The Baghdadi Jews in India: Maintaining Communities, Negotiating Identities and Creating Super-Diversity (Routledge South Asian Religion Series)

This book explores the extraordinary differentiation of the Baghdadi Jewish community over time during their sojourn in India from the end of the eighteenth century until their dispersion to Indian diasporas in Israel and English-speaking countries throughout the world after India gained independence in 1947.Chapters on schools, institutions and culture present how Baghdadis in India managed to maintain their communities by negotiating multiple identities in a stratified and complex society. Several disciplinary perspectives are utilized to explore the super-diversity of the Baghdadis and the ways in which they successfully adapted to new situations during the Raj, while retaining particular traditions and modifying and incorporating others. Providing a comprehensive overview of this community, the contributions to the book show that the legacy of the Baghdadi Jews lives on for Indians today through landmarks and monuments in Mumbai, Pune and Kolkata, and for Jews, through memories woven by members of the community residing in diverse diasporas. Offering refreshing historical perspectives on the colonial period in India, this book will be of interest to those studying South Asian Studies, Diaspora and Ethnic Studies, Sociology, History, Jewish Studies and Asian Religion. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series Page 3 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Dedication 6 Table of Contents 8 List of figures 10 Notes on contributors 12 Acknowledgement 15 Part I: Sociological and historical perspectives on the Baghdadi Jews under the Raj 16 1 Super-diversity among the Baghdadi Jews of India 18 Super-diversity in all its manifestations 18 Demography and geography 19 History 20 Indian independence, Zionism and the Baghdadi dispersion 24 Literature on the Baghdadi Jews in India 26 The volume 27 Conclusion 31 Notes 33 References 33 2 Negotiating identity in a changing world: from British colonialism to Indian independence 36 Relationships with other communities 36 Participation in politics and public affairs 38 Indian nationalism 39 The war years and after 42 Conclusion 46 Notes 47 References 49 Part II: Diversified religious life 52 3 The Baghdadi synagogues of India: their design roots, aesthetic and history 54 Baghdadi synagogue architecture in Indian context 54 Ohel David Synagogue, Pune 58 Magen David Synagogue, Mumbai 60 Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue, Mumbai 62 Maghen David Synagogue, Kolkata 65 Beth El Synagogue, Kolkata 67 Neveh Shalome Synagogue, Kolkata 69 Conclusions 70 Notes 71 Reference 71 4 Music traditions in the Baghdadi Jewish communities of Bombay and Poona: continuity, new horizons 72 The Baghdadi Jewish communities of Bombay and Poona in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries: an overview 72 Bombay 73 Poona 75 Continuity of music traditions: religious, life cycle and secular perspectives 75 New horizons in music traditions: recordings, synagogue choirs, youth organizations, Euro-American popular song and professional musicians 82 Concluding remarks 89 Notes 91 References 94 Part III: The Baghdadis of Maharashtra: formal and informal education 96 5 Jewish schools, their entrepreneurs and their educational landscape in Bombay 98 Historical and geographical background 98 The Sir Jacob Sassoon Free High School 99 The Sir Sassoon J. David School 103 The Ezekiel Ezra Elisha (E.E.E.) Sassoon High School 104 Summary 105 Notes 105 References 108 6 Jewish sports and sectarianism in pre-independence Bombay 110 Bombay’s Jews under British rule 110 Jewish sports in Bombay 113 Piercing the barrier: Zionist sports 117 Conclusion 120 Notes 121 References 126 Part IV: The Baghdadis of Bengal: formal and informal education 128 7 Muslim students in the Jewish Girls’ School, Kolkata: a changed legacy 130 A brief history of the Jewish Girls’ School 130 End of an era: admitting non-Jewish students 132 Jewish in name and on special occasions 135 Implications: teachings on multicultural engagement from Calcutta 136 Notes 138 References 139 8 Sport, gender and socialization: the experience of Jewish and Parsee women in colonial and post-colonial Bengal 140 Jewish and Parsee women in sport 141 Socializing agents in sports: Jewish and Parsee women 149 Conclusion 153 References 155 Part V: Print and digital dissemination 158 9 Jewish press in India in Baghdadi Judeo-Arabic as an indispensable source for the history of Iraqi Jews in the nineteenth century 160 Emigration to Baghdad in the nineteenth century 162 The first vocational Jewish girls’ school in Baghdad 164 Jewish Boys’ School Band in Baghdad 168 Conclusion 172 Appendix 1 173 Appendix 2 174 Appendix 3 174 Appendix 4 174 Appendix 5 175 Appendix 6 176 Notes 176 References 177 10 Archival cartographies: multi-layering Calcutta’s Baghdadi Jewish histories 178 Introduction 178 Methodology: the building blocks of the digital archive 180 Social integration among the Baghdadis and mainstream and minority communities 181 Professional range, cultural and political integration 185 Women pioneers 188 Conclusion 190 Notes 191 References 194 Index 196 "This book explores the extraordinary differentiation of the Baghdadi Jewish community over time during their sojourn in India from the end of the eighteenth century until their dispersion to Indian diasporas in Israel and English-speaking countries throughout the world after India gained independence in 1947. Chapters on schools, institutions, and culture present how Baghdadis in India managed to maintain their communities by negotiating multiple identities in a stratified and complex society. Several disciplinary perspectives are utilised to explore the super-diversity of the Baghdadis and the ways in which they successfully adapted to new situations during the Raj, while retaining particular traditions and modifying and incorporating others. Providing a comprehensive overview of this community, the contributions to the book show that the legacy of the Baghdadi Jews lives on for Indians today through landmarks and monuments in Mumbai, Pune and Kolkata, and for Jews, through memories woven by members of the community residing in diverse diasporas. Offering refreshing historical perspectives on the colonial period in India, this book will be of interest to those studying South Asian Studies, Diaspora and Ethnic Studies, Sociology, History, Jewish Studies and Asian Religion"-- Provided by publisher This book explores the extraordinary differentiation of the Baghdadi Jewish community over time during their sojourn in India from the end of the eighteenth century until their dispersion to Indian diasporas in Israel and English-speaking countries throughout the world after India gained independence in 1947. Chapters on schools, institutions and culture present how Baghdadis in India managed to maintain their communities by negotiating multiple identities in a stratified and complex society. Several disciplinary perspectives are utilized to explore the super-diversity of the Baghdadis and the ways in which they successfully adapted to new situations during the Raj, while retaining particular traditions and modifying and incorporating others. Providing a comprehensive overview of this community, the contributions to the book show that the legacy of the Baghdadi Jews lives on for Indians today through landmarks and monuments in Mumbai, Pune and Kolkata, and for Jews, through memories woven by members of the community residing in diverse diasporas. Offering refreshing historical perspectives on the colonial period in India, this book will be of interest to those studying South Asian Studies, Diaspora and Ethnic Studies, Sociology, History, Jewish Studies and Asian Religion