JEWS IN ASIA. MODERN HISTORY, ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

The course is part of the first and second year of the degree course in "Languages and Civilisation of Asia and Mediterranean Africa". The course contributes to the achievement of the CdS training objectives in the area of historical, critical, cultural and humanistic competences. The main objectives of the course are to acquire a critical knowledge of the history of the Jews in South East Asia in the 19th and 20th centuries in a perspective of transnational and entangled history, to acquire the methodological and historiographical tools to analyze and deconstruct the existing narratives. The objective will be met by analyzing the history of the Jews between the 19th and 20th century in various countries: among them, India, China, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, Myanmar.

Knowledge and understanding:
- Learn and understand the main characters and historical events in the history of the Jews in South and South-East Asia in a context of Jewish history and in the regional context, with special reference to the 19th and 20th centuries
- Learn and understand concepts and instruments of historiography and critical studies about this period.
- Deepen the understand of this historical period through films and documentaries.

Applying knowledge and understanding
-learn how to analyse and interpret some relevant historical sources
- understand the difference between primary and secondary sources and learn how to use them;
- learn how to uses historiography critically in some of its main concepts (narration, normativity, canon)

Making judgements:
- learn how to make critical judgements on historical, political and social phenomena pertaining to the history of the israeli-palestinian conflict, making use of critically and historiographically solid arguments
- learn how to examine critically various types of sources (primary, secondary, photographic video, documentaries, films etc.)
- become aware of one's own inevitable bias and overcome it

Communication
- learn how to express and re-elaborate the contents of the program in an oral and/or written form, in a concise and effective way.

Lifelong learning skills :
- learn how ot integrate critically the study of different materials (notes, slides, texts, creative works, academic articles)
- be able to study autonomously materials and subjects which have not been covered in class
- improve ability to learn materials in English
- improve ability to use online learning tools
- be able to participate in an informed way to a scientific discussion on the subject among peers.

Knowledge of English
A working knowledge of one of the following languages can be of help to the student and to the group: Hebrew, Yiddish, Arabic, Judeo-Arabic, Farsi, Hindi, Marathi, Chinese, Japanese, Filipino

A detailed syllabus will be distributed on the first day of class. The following description should not be considered final.
The course will investigate the history of the Jews in South Asia, East Asia and South-East Asia in the 19th and 20th centuries and will touch the following areas unevenly: Indian Subcontinent, China, Hong-Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Israel. The course is subdivided in 4 interlocked macro-areas which will follow one another chronologically. Each will be made of 3 or 4 classes.

1. Traveling Jews: travelers, explorers and religious emissaries South and South-East Asia (19th and 20th centuries).
2. The commercial Diaspora of Baghdadi Jews and their multifaceted geographical and economic outreach. Their relations with 'Other' Jews (Bnei Israel, Cochin Jews and Paradesi) and other minority groups (Muslims, Parsis etc.)
3. Jewish refugees during the Second World War in South Asia, East Asia and South East Asia; Practices of memory and memorialisation
4. The State of Israel, South Asia, East Asia and South-East Asia: cultural, economic and strategic ties.

An updated and complete bibliography for the course will be made available online and distributed on the first day of class
Each week students will be given 20-40 pages (mostly in English) in order to prepare for the upcoming class. The reading of this material is mandatory and is part of the requirements of this course. Films screened in class represent compulsory material for the exam. Some of this material is represented by primary sources (contemporary memoirs and correspondences, governmental documents, newspapers and magazines etc.)

students who attend the course (more than 60 % of classes attended)
- 30 % presence and participation in class
- 70 % oral exam (about 30 min)
OR
- 70 % final essay of 4000 words (excluding bibliography - subject to be agreed beforehand with instructor) to be handed in on the same day of the exam.

All questions will evaluate to what extent students have acquired historical knowledge, are able to understand and contextualise historical and literary texts, how they are able to handle the means for critical analysis and their ability to learn autonomously. The essay questions will also evaluate the students' ability to apply their newly acquired knowledge to the subject matter of the course, their independence in formulating historical analysis and judgements, and their capacity to express themselves in a concise and effective manner.


Students who cannot attend the course in person are required to contact the instructor to chose a topic to be developed in a research paper (5000 words, excluding reference list) to be handed in on the day of the exam.

This course has been approved for 2024-25 as blended. The frontal lectures and the discussions in class and/or online will be flanked with individual and collective work on written and video material. According to the methodology of the "flipped classroom", the work done by students at home will be verified in cless during the following meeting. At the time of writing (July 2020) it is impossible to predict how the epidemic will have evolved by february and what the situation will be. As far as possible, we will try to maitain the frontal lectures and the discussion in class. This class will also see the participation of a tutor to help students during the classes that are blended.

Italian

some classes may be delivered in English by guests from foreign universities

oral

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Cities, infrastructure and social capital" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development