Jump to content

Shelomo Salem Shurrabi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Shelomo Salem Shurrabi (late 18th century – 17 April 1856) was ḥakham of the Bene Israel community of Bombay.

Biography

[edit]

Shelomo Salem Shurrabi was born in Cochin at the end of the eighteenth century, into a family of Yemenite Jewish descent.[1]

While on a voyage from Cochin to Bombay with his maternal grandfather, Meyer Serfadi, about 1836–8, he was shipwrecked at Navgaon.[1] He was found by Jacob Aaron Sanker, a Bene Israel soldier, who secured for him employment as a bookbinder. Shurrabi showed considerable knowledge of Jewish lore, and, being able to cantillate the service attractively, was appointed ḥazzan of the new synagogue at a salary of 100 rupees per annum, and as such he instructed the Bene Israel in the traditions of their faith.[citation needed]

Shurrabi obtained great influence with the Bene Israel. Through his efforts new synagogues were founded in Bombay and Revdanda in 1846, Alibag in 1848, and Panwell in 1849.[1][2]

References

[edit]

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainJacobs, Joseph (1905). "Shurrabi, Shelomo Salem". In Singer, Isidore; et al. (eds.). The Jewish Encyclopedia. Vol. 11. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. p. 315.

  1. ^ a b c Isenberg, Shirley Berry (1988). India's Bene Israel: A Comprehensive Inquiry and Sourcebook. Berkeley, Calif.: J. L. Magnes Museum. pp. 60, 342–343. ISBN 9780943376271.
  2. ^ Hodes, Joseph (2014). From India to Israel: Identity, Immigration, and the Struggle for Religious Equality. McGill-Queen's University Press. ISBN 978-0-7735-9051-9.