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Yeshivat HaCohanim (Slat Rabbi Abraham) at Djerba, Tunisia
One of the 11 synagogues on the island of Djerba [1].
Description
Architecture of the Yeshivat HaCohanim
The original construction of the Yeshivat HaCohanim is simple, which is typical of Djerban synagogues. The most venerable part consists of three small spans of semicircular arches, which continue uninterrupted, without a capital or base, from the low vaulted ceiling down to the ground. The interior space containing the holy ark is dark and confined in contrast to the bright and open exterior of the courtyard area [2]. The columns and courtyard arches are of a more recent construction. The small and harmonious aspects of the building give it an intimate feel, only broken during the pilgrimage that sees the menara led into the courtyard with the procession that follows [3].
The central role of the synagogue, located in the small quarter of Hamt Souk, is made clear by a commemorative plaque placed to the left of the holy cupboard. It recalls the names of the great rabbis since Shaul HaCohen, the author of “Lechem Habikurim” who lived during the second half of the 18th-century [4].
Jewish Life
The ancient Jewish settlement in Djerba had two communities, one in Chara Al Kabira (“The Big Village”) near the southern port of the island, and the other in Chara Al Zaghira (“The Small Village”) inland. According to local tradition, the Jews of Chara Al Kabira were of the Zebuloun and arrived during the time of King Solomon. The other congregation of Chara Al Zaghira, according to tradition, arrived after the destruction of the First Temple [5].
Djerba is known as “the Island of Kohanim (priests)” because “approximately 80% of the community is descended from priests” dating all the way back to 586 BC [6]. According to local tradition, most of the Jews in Djerba are Kohanim (Hebrew for “priest”) from the Cohen Tanugi family, who arrived during the Middle Ages from Tangiers. Some belong to the dynasty of Zaddok the High Priest (Kohen), who arrived in Djerba after the destruction of the Second Temple [7].
The Jewish community is primarily focused at Hara Sghira (Er Riadh) and Hara Kebira (Es Souani) [8]. Djerba became an influential center for rabbis and authors after Rabbi Aharon Peretz arrived from Morocco and founded an important Yeshiva in the 18th century [9]. After the foundation of the French protectorate in 1881, French culture and influence began penetrating the Jewish community. The rabbis rejected the Alliance Israelite Universelle school and built more Talmud Torah schools in response. [10] Even today, many children’s first language is Arabic, but they’re expected to learn Hebrew at school [11].
At the community’s peak in 1946, the Jewish population of Djerba was 4,900 people [12]. During the early 1950s, there were 20 synagogues and yeshivots located on the island [13]. Once Israel was established, around 1,500 Jews made Aliyah to Israel [14]. Many Jews also left once Tunisia gained independence in 1956 [15]. Since then, there was been a steady decline of the community: 2,400 people in 1955, 1,000 in 1976, and 900 in 1997 [16]. However, at the present time there are about 30 new births every year-- a sign of hope [17].
The long-standing isolation of Djerba resulted in a very “undiluted” form of Judaism that separates Djerba from the rest of the Jewish world [18]. For example, “community members still bring their pots and challot to the local baker on Friday afternoon to have them heated in a warm oven over the course of Shabbot” [19]. People are capable of warming their food at home, but the community chooses to keep its traditions alive.
Sources
Footnotes
1. Mike Gerrard, DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Tunisia, 2015.
2. Colette Bismuth-Jarrassé and Dominique Jarrassé, Synagogues de Tunisie: monuments d'une histoire et d'une identité (Le Kremlin-Bicêtre: Esthétiques du divers, 2010): 139.
3. Ibid., 140.
4. Ibid.
5. “The Jewish Community of Djerba,” ANU Museum of the Jewish People, Accessed August 4, 2021, https://dbs.anumuseum.org.il/skn/en/c6/e185003/Place/Djerba.
6. European Jewish Congress, “Tunisia,” European Jewish Congress, 2019, https://eurojewcong.org/communities/tunisia/; Donald G McNeil Jr., “Tunisian Jews at Blast Site: A Stalwart Remnant,” The New York Times, April 15, 2002, https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/15/world/tunisian-jews-at-blast-site-a-stalwart-remnant.html.
7. Ibid.
8. “Djerba,” Museum of The Jewish People - Beit Hatfutsot: 'בית התפוצות - מוזיאון העם היהודי'}}. Accessed August 6, 2018. https://dbs.bh.org.il/place/djerba.
9. Nancy Davidson, “Where History & Myth Meet,” The New York Sun, August 27, 2007, https://www.nysun.com/travel/where-history-myth-meet/61323.
10. Ibid.
11. Haim F. Ghiuzeli, “El Ghriba Synagogue, Djerba, Tunisia,” ANU Museum of the Jewish People, Accessed July 9, 2021, https://www.bh.org.il/el-ghriba-synagogue-djerba-tunisia/.
12. Davidson, “Where History & Myth Meet.”
13. Sonja Stark, “Tunisia's El Ghriba Festival: A Journey of Understanding,” GoNOMAD Travel, June 26, 2021, https://www.gonomad.com/1175-tunisia-s-el-ghriba-festival-a-journey-of-understanding.
14. Davidson, “Where History & Myth Meet.”
15. A History of Jewish-Muslim Relations: From the Origins to the Present Day, ed. Abdelwahab Meddeb and Benjamin Stora (Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2013).
16. Davidson, “Where History & Myth Meet.”
17. European Jewish Congress, “Tunisia,” European Jewish Congress, 2019, https://eurojewcong.org/communities/tunisia/.
18. Haim F. Ghiuzeli, “El Ghriba Synagogue, Djerba, Tunisia,” ANU Museum of the Jewish People, Accessed July 9, 2021, https://www.bh.org.il/el-ghriba-synagogue-djerba-tunisia/.
19. Donald G McNeil Jr., “Tunisian Jews at Blast Site: A Stalwart Remnant,” The New York Times, April 15, 2002, https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/15/world/tunisian-jews-at-blast-site-a-stalwart-remnant.html.
Bibliography
Behan, Rosemary. “The Island of Djerba: Land of the Lotus-Eaters.” The Independent UK. September 17, 2011. https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/island-of-djerba-land-of-the-lotus-eaters-5328734.html.
Bismuth-Jarrassé, Colette, and Dominique Jarrassé. Synagogues de Tunisie: monuments d'une histoire et d'une identité. Le Kremlin-Bicêtre: Esthétiques du divers, 2010.
Blady, Ken and Kaplan, Steve. Jewish Communities in Exotic Places. Northvale, New Jersey: Jason Aronson, 2000.
Cheslow, Daniella. “Tunisia’s Last Jewish Community Dreams of a Move to Israel ‘en Masse.” The Guardian. June 23, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jun/23/tunisia-last-jewish-community-djerba-israel.
Davidson, Nancy. “Where History & Myth Meet.” The New York Sun. August 27, 2007. https://www.nysun.com/travel/where-history-myth-meet/61323/.
“Djerba.” Museum of the Jewish People - Beit Hatfutsot':'בית התפוצות - מוזיאון העם היהודי'}}. Accessed August 6, 2018. https://dbs.bh.org.il/place/djerba.
“El Ghriba Synagogue in Djerba, Tunisia.” Tunisia Online. Accessed July 9, 2021. http://www.tunisiaonline.com/el-ghriba-synagogue-in-djerba-tunisia/.
Gilbert, Martin. In Ishmael's House: A History of Jews in Muslim Lands. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2011.
Gordon, Bluma. “The Jews of Djerba: 9 Facts about This Ancient Jewish Community.” Aishcom. May 20, 2018. http://www.aish.com/jw/s/The-Jews-of-Djerba-9-Facts-about-This-Ancient-Jewish-Community.html.
McNeil, Donald G Jr. “Tunisian Jews at Blast Site: A Stalwart Remnant.” The New York Times. April 15, 2002. https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/15/world/tunisian-jews-at-blast-site-a-stalwart-remnant.html.
Kramer, Howard. “El Ghriba Synagogue & Torah.” The Complete Pilgrim-Religious Travel Sites. December 21, 2014. http://thecompletepilgrim.com/el-ghriba-synagogue-torah/.
Mike Gerrard. Dk Eyewitness Travel Guide: Tunisia. 2015.
Nadworny, Katie. “The Tunisian Island Where Jews and Muselims Celebrate Together.” The Independent UK. July 8, 2017. https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/africa/djerba-tunisia-multicultural-jewish-muslim-ghriba-synagogue-pilgrimage-lag-b-omer-a7826836.html.
Stark, Sonja. “Tunisia's El Ghriba Festival: A Journey of Understanding.” GoNOMAD Travel. June 26, 2021. https://www.gonomad.com/1175-tunisia-s-el-ghriba-festival-a-journey-of-understanding.
Stillman, Norman A. “Ghriba Synagogues.” In Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World, ed. Norman A. Stillman, Phillip I. Ackerman-Lieberman, Yaron Ayalon, Avigdor Levy, Vera B. Moreen, Meira Polliack, Angel Saenz-Badillos and, and Daniel Schroeter. http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopedia-of-jews-in-the-islamic-world%252Fghriba-synagogues-COM_000508.
Meddeb, Abdelwahab and Stora, Benjamin. A History of Jewish-Muslim Relations: From the Origins to the Present Day. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2013.
Smahi, Asma. “Tunisian Synagogue Struggles to Bounce Back.” Al Jazeera.May 3, 2014. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/05/tunisian-synagogue-struggles-bounce-back-201451112722667317.html.
“The Jewish Community of Djerba.” ANU Museum of the Jewish People. Accessed August 4, 2021. https://dbs.anumuseum.org.il/skn/en/c6/e185003/Place/Djerba.
“Tunisia Virtual Jewish History Tour.” Jewish Virtual Library: A Project of AICE. Accessed July 9, 2021. https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/tunisia-virtual-jewish-history-tour.
Tunisia Trip Summer 2016 Photos Courtesy of Chrystie Sherman
Write up prepared by Chloe Seifert on August 4, 2021.