The Jews of Andhra Pradesh : contesting caste and religion in South India
Egorova, YuliaAuthor
Perwez, Shahid
This volume casts a new theoretical light on the question of what it means to be Jewish in the contemporary world by exploring the Bene Ephraim community of Madiga Dalits from rural Andhra Pradesh, India, who at the end of the twentieth century declared their affiliation to the Lost Tribes of Israel. Egorova and Perwez present an engaging and sophisticated ethnographic account of this community and argue that by embracing the Jewish tradition the Bene Ephraim have both expanded conventional definitions of 'Who is a Jew' and found a new way to celebrate their Dalit heritage and to fight caste inequality.
Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph
Includes bibliographical references and index.
This volume casts a new theoretical light on the question of what it means to be Jewish in the contemporary world by exploring the Bene Ephraim community of Madiga Dalits from rural Andhra Pradesh, India, who at the end of the twentieth century declared their affiliation to the Lost Tribes of Israel. Egorova and Perwez present an engaging and sophisticated ethnographic account of this community and argue that by embracing the Jewish tradition the Bene Ephraim have both expanded conventional definitions of 'Who is a Jew' and found a new way to celebrate their Dalit heritage and to fight caste inequality.
Description based on online resource; title from home page (viewed on Aug 2, 2013).
Re-discovering the past of Jewish Dalits -- The Bene Ephraim between Judaism(s) -- All of us -- The children of Israel -- The other Bene Ephraim.
Madigas
Bene Ephraim
Dalits
Lost tribes of Israel
Jews
Regions & Countries - Asia & the Middle East
History & Archaeology
South Asia