Jewish and Argentine Diversities Rooted in the Arab World: Identities, Migrations and Religiosity (Since the Last Third of the 19th Century up to the Beginning of the 21th Century)

Abstract

The aim of this work is to analyze the fluid nature of the identities of Argentinean Jews with origins in the Arab world -particularly in Syria and Morocco- from their arrival to the country in the last third of the nineteenth century until the early 21st century. Their beliefs and practices will be addressed in a comparative way. In this context, emphasis will be put on the process of Argentinization, looking at those who remained close to the central ethnic organizations, as well as those who disassociated themselves from them. This approach will thus highlight that, despite the essentialist analyses that predominate in the study of the identities of the Jews with origins in the Arab world, we see a wide range of practices, such as religious orthodoxy, traditionalism, and acculturation. In this context, I will analyze the group’s self-representations and representations of them built in different areas, such as the community environment and the Academy, along its generational progress through the period.