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Jewish Morocco with Dr. Emily Gottreich
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Emily Gottreich is an expert in Moroccan Jewish history and Muslim-Jewish relations in the Arab-Islamic world more broadly. She is the author of The Mellah of Marrakech: Jewish and Muslim Space in Morocco's Red City, published in French translation by the University of Mohammed V Press in Rabat in 2016, and co-editor with Daniel Schroeter of Jewish Culture and Society in North Africa (Indiana University Press: 2011). Her most recent book is Jewish Morocco: A History from Pre-Islamic Times to the Present. She currently serves as Adjunct Professor in Global Studies and the Department of History at the University of California, Berkeley, where from 2014-2020 she also served as the Chair of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Prof. Gottreich received her BA in Middle Eastern Studies from UC Berkeley, and her MA and PhD in Middle Eastern Studies and History from Harvard University. She is a three-time Fulbright awardee, a past president of the American Institute for Maghrib Studies, and a winner of the Phi Beta Kappa award for Excellence in Teaching.
Not suitable for children under age 13 (sensitive content).
90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.
My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed Dr Gottreich’s lecture on Jewish Morocco. It was a well balanced presentation with history, sociology, arts, and food. She opened our eyes to many ideas that were new to us, and now we are looking forward to our trip to Morocco more than ever!
Historic approach with photos from 1950's of the development of Jewish life in Morocco. Lecturer introduced musical segments of Jewish music, food, economic and political segments up to modern times.
With good reason, the speaker began talking about the History of Jews in the region, one of the highlights of the presentation. Despite the short time, the main aspects were addressed, be it the Mellahs (created almost 80 years before the the ghetto in Venice), the customs, the delicious food, the rugged landscape and, of course, the migrations of the Jewish people: the immigrationl of the Jews expelled from Spain in 1492, or the emigration to the Amazon in the second half of the XIX century, as well as the great emigration to Israel after the end of the 2nd World War. I also highlight the small sample of Moroccan music.
I learned so much I did not know. Emily was well organized, very knowledgeable, and had a variety of visuals. I particularly liked the music and singing. I hope she does a virtual on-site tour when she travels to Morocco.
Excellent review of the history and multiple aspects of Jewish culture in Morocco.