Slat al-Azama Synagogue
{{Short description|Synagogue in Marrakesh, Morocco}}
{{use mdy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox religious building
| name = Slat al-Azama Synagogue
{{small|(Lazama Synagogue)}}
| native_name = {{ubl|{{Langx|he|בית הכנסת צלאת אל עזמה}}|{{Langx|ar|كنيس صلاة العزامة}}}}
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| image = Mellah in Marrakech - panoramio.jpg
| image_upright = 1.4
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| caption = The synagogue interior, in 2012
| religious_affiliation = Judaism
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| rite = Nusach Sefard
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| organisational_status = Synagogue
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| functional_status = Active
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| location = Mellah of Marrakesh, Marrakesh-Safi
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| country = Morocco
| map_type = Morocco
| map_size = 250
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| map_caption = Location of the synagogue in Morocco
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| coordinates = {{coord|31|37|12.4|N|7|58|56.4|W|region:MA_type:landmark|display=it}}
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| established = {{nowrap|{{circa|1492}} {{small|(as a congregation)}}}}
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| year_completed = 16th century
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The Slat al-Azama Synagogue or Lazama Synagogue ({{Langx|he|בית הכנסת צלאת אל עזמה}}; {{Langx|ar|كنيس صلاة العزامة}}) is a Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in Marrakesh, Marrakesh-Safi, Morocco. It is located in the historic Mellah (Jewish quarter) of the old city.
History
The synagogue was associated with Sephardic Jews who were expelled from Spain in 1492 (known as the Megorashim). The synagogue's foundation is likewise traditionally attributed to 1492,{{Cite web|title=Lazama Synagogue {{!}} Marrakesh, Morocco Attractions|url=https://www.lonelyplanet.com/morocco/marrakesh/attractions/lazama-synagogue/a/poi-sig/1144251/1316370|access-date=2020-09-26|website=Lonely Planet|language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2019-04-18|title=Morocco is a trove of Jewish history if you know where to go|url=https://apnews.com/article/749d2471171b4c1985bd33b8d43c1609|access-date=2020-09-26|website=AP NEWS}} though one scholar has indicated that the exact year of establishment has not been verified.{{Cite book|last=Stiefel|first=Barry L.|title=Jews and the Renaissance of Synagogue Architecture, 1450–1730|publisher=Routledge|year=2015|pages=54}} The Mellah district in which the synagogue is located was not created until 1557.{{Cite book|last=Deverdun|first=Gaston|title=Marrakech: Des origines à 1912|publisher=Éditions Techniques Nord-Africaines|year=1959|location=Rabat}}{{Rp|363–364}}{{Cite book|last=Wilbaux|first=Quentin|title=La médina de Marrakech: Formation des espaces urbains d'une ancienne capitale du Maroc|publisher=L'Harmattan|year=2001|isbn=2747523888|location=Paris}}{{Rp|258}} In any case, the synagogue's current form dates from a more modern restoration.{{Cite book|title=The Rough Guide to Morocco|publisher=Rough Guides|year=2019|edition=12th|pages=318}} The building is still functioning as a synagogue today.{{Cite news|last=Frank|first=Michael|date=2015-05-30|title=In Morocco, Exploring Remnants of Jewish History|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/travel/in-morocco-exploring-remnants-of-jewish-history.html|access-date=2020-09-26|issn=0362-4331}}
On 8 September 2023, the synagogue and surrounding Jewish quarter were damaged by an earthquake. No casualties were reported.{{Cite news |last=Ran |first=Gido |last2=Marrakesh |last3=Eichner |first3=Itamar |date=2023-09-10 |title=Although whole in body, some in Marrakesh Jewish community left destitute following quake |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/article/bjvt7hic2 |access-date=2024-02-25 |work=Ynetnews |language=en}}
Architecture
The synagogue is integrated into a larger building which consisted of a private house with a central courtyard (popularly referred to as a riad). This integration of a synagogue into a private home was typical of most synagogues in the Mellah of Marrakesh as well as in the Mellah of Fez.{{Cite journal|last1=Gilson Miller|first1=Susan|last2=Petruccioli|first2=Attilio|last3=Bertagnin|first3=Mauro|date=2001|title=Inscribing Minority Space in the Islamic City: The Jewish Quarter of Fez (1438-1912)|journal=Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians|volume=60|issue=3|pages=310–327|doi=10.2307/991758|jstor=991758}} The synagogue itself has traditional Moroccan decoration such as zellij (mosaic tilework).
The east side was renovated after the 1950s, with the addition of a wing for women (ezrat nashim), which is unique in Morocco where tradition dictates that women stay in a separate room at the entrance of the synagogue.{{Cite web |date=2009-10-25 |title=Las sinagogas marroques |work=MFA.gov.il |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFAES/MFAArchive/1990_1999/1999/9/Las%20sinagogas%20marroques |access-date=2020-11-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091025142923/http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFAES/MFAArchive/1990_1999/1999/9/Las%20sinagogas%20marroques |archive-date=2009-10-25}} The original wooden Torah ark has been replaced by a marble ark, which is located next to the eastern wall. Notes drawn in the 1950s by architect Yaacov Finkerfeld demonstrate that the space mentioned above did not exist for women and that the interior was divided into two naves by four columns. On the upper floor there is a yeshiva.
See also
{{stack|{{portal|Judaism|Morocco}}}}
File:Salat Al Azama Synagogue, Marrakech, in 2010 08.jpg of the synagogue in 2010]]
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{commonscat-inline|Salat Al Azama Synagogue}}
{{Synagogues in Morocco}}
{{Marrakesh}}
Category:16th-century synagogues in Morocco
Category:Buildings and structures in Marrakesh
Category:Jews and Judaism in Marrakesh
Category:Sephardi Jewish culture in Africa
Category:Spanish diaspora in Africa
Category:Spanish-Jewish diaspora
Category:Synagogues in Morocco
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