The Djerban diaspora [Ressource électronique] : a Tunisian study of migration and ethnicity / Margaret Price Wilder

Doctor of philosophy : Anthropologie : University of Pennsylvania : 1980

Bibliogr. p. 259-266

The Djerban diaspora is not a recent phenomenon. Djerban merchants have worked outside the island for centuries. Their commercial specialization distinguishes them from other Tunisians, in Tunisia and abroad. In France, for example, Djerbans are a subgroup within the category of Tunisian immigrants, and generalizations which are true for Tunisians as a whole do not always apply in the case of Djerbans (Simon 1974, 1977). In general, Djerbans do not form ethnic neighborhoods outside of their homeland. There are some Djerbans in each generation who settle abroad permanently, and most of them have become part of the society of residence. There are Djerbans who have acquired Libyan or Turkish citizenship in order to remain abroad, and others who have acquired an Algerian wife or business partner in order to secure their position abroad. Most Djerban emigrants have remained part of the diaspora, returning to Djerba at regular intervals and emigrating once again. The Djerban diaspora is shaped by the home society on the island of Djerba as well as the various host societies. Djerba has its own characteristic settlement patterns and cultural traditions which set it apart from the rest of Tunisia. Although there have been brief periods of political autonomy in the past, Djerba has nearly always been included in a larger system which is identified with the Tunisian nation state. At the present time, Djerba is one of the delegations in the gouvernorat of Medenine, the most southern of Tunisia's eighteen gouvernorats. Djerba itself is a plural society. Until Tunisian independence, it had a sizeable Maltese community, and it also has an ancient Jewish population, which is partially resettled in Israel. The majority of its population is Muslim, but these Muslims are divided between two linguistic groupings: Arabic speakers and Berber speakers, and among two main religious sects: the Maliki school of orthodox Sunni Islam which predominates in North Africa, and the Ibadi school of heterodox Kharijite Islam which is found in several parts of North Africa as well as Oman and Zanzibar. The Ibadis in Djerba are further divided into two opposing sects: the majority Wahbis, and the minority Nukkaris. This last group has nearly disappeared as the adherents have become Malikis. In addition to these cultural differences, the population of Djerba is stratified by occupation, wealth and origin. There is no all inclusive structure or single set of values which unifies Djerbans within the island, but the differences which are so apparent at home seem to disappear abroad, so that Djerban emigrants are perceived as a single ethnic group.