The Demise of Afghanistan's Jewish Community and the Soviet Refugee Crisis (1932–1936)
Koplik, S.
Iranian Studies 36(3): 353-379
2003
ISSN/ISBN: 0021-0862 Document Number: 261843
The Modern Jewish Community in Afghanistan was Shaped by the Exigencies of long-distance trade. Jewish merchants along with their Hindu and Muslim counterparts provided goods to remote regions and tribes. Often these traders would be the only ones allowed into disputed areas, as they were considered neutral. Jewish merchants in particular also acted as intermediaries to help nomadic groups settle conflicts peaceably. In order to fill this economic role, unusual domestic arrangements developed. Men would depart alone for long periods of time from Herat, the center of the Jewish community in Afghanistan, as the journey was generally too risky for an entire family to undertake. After traveling the long caravan routes, they would live in Jewish caravanserais for much of the year, generally returning for the holidays of the month of Tishri and for Passover.