Harvey Goldberg, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Outside of Tel Aviv, in Or Yehudah, there stands a building with sign describing it as The Heritage House of Libyan Jewry. The notion of “Libyan Jewry,” however, is not one that may be taken for granted. There were various understandings and terms through which Jews in historic Libya perceived themselves vis-à-vis non-Jewish neighbors, other Jews-whether from their own region or from Italy, and the states that ruled over them. These reflected attachment to local communities and distinct urban centers (Tripoli or Benghazi), three religions (Judaism, Islam, and Christianity), several languages or dialects (Arabic, their own Judeo-Arabic, Berber and Italian), as well as the historical shifts associated with Italian colonial rule, the formation of an independent Libya, and emigration of the majority of the Jews – mostly to Israel. It was this migration that gave the greatest push for the Jews to seek for an overarching set of terms with which to view themselves, while the process of growing self-awareness as a sub-group of Jews can be traced from the beginning of the 20th century. The proposed paper follows this evolution through written forms of self-expression, some photographic documentation, and also through the developing and ever-changing process of self-presentation found within the Or Yehudah Heritage House and the exhibits contained within it. It shows that even today, the notion of “Libyan Jew” is fluid, may be given a variety of emphases (including differences between Israeli and Italian contexts), and may contain seeds of future meanings not yet given strong expression.