The Jews Of Morocco
The presence of the Jewish Heritage in Tafilalet goes back to the middle ages when trading in Sijilmassa was flourishing. However, It is believed that the first Jews moved to Morocco as part of a migration to other Mediterranean countries after the fall of the first temple in Jerusalem during the reign of the Carthaginians about 2500 years ago.
When the Moroccan Kingdom was established in the earlier 9th century, the Jewish population practiced trading, craft and on many occasions, some of them became interpreters and messengers to some Moroccan Sultans.
In 1492 and after the Reconquista of Spain, non-Christian Muslims were forced to convert to Christianity or to leave. Most of the Mauriscos end up in North Africa fearing to be killed in the Iberian peninsula.
In the same wave and under the same sequences the Jewish population found refuge in Morocco. Another reason the Jewish and Andalucian blood significantly increased in Morocco especially in some areas.
A large number settled in Tangier, Tetouan, and Chefchaouen in the north of Morocco. And later on, they spread to other Moroccan cities like Fez, Meknes, Sale, Casablanca, El Jadida, Safi, Essaouira, and Marrakech.
Up to 1948, the Moroccan Jewish community counts about 250.000 citizens. Most of them left for Israel for spiritual purposes after its official recognition while others left to France, the United States, and Canada due to the economic situation in Morocco and the opportunities these countries were offering.
Nowadays there are about 4 to 5.000 Moroccan Jews still living in the country while the Diaspora is estimated to more than 1 Million from whom a big number comes to visit the beauty of Morocco and for spiritual religious pilgrims
Jewish Heritage in Tafilalet
The establishment of the Jewish community in Sijilmassa dates back to the time of the founding of this city by the Zenetes, Amazigh tribes of the Tafilalet region in the great Sahara Desert before its conquest by the Arab dynasties.
Called the “oasis city”, it was the object of much political envy because of its geographical location, the crossroads of trans-Saharan caravans, which made it one of the most prosperous cities of the Middle Ages.
The Ksour, like the Mellah (Jewish quarter) and Jewish cemeteries bear witness to the heyday of Sijilmassa, a symbol of cohabitation, rich in its ethnic diversity.
About Legendary Rabbay
Abouhatsera Baba Sale
Rabbi Israel Abouhassira was born on the day of Rosh Hashanah in the year 5650. His father was the Tzaddik Rabbi Massoud, the Rabbi of Rissani, a village near Tafilalet. From his youth, Rabbi Israel was accustomed to getting up before dawn, and after having immersed in the mikveh of purification, he hurried to the synagogue for the morning service at Netz HaShama (sunrise). He prayed with immense fervor and concentration. After the service, he would study with great tenacity. …..
FROM TAFILALET WITH PEACE
My Moroccan Jewish
Best Friend & Neighbour
For the past 60 years, he has been doing the Hebrew scriptures over every year on the graves of his Moroccan Jewish friends.
his name was Lahcen, he is an Amazigh Muslim and lived in
One winter day in the early 1950s, his friend Moshe, a Moroccan Jew, and his family decided to go to Israel … so he asks his friend, Lahcen, to take care of the graves of his ancestors … Lahcen, promised him to do so … and for over 60 years, every beginning of the year, Lahcen cleaned the graves of his friend’s ancestors … and despite his meager resources, every beginning of the year, Lahcen would buy a small box of black paint and redo the writings on the graves … in Hebrew … even though he had never been to school …
When someone ventured to tell him that he was old and that he had already done enough to honor his promise … he would get angry .. and respond: “a promise is a promise” .. and added: “I will continue to do what I have to do … until the return of My friend Moshe … or until my death” …
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