Ethiopian Jewish women have made dramatic changes in their move from Ethiopia to Israel. In different periods in Beta Israel history, women were attributed great power, and sometimes reified, as in the case of Queen Judith. In other periods, and particularly in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries prior to immigration, Beta Israel women were inactive in public and were in charge of the domestic sphere. In the Ethiopian villages, women looked after the young children, drew water from the stream and cooked for them and their menfolk. Some women were educated, but since the age of marriage was so low, very few terminated school. Women’s purity was central to both women and men, and women were isolated in a special hut during menstruation and after childbirth. Immigration to Israel changed Ethiopian Jewish family life in a dramatic manner. In Israel, girls are not allowed to marry at first menstruation and women are encouraged to go out to work. Some young women have been referred to welfare institutions; some live beneath the poverty line. One third of Ethiopian families in Israel are one-parent families. At the same time, some young women have become community leaders; others are acquiring a higher education. As the apparent gap between migrant Ethiopian women and men continues to grow, new forms of family structure and adjustments will no doubt emerge.
Posted on: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 09:55:40 +0000
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