ABSTRACT
“Super-diversity” has been proposed by Steven Vertovec as a concept and theoretical tool that enables us to envisage our ever-evolving globalized social reality by accentuating the enormous amount of diversity that exists within different groups in societies around the world. Utilizing this concept, the opening chapter of the book analyses the history of the Baghdadi Jews from their arrival in India at the end of the eighteenth century until the rise of Indian nationalism and Indian independence in 1947 and the subsequent gradual dispersion of the Baghdadi Jewish community to the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia and Israel.
The chapter surveys the literature on the Baghdadi Jews in India and in its diaspora. The chapters in the volume not only focus on different communities of Baghdadis and institutions, but also draw on a range of methodologies, spanning historical research, architectural insights, examination of visuals, sociological understanding and documentary analysis from a variety of planning, personal and public records. The chapter concludes by pointing out that the traditions of the Baghdadi Jews in India have almost vanished, but the legacy of the lives of this super-diverse group in India live on in stories, memories and commemorative celebrations.
