Ḥayim Ḥabshūsh

Born in Sana’a, Yemen, Ḥayim Ḥabshūsh was a coppersmith and scion of a prominent Yemenite Jewish family. In 1869 he was introduced to Joseph Halévy, a French Jewish Orientalist who hired him as a guide for an archeological journey in Yemen. This encounter with European Enlightenment, recorded in his Judeo-Arabic Ruʾyā al-Yaman (A Vision of Yemen), had a deep impact on Ḥabshūsh. He began to both document Yemeni Jewish culture and advocate on behalf of its Jews. Ḥabshūsh was an active member of the anti-kabbalah, pro-rationalist Dor De‘ah movement, which was active in modernizing Jewish education in Yemen.