Foodways and The Ethnicization of Yemeni Identity in Israel

Authors

  • Ari Ariel The University of Iowa Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24847/66i2019.241

Keywords:

Israel, Yemen, Jewish, Foodway, Assimilation, Identity

Abstract

The transformation of Yemeni food practices in Israel illustrates two contradictory processes. Yemeni Jewish immigrants used food in the process of becoming Israeli, but also to reimagine and preserve Yemeni-ness. To do both, they had to negotiate western stereotypes and pressure to assimilate into “modern” Israeli culture, while creating a single, homogenous Yemeni ethnic identity. Additionally, Yemeni food narratives evince a critique of Israeli absorption policies, and challenge aspects of Zionist ideology, while at the same time calling for inclusion in Israeli society and declaring their Zionism.

Author Biography

  • Ari Ariel, The University of Iowa

     

    Ari Ariel is a lecturer in History and International Studies at the University of Iowa. He is a historian of the modern Middle East, with a particular focus on Jewish communities in the Arab world and Mizrahi communities in Israel. His interests include ethnic, national, and religious identities, migration, and foodways.

Downloads

Published

2019-11-22 — Updated on 2019-11-22

Issue

Vol. 6 No. 2 (2019): Special Issue: Food and Middle East Diasporas

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2019 Mashriq & Mahjar

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

Creative Commons License

The content of this journal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.