‘The Jews of Ceylon’: Antisemitism, prejudice, and the moors of Ceylon
- Modern Asian Studies
- 58(1), Jan, 2024: p.193-217
In the early twentieth century, economic and religious antagonism between Sinhalese and Moors in Ceylon escalated into widespread, deadly violence. In the immediate aftermath of the 1915 pogrom, which involved the targeting of Moors and their property, the Sinhalese nationalist Anagarika Dharmapala observed that ‘Muhammadans’ had accumulated wealth through ‘Shylockian methods’. Even prior to Dharmapala’s claim, Moors were repeatedly depicted as the ‘Jews of Ceylon’ by both influential Sinhalese actors and colonial state actors. As Ceylon did not have a local Jewish population, this article investigates the use of a rhetorical device that was familiar within the broader networks of empire to ‘other’ a non-Jewish mercantile minority. The article accordingly enquires into how and why antisemitic epithets came to be used in prejudicial speech against Moors. It also explores propaganda portraying Moors in terms of ‘hostile’ Jewish stereotypes and the way in which such stereotypes were deployed in Sinhalese interactions with Moors. By tracing the connections between antisemitism and anti-capitalism, this article aims to contribute to a broader discourse on the positions of Semitic groups in British imperial ideology.- Reproduced
Sinhalese-Moor relations, 1915 anti-Moor riots, Anagarika Dharmapala (1864–1933), Sinhalese nationalist, Economic disparities, Interfaith tensions, Usury and financial exploitation, Ethnic labeling in Ceylon, Colonial administration in Sri Lanka, Racial and religious propaganda, Merchant minority groups, Discriminatory rhetoric, Political propaganda in colonial South Asia, Stereotypes and xenophobia, Critiques of capitalism in imperial contexts, British imperial economic policies.