Baghdadi Jews in India: A Forgotten Chapter of India’s Pluralistic History

India has long been a sanctuary for diverse communities fleeing persecution, economic hardship, or political instability. Among the most fascinating yet lesser-known of these groups are the Baghdadi Jews of India—a small but influential Jewish community that migrated from West Asia and flourished under Indian patronage and tolerance. Their story is one of trade, adaptation, cultural synthesis, and quiet prosperity, leaving an indelible imprint on Indian urban, economic, and cultural history.

Origins: From Baghdad to the Indian Subcontinent

The Baghdadi Jews trace their origins to Baghdad, and other regions of present-day Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. Unlike the ancient Bene Israel or Cochin Jews, the Baghdadi Jews were late arrivals, migrating primarily between the late 18th and mid-19th centuries. Their migration was driven by declining conditions under Ottoman rule, economic stagnation, heavy taxation, and occasional religious persecution.

India, under both Indian princely states and later British administration, offered relative safety, economic opportunity, and freedom of worship. Ports like Surat, Bombay, Calcutta, and Pune became natural destinations for these merchant families.

Settlement Patterns and Community Structure

The earliest Baghdadi Jewish settlers arrived in Surat, then a thriving port of the Mughal Empire. As British power expanded, Bombay and Calcutta emerged as commercial hubs, drawing Baghdadi Jews into trade networks linked to the British East India Company.

Unlike the Bene Israel, who integrated deeply with local society, Baghdadi Jews maintained a distinct West Asian Jewish identity. Arabic was their home language, Hebrew their liturgical tongue, and Judeo-Arabic their cultural bridge. Over time, English replaced Arabic as the language of commerce and prestige.

The community organized itself around synagogues, schools, and charitable trusts. Marriage outside the community was discouraged, helping preserve religious traditions but also limiting demographic growth.

Economic Influence: Merchants, Financiers, and Industrialists

Baghdadi Jews were exceptionally successful in commerce. They dealt in opium, cotton, spices, silk, bullion, and shipping, operating across India, China, and Southeast Asia. The most prominent name associated with this success is David Sassoon, often called the “Rothschild of the East.”

The Sassoon family established a vast commercial empire headquartered in Bombay, with branches in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and London. They invested heavily in infrastructure, textiles, docks, mills, and banking. Importantly, they were also major philanthropists, funding hospitals, libraries, schools, and synagogues—many of which continue to serve the public today.

Other notable Baghdadi Jewish families included the Ezras, Judahs, and Gubbays, especially influential in Calcutta’s commercial life.

Religious and Cultural Life

Baghdadi Jews were Orthodox in religious practice, adhering strictly to Jewish law (Halakha). Their synagogues were grand architectural statements, reflecting both Middle Eastern roots and colonial aesthetics. Prominent examples include:

• Magen David Synagogue
• Ohel David Synagogue
• Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue

These synagogues were not merely places of worship but community centers where education, charity, and social life intersected.

Culturally, Baghdadi Jews balanced three worlds: Middle Eastern Jewish tradition, British colonial norms, and Indian social reality. They dressed in Western attire, followed British etiquette, but retained Jewish dietary laws and festivals such as Passover, Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur with great devotion.

Relationship with Indian Society

One of the most remarkable aspects of Baghdadi Jewish history in India is the absence of persecution. Unlike Europe or West Asia, India offered them dignity, safety, and opportunity. They rarely faced antisemitism and were respected for their economic contributions and philanthropy.

However, social integration remained selective. Baghdadi Jews generally aligned themselves closer to British colonial society than to Indian communities. This alignment brought privilege but also distance, especially during the nationalist movement when many Indians viewed colonial collaborators with suspicion.

Despite this, Baghdadi Jewish institutions employed thousands of Indians, funded public infrastructure, and contributed quietly to India’s urban development.

Education and Western Orientation

Education was a cornerstone of Baghdadi Jewish life. Schools run by the community emphasized English education, mathematics, commerce, and religious studies. Many children were later sent to Britain for higher education, reinforcing Western cultural orientation.

This Anglicization helped the community thrive under British rule but created challenges after Indian independence, when colonial networks weakened and economic power shifted.

Decline After Independence

The partition of India in 1947 and the creation of Israel in 1948 marked a turning point. Many Baghdadi Jews emigrated to Israel, United Kingdom, and United States.

Several factors contributed to their decline in India:

• Loss of British patronage
• Nationalization and economic restructuring
• Shrinking community size
• Fear of instability in a newly independent nation

By the 1970s, the once-flourishing Baghdadi Jewish population had dwindled to a few hundred.

Legacy in Modern India

Today, only a handful of Baghdadi Jews remain in India, mostly in Mumbai and Kolkata. Yet their legacy is visible everywhere—in architecture, charitable institutions, urban infrastructure, and India’s tradition of pluralism.

Their story stands as evidence that India has historically been a civilizational refuge, capable of accommodating distinct identities without forced assimilation. The Baghdadi Jews neither lost their faith nor faced cultural erasure. Instead, they contributed meaningfully while remaining themselves.

Conclusion

The history of the Baghdadi Jews in India is not merely a Jewish story—it is an Indian one. It reflects India’s long-standing ethos of tolerance, its openness to global exchange, and its ability to nurture minority communities without coercion. In remembering the Baghdadi Jews, we also reaffirm India’s civilizational strength: unity without uniformity, coexistence without erasure.