Kurdish Jews , image = File:RABBI MOSHE GABAIL.jpg , caption = Rabbi Moshe Gabai, head of the Jewish community of Zakho, with Israeli President Yitzhak Ben-Zvi in 1951 , pop = 200,000–300,000 , region1 = , pop1 ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

are immigrants and descendants of the immigrants of the Kurdish Jewish communities, who now reside within the state of Israel. They number between 200,000 to 500,000.

History

Immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

of Kurdish Jews to the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Isra ...

initiated during the late 16th century, with a community of rabbinic scholars arriving to

Safed Safed (known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardi Hebrew, Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation, Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), i ...

Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galil ...

, and a Kurdish Jewish quarter had been established there as a result. The thriving period of Safed however ended in 1660, with Druze power struggles in the region and an economic decline. Many Kurdish Jews, especially the ones who hail from

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, went through a

Sephardic Jewish Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefar ...

blending during the 18th century. Since the early 20th century, some Kurdish Jews had been active in the

Zionist Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...

movement. One of the most famous members of Lehi (''Freedom Fighters of Israel'') was

Moshe Barazani Moshe Barazani, also Barzani ( he, משה ברזני; June 14, 1926 – April 21, 1947), was an Iraqi-born Kurdish Jew and a member of Lehi ("Freedom Fighters of Israel," aka the "Stern Gang") underground movement in pre-state Mandate Palestine ...

, whose family immigrated from Iraq and settled in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

in the late 1920s. In 1939, there were 4,369 in Jerusalem, growing to 30,000 in 1972. The vast majority of Kurdish Jews were forced out by Iraqi authorities, being evacuated to Israel in the early 1950s, together with other

Iraqi Jewish The history of the Jews in Iraq ( he, יְהוּדִים בָּבְלִים, ', ; ar, اليهود العراقيون, ) is documented from the time of the Babylonian captivity c. 586 BC. Iraqi Jews constitute one of the world's oldest and mos ...

community. The vast majority of the Kurdish Jews of

Iranian Kurdistan Iranian Kurdistan or Eastern Kurdistan ( ku, ڕۆژھەڵاتی کوردستان, translit=Rojhilatê Kurdistanê) is an unofficial name for the parts of northwestern Iran with either a majority or sizable population of Kurds. Geographically, it ...

relocated mostly to Israel as well, in the 1950s.

The Times of Israel ''The Times of Israel'' is an Israeli multi-language online newspaper that was launched in 2012. It was co-founded by Israeli journalist David Horovitz, who is also the founding editor, and American billionaire investor Seth Klarman.

reported on September 30, 2013: "Today, there are almost 200,000 Kurdish Jews in Israel, about half of whom live in Jerusalem. There are also over 30 agricultural villages throughout the country that were founded by Kurdish Jews." Today, the large majority of the Jews of "Kurdistan" and their descendants live in Israel.

Settlements

Agur Agur ben Jakeh ( he, אָגוּר בִּן־יָקֶה, ʾĀgūr bīn-Yāqe) was a sage of Arab descent and a compiler of a collection of proverbs found in Proverbs 30, which is sometimes known as the ''Book of Agur'' or ''Sayings of Agur''. Bibl ...

* Avital *

Azaria Azaria ( he, עֲזַרְיָה), or Azarya is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Shephelah around five kilometres south-east of Ramle, it falls under the jurisdiction of Gezer Regional Council. In it had a population of . Etymology ...

* Beit Yosef *

Givolim Givolim ( he, גִּבְעוֹלִים, ''lit.'' Stalks) is a religious moshav in southern Israel. Located near Netivot and covering 3,000 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Sdot Negev Regional Council. In it had a population of . His ...

Ein HaEmek Ein HaEmek ( he, עֵין הָעֵמֶק, ''lit.'' Eye of the Valley) is a community settlement in northern Israel. Located near Yokneam, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council. As of it had a population of . History The vi ...

Ein Ya'akov Ein Ya'akov ( he, עֵין יַעֲקֹב, lit. "Jacob's spring") is a moshav in northern Israel. Located near Ma'alot-Tarshiha, it falls under the jurisdiction of Ma'ale Yosef Regional Council. In it had a population of . History The village ...

Even Sapir Even Sapir ( he, אֶבֶן סַפִּיר, lit. ''Sapphire'') is a moshav in central Israel. Located on the outskirts of Jerusalem, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In it had a population of . History Even Sa ...

* Meitav *

Mlilot Mlilot ( he, מְלִילוֹת, ''lit.'' Bundle of ripe wheat) is a religious moshav in southern Israel. Located near Netivot and covering 4,000 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Sdot Negev Regional Council. In it had a population of ...

* Nes Harim *

Neve Michael Neve Michael ( he, נְוֵה מִיכָאֵל, ''lit.'' Michael's Haven) also known as Roglit, is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Adullam region and built upon an eminence in the far south-east end of the Elah Valley, it falls under th ...

* Patish * Prazon *

Sdei Trumot Sde Trumot ( he, שְׂדֵי תְרוּמוֹת) is a moshav in northern Israel. Located in the Beit She'an Valley about south of Beit She'an, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council. In it had a population of . ...

* Shibolim * Talmei Bilu *

Revaha Revaha ( he, רְוָחָה, ''lit.'' prosperity) is a religious moshav in south-central Israel. Located in the southern Shephelah near Kiryat Gat, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council. In it had a population of . History R ...

Yardena Yardena ( he, יַרְדֵּנָה) is a moshav in northern Israel. Located on route 90, 13 kilometers north of Beit She'an, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council. In it had a population of . History Yardena was ...

Zekharia Zekharia ( he, זְכַרְיָה) is a moshav in central Israel. Located near Beit Shemesh, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In it had a population of . Geography Zekharia is located off the road between Beit G ...

Notable people

Zvi Bar Zvi Bar, ( he, צבי בר; born October 8, 1935 in Kfar Yona) is a retired Israeli military officer, police official, and politician. After serving in a variety of military and police command positions, Bar served as the fourth mayor of the Israe ...

Yosef Shiloach Yosef Shiloach ( he, יוסף שילוח; July 9, 1941 – January 3, 2011) was an Israeli actor. Biography Yosef Shiloach was born in Kurdistan. He immigrated to Israel at the age of nine.Yitzhak Mordechai Yitzhak "Itzik" Mordechai ( he, יצחק מרדכי, born 22 November 1944) is an Israeli former general and politician. He served as a member of the Knesset between 1996 and 2001, and as Minister of Defense and Minister of Transport. He retired ...

Itzik Kala Itzhak "Itzik" Kala ( he, איציק קלה) is an Israeli singer of Kurdish-Jewish descent who sings in Aramaic, Kurdish and Hebrew. He has released over 30 studio albums. He is married to Ziona Kala. In late 2012 his wife was severely injur ...

Mickey Levy Mickey Levy ( he, מִיקִי לֵוִי, born 21 June 1951) is an Israeli politician who currently serves as a member of the Knesset for Yesh Atid and is a former Speaker of the Knesset. He served as Deputy Minister of Finance between 2013 and ...

Mossi Raz Moshe "Mossi" Raz ( he, מֹשֶׁה "מוּסִי" רָז, born 19 December 1965) is an Israeli politician. He was a member of the Knesset for Meretz in three spells between 2000 and 2022. Early life Born in Jerusalem to Kurdish-Jewish parent ...

Ran Raz Ran Raz ( he, רָן רָז) is a computer scientist who works in the area of computational complexity theory. He was a professor in the faculty of mathematics and computer science at the Weizmann Institute. He is now a professor of computer scie ...

Yona Sabar Yona Sabar ( he, יוֹנָה צַבָּר, born 1938 in Zakho, Iraq) is a Kurdistani Jewish scholar, linguist and researcher. He is professor '' emeritus'' of Hebrew at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is a native speaker of Northe ...

Uri Malmilian Uri Malmilian ( he, אורי מלמיליאן; born April 24, 1957) is an Israeli former football player and current manager. Early life and playing career Born in the neighbourhood of Mamilla in West Jerusalem, Malmilian had a memorable playi ...

Haviv Shimoni Haviv Shimoni ( he, חביב שמעוני, born 13 January 1933, died 13 July 1994) was an Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for the Alignment between 1974 and 1977. Biography Born in Dohuk in northern Iraq, Shimoni made al ...

* Itzik Shmuli *

Zvi Yehezkeli Zvi (Zvika) Yehezkeli ( he, צבי (צביקה) יחזקאלי, born August 17, 1970) is an Israeli television journalist and documentarian. He is an Arab affairs correspondent and head of the Arab desk at Israeli News 13, the news division of Is ...

Miki Geva Miki Geva (Hebrew: מיקי גבע;born 9 October 1979) is an Israelis, Israeli stand-up comedian, musician and actor. Biography Geva was born and raised in Kiryat Malakhi. He performed for the first time at the age of nine in a local music f ...

Or Sasson Or "Ori" Sasson ( he, אור "אורי" ששון; born 18 August 1990) is a retired Israeli Olympic judoka. He won a bronze medal in the +100 kg category at the 2016 Summer Olympics and another one at the 2020 Summer Olympics. He is the se ...

Itamar Ben-Gvir Itamar Ben-Gvir ( he, אִיתָמָר בֶּן גְּבִיר; born 6 May 1976) is an Israeli lawyer and politician, who serves as the Minister of National Security. He is additionally a member of the Knesset and leader of Otzma Yehudit. He h ...

Idan Amedi Idan Amedi ( he, עידן עמדי), (born February 19, 1988) is an Israeli singer-songwriter and actor. Biography Idan Amedi was born to a Kurds, Kurdish-Jewish family and raised in Jerusalem. Amedi specializes in various martial arts, such a ...

* Yehezkel Zakai

References

Israeli Jews by region Ethnic groups in Israel Ethnic groups in the Middle East {{Israel-stub

History

Settlements

Notable people

See also

References