It's Very Hard to Be a Jew, But It's Even Harder Being a Jewish Woman...’ Jewish Women Identity within the Izmir Community, on the Eve of ‘Young Turk Revolution’ 1899-1908

Authors : Efrat Avıv

Pages : 6-19

View : 336 | Download : 463

Publication Date : 2022-06-16

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :The westernization and modernization of the Ottoman Empire that increased in intensity from the end of the 18th century onward had a profound impact on Ottoman Jewry. From the mid-19th century, the ‘Alliance Israélite Universelle,’ an organization aimed at providing Western-style education and fostering openness and progress in new cultures all over the Spanish world, began its activities among the Jewish communities in the Ottoman Empire. The Alliance established a network of modern schools, which played a fundamental role in the westernization and modernization processes of the local communities. The origin of all these dramatic changes was during the Tanzimat period (1839-1876). The reorganization of Ottoman society through technical, administrative, and educational reforms backed and approved by the European powers enabled the changes within the Jewish communities as well. The overthrow of Abdülhamid II´s autocratic regime in 1908 by the ´Young Turks´ started the second constitutional period (1908-1918). This period was witness to intensive social and ideological agitation, which, among other social processes, accelerated the growth of women´s associations, opened universities to women, and incorporated women in the workforce. More importantly, discussions on women and family were produced by writers with Western, Islamic, and Turkish orientations. However, modernization was tested first and foremost in family relationships. This was the beginning of a multi-level cultural transformation for the Jewish communities all over the empire. This transformation was similar to the “Enlightenment movement” within the European Jewish communities because it transformed the traditional cultural patterns and opened the formerly closed communities to new ideologies and experiences. Importantly, this transformation manifested itself, among other areas, in women’s emancipation. It appears that progress and modernization were more profound in Izmir (Smyrna) than in other regions. More specifically, during the 19th century, Izmir became an important metropolis, as well as one of the most renowned cultural and commercial centers, not only in the Ottoman Empire, but in the entire world. The flourishing of Izmir in cultural and financial spheres attracted many Jews, as well as other minorities such as Armenians, Greeks, and, of course, Turks. Therefore, Izmir was chosen to be a case study for the rest of the communities in the Ottoman Empire. In contrast to the other surrounding communities, the role Sephardic-Jewish women played in the process of women’s emancipation had no national motive. They did not take part in the forming of the national identity, as feminism was perceived in Mediterranean countries in the 19th century and onward. The women’s emancipation of the Izmir community was reflected culturally only and only amongst the elite of Jewish society. This study examines the cultural process that the Jewish women underwent from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th in Izmir, as well as the rabbis´ response to this process. The study’s main source is based on the press in Ladino in İzmir, the leading city of journal publication (in Ladino) in the Ottoman Empire. The focus is on El Komersial [The Commercial] newspaper, which was the journal of the cultural elite of Izmir and in which progressive notions gained maximum expression.
Keywords : İzmir, Yahudi Topluluğu, Kadının Kurtuluşu, Kültür., İzmir, Yahudi Topluluğu, Kadının Kurtuluşu, Kültür,