History of the Jews in Morocco

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History of Morocco
Prehistory Acheulean Mousterian Aterian Iberomaurusian Capsian
Classical to Late Antiquity (8th century BC – 7th century AD) Carthaginian Roman Mauretania Mauretania Tingitana Exarchate of Africa
Early Islamic (8th–10th century AD) Muslim conquest Umayyad Caliphate Berber Revolt Emirate of Nekor Emirate of Sijilmasa Barghwata confederacy Idrisid dynasty
Territorial fragmentation (10th–11th century AD) Caliphate of Córdoba Fatimid Caliphate Ifranids Miknasas Maghrawas
Empire (beginning 11th century AD) Almoravids Almohads Marinids Wattasids Saadis Alawis other political entities Zawiya Dila'iya Principality of Debdou Republic of Salé
Decline (beginning 19th century AD) Franco-Moroccan War Anglo-Moroccan Treaty of 1856 Hispano-Moroccan War Protégé system Treaty of Wad Ras Treaty of Madrid Tangier Crisis Treaty of Algeciras Agadir Crisis Hafidiya Bombardment of Casablanca (1907) French conquest of Morocco
Protectorate (1912–56) Treaty of Fez French protectorate Spanish protectorate French Conquest Zaian War Rif War Tangier Protocol Tangier International Zone Zionism in Morocco Emigration of Moroccan Jews Opposition to European control Revolution of the King and the People
Modern (1956–present) Ifni War Sand War Moroccanization Coup d'état attempt in 1971 / in 1972 Moulay Bouazza plot Years of lead Madrid Accords Green March Western Sahara conflict 2011–2012 protests Hirak Rif Movement Abraham Accords
Related topics Morocco in the 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s History by topic Jewish Economic Military Postal Imperial cities
Morocco portal History portal
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The history of the Jews in Morocco goes back to ancient times. Moroccan Jews constitute an ancient community, with the oldest irrefutable evidence of Judaism in Morocco dating back to the Roman period. After the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb, Jews would become the primary religious minority group, particularly after the Almohad period and the departure of the Christians.

The Jewish communities in Morocco have historically been diverse, with significant differences between urban and rural populations, Toshavim and Megorashim, and inhabitants of different cities and regions. It was not uncommon for different Jewish communities in Morocco to speak different languages, including Darija, Tamazight, Haketia, or French.

Jews in Morocco traditionally lived together in communities, whether in Jewish villages in rural areas or, particularly after the 15th century and especially from the 19th century, in an urban mellāḥ, or Jewish quarter. In the 19th century, due to economic transformations and the proliferation of European industrial imports competing with traditional Jewish crafts, there was a major migration of Jews from the rural hinterland to coastal cities. Some elite Jewish merchants in the service of the Makhzen, known as Tujjār as-Sultān, handled much of the kingdom's long-distance trade, especially in Essaouira.

The Alliance Israélite Universelle, a Paris-based organization that sought to improve the lives of Jews through a French education, opened its first school in Tetuan in 1862. The AIU helped create a class of elite, Westernized Jews in coastal cities, many of whom benefited from the protégé system, accentuating differences between urban and rural Jews in Morocco.

The Zionist movement in Morocco appeared in the early 20th century and spread slowly over the following decades through various forms of advocacy and substantial external backing. Only after the establishment of the State of Israel in Palestine in 1948 was there any significant emigration of Moroccan Jews. Through Cadima and Operation Yachin, about 60,000 and 90,000 Moroccan Jews migrated to Israel, respectively. In 1948, there were about 265,000 Jews in Morocco,^[1] with a maximum of between 250,000 and 350,000 at its peak in the 1950s,^[2] making the Jewish community in Morocco at that time the largest in the Muslim world. By 2017 only 2,000 or so remained.^[3]