte du Mellah. Past the town’s Jewish cemeteries and the Haim Pinto synagogue, the Mellah gate greets those making their way inside to the community. Along the main street once stood myriad synagogues, workshops, and more. [22]

Essaouira History: Founded in 1764, the small seaside town of Essaouira was once a major trading port in Morocco. [23] During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it housed the largest Jewish population; some Jews had already lived in the region, while other Jews moved to Essaouira once the port was established, and even more migrated over once the port began to flourish. There were around twenty to thirty royal merchants in Essaouira, with the majority of them being Jews, each protected and utilized as intermediaries by the Moroccan Sultan. These Jewish merchants aided in trade, establishing networks outside of Morocco, bringing in luxury goods, and creating partnerships with the Muslim community. Out of the entire population of Essaouira, Jews made up around thirty to fifty percent. The majority of the Jewish community migrated out of Morocco in the 1960s, and now there are only a handful of Jews left in Essaouira. [24]

Mellah: A Mellah is an established Jewish quarter, which was named after the salt marsh area in Fez where the first mellah was created. [25] During the beginning of Essaouira’s growth, Jews did not live seperated in the neighborhood, until a dahir (decree) issued by the Sultan Mawlay Sulayman in 1807 created separate Jewish quarters in multiple cities. The mellah in Essaouira was then created and Jews were ordered to move into the new quarters. [26] Due to the large size of the Jewish population the Mellah in Essaouira was extended twice, which is why there is the main quarter, a Mellah Qdim (old Mellah), and Mellah Jdid (new Mellah). While the majority of Jews resided in the mellah, affluent Jews, such as the royal Jewish merchants, did not. They often resided in the elite casbah, the governmental quarter. [27] Due to various factors, including the decline of Essaouira as a major port city in the late nineteenth century and the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, many families left Essaouira/Mogador and moved away. [28] They left much behind, including their homes, workshops, shops, schools and synagogues.

This history is hardly visible if one does not know where to look or what to look for. Many buildings in the Mellah have already been demolished or left in disrepair. [29] While a few synagogues have been restored and are open for visitors, some have been repurposed and the majority are closed or in ruins.

In order to give visibility to this past, projects such as the World Monument Fund’s “Stories of the Mellah” work to document accounts of Essaouira and its Jewish past. The project is aimed at listening to the people who still live at the site and bring their memories and perspectives of what the place means today together with those of people who have left. The result is a tangible map connected to intangible stories of the Mellah and the town. Even though the Mellah is now often referred to as the Jewish Quarter, at least in Essaouira, that does not really describe the reality. Essaouira/Mogador is often described as a place where religious diversity and peaceful coexistence was lived in everyday life.

In this video by the World Monuments Fund from 2020, you are taken on a journey through the mellah itself. You are able to take in its culture, and diversity, and see what remains of the once vibrant Jewish quarter. Those who currently live in Essaouira share what life was like prior to the Jewish exodus, and what has now become of the town.

Essaouira, Morocco

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