The Forgotten Diaspora : Jewish Communities in West Africa and the Making of the Atlantic World / Peter Mark, José da Silva Horta

Object Details

Author

Mark, Peter 1948-

Horta, José da Silva

Contents

1. Two Sephardic Communities on Senegal's Petite Côte -- 2. Jewish Identity in Senegambia -- 3. Religious Interaction: Catholics, Jews, and Muslims in Early Seventeenth-Century Upper Guinea -- 4. The Blade Weapons Trade in Seventeenth-Century West Africa -- 5. The Luso-African Ivories as Historical Source for the Weapons Trade and for the Jewish Presence in Guinea of Cape Verde -- 6. The Later Years: Merchant Mobility and the Evolution of Identity -- Conclusion -- Appendix I: The Jewish Traders of Porto d'Ale and Joal: Their Relatives ad Some of their New Christian Partners in Senegambia and the United Provinces and Portugal: A Comprehensive List (ca. 1606-ca. 1635) -- Appendix II: A Chronological Outline of the Institutional Proceedings against the Jews of Porto d'Ale and Joal (1611-1643)

Summary

"This book traces the history of early seventeenth-century Portuguese Sephardic traders who settled in two communities on Senegal's Petite Côte. There, they lived as public Jews, under the spiritual guidance of a rabbi sent to them by the newly established Portuguese Jewish community in Amsterdam. In Senegal, the Jews were protected from agents of the Inquisition by local Muslim rulers. The Petite Côte communities included several Jews of mixed Portuguese-African heritage as well as African wives, offspring, and servants. The blade weapons trade was an important part of their commercial activities. These merchants participated marginally in the slave trade but fully in the arms trade, illegally supplying West African markets with swords. This blade weapons trade depended on artisans and merchants based in Morocco, Lisbon, and northern Europe and affected warfare in the Sahel and along the Upper Guinea Coast. After members of these communities moved to the United Provinces around 1620, they had a profound influence on relations between black and white Jews in Amsterdam. The study not only discovers previously unknown Jewish communities but by doing so offers a reinterpretation of the dynamics and processes of identity construction throughout the Atlantic world"-- Provided by publisher.

2011

16th century

17th century

Type

Books

Physical description

xv, 262 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place

Senegal

Petite Coast

Petite Coast (Senegal)

Smithsonian Libraries

Topic

Jews--History

Sephardim--History

Marranos--History

Ethnic relations

Record ID

siris_sil_972067

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0