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Former Djibouti Synagogue
This former synagogue in Djibouti was once the grandest in the country. Though the building itself still stands, it is no longer a synagogue and its façade has been altered. Nearly the entire Jewish community of Djibouti made Aliyah (immigrated to Israel) in the mid-1900s.
Description
DESCRIPTION
The nation of Djibouti is small, bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. Because Djibouti sits between the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and because of its proximity to the Arabian Peninsula, it is a strategically important regional port. The nation was once home to a small yet flourishing Jewish community of traders, craftsmen, and jewelers [1]. The site of the former grand synagogue stands in the city center [2]. The building had previously been owned by a member of the prominent Benin merchant family, who used the lower floors as a place of business and the upper floors as a synagogue and community center. The synagogue used to be identifiable by the Star of David on the upper part of its exterior as recently as 2017; however, the building was purchased by a prominent French-Djiboutian businessman who repainted the façade and painted the building bright yellow. It currently houses insurance offices and serves as an informal historical landmark for the former Jewish community of Djibouti.
THE JEWS OF DJIBOUTI
The first Jews to arrive and permanently settle in Djibouti traveled to the port city from Yemen, on the other side of the Gulf of Aden. The first documented Jewish presence coincides with the French building of the port at the end of the nineteenth century, and the community was a key part of the port’s development and success [1]. It is unknown if these Jews originated from Yemen’s Adeni community or Baladi community from the north, as the Djiboutian Jews share minhagim (customs) with both [2].
The Jewish population in Djibouti was never particularly large, with only a few hundred Jewish families in the region [2]. Many were jewelers, craftsmen, or traders, though they were best known for their superior halakhic knowledge [1]. One of the last known Rabbis of the community would travel to Jewish communities in neighboring countries, such as Ethiopia and Eritrea, where he was sought as a mohel for Jewish circumcision ceremonies [2].
In 1948, there was a mass Aliyah from Yemen to Israel, which included almost all Djiboutian Jews [2]. Over the next few decades, the remaining Jewish families left for either Israel or France. The Jewish homes were reoccupied by locals, and Jewish sites in Djibouti were repurposed. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports that today, there are only three Jews remaining in the country [3].
Images of the former synagogue can be found here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/34247297@N07/3263984958/in/photostream/
Djibouti
© Mapbox, © OpenStreetMap
Sources
[1]Ali, Aweis. “A Brief History of Judaism in the Somali Peninsula.” Somali Bible Society Journal II, no. I (May 2021). Accessed 11 July, 2023. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/351330011_A_Brief_History_of_Judaism_in_the_Somali_Peninsula.
Jewish Action. “Out of Africa - Jewish Action,” July 27, 2020. Accessed 11 July, 2023. https://jewishaction.com/jewish-world/travel/out_of_africa/.
[2]Zivotofsky, Ari; Greenspan, Ari (January 2012). "No Vital Signs In Djibouti" (PDF). Mishpacha. 391: 56–62. Accessed 11 July, 2023. http://halachicadventures.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/djibouti-mishpacha.pdf
[3]Jews Were Here. “Djibouti - Jews Were Here,” October 7, 2020. http://jewswerehere.com/africa/eastafrica/djibouti/.
Ali, “A Brief History of Judaism in the Somali Peninsula.”