Deleted member 109224
In 1869, Abba Mehari, a religious leader of the Jewish people in Ethiopia (the Beta Israel), attempted to make Aliyah (migration to the Land of Israel) to Jerusalem with thousands of followers. It failed because of a mix of disease and starvation.
In a letter written by Kahen (a kind of intermediary between the clergy and the average person) Abba Zaga of the Ethiopian Jews wrote to Jerusalem, saying...
What if, through better contacts and gaining prior support from Jews in Europe, the old Yishuv of Palestine, or some other interested group this Ethiopian Aliyah had been a success?
My guess is that if this had been successful, other Jews from Ethiopia and Yemen (two somewhat related and particularly poor Jewish communities that, separate from the mainstream Zionist movement later on, had a strong interest in moving to the land of Israel) would migrate as well. But this would be a primarily theological and cultural migration, rather than one with any distinctive nationalist or political aims. Still, when large numbers of people move to a place it tends to prompt some controversy no matter what their intent is.
It's estimated that though today there are 168,300 Ethiopian Jews worldwide, in the mid-19th Century the Beta Israel population was estimated at between 200,000 and 350,000 people. The late 19th Century Ethiopian famine (Rinderpest) killed 1/3 of Ethiopia, but 2/3 of the Jewish population. Plus there were campaigns of conversion, such that it's estimated that there are as many as 150,000 Crypto-Jewish Beta Abraham.
In a letter written by Kahen (a kind of intermediary between the clergy and the average person) Abba Zaga of the Ethiopian Jews wrote to Jerusalem, saying...
What if, through better contacts and gaining prior support from Jews in Europe, the old Yishuv of Palestine, or some other interested group this Ethiopian Aliyah had been a success?
My guess is that if this had been successful, other Jews from Ethiopia and Yemen (two somewhat related and particularly poor Jewish communities that, separate from the mainstream Zionist movement later on, had a strong interest in moving to the land of Israel) would migrate as well. But this would be a primarily theological and cultural migration, rather than one with any distinctive nationalist or political aims. Still, when large numbers of people move to a place it tends to prompt some controversy no matter what their intent is.
It's estimated that though today there are 168,300 Ethiopian Jews worldwide, in the mid-19th Century the Beta Israel population was estimated at between 200,000 and 350,000 people. The late 19th Century Ethiopian famine (Rinderpest) killed 1/3 of Ethiopia, but 2/3 of the Jewish population. Plus there were campaigns of conversion, such that it's estimated that there are as many as 150,000 Crypto-Jewish Beta Abraham.
Last edited by a moderator: