This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia.
The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ... The Jewish Encyclopedia was an encyclopedia originally published between 1901 and 1906 by Funk and Wagnalls. ...

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Egyptian Jews constitute perhaps the oldest Jewish community in the world. The Jewish population of Egypt is now somewhere from 100-1000 people, down from between 75,000 and 100,000 in 1948. Download high resolution version (1024x1180, 21 KB)Created from Image:Wikipedia blue star of david. ... Look up Jew on Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Who is a Jew? (Hebrew: מיהו יהודי?; transliterated as mihu yehudi) can be a complicated question because Judaism shares some of the characteristics of a nation, an ethnicity, a religion, and a culture, making the definition of who is a Jew vary depending on whether a religious, sociological, or national approach to... Jewish leadership: Since 70 AD and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem there has been no single body that has a leadership position over the entire Jewish community. ... Secular Jewish culture embraces several related phenomena; above all, it is the culture of secular communities of Jewish people, but it can also include the cultural contributions of individuals who identify as secular Jews, or even those of religious Jews working in cultural areas not generally considered to be connected... Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people. ... Judaism affirms a number of basic principles of faith that one is expected to uphold in order to be said to be in consonance with the Jewish faith. ... Jewish holiday, (or Yom Tom or chag or taanit in Hebrew) is a day that is holy to the Jewish people according to Judaism and is usually derived from the Hebrew Bible, specifically the Torah, and in some cases established by the rabbis in later eras. ... Jewish services are the prayers recited as part of observance of Judaism. ... Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halachah) is the collective corpus of Jewish rabbinic law, custom and tradition. ... Torah (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. ... The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions on Jewish law, Jewish ethics, customs, ( legends and stories, which Jewish tradition considers authoritative. ... Mitzvah מצוה is Hebrew for commandment (plural mitzvot; from צוה, tzavah - command). ... In Judaism there is a tradition that the Torah contains 613 mitzvot (Hebrew for commandments, from mitzvah - מצוה - precept, plural mitzvot; from צוה, tzavah- command). ... The circled U indicates that this product is certified as kosher by the Orthodox Union (OU). ... The Jewish world includes a number of distinct communities that might be referred to as Jewish ethnic divisions. ... Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim (אַשְׁכֲּנָזִי אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים Standard Hebrew, AÅ¡kanazi,AÅ¡kanazim, Tiberian Hebrew, ʾAÅ¡kănāzî, ʾAÅ¡kănāzîm, pronounced sing. ... Sephardi Jews (ספרדי, Standard Hebrew SÉ™fardi, Tiberian Hebrew ardî; plural Sephardim: ספרדים, Standard Hebrew Sfaradim, Tiberian Hebrew ) are a subgroup of Jews, generally defined in contrast to Ashkenazi Jews and/or Mizrahi Jews. ... Jews, sometimes also called Oriental Jews, (מזרחי eastern, Standard Hebrew , Tiberian Hebrew ; plural מזרחים easterners, Standard Hebrew , Tiberian Hebrew ) are Jews whose ancestors resided in communities which were in continuous contact with the rest of the Jewish world, yet were neither Ashkenazi Jews nor Sephardi Jews. ... Yemenite Jews (תֵּימָנִי, Standard Hebrew Temani, Tiberian Hebrew Têmānî; plural תֵּימָנִים, Standard Hebrew Temanim, Tiberian Hebrew Têmānîm) are those Jews who live, or whose recent ancestors lived, in Yemen (תֵּימָן far south, Standard Hebrew Teman, Tiberian Hebrew Têmān), on the southern... The Bene Israel (Sons of Israel) are a group of Jews who, in the mid-twentieth century, lived primarily in Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi and parts of Pakistan. ... The Beta Israel (or House of Israel), known by outsiders by the term Falasha or Falash Mura (exiles or strangers), a term that they consider to be pejorative, are Jews of Ethiopian origin. ... The number of Jews in the world is difficult to calculate, especially given the constant debates of the definition of Jew. ... // Early History Tradition places Jews in southern Russia, Armenia, and Georgia since before the days of the First Temple, and records exist from the fourth century showing that there were Armenian cities possessing Jewish populations ranging from 10,000 to 30,000 along with substantial Jewish settlements in the Crimea. ... This article is about the history of the Jewish people in England. ... History of the Jews in Latin America. ... Jewish history is the history of the Jewish people, faith (Judaism) and culture. ... Main article: List of Jews. ... Many Jewish denominations exist within the religion of Judaism; the Jewish community is divided into a number of religious denominations as well as branches or movements. ... Orthodox Judaism is the stream of Judaism which adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonized in the Talmud (The Oral Law) and later codified in the Shulkhan Arukh (Code of Jewish Law). It is governed by these works and the Rabbinical commentary... Conservative Judaism (or Masorti Judaism) is a denomination of Judaism characterized by: A positive attitude toward modern culture The belief that traditional rabbinic modes of study, and modern scholarship and critical text study, are both valid ways to learn about and from Jewish religious texts. ... Reform Judaism can refer to (1) the largest denomination of Judaism in America and its sibling movements in other countries, (2) a branch of Judaism in the United Kingdom, and (3) the historical predecessor of the American movement that originated in 19th Century Germany. ... Reconstructionist Judaism is a denomination of Judaism with a relatively liberal set of beliefs: an individuals personal autonomy should generally override traditional Jewish law and custom, yet also take into account communal consensus, modern culture is accepted, traditional rabbinic modes of study, as well as modern scholarship and critical... Karaite Judaism is a Jewish denomination characterized by reliance on the Tanakh as the sole scripture, and rejection of the Oral Law (the Mishnah and the Talmuds) as halakha (Legally Binding, i. ... Alternative Judaism refers to several varieties of modern Judaism which fall outside the common Orthodox/Non-Orthodox (Reform/Conservative/Reconstructionist) classification of the four major streams of todays Judaism. ... Jewish languages are a set of languages that developed in various Jewish communities, in Europe, southern and south-western Asia, and northern Africa. ... Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family spoken by more than 6 million people, mainly in Israel, the West Bank, the United States and by Jewish communities around the world. ... Yiddish (Yid. ... Ladino is a Romance language, derived mainly from Old Castilian (Spanish) and Hebrew. ... Dzhidi, or Judæo-Persian, is the Jewish language spoken by the Jews living in Iran. ... Judæo-Aramaic is a collective term used to describe several Hebrew-influenced Aramaic and Neo-Aramaic languages. ... The Judeo-Arabic languages are a collection of Arabic dialects spoken by Jews living or formerly living in Arabic-speaking countries; the term also refers to more or less classical Arabic written in the Hebrew script, particularly in the Middle Ages. ... Jewish political movements refer to the organized efforts of Jews to build their own political parties or otherwise represent their interest in politics outside of the Jewish community. ... For other meanings, please see Zionism (disambiguation) Poster promoting a film about Jewish settlement in Palestine, 1930s:Toward a New Life (in Romanian),The Promised Land (in Hungarian) 1844 Discourse on the Restoration of the Jews by Mordecai Noah, page one. ... General Zionists were centrists within the Zionist movement. ... Revisionist Zionism is a right wing tendency within the Zionist movement. ... A Bundist demonstration, 1917 The General Jewish Labour Union of Lithuania, Poland and Russia, in Yiddish the Algemeyner Yidisher Arbeter Bund in Lite, Poyln un Rusland (אַלגמײַנער ײדישער אַרבײטערסבונד אין ליטאַ, פוילין און רוסלאַנד), generally called The Bund (בונד) or the Jewish Labor Bund, was a Jewish political party operating in several European countries between the 1890s and the... Kibbutz Dan, near Qiryat Shemona, in the Upper Galilee, 1990s A kibbutz (Hebrew: קיבוץ; plural: kibbutzim: קיבוצים, gathering or together) is an Israeli collective community. ... Jewish history is the history of the Jewish people, faith (Judaism) and culture. ... This entry contains a timeline of the development of Judaism and the Jewish people. ... Schisms among the Jews: // First Temple era Based on the historical narrative in the Bible and archeology, Levantine civilization at the time of Solomons Temple was prone to idol worship, astrology, worship of reigning kings, and paganism. ... In compiling the history of ancient Israel and Judah, there are many available sources, including the Jewish Tanakh (the Old Testament) and other Jewish texts such as the Talmud, the Ethiopian book of history known as the Kebra Nagast, the writings of historians such as Nicolaus of Damascus, Artapanas, Philo... The Temple in Jerusalem or the Holy Temple (Beit HaMikdash בית המקדש in Hebrew) was built in ancient Jerusalem and was the center of Israelite and Jewish worship, primarily for the offering of sacrifices known as the korbanot. ... Babylonian captivity also refers to the permanence of the Avignon Papacy. ... The Hasmonean Kingdom (pronunciation) in ancient Judea and its ruling dynasty from 140 BC to 37 BC was established under the leadership of Simon Maccabaeus, two decades after Judah the Maccabee defeated the Seleucid army in 165 BC. Origin of the Hasmonean dynasty The origin of the Hasmonean dynasty is... Jewish-Roman War can refer to several revolts by the Jews of Judea against the Roman Empire: The First Jewish-Roman War (66–73 CE), sometimes called the First Jewish Revolt. ... The Pharisees (from the Hebrew perushim, from parash, meaning to separate) were, depending on the time, a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews that flourished during the Second Temple Era (536 BCE–70 CE). ... Jewish diaspora (Hebrew: Tefutzah, or Galut, exile) refers to the dispersion of the Jewish people throughout the world. ... This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia == Jews in the Middle Ages : The history of Jews in the Middle Ages (approximately 500 CE to 1750 CE) can be divided into two categories. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Haskalah (Hebrew: השכלה; enlightenment, intellect, from sekhel, common sense), the Jewish Enlightenment, was a religious movement among European Jews in the late 18th century that advocated adopting enlightenment values, pressing for better integration into European society, and increasing education in secular studies, Hebrew, and Jewish history. ... Hasidic Judaism (from the Hebrew: Chasidut חסידות, meaning pious, from the Hebrew root word chesed חסד meaning loving kindness) is a Haredi Jewish religious movement. ... Child survivors of the Holocaust before their liberation The Holocaust is the name applied to the systematic state-sponsored persecution and genocide of various ethnic, religious and political groups during World War II by Nazi Germany and collaborators. ... Main article: Israel This article discusses the history of the modern State of Israel, from its inception in 1948 to the present. ... Related articles: anti-Semitism; history of anti-Semitism; modern anti-Semitism This article deals with various persecutions that the Jewish people have experienced throughout history. ... The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ... This is a partial chronology of hostilities towards or discrimination against the Jews as a religious or ethnic group. ... The new anti-Semitism refers to the contemporary international resurgence of anti-Jewish incidents and attacks on Jewish symbols, as well as the acceptance of anti-Semitic beliefs and their expression in public discourse. ...

Ancient and Biblical

See also The Exodus

The ancient Hebrew name (land of) "Mizraim," or (in more poetic style) "Maẓor," is Semitic ("Miṣri" is the earliest Babylonian form) and may have some connection with that of the neighboring Muṣri (see above).The Bible calls Egypt also "land of Ham" (Ps. cv. 23, 27; comp. Ps. lxxviii. 51, cvi. 22), or contemptuously "Rahab," i.e., "boasting monster." The fertility of the country is mentioned in Gen. xiii. 10; Ex. xvi. 3; and Num. xi. 5 (see Deut. xi. 10 on the necessity of laborious irrigation). The Exodus was the departure of the Hebrew slaves from Egypt under the leadership of Moses. ...

According to the Old Testament, Egypt became home to large numbers of fugitive or starving Semites to settle in the land. Thus, according to bibilical accounts, after 1700 B.C. Egypt had constantly a large Semitic element of population, especially along the eastern frontier of the Delta. The Egyptian cities mentioned in the Bible all belong to this part of the country. The historical evidence for Jews settling in Egypt, and the Exodus, remain hotly disputed. Judaism uses the term Tanakh instead of Old Testament, because it does not recognize the New Testament as being part of the Biblical canon The Old Testament or the Hebrew Scriptures (also called the Hebrew Bible) constitutes the first major part of the Bible according to Christianity. ...

Ptolemaic and Roman (400 BCE - 641 CE)

See also Leontopolis; Alabarch; Philo Leontopolis is the Greek name for the Ancient Egyptian city known as Taremu in ancient times and as Tell al Muqdam today. ... Philo (20 BCE - 40 CE) was a Hellenized Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt. ...

Athough populations existed before, many Jews immigrated to Egypt in the Ptolemaic time, settling especially around Alexandria. Thus, the history of the Jews in Egypt during the Greek and Ptolemaic periods centers almost completely in the city of Alexandria. As early as the third century B.C. there was a widespread Jewish diaspora in Egypt. In addition to those in Alexandria Jews lived in a number of other cities. Ptolemy, one of Alexander the Greats generals, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexanders death in 323 BC. In 305 BC he declared himself King Ptolemy I, later known as Soter (saviour). ... Antiquity and modernity stand cheek-by-jowl in Egypts chief Mediterranean seaport Located on the Mediterranean Sea coast, Alexandria (in Arabic, الإسكندرية, transliterated al-ʼIskandariyyah) is the chief seaport in Egypt, and that countrys second largest city, and the capital...

The history of the Jews of Alexandria dates from the foundation of the city by Alexander the Great, 332 B.C., at which they were present. From the very beginning their numbers seem to have been considerable; at all events, they formed a very large portion of the population under the successors of Alexander. A separate section of the city was assigned to them by the first Ptolemies, so that they might not be hindered in the observance of their laws by continual contact with the pagan population. Moreover, the whole city was divided into five districts, which were named after the first five letters of the Greek alphabet. Of these five districts two were denominated Jewish districts, because the majority of their inhabitants were Jews. As regards number and position, the Jews in Alexandria enjoyed a greater degree of political independence there than elsewhere. While the Jewish inhabitants of other cities of the Roman empire, without any political separation, formed private societies for religious purposes, or else became a corporation of foreigners like the Egyptian and Phenician merchants in the large commercial centers, those of Alexandria constituted an independent political community, side by side with that of the heathen population.

For the Roman period there is evidence that at Oxyrynchus (Behneseh), on the east side of the Nile, there was a Jewish community of some importance. It even had a Jews' street. Many of the Jews there must have become Christians, though they retained their Biblical names (e.g., "David" and "Elisabeth," occurring in a litigation concerning an inheritance). There is even found a certain Jacob, son of Achilles (c. 300 C.E.), as beadle of an Egyptian temple.

Arab Rule (641 CE - 1250 CE)

The part taken by the Jews in the Arab invasion of Egypt is not clear. In addition to the Jews settled there from early times, some must have come from the Arabian peninsula. The letter sent by Mohammed to the Jewish Banu Janba in Maḳna near Aila in the year 630 is said by Al-Baladhuri to have been seen in Egypt; and a copy, written in Hebrew characters, has been found in the Cairo genizah. Hebrew papyri are found in the Theodore Graf collection covering the period 487-909. The Jews had no reason to feel kindly toward the former masters of Egypt. In 629 the emperor Heraclius I. had driven the Jews from Jerusalem this was followed by a massacre of Jews throughout the empire—in Egypt, aided by the Copts, who had old scores against the Jews to wipe out, dating from the Persian conquest of Alexandria at the time of Emperor Anastasius I (502) and of the Persian general Shahin (617), when the Jews assisted the conquerors against the Christians. The Treaty of Alexandria (Nov. 8, 641), which sealed the Arab conquest of Egypt, expressly stipulates that the Jews are to be allowed to remain in that city; and at the time of the capture of that city, Amr, in his letter to the caliph, relates that he found there 40,000 Jews. Heraclius and his sons Heraclius Constantine and Heraclonas. ... Pope Anastasius I -- Pope from 399-401 Anastasius I of the Byzantine Empire -- (c. ...

Of the fortunes of the Jews in Egypt under the Ommiad and Abbassid caliphs (641-868), the Tulunids (863-905), and the Ikhshidids, next to nothing is known. Abbasid provinces during the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid Abbasid was the dynastic name generally given to the caliphs of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Muslim empire. ... Caliph is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ...

Rule of the Fatimite Caliphs (909-1169)

The Fatimite rule was in general a favorable one for the Jews, except the latter portion of Al-Ḥakim's reign. The foundation of Talmudic schools in Egypt is usually placed at this period. The Fatimid or Fatimid Caliphate is the Ismaili Shiite dynasty that ruled North Africa from A.D. 909 to 1171. ...

The mad caliph Al-Ḥakim (996-1020) vigorously applied the Pact of Omar, and compelled the Jews to wear bells and to carry in public the wooden image of a calf. A street in the city, Al-Jaudariyyah, was inhabited by Jews. Al-Ḥakim, hearing that they were accustomed to mock him in verses, had the whole quarter burned down. The Pact (Covenant) of Umar is a treaty supposedly agreed to between the eponymous second caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab and the ahl al-dhimma (people of the book) vanquished in the first wave of Arab-Muslim jihad invasions. ...

By the beginning of the twelfth century a Jew, Abu al-Munajja ibn Sha'yah, was at the head of the Department of Agriculture. He is especially known as the constructor of a Nile sluice (1112), which was called after him "Baḥr Abi al-Munajja". He fell into disfavor because of the heavy expenses connected with the work, and was incarcerated in Alexandria, but was soon able to free himself. A document concerning a transaction of his with a banker has been preserved. Under the vizier Al-Malik al-Afḍal (1137) there was a Jewish master of finances, whose name, however, is unknown. His enemies succeeded in procuring his downfall, and he lost all his property. He was succeeded by a brother of the Christian patriarch, who tried to drive the Jews out of the kingdom. Four leading Jews worked and conspired against the Christian, with what result is not known. There has been preserved a letter from this ex-minister to the Jews of Constantinople, begging for aid in a remarkably intricate poetical style (J. Q. R. ix. 29, x. 430; Z. D. M. G. li. 444). One of the physicians of the caliph Al-Ḥafiẓ (1131-49) was a Jew, Abu Manṣur (Wüstenfeld, p. 306). Abu al-Faḍa'il ibn al-Nakid (died 1189) was a celebrated oculist.

In this century a little more light is thrown upon the communities in Egypt through the reports of certain Jewish scholars and travelers who visited the country. Judah ha-Levi was in Alexandria in 1141, and dedicated some beautiful verses to his friend Aaron Ben-Zion ibn Alamani and his five sons of that city. At Damietta Ha-Levi met his friend, the Spaniard Abu Sa'id ibn Ḥalfon ha-Levi. About 1160 Benjamin of Tudela was in Egypt; he gives a general account of the Jewish communities which he found there. At Cairo there were 2,000 Jews; at Alexandria 3,000, with a R. Phineas b. Meshullam, who had come from France, at their head; in the Fayum there were 20 families; at Damietta 200; at Bilbais, east of the Nile, 300 persons; and at Damira 700.

From Saladin and Maimonides (1169-1250)

The rigid orthodoxy of Saladin (1169-93) does not seem to have affected the Jews in his kingdom. A Karaite doctor, Abu al-Bayyan al-Mudawwar (d. 1184), who had been physician to the last Fatimite, treated Saladin also (B.A. § 153); while Abu al-Ma'ali, brother-in-law of Maimonides, was likewise in his service (ib. § 155). In 1166 Maimonides went to Egypt and settled in Fostat, where he gained much renown as a physician, practising in the family of Saladin and in that of his vizier Ḳaḍi al-Faḍil al-Baisami. The title "Ra'is al-Umma" or "al-Millah" (Head of the Nation, or of the Faith), was bestowed upon him. In Fostat, he wrote his "Mishneh Torah" (1180) and the "Moreh Nebukim," both of which evoked opposition who commented upon them . From this place he sent many letters and responsa; and in 1173 he forwarded a request to the North-African communities to aid in releasing a number of captives. The original of the last document has been preserved (M. xliv. 8). He caused the Karaites to be removed from the court (J. Q. R. xiii. 104). He also served Saladin's successors as physician. This article is about the Muslim general; for the British armoured vehicle named after him, see Alvis Saladin. ... Commonly used image indicating one artists conception of Maimonidess appearance Moshe ben Maimon (March 30, 1135–December 13, 1204) was a Jewish rabbi, physician, and philosopher. ... Note: This is based on an entry from the 1906 public domain Jewish Encyclopedia The responsa literature, known in Hebrew as Sheelot U-teshuvot (questions and answers), is the body of written decisions and rulings given by rabbis to questions addressed to them. ...

Mamelukes (1250-1517)

Under the Baḥri Mamelukes (1250-1390) the Jews led a comparatively quiet existence; though they had at times to contribute heavily toward the maintenance of the vast military equipment, and were harassed by the cadis and ulemas of these strict Moslems. Al-Maḳrizi relates that the first great Mameluke, Sultan Baibars (Al-Malik al-Thahir, 1260-77), doubled the tribute paid by the "ahl al-dhimmah." At one time he had resolved to burn all the Jews, a ditch having been dug for that purpose; but at the last moment he repented, and instead exacted a heavy tribute, during the collection of which many perished. An Ottoman Mamluk, from 1810 Mamluks (or Mameluks) (the Arabic word usually translates as owned, singular: مملوك plural: مماليك) comprised slave soldiers used by the Muslim Caliphs and the Ottoman Empire, and who on more than one occasion seized power for themselves. ... al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baibars al-Bunduqdari (also spelled Baybars) (1223 – July 1, 1277) was a Mamluk Sultan of Egypt and Syria. ...

An account is given in Sambari (135, 22) of the strictness with which the provisions of the Pact of Omar were carried out. The sultan had just returned from a victorious campaign against the Mongols in Syria (1305). A fanatical convert from Judaism, Sa'id ibn Ḥasan of Alexandria, was incensed at the arrogance of the non-Moslem population, particularly at the open manner in which services were conducted in churches and synagogues. He tried to form a synod of ten rabbis, ten priests, and the ulemas. Failing in this, he endeavored to have the churches and synagogues closed. Some of the churches were demolished by the Alexandrian mob; but most of the synagogues were allowed to stand, as it was shown that they had existed at the time of Omar, and were by the pact exempted from interference. Sambari (137, 20) says that a new pact was made at the instance of letters from a Moorish king of Barcelona (1309), and the synagogues were reopened; but this probably refers only to the reissuing of the Pact of Omar. There are extant several notable fet was (responsa) of Moslem doctors touching this subject; e.g., those of Aḥmad ibn 'Abd al-Ḥaḳḳ, who speaks especially of the synagogues at Cairo, which on the outside appeared like ordinary dwelling-houses—a fact which had occasioned other legal writers to permit their presence. According to Taki al-Din ibn Taimiyyah (b. 1263), the synagogues and churches in Cairo had once before been closed. This fanatical Moslem fills his fet was with invectives against the Jews, holding that all their religious edifices ought to be destroyed, since they had been constructed during a period when Cairo was in the hands of heterodox Moslems, Ismailians, Karmatians, and Nusairis (R. E. J. xxx. 1, xxxi. 212; Z. D. M. G. liii. 51). The synagogues were, however, allowed to stand (Weil, l.c. iv. 270). Under the same sultan (1324) the Jews were accused of incendiarism at Fostat and Cairo; they had to exculpate themselves by a payment of 50,000 gold pieces.

Under the Burji Mamelukes the Franks again attacked Alexandria (1416), and the laws against the Jews were once more strictly enforced by Sheik al-Mu'ayyid (1412-21); by Ashraf Bars Bey (1422-38), because of a plague which decimated the population in 1438; by Al-Ẓahir Jaḳmaḳ (1438-53); and by Ḳa'iṭ-Bey (1468-95). The lastnamed is referred to by Obadiah of Bertinoro (O. p. 53). The Jews of Cairo were compelled to pay 75,000 gold pieces.

Under the Turks (1517-1922)

On Jan. 22, 1517, the Turkish sultan, Selim I., defeated Tuman Bey, the last of the Mamelukes. He made radical changes in the affairs of the Jews, abolishing the office of nagid, making each community independent, and placing David ibn Abi Zimra, at the head of that of Cairo. He also appointed Abraham de Castro to be master of the mint. It was during the reign of Salim's successor, Suleiman II, that Aḥmad Pasha, Viceroy of Egypt, revenged himself upon the Jews because De Castro had revealed (1524) to the sultan his designs for independence (see Aḥmad Pasha; Abraham de Castro). The "Cairo Purim," in commemoration of their escape, is still celebrated on Adar 28. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Selim Bulut. ... Suleiman II (April 15, 1642 – 1691) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1687 to 1691. ...

Toward the end of the sixteenth century Talmudic studies in Egypt were greatly fostered by Bezaleel Ashkenazi, author of the "Shiṭṭah Meḳubbeẓet." Among his pupils were Isaac Luria, who as a young man had gone to Egypt to visit a rich uncle, the tax-farmer Mordecai Francis (Azulai, "Shem ha-Gedolim," No. 332); and Abraham Monson (1594). Ishmael Kohen Tanuji finished his "Sefer ha-Zikkaron" in Egypt in 1543. Joseph ben Moses di Trani was in Egypt for a time (Frumkin, l.c. p. 69), as well as Ḥayyim Vital Aaron ibn Ḥayyim, the Biblical and Talmudical commentator (1609; Frumkin, l.c. pp. 71, 72). Of Isaac Luria's pupils, a Joseph Ṭabul is mentioned, whose son Jacob, a prominent man, was put to death by the authorities

According to Manasseh b. Israel (1656), "The viceroy of Egypt has always at his side a Jew with the title 'zaraf bashi,' or 'treasurer,' who gathers the taxes of the land. At present Abraham Alkula [] holds the position." He was succeeded by Raphael Joseph Tshelebi, the rich friend and protector of Shabbatai Zev. Shabbetai was twice in Cairo, the second time in 1660. It was there that he married the ill-famed Sarah, who had been brought from Leghorn. The Shabbethaian movement naturally created a great stir in Egypt. It was in Cairo that Miguel (Abraham) Cardoso, the Shabbethaian prophet and physician, settled (1703), becoming physician to the pasha Kara Mohammed. In 1641 Samuel b. David, the Karaite, visited Egypt. The account of his journey (G. i. 1) supplies special information in regard to his fellow sectaries. He describes three synagogues of the Rabbinites at Alexandria, and two at Rashid (G. i. 4). A second Karaite, Moses b. Elijah ha-Levi, has left a similar account of the year 1654; but it contains only a few points of special interest to the Karaites (ib).

Sambari mentions a severe trial which came upon the Jews, due to a certain "ḳadi al-'asakir" (="generalissimo," not a proper name) sent from Constantinople to Egypt, who robbed and oppressed them, and whose death was in a certain measure occasioned by the graveyard invocation of one Moses of Damwah. This may have occurred in the seventeenth century (S. 120, 21). David Conforte was dayyan in Egypt in 1671. Blood libels occurred at Alexandria in 1844, in 1881, and in Jan., 1902. In consequence of the Damascus Affair, Montefiore, Crémieux, and Solomon Munk visited Egypt in 1840; and the last two did much to raise the intellectual status of their Egyptian brethren by the founding, in connection with Rabbi Moses Joseph Algazi, of schools in Cairo. Blood libels are allegations that a particular group kills people as a form of human sacrifice, and uses their blood in various rituals. ... Isaac Moïse Crémieux [known as Adolphe] (1796 - February 10, 1880), French statesman, was born at Nîmes, of a rich Jewish family. ...

According to the official census published in 1898 (i., xviii.), there were in Egypt 25,200 Jews in a total population of 9,734,405.

Modern Times (1922-)

During British rule, and under King Fuad, Egypt was friendly towards its Jewish population, although they were not allowed to claim Egyptian nationality. Jews played important roles in the economy, and the Jewish population climbed to nearly 100,000 as Jews settled in Egypt while fleeing increasing persecution in Eastern Europe. Categories: People stubs | 1868 births | 1936 deaths | Egyptian heads of state ...

By the 1940s, the situation worsened, as a number of pogroms were launched against the Jewish population, incited by Amin al-Husayni, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, starting in 1942. Egypt became an increasingly hostile location for Jews as the partition of Palestine and the founding of Israel drew closer, and with rising nationalism that led to attacks against all "foreigners". In 1947, the Company Laws placed quotas on the number of Jews (and foreigners) allowed to work at any one company. The Russian word pogrom (погром) refers to a massive violent attack on people with simultaneous destruction of their environment (homes, businesses, religious centers). ... Mohammad Amin al-Husayni (ca. ... Map showing the UN Partition Plan. ...

After the foundation of Israel in 1948, all Egyptian Jews became suspect, and the situation of the community became untenable. That year, bombings of Jewish areas killed 70 Jews and wounded nearly 200, while riots claimed many more lives. In 1956 Egypt expelled almost 25,000 Egyptian Jews and confiscated their property as part of the Sinai campaign, and 1,000 more Jews were imprisoned. On November 23, 1956, a proclamation was issued that "all Jews are Zionists and enemies of the state," and promised that they would be soon expelled. Thousands of Jews left, forced to sign declarations that they were doing so voluntarily, and allowing their property to be confiscated. Foreign observers reported the taking of hostages. After 1967, more confiscations took place.

The result was the almost complete disappearance of the Jewish community in Egypt, only a hundred or so remain. Most Egyptian Jews fled to Israel (35,000), Brazil (15,000), France (10,000), the US (9,000) or Argentina (9,000). Today, anti-semitism is common in the media, and the Jewish population is minimal -- the last Jewish wedding took place in 1984. The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ...

External links

• Bassatine News: The only Jewish newsletter reporting directly from Egypt
• Jewish Virtual Library
• Historical Society of Jews from Egypt