Sephardic Genealogy in Morocco

Morocco was in the first half of the 20th century home to 250,000 Sephardic Jews. Yet genealogic researchers seeking Jewish records face significant difficulties. Government records in Morocco were, until very recently, not as elaborate as in European countries (not to say non-existent). In fact, until well into the 20th century, the rulers of Morocco (including the French) did not even control all of the country. The half or so of the country they controlled was called the bled el makhzen (land of the treasury) because that was the area the king could tax. The other part of the country (bled el siba) was under the control of local chieftains. These local conditions meant that until recently there were no such things as government birth or death registrations, or census records .

Archival Resources

Beth Din of Casablanca

The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People (CAHJP) .

Hebrew University Campus, Sprinzak Bldg, Givat Ram. P.O.Box 1149, Jerusalem 91010, Israel. Tel./Fax: (972)-2-5635716
'Pinkassim' and documents, inter alia from Casablanca, Fes, Meknes, Mogador and Sefrou (1710-1963)

Archives diplomatiques de Nantes ,17 rue du Casterneau, 44000, Nantes, France

Contains the French civil records of Morocco, including those of the city of Casablanca from 1925-56.

Alliance Israelite Universelle Archives , 45 Rue la Bruyere, 75009, Paris

In the 19th century the AIU set up schools in many locations in Morocco. Their archives in Paris are a largely untouched resource that certainly contains much information of value to the genealogist.

Cemeteries (see below)

The Bension Collection of Sephardic Manuscripts at Alberta University Library, Canada.

Housed in the Special Collections Section of the library, this collection of manuscripts is of interest to the genealogist because of the large number of letters it contains between various Moroccan rabbis about numerous individuals. These include R. Jacob ibn Zur (Abensour), R. Jacob ben Malka, R. Serrero, R. Abitbol, and numerous others.
Aranov provides an excellent detailed description of the manuscripts in his book "A Descriptive Catalogue of the Bension Collection of Manuscripts", U of Alberta Press, 1979.

Internet resources

Local Articles of interest

How to get started in Sephardic Jewish Genealogy for the beginner

The Sephardim - Who are they and their history.

Jews and Christians in the Moslem World

Maps Spain

Some differences in Sephardic and Ashkenazi genealogy

Jewish Names and genealogies

Interesting Population figures

Portuguese Jewish Community of Tunis - genealogies

Moroccan Jews in the Amazon

Inquisicion and early Hispanic Archives

Index of Maghrebian surnames

General Jewish Genealogy Resources

The Serfaty family of Spain and Fez

The Hakim family

Maimon (Maimonides) and other families

Botbol Family

Gabbai family

Shaltiel Family Worldwide

Malka-Gelfand Family Page

Benveniste homepage

Amzalak homepage

Cohen-Hadria family tree

Toledano family

Aboaf family

Databases

Jews from Morocco Deported from France in WWII

Index of Ben Naim. Malkhei Rabbanan [Rabbis of Morocco]

Mogador (Essaouira) Illuminated Ketubot (1789-2003) - Index of Knafo and Bensoussan's book

Essaouira - Mogador Cemeteries (Link off-site)

Searchable database of names and other identifying information from the cemeteries of Essaouira (Mogador), Morocco.

Agadir Jewish Cemetery (Link off-site)

Click on "Cimetiere Israelite d'Agadir" for photos and tombstone inscriptions.

Other webpages

Melca's site for Mogador - site site-map of this extensive website

Essaouira - Mogador Cemeteries - Searchable database

Moshe David Gaon: Oriental Jews in Erets Yisrael

Mathilde Tagger's Index of 2,882 Sephardic Rabbis, Scholars and Notables.
In Spain, Provence, Italy, Ottoman Empire, incl. Balkans, Middle East and North Africa.

Musee du Judaism Marocain: Fondation du Patrimoine Culturel Judeo Marocain - Contains registers of departed Moroccan communities

1000 Maghrebians (book by Abraham Elharar) - Searchable database

Jewish Morocco Rick Gold's excellent page

Essaouira / Mogador Cemetery list

Between Lisbon and Marakesh - The 'Inhabitants' versus 'Expelled' Controversy

Brief Social History of the Jews in Morocco by Marc Eliany

The Names of Moroccan Jews

Darnna (Moroccan Jewish communities)

Moroccan guards tzadik's tomb Hananiyah Elfassie

Dafina Le Net des Juifs du Maroc

The Sephardic-Moroccan Page and this

Judeo Maghrebi Literature

The Fez Jewish cemetery and burial practices among Moroccan Jews

Life in Tetuan

Haketia

Haketia (Wikipedia)

Bibliography

By far the most useful books for the genealogist researching Morocco are

Laredo, Abraham : Les Noms des Juifs du Maroc. Institut Montano, Madrid, 1978.

Although out of print, this book is essential to consult for any Sephardic research. It contains a huge listing of family names, their origins and meanings and notable persons who carried these names with documented sources for further research. Invaluable.
A listing of names compiled by Abensur can be found on the ETSI website
See also SephardicGen's searchable Consolidated Index of Sephardic Surnames

Abecassis, Jose Maria: Genealogia Hebraica. Portugal e Gibraltar. Lisboa 1990 (in Portuguese)

5 Volumes (4 vols at the Lib of Congress) of documented family trees (XVII to XX centuries)
A listing of names compiled by me can be found in the "Names" section of this website

Toledano, Joseph: La Saga des Familles. Stavit, Tel Aviv 1983.

Much smaller but similar to Laredo's book. Does not indicate sources but has old photos of family members. There is now a new much expanded edition available.
A listing of names compiled by me can be found in the "Names" section of this website

However there are many others that are of interest to a researcher of Moroccan Jewry. For a more complete list go to my "Book" section .

Missing resources

Records of Jewish special taxes paid

There were special dhimmi taxes imposed on Jews and records of this must exist. It would be very useful if these records could be located. Probably in arabic or Berber, these records would have to contain much valuable information concerning names, properties owned, and probably names of family members and should therefore be a very fruitful area of research. The first step is to identify where these records exist.

Jewish cemeteries

Most Jewish cemeteries in Morocco have not been studied and their gravestones photographed. Visitors to Morocco are encouraged to help where they can. Photographing all the gravestones for later study would be a good start.