A Vision of Yemen: An Ashkenazic Visitor

Ḥayim Ḥabshūsh

1894

[ . . . ] [A]n Ashkenazic sage came to Ṣanʿāʾ in the time of Sar Shalom al-ʿIrāqī (d. 1780) . . . and stayed at his house and ate at his table. Fearing for the Ashkenazi’s life, Sar Shalom told him not to be seen outside, especially in the streets of the Gentiles. But the day came when the soul of this sage longed to see the king of Yemen. . .…

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Creator Bio

Ḥayim Ḥabshūsh

1833–1899

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.

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