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TitreDateDurée
Bonus Passover Special 27 Apr 202400:41:09

In this special Passover bonus episode, Penny Rabiger and Eylan Ezekiel share their Pesach traditions and the meaning of this festival, often referred to as 'Jewish Christmas'. If you are Jew-curious, you'll learn a little more about why this festival means so much to Jews, of all flavours - and ... if you are Jewish, it's a chance to reflect on the way we make meaning from the Exodus story.


Thanks to The Maccabeats for their quality singing to cover up Penny and Eylan's

The Seder plate


We'd love to hear from you if you think your have a Jewish identity that struggles to be heard - whether you are Sephardi, Mizrachi, from South America, and/or if you are non-Zionist, Secular, LGBTQ+, Liberal, or Orthodox. If you’d like to be involved in our projects, such as being a guest on the podcast,

please contact us here https://forms.gle/sx7Nic2rCnTNEG289

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Birdsong and Elephants - Season 1 Review19 Apr 202400:47:46

In this final episode of Season 1, Penny Rabiger and Eylan Ezekiel review the guests and the learning from their travels through the Jewniverse (so far!).

They also consider the impact of October 7th on the question this podcast poses - and how it has informed the guests and plans for Season 2.


We'd love to hear from you if you think your have a Jewish identity that struggles to be heard - whether you are Sephardi, Mizrachi, from South America, - AND if you are non-Zionist, Secular, Liberal, or Orthodox. If you’d like to be involved in our projects, such as being a guest on the podcast, please contact us here https://forms.gle/sx7Nic2rCnTNEG289


Definition of Multivocalities


Podcast Transcript here

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Big Three and origin stories17 Aug 202300:25:59

Where Eylan and Penny begin their adventures into the Jewniverse: introducing themselves and the Big Three Jewish groups - Ashkenazi, Mizrachi, and Sephardi Jews.


A full transcript of this episode is available here


More about Eylan Ezekiel here

More about Penny Rabiger here


If you’d like to be involved in our projects, such as being a guest on the podcast, please contact us here 


Incredible artwork and design by Emily Theodore - Thanks so much Emily!!!!


Other interesting bits:

Definition: Chavruta 

Definition: Pale of Settlement 

Stephen Bush’s Report for the Board of Deputies

More about Indian Jews in Britain, post partition

Alaister Bonnett - Multiracism (book)

Iraqi Jews 


Music by Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov from Pixabay

Sound Effect by Sergei Chetvertnykh from Pixabay

Image for Episode by Mike Peel

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Who Jew Think You Are - Trailer26 May 202300:01:03

A short trailer to introduce the forthcoming podcast about diverse Jewish identities. For more information and to get involved sign up here

Please like, subscribe and share this podcast!

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

British Black Jews - Kenneth Awele Okafor08 Feb 202400:44:50

British Black Jews - Kenneth Awele Okafor


Our travels in the Jewniverse takes us to meet Kenneth Awele Okafor, a British Black Jew, and architect.

Kenneth and Eylan talk about discovering faith, lost Jewish histories and hope for the future. 

You can read more about Kenneth in an article for The Voice:

https://www.voice-online.co.uk/news/features-news/2022/06/03/black-jews/


Black Hebrew Israelites

Thieboudienne

Banana Challah (Yum!)

Tzedakah (Charity)

Tikkun_olam (Repair the world)

Battle_of_Cable_Street

Book - What does a Jew Look Like?

Festivals of Sigd and New_Yam_Festival_of_the_Igbo

Jewish Museum London

https://www.lyonslearning.org.uk/


Transcript here

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Turk Passing - with Philip Arditti19 Jan 202401:04:48

In this episode of Who Jew Think You Are? , Philip Arditti - actor and writer - was in conversation with Penny Rabiger and Eylan Ezekiel.

They explored Philip's Turkish Jewish heritage and how that translates into his Artivism.


Find out more about Philip Arditti:

https://philiparditti.com/


Philip’s creative projects:

https://www.menaarts.uk/

https://www.arcolatheatre.com/


History of (Jews in) Turkey

Tax on non-Muslims

Gezi Park protests

Armenian Genocide 


Börekas Orbörekitas



Other creative works

The Holy Rosenbergs

The Club - Netflix series


More about Eylan Ezekiel here and about Penny Rabiger here

Transcript of the conversation can be found here

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Identity is overrated" - Dr Ophira Gamliel12 Jan 202400:49:45

Dr Ophira Gamliel talks to Eylan Ezekiel about her Yememi heritage, the role of Jewish identities in culture, and the historical and modern place of Asian Jews.


A transcript of the conversation is here


Dr Ophira Gamliel at the University of Glasgow

https://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/critical/staff/ophiragamliel/

Ophira on Twitter

https://twitter.com/OphiraGamliel


Food: Jachnun

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jachnun

Food: Kugel 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kugel


Jewish renewal group: Baal Teshuva

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baal_teshuva


Yemeni Musician - Ofra Haza

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ofra_Haza



Breslov sect of Hasidic Jews

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breslov


Amram Ben Sheshna

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amram_ben_Sheshna



If you’d like to be involved in our projects, such as being a guest on the podcast, please contact us here 

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Other within the Other - with Carol Isaacs29 Dec 202300:43:25

“Other within the Other” - with Carol Isaacs


The Surreal McCoy - AKA Carol Isaacs

https://www.thesurrealmccoy.com/

The Wolf of Baghdad - Book/Graphic Novel

https://myriadeditions.com/books/the-wolf-of-baghdad/

Educator Guide for Wolf of Baghdad

https://www.mattreingold.ca/_files/ugd/b5e5dd_008584d7a470469a840e17c8c961137d.pdf

Growing up Mizrahi - Short Documentary

https://ukjewishfilm.org/film/growing-up-mizrahi/

Carol on Socials - Twitter Insta YouTube

History of the Jews of Iraq

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Iraq

Recipe:

https://recipes.fandom.com/wiki/Kubba_Bamia

Kaukokaipuu - Finnish word for nostalgia for a place you’ve never been to.

Ahmed Mukhtar - Oud player Keith Clouston - Oud player Daniel Jonas


Transcript of episode


Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hi Yohai24 Nov 202300:47:22

Dr Yohai Hakak talked to Eylan Ezekiel about growing up Mizrahi and secular in Israel.

This episode was recorded in May 23.


Yohai Hakak Brunel profile 

“How Does the Social Work?”podcast

Iraqi Jewish histories

Mizrahi Jews in Israel

Sabich recipe 

Hamin   - more food!

Cholent  - even more food!!

Orientalism 


More about Eylan Ezekiel here and More about Penny Rabiger here


The podcast is on Bluesky, Facebook, and even X/ Twitter too; where we are sharing interesting articles and posts on related topics. 


If you’d like to be involved in our projects, such as being a guest on the podcast, please contact us here 


Incredible artwork and design by Emily Theodore - Thanks so much Emily!!!!


Music by Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov from Pixabay

Sound Effect by Sergei Chetvertnykh from Pixabay


Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MizraWho?01 Nov 202300:49:00

Penny Rabiger and Eylan Ezekiel explore the definitions, histories, and experiences of Jews of Mizrahi heritage.

A transcript is available here.


Wikipedia article about Mizrahi Jews

Orientalism - Edward Said

The Wandering Jew

Dhimmi

Malawach 

Israeli Black Panthers

Does Israel still discriminate against Mizrahi Jews? - Jerusalam Post article

Hen Mazzig - activist and author of The Wrong Kind of Jew: A Mizrahi Manifesto

Jowan Safadi - To be an Arab - YouTube video - Challenging, funny, catchy. Stick around for the last line!


More about Eylan Ezekiel here and More about Penny Rabiger here


The podcast is on Bluesky, Facebook, and even X/ Twitter too; where we are sharing interesting articles and posts on related topics. 

If you’d like to be involved in our projects, such as being a guest on the podcast, please contact us here 

Incredible artwork and design by Emily Theodore - Thanks so much Emily!!!!

Music by Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov from Pixabay

Sound Effect by Sergei Chetvertnykh from Pixabay

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Are we Loser Jews?"27 Sep 202301:08:31
A Jalebi and Challah Sandwich27 Aug 202300:37:55
A Persian Perspective on Nationalism and Identity - Professor Yaacov Yadgar11 Apr 202500:51:24

With Professor Yakov Yadgar as our guide, we explore how nation-states, particularly Israel, shape and sometimes constrain Jewish identities while emphasising the importance of celebrating diverse histories and practices, especially those of Mizrahi heritage.


Our guest


Yaacov Yadgar is a Professor of Israel Studies at Oxford School of Global & Area Studies and Oxford Department of Politics & International Relations. Read more about his work.


Key topics

  • Diversity of Identity: The importance of recognising Mizrahi histories and cultures to move beyond a Eurocentric view of Jewish identity.
  • Nationalism vs. the Individual: How state influence creates tension between nationalised and localised Jewish practices, impacting personal identity.


Your guide

Short definitions of terms mentioned in this episode:

  • Ashkenazi - Jewish people descended from Germany and Northern France
  • Mizrahi - Jews from the Middle East and North Africa - this term has a complex history
  • Sephardi - Jews descended from Iberia and the Spanish diaspora


Want to learn more? Listen to previous episodes where we discuss identity.


References & Resources

  • Yadgar, Y (2024) To Be a Jewish State: Zionism and the New Judaism. NYU Press


Videos


Dive deeper into the Jewniverse

Subscribe to our Substack


Who Jew you think you are? 

Share your story


Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"I tick a lot of boxes" - Shelley Silas25 Apr 202500:33:52

In this deeply personal episode, Shelley Silas guides us through her intricate journey of Jewish identity, shaped by her unique heritage, family dynamics, and the profound impact of loss.


Our Guest

Shelley Silas is a playwright and storyteller whose work delves into the nuances of identity and cultural belonging. Her plays, including "Calcutta Kosher," reflect her diverse heritage and the challenges of navigating multiple identities.


Key Topics

  • Multifaceted Identity: Exploring the intersection of Baghdadi Jewish heritage, Indian roots, and LGBTQ+ identity.
  • Family and Loss: How significant life events, especially the loss of family members, reshape one's understanding of Jewish identity and cultural practices.


Your guide

Short definitions of terms mentioned in this episode:

  • Sephardi - Jews descended from Iberia and the Spanish diaspora
  • Ashkenazi: Jewish people descended from Germany and Northern France
  • Mizrahi: Jews from the Middle East and North Africa
  • Shul: Yiddish word for synagogue
  • Kippah: A small skull cap worn by Jewish men


Want to learn more? Listen to previous episodes where we discuss identity.

References & Resources



Dive deeper into the Jewniverse

Subscribe to our Substack


Who Jew Think You Are? Your turn! 

Share your story



Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 2 Trailer14 May 202500:01:20

Season 2 is here! This trailer explains why the conversations in the podcast are so important. Now, more than ever.

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Being Seen Matters” - Yaffa Judah09 May 202500:44:49

Yaffa Judah reflects on growing up between worlds—navigating her Indian and English heritage, attending Ashkenazi schools while rooted in Bene Israel culture, and marrying into a Moroccan Jewish family. Yaffa shares how music, memory, and food have shaped her identity and how she’s working to create inclusive Jewish spaces for others.


Our Guest

Yaffa Judah is a community organiser, creative and educator passionate about celebrating Jewish diversity and creating spaces where all Jews feel they belong.


Key Topics

  • Mixed Heritage: How growing up with Indian and English Jewish heritage shaped Yaffa’s understanding of what it means to be Jewish.
  • Jew-ish in Ashkenazi Spaces: Yaffa reflects on being “an ethnic minority within an ethnic minority” and the experience of feeling othered.
  • Celebrating Difference: From leading inclusive student events at university to sharing Bene Israel traditions today, Yaffa is actively widening the circle.
  • Beyond the Norm: Yaffa explores how labels like “Sephardi” are sometimes used as a catch-all that doesn’t reflect the whole picture.


Your Guide

Short definitions of terms mentioned in this episode:

  • Bene Israel - One of the oldest Jewish communities in India
  • Selichot - Prayers recited during holidays with variations between communities
  • Minhag “Everyone should feel welcome—even if they’re just Jew-ish”- A custom or tradition in Jewish practice
  • Adani - community originally from Aden, Yemen, known for their unique pronunciation and liturgical style


Want to learn more?

Explore earlier episodes on Jewish identity and inclusion:

S2E1: Diverse Jewish Stories with Yaacov Yadgar

S2E4: Classical Sephardi Culture with Daniel Jonas - to follow soon


References & Resources

Illustrated Guide to a Jew in India by Solomon Devika – A fun visual storytelling project about Indian Jewish history

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Everything needs to change" - Daniel Jonas23 May 202500:39:45

With Daniel Jonas as our guide, we explore how Sephardi traditions merge with philosophy, language, and music to form a personal and uniquely ‘alive’ sense of Jewish identity.


Our guest

Meet Daniel Jonas, a corporate innovation expert, leader of interfaith dialogue, and prominent figure in London's Sephardic community—a path that has led him to explore his Iraqi-Indian heritage and the influence of Judeo-Arabic culture. 


Key topics

  • Language and Identity: How language, particularly Hebrew and Judeo-Arabic, has shaped Daniel's Jewish expression.
  • The Need for Change: Daniel advocates for systemic changes within communities and institutions to include the diversity of what it means to be Jewish.


Your guide

Short definitions of terms mentioned in this episode:

  • Kippah / Yarmulke  - a brimless Jewish skullcap with variations in design and placement. Similar to a Kufi or Taquiya in Islam
  • Amba - a delectable tangy mango pickle condiment of Baghdadi Jewish origin
  • Reform Judaism - Jewish denomination that emphasises autonomy, and adapting to modern life.


Want to learn more? Listen to previous episodes where we discuss identity.


References & Resources


  • Los Desterrados - A London band with a rootsy take on the ancient folk music of the Sephardic Jews.
  • Nahamu - an organisation dedicated to combating religious extremism within the Jewish community
  • 3yin - a London-based ground-breaking band that performs the music of the Jewish communities of the Middle East and North Africa


Dive deeper into the Jewniverse

Subscribe to our Substack


Who Jew you think you are? 

Share your story

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Unity through diversity” - Dr Isaac Amon06 Jun 202500:43:35

Dr Isaac Amon shares how his diverse Sephardi, Mizrachi, and Ashkenazi heritage have shaped his sense of identity. From Istanbul to the American Midwest, Isaac reflects on how his family's stories, languages, food, and community influence his connection to Jewish life. 


Our Guest

Dr. Isaac Amon is an attorney and counselor at law, Adjunct Professor at Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, and Director of Academic Research at Jewish Heritage Alliance, an educational platform dedicated to promoting the legacy of Sefarad, or Iberian Jewry.  Isaac is also Director of Academic Research at the Jewish Heritage Alliance, which aims to preserve and share the history of Sephardi and Mizrachi Jews. 


Key Topics

  • Navigating Identity: How Isaac’s family history blends diverse Jewish roots, creating a rich but often challenging sense of belonging.
  • Language and Culture: The role of multilingualism within Isaac’s family and how language shapes identity
  • Challenging Normativity: The experience of living as a Sephardi Jew in predominantly Ashkenazi spaces and the ongoing struggle for inclusion


Your guide

Short definitions of terms mentioned in this episode:

  • Ladino: A Judeo-Spanish language spoken by Sephardi Jews.
  • Kaddish: A prayer recited in memory of the dead, with variations between communities.
  • Burekas: Savory pastries filled with cheese, spinach, or potatoes, common in Sephardi and Mizrachi Jewish cuisines.
  • Shakshuka: A dish of poached eggs in a spicy tomato and pepper sauce, popular in Sephardi and Mizrachi cultures.
  • Passover Brown Eggs: Eggs boiled in onion skins, a Sephardi Passover tradition.


Want to learn more? Listen to previous episodes where we discuss identity.


References & Resources

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dream and still rise - Michael Lomotey03 Oct 202500:46:22

Michael Lomotey shares the story of growing up between Black, Ghanaian, British, and Jewish worlds, and how memories of Shabbat silence, Hebrew books, and family traditions shaped his sense of belonging.


Our Guest

As a young adult Michael Lomotey worked as a kosher larder chef in London, and moved on to be a farm mechanic in Ghana. Michael is of Ghanaian and English heritage and was raised on the sink estates of East and West Hull, learning resistance, class solidarity and activism there. He’s currently a doctoral researcher in the final stages of his PhD research at the University of Southampton, looking at how climate change impacts upon Black and marginalised communities. Impact is key to Michael, finding solutions that are emancipatory.


Key Topics
  • Belonging without Tokenism: Finding a synagogue community that embraces diversity and dialogue
  • Shabbat as Wellbeing: Why switching off is “the greatest environmental move”

Your Guide

Short definitions and terms referenced in this episode:

  • Ahulԑ Tᴐlᴐ / nkantenkwan: Ghanaian Peanut Stew. Recipe here (thanks to Michael)
  • Devar Torah: A short commentary or teaching based on the weekly Torah portion
  • Pluralism: The act of embracing multiple perspectives and truths within a community

Want to learn more?

Explore past episodes that also reflect on language, memory, and identity:

S2E6Endangered, Not Erased with Samantha Ellis

S1E10British Black Jews - a conversation with Kenneth Awele Okafor



References & Resources

Michael Lomotey’s Dvar Torah For Parashat Tazria-Metzora

Dr Louis Gordon – Scholar of philosophy and Jewish studies; writes on anti-Blackness and pluralism

Dr Dina Lupin - Associate professor whose interests include environmental and human rights law, silencing, and epistemic injustice.

Rabbi John D. Rayner – Liberal rabbi whose writings shaped Michael’s reflections on Judaism as “an attitude to reality”


Lomotey (2024), Antiblackness in Flood Risk in Hull: The Afterlife of Colonialism, in Confronting Climate Coloniality, 2024, ed., Prof. Farhana Sultana.

https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781003465973-14/antiblackness-flood-risk-hull-michael-lomotey

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Endangered, Not Erased - Samantha Ellis19 Sep 202500:49:08

Samantha Ellis shares the story of growing up in London as the daughter of Iraqi Jewish refugees and how language, food, and memory helped shape a strong sense of identity in a world that often didn’t understand it. From rediscovering her heritage through writing, to reflecting on what gets passed down (and what doesn’t), Samantha invites us into an honest and powerful conversation about exile, legacy, and the things that hold us together.


Our Guest

Samantha Ellis is a writer and playwright based in London. Born to Iraqi Jewish parents, Samantha explores themes of identity, loss, and cultural preservation in her work — most recently through her powerful memoir, Chopping Onions on My Heart.

Key Topics
  • Language as Identity: How Judeo-Iraqi Arabic shaped Samantha’s worldview and what it means when a language is no longer passed on
  • Exile & Silence: Why some family stories are left untold and what it means to speak anyway
  • Generational Trauma & Healing: How memory, ritual, and storytelling can carry both pain and repair
  • Food & Inheritance: From black eggs to aubergine sandwiches, how food brings connection across generations — and why recipes may outlast languages

Your Guide

Short definitions and terms referenced in this episode:

Judeo-Iraqi Arabic: A historically spoken dialect of Arabic used by Jews in Iraq; now highly endangered

Black eggs (brown eggs): Eggs slow-cooked overnight with onion skins, often served for Shabbat

Rosh Hashanah Seder: A New Year ritual practised in some Mizrahi communities, involving symbolic foods and blessings

Sofér: A Jewish scribe who writes and repairs Torah scrolls


Want to learn more?

Explore past episodes that also reflect on language, memory, and identity:

S1E6 - Other within the Other with Carol Isaacs

S1E7Identity is Overrated with Ophira Gamliel


References & Resources


Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Memory as Resistance - Eliaz Reuben-Dandeker17 Oct 202500:36:02

Eliaz Reuben-Dandeker shares his personal and ancestral journey as a modern-day Bene Israel man living in Israel. From synagogue melodies to family recipes, and his travels in India and around the world to document a history before it disappears - Eliaz reflects on what it means to honour multiple identities in a world that often demands we choose just one. His story spans continents and generations, challenging assumptions about Jewishness, ethnicity, and belonging.


Our Guest

Eliaz Reuben-Dandeker is a historian, writer, and artist based in Israel. His work explores heritage, identity, and cultural memory. He has authored several books and continues to document the stories of the Bene Israel community through writing, teaching, and public speaking. A special bonus clip and article is on our Substack.



Key Topics
  • Race & Recognition: The tensions and questions Eliaz has faced around his appearance and background in different spaces
  • Tradition & Resistance: Why Eliaz insists on preserving accents, melodies, and rituals that others might dismiss or forget
  • Culture Through Food: From Passover samosas to homemade chai, Eliaz shares what's on his plate.
  • Pluralism & Belonging: A powerful story about being told to “just be Jewish” and how Eliaz responds by embracing his whole identity


Your Guide

Short definitions of terms and traditions mentioned in this episode:

Bene Israel: one of the largest and oldest Jewish groups originating from India. Bene Israel translates to ‘children of Israel’ in Hebrew.

Matza: Unleavened bread eaten during Passover

Melida: A Bene Israel ceremonial gathering often held to honour milestones or life events (Recipe here)

Eliyahu Hanavi / Hanabi: Elijah the Prophet, a central figure in Jewish tradition and to the Melida ceremony


Want to learn more? Listen to previous episodes where we discuss identity.



References & Resources

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Echoes of Aden at the table - Claudia Mendoza 07 Nov 202500:49:46

Claudia Mendoza shares the story of growing up in northwest London with a Jewish identity shaped by both Ashkenazi and Adeni (Mizrahi/Sephardi) roots. From Shabbat tables filled with tamarind, fenugreek, and Arabic-inflected Hebrew, to vivid family memories of escape from Aden, Claudia reflects on what it means to carry multiple Jewish histories at once.


Our Guest

Claudia Mendoza is Chief Executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, and has worked for various think tanks as a Research Analyst, focusing on the Middle East with a special interest in Iran and the transitioning Arab states. She has a BSc in Biochemistry from University College London and an MA in Middle East Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. She is an alumna of the Adam Science Foundation Leadership Programme.


Key Topics
  • Heritage & Memory: Growing up between Ashkenazi and Adeni influences
  • Food & Identity: Tamarind, fenugreek, and overnight breads as cultural markers
  • Family Histories: Stories of escape from Aden and the importance of oral histories
  • Representation: Why Mizrahi and Sephardi voices matter in education and leadership


Your Guide

Short definitions and terms referenced in this episode:



Want to learn more?

Explore past episodes that also reflect on identity, race, and Jewish belonging:

S2E5 – Unity Through Diversity with Dr Isaac Amon

S2E4 – Everything Needs to Change with Daniel Jonas


References & Resources





Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Who Jew Think We Can Become? - Eylan Ezekiel05 Dec 202500:13:24

In the Season 2 finale, host Eylan Ezekiel pauses to reflect on the journey of Who Jew Think You Are? - from its origins as a personal quest for connection, to a broader exploration of Jewish futures.  


Reviewing the contributions of guests across the season, Eylan discusses how the events of October 7th shifted the conversation from recovery to reckoning, the generational divides around Zionism and identity, and how the provocation that "everything needs to change" acts as a guide for future conversations.



About the Host

Eylan Ezekiel is a writer, producer, and the creator of Who Jew Think You Are?. Drawing on his own Indian-Jewish heritage, Eylan created this space to amplify Jewish voices from the margins - exploring how colonialism, nationalism, and migration shape not only who we are, but who we want to be.



Key Topics
  • The Pivot: How guest Daniel Jonas’s assertion that "everything needs to change" became the anchor for this podcast’s future.
  • October 7th & Its Aftermath: Navigating the intense pain and polarisation within the community.
  • Generational Shifts: Analysing recent data showing how younger Jews are finding new political homes.
  • Looking Ahead: How Season 3 of Who Jew Think You Are? will focus on re-imagining Jewish futures, solidarity, and new frameworks for belonging.



Your Guide

Short definitions and terms referenced in this episode:

  • Ashkenormativity: The assumption that Ashkenazi (European) culture and history is the standard Jewish experience.
  • Ubuntu: A Southern African philosophy often translated as "I am because we are."
  • Chevruta: An approach to study in which a pair of students analyse, discuss and debate a text.
  • Halakha: The collective body of religious laws derived from the Torah.



Want to learn more?

Dive into the full conversations featured in this episode by starting at the beginning of Season 2, or going back to Season 1!



References & Resources

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Season 3 Coming soon13 Mar 202600:01:41

Spring is in the air and Eylan has news about Season 3.


Thank you for subscribing, and for your support of the podcast!

You'll get the new episodes arrive as they arrive from April, lucky you.

If you know someone who is Jewish, Jew'ish, or Jew-Curious why not share this podcast feed with them, so they can join us in the Jewniverse!

There are articles, extras and a community space on Substack - so why not find us there too.


The audio was recorded at Lye Valley Nature Reserve in Oxford - which is well worth the visit any time of year - but especially in Springtime!

(By the way, next time I record a trailer, I won’t end so many sentences on a rising intonation, or uptalk. It was pretty cringy listening back)

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"You've got to Think for Yourselves!"03 Apr 202600:58:01
About This Episode

Daniel Jonas (guest from S2) got in touch having listened to every episode of "Who Jew Think You Are?"

He had questions - 4 of them - just in time for Passover. 

Questions about the assumptions and biases Eylan has, and what he’s learned from two seasons of conversations.

This is the result: an episode where the host becomes the guest, and is held to account for views on faith, Zionism and liberal values; testing blindspots, and exploring together the evolving sense of what a broader Jewish identity can mean.



About Daniel Jonas

Daniel Jonas has Iraqi-Indian Sephardi heritage and brings a background in corporate innovation and interfaith dialogue to his engagement with Jewish tradition. He thinks seriously about Judaism as a legal and ethical framework, and about what honest inquiry requires. He appeared in Season 2 (S2E3: ‘Everything needs to change’).



Key Topics
  • The assumptions baked into the podcast 
  • Jewish essentialism: if everything can be Jewish, is anything Jewish?
  • Zionism: what the word still means, and where Eylan actually stands
  • Does this podcast matter?


Referenced in the episode


Past episodes referenced

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Plural and Partial - Linda Dangoor01 May 202600:42:46
Our Guest

Linda Dangoor is a designer, painter and ceramicist, and the author of two cookbooks. Flavours of Babylon (first published 2011) celebrates the recipes of her Baghdadi Jewish heritage. Her second book, From the Tigris to the Thames (Green Bean Books, 2025), is part memoir, part cookbook, tracing her journey from Baghdad through Beirut, London, Ibiza and Paris. Praised by Yotam Ottolenghi, Claudia Roden, Giles Coren and Nigella Lawson - and Eylan (!). Linda studied painting and graphic design at the Central School in London and is a member of the Society of Designer Craftsmen.

Website: lindadangoor.com  |  Recipes: lindadangoorcooks.com  |  Instagram: @lindadangoorcreativeliving

 


Key Topics

•       Food as identity: Why Linda argues food belongs to the place it comes from, not just the community that cooks it, and why she resists the label 'Jewish food'

•       Fear and concealment: What it meant to be Jewish in mid-century Baghdad, the word Israel banned at Passover, and the cost of decades of keeping Jewish identity quiet

•       Nostalgia versus memory: The distinction Linda draws between looking back with longing and simply saying how it was

 


Your Guide

Short definitions and terms referenced in this episode:

 

•       Babylonian Jews: A Jewish community from Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) who trace their origins to the exile of Judahite captives to Babylon in the sixth century BCE. Distinct from Sephardi and Ashkenazi communities, though often grouped under the broader Mizrahi label

•       T'beet: A traditional Iraqi Jewish Shabbat overnight dish. Recipe here

•       'Our identity is at once plural and partial': A phrase from Salman Rushdie's 1982 essay Imaginary Homelands, published in the London Review of Books. 

 


Want to learn more?

Explore past episodes that also reflect on displacement, Baghdadi Jewish heritage, and food as identity:

•       S2E5: Endangered, Not Erased with Samantha Ellis: Iraqi Jewish refugee heritage and the author of Chopping Onions on My Heart

•       S2E9: I Tick a Lot of Boxes with Shelley Silas: Baghdadi Jewish and Indian identity, playwright

•       S1E6: Other Within the Other with Carol Isaacs: Iraqi Jewish heritage and The Wolf of Baghdad

 


References and Resources

•       From the Tigris to the Thames by Linda Dangoor (Green Bean Books, 2025)

•       Flavours of Babylon by Linda Dangoor (Green Bean Books)

•       Linda Dangoor's recipes at lindadangoorcooks.com

•       Imaginary Homelands by Salman Rushdie, London Review of Books, 7 October 1982

•       Nigella Lawson's Cookbook Corner review of From the Tigris to the Thames

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Baghdad to the Andes: Live! With Jordan Salama and Samantha Ellis22 May 202601:00:02

Recorded live at Jewish Book Week in March 2026, this conversation brings together two writers whose books map Jewish histories that rarely make it onto the festival circuit. With a sold-out crowd at Kings Place in London, Samantha Ellis and Jordan Salama talk about language, loss, food, family archives, and what it means to carry more than one Jewish story at once.


Our Guests

Samantha Ellis is a playwright, journalist and author, the daughter of Iraqi Jewish refugees. Her books include How to Be a Heroine and Take Courage: Anne Brontë and the Art of Life. Her latest, Chopping Onions on My Heart (published in the US as Always Carry Salt), explores Judeo-Iraqi Arabic, a language on the verge of extinction, and what we can and cannot pass on to our children. She also worked on the first two Paddington films.


Jordan Salama is an award-winning writer whose journalism at The New Yorker covers migration, culture and the environment across the Americas. His second book, Stranger in the Desert, follows his great-grandfather's trail as a Syrian Jewish travelling salesman in the Argentine Andes in the 1920s, beginning with a binder of family history discovered in his grandfather's basement. 


Jewish Book Week is London’s longest running literary festival, hosted by the Jewish Literary Foundation. It attracts award-winning authors and thinkers every year for an exciting programme of debates, talks, and performances at Kings Place, London and online. Find out more here. 


Key Topics

  • Arab Jews: why the term matters, why it's contested, and what it opens up
  • Jewish futures: a generational shift in who is telling these stories and why now


Your Guide

  • Judeo-Iraqi Arabic: the Jewish dialect of Arabic spoken by Iraqi Jews, now critically endangered
  • Kubba shwandar: Iraqi Jewish dumplings of lamb and rice, cooked in a sweet and sour beetroot sauce
  • Turcos: the name given to Arabic-speaking Ottoman immigrants in Latin America, Jewish and Christian alike


Want to learn more?

Samantha Ellis appeared previously in Season 2: S2E5 Endangered, Not Erased 


Explore related conversations on Iraqi/Sephardi identity:

S3 E2 Plural and Partial with Linda Dangoor

S2 E9 Echoes of Aden at the Table with Claudia Mendoza

S1 E6 Other Within the Other with Carol Isaacs


Support the podcast!

To help keep this project going:

Find us elsewhere, here!


Show credits

Host / Producer: Eylan Ezekiel

Post-production: Communicating for Impact

Artwork: Emily Theodore

Music: Aleksafor utransndr Karabanov

Sound effects: Serge Quadrado

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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