Shimon Garidi ( he, שמעון גרידי, 1 December 1912 – 15 January 2003) was an Israeli politician who served as a member of the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

between 1951 and 1955.

Biography

Born in Dhamar in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

(today in

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

), Garidi made

aliyah Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the Israel, State of Israel ...

to Palestine in 1920. He studied at high school in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

, and later gained an MA in Middle Eastern and Jewish Studies at the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...

. Between 1932 and 1944 he worked as a Hebrew teacher. He was also a member of the Yemenite youth movement Bnei Shalom in Jerusalem. In 1940, he became secretary of the central committee of the

Yemenite Association The Yemenite Association ( he, הִתְאַחֲדוּת הַתֵּימָנִים, translit. ''Hit'ahdut HaTeimanim'') was a political party in Israel. History The party was founded by Yemenite Jews in 1923. It took part in Israel's first electi ...

, serving until 1940. In 1951, he became head of the Association's list for the elections that year, and was elected to the

as the party won a single seat. Less than a month after being elected the Yemenite Association merged into the

General Zionists The General Zionists ( he, הַצִיּוֹנִים הַכְּלָלִיים, translit. ''HaTzionim HaKlaliym'') were a centrist Zionist movement and a political party in Israel. The General Zionists supported the leadership of Chaim Weizmann an ...

. However, on 29 June 1955 he broke away from the party to reform the Yemenite Association as an independent faction, a move that was not approved by the House committee.Mergers and Splits Among Parliamentary Groups
Knesset website In the July 1955 elections the party won only 0.3% of the vote, below the 1% electoral threshold, and Garidi lost his seat. He published several books; ''From Yemen to Zion'' with

Yisrael Yeshayahu Yisrael Yeshayahu Sharabi (; 20 April 1908 – 20 June 1979) was an Israeli politician, minister and the fifth Speaker of the Knesset. Biography Born in Sadeh, Yemen, to a Jewish weaver by trade, he was sent to Sana'a at an early age where he s ...

in 1938, ''HaTag: Pentateuch according to Yemenite Jewish tradition'' in 1940 and ''Jewish Archives in Yemen'' in 1948. He also edited the ''Book of Yemenite Jewry'', which was written in memory of fellow Yemenite Association MK

Zecharia Glosca Zecharia Glosca ( he, זכריה גלוסקא, born 1894, died 19 September 1960) was a Yemenite Jew and Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for the Yemenite Association between 1949 and 1951. Biography Born in Yemen Vilayet ...

in 1974. He died in 2003 at the age of 90.

Bibliography

From the Customs of Yemenite Jewry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Garidi, Shimon 1912 births 2003 deaths Yemenite Jews Israeli Jews Yemeni emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Jews from Mandatory Palestine Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni Israeli educators Leaders of political parties in Israel Israeli non-fiction writers General Zionists politicians Yemenite Association politicians Members of the 2nd Knesset (1951–1955) Burials at Nahalat Yitzhak Cemetery