Jews of Iran - History and Cultural Relations



Jews probably first came to Persia (ancient Iran) during the eighth century B . C . E ., as a result of Assyria's conquest of Israel. Various traditions ascribe Jewish settlement of Eşfahān to Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, after his conquest of Judah in 586 B . C . E . The biblical books of Daniel and Esther allude to large and sometimes influential Jewish communities in Achaemenian Persia. Under the Sāssānians (226-646 C.E.), Iranian Jews were ruled by a Jewish royal figure, the exilarch, living in Babylonia. Eşfahān was ostensibly a center for Talmudic study. Jews clashed with Zoroastrians over a number of ritual practices in the late fifth century. Mounting suppression of Jewish ritual practices finally culminated in anti-Jewish riots and expulsion of Jews from Eşfahān. After the Arab conquest in 642, Iranian Jews fared rather well. Jewish travelers of the ninth to eleventh centuries described large tracts of Jewish-controlled territory in the Zagros Mountains and refer to Jewish tribal entities engaged in pastoralism. Arab historians of the period refer to the area as "Yahudiya" (lit., "Jew land"). Jews helped found the city of Shīrāz in the eighth century. Iranian Jews were instrumental in international commerce and set up widespread credit networks. A series of messianic movements occurred in the north of Iran and were forcibly suppressed. Jews fared well under the Mongols and were influential in government in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. It was during this period that there was a flowering of Judeo-Persian religious literature. In 1502, under the Safavids, Shia Islam became the state religion. Jews were more formally treated as dhimmi, a "protected" minority. They were numerous regulations imposed upon Jews, including special dress, colored markers, and restrictions on touching food. In the seventeenth century large numbers of Jews were forcibly converted to Islam, first under Shāh Abbas I and later under Shāh Abbas II. Subsequently they were allowed to return to Judaism, but many did not. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, conditions for Iranian Jews changed with the rulers. Under the Afghans (1736-1747) and Zands (1750-1794), conditions were good, whereas under the Qajars (1796-1925), Jews often suffered extensive abuse and discrimination. In the late nineteenth century European Jews intervened in Iran and sought to protect indigenous Jews from violence. Alliance Française Universelle established schools in the larger Jewish communities and sponsored European-type education for Jewish children. Anti-Jewish pogroms in Fārs Province prior to World War I marked an attempt by local politicians to use indigenous Jewish ties with Europe in an effort to influence European governments. Under the Pahlavis (1925-1978), most discriminatory legislation against Jews was lifted, and Jews were free to participate in almost every aspect of commerce and government. From 1948 to 1978, there were waves of Jewish emigration from Iran to Israel. The last large-scale emigration began in the autumn of 1978 and lasted through the spring of 1979, when large numbers fleeing the Revolution and the Islamic regime established after the demise of the Pahlavis fled to Israel, Europe, and the United States. Under the Islamic government, a number of important Jewish leaders were executed, Jews were harassed, and Jewish schools were forced to integrate Muslim students, teachers, and curricula into their programs. Foreign Jewish-aid organizations were forced out, and some discriminatory restrictions were imposed on Jews. Small-scale Jewish emigration continues, but the remaining community seems to have established a viable socioeconomic niche, and blatant hostility seems to have subsided.

Jews have long been treated as dhimmi; however, this status of "protected minority" has been precarious ever since Imami Shiism became the state religion nearly 500 years ago. In fact, Jews are considered nagas ("polluting") in Shiite terms, and, from time to time, various forms of discriminatory legislation have been adopted. Direct physical contact between Jews and Muslims was traditionally forbidden, and indirect contact such as food handling or sitting on the same carpet was prohibited by strict Muslims. Jews had to wear identifying dress. They were unable to engage in certain occupations, such as agriculture, and tended to enter service or middleman occupations and certain crafts such as gold-smithing. Under the Pahlavis, most of these discriminatory practices were officially eliminated, although the behavior was not totally extinguished. It is not clear whether restrictions were reimposed under the Islamic Republic. Until the late twentieth century, Jews competed economically against other minorities, especially Armenians, and did not generally enjoy good relations with them. They interacted far better with Bahais, some of whom had converted from Judaism.


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