THE JEWISH COLONY OF SOSÚA∗

∗ Field work for this study was carried out during the summer of 1972. We wish to acknowledge financial support from the Research Council of the University of Cincinnati, and to thank the many Jews and native Dominicans who gave so generously of their time, especially Josef Eichen and Felix Koch.

ABSTRACT

In the early 1940s approximately 1,000 Jewish refugees from Europe established a colony on the north coast of the Dominican Republic and became successful dairy farmers. A symbiotic relationship between the Jews and the Dominicans was mutually beneficial, but the former prospered while the latter remained poor. The present Jewish population is small and aged, tourism is making noticeable inroads, and wealthy Dominicans are settling in the area; most signs of the original colony will disappear within a few decades.

KEY WORDS:

• Colonization
• Dominican Republic
• Jews
• Poverty
• Tourism

Notes

∗ Field work for this study was carried out during the summer of 1972. We wish to acknowledge financial support from the Research Council of the University of Cincinnati, and to thank the many Jews and native Dominicans who gave so generously of their time, especially Josef Eichen and Felix Koch.