Introduction: Who Are MENA Jewish Women?

“You are dearer to me than my own eyes” December 14, 2025 - 25 Kislev 5786Episode SummaryIn our opening episode, we explore the heart of Ayuni: Voices of Our Jewish Grandmothers. Ayuni—“my eyes,” “dearer to me than my own eyes”—is the tender phrase many Middle Eastern Jewish grandmothers used for their children and grandchildren. We introduce who Mizrahi MENA Jews are: ancient Jewish communities from the Middle East and North Africa, most of whom were forced to leave their homelands in the mid-20th century due to persecution. Today, their descendants live mostly in Israel, carrying fragments of language, song, and memory. Much of their story—especially women’s stories—was lost or never recorded. Ayuni seeks to uncover, honor, and restore these voices.Thank you to Oshrat Haim for the opening vocals. You can see Oshrat on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQURf3eoiUUD3hMqC4Ey0QA Instagram, Facebook, and Apple Music.Enjoyed this episode? Please like, comment, or leave a review wherever you’re listening to the podcast or email us at [email protected] encouragement helps us carry these ancestral stories into the world — story by story, grandmother by grandmother.Share Your StoryEvery family holds a universe of memory.If you’ve carried a song, a story, a proverb, a photograph, a silence — we welcome you to share it with us at [email protected] memory from your grandmother’s kitchen still warms your hands and heart?A dish, a spice, a scent — what story does it carry?Your voice becomes part of our collective archive.Email us at [email protected] so that we can feature your story on a future episode!Stay Connected- Instagram: @ayunivoices- YouTube: @JewishUnityDiversity- Jewish Unity Through Diversity registration: https://www.unitytdiversity.com/contact-donationsSupport Our VoicesAyuni is a labor of heart and heritage.Become a supporter: If you believe in preserving the lived stories of Middle Eastern and North African Jewish women, please consider supporting this work. Your contribution helps us document what was almost forgotten — and amplify what must be remembered.Sponsor an episode: We partner with individuals and organizations who honor storytelling, heritage, and women’s voices.If you’d like to sponsor an episode in memory of a grandmother or in celebration of your family's story, please reach out: [email protected] in This EpisodeGabai, Nili. Ha-Ishah ha-Yehudiyah be-Bagdad. Agudat ha-aḳademaʼim yotsʼe ʻIraḳ be-Yiśraʼel, The Jewish Woman in Baghdad (Hebrew), 2006.Links & Resources-   Sephardic Voices: The Forgotten Exodus of the Arab Jews, Henry Green, Richard Stursberg, 2021-   Memories of Eden, Violette Shamash, Forum, 2008 -   Uprooted:How 3000 Years of Jewish Civilization in the Arab World Vanished Overnight, Lyn Julius, Vallentine Mitchell, 2018