Name any country. At one point or another, it’s probably been home to Jews. When Rome conquered the Land of Israel in 70 CE, most Jews were dispersed around the world. Wherever they ended up, Jews absorbed different aspects of the cultures surrounding them and formed unique Jewish customs.
India has long been a welcoming home for Jews. The first Jews arrived there around the 10th century BCE as merchants. From this wave of newcomers, Southern India became home to the Cochini Jews, while the Bene Israel community settled in what is now modern-day Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Karachi (now in Pakistan).
Then the Paradesi Jews arrived with their Sephardic Ladino language, having been expelled from Iberia in Western Europe. In the 18th century CE, the Cochini community welcomed large numbers from the Middle East, North Africa, and Spain. Later, the Baghdadi Jews arrived, escaping religious persecution in Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Afghanistan. Many of these communities experienced prosperity, respect, and tolerance in this diverse country. While there are still about 6,000 Jews living in India today, about 80,000 Jews of Indian origin now live in Israel.
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See the original Cochin synagogue doors on display at the Israel museum
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