Judaism in Madagascar

Madagascar has a small Jewish population, but the island has not historically been a significant center for Jewish settlement. Nevertheless, an enduring origin myth across numerous Malagasy ethnic groups suggests that the island's inhabitants descended from ancient Jews, and thus that the modern Malagasy and Jewish peoples share a racial affinity. This belief, termed the "Malagasy secret", is so widespread that some Malagasy refer to the island's people as the Diaspora Jiosy Gasy (Malagasy Jewish Diaspora). As a result, Jewish symbols, paraphernalia, and teachings have been integrated into the religious practices of certain Malagasy communities. The island’s small rabbinic Jewish population is outnumbered by numerous mystical groups identifying as Jewish or Israelite and practicing syncretic combinations of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and traditional ancestor worship and animism. These include the roughly 2,000 members of the "approximate[ly]... dozens" of Messianic Jewish congregations in Madagascar, which incorporate Judaic elements into Christian belief.

Similar notions of Madagascar's supposed Israelite roots persisted in European accounts of the island until the early 20th century, and may have influenced a Nazi plan to relocate Europe's Jews to Madagascar.

Madagascar's small Jewish community faced challenges during the Vichy regime, which implemented antisemitic laws affecting the few Jews on the island. In the 21st century, some indigenous Malagasy communities informally identified with Jews and Judaism have adopted rabbinic Judaism, studying the Torah and Talmud across three small congregations and undergoing Orthodox conversion. The unified rabbinic Jewish community practices a Sephardic liturgy and refers to its ethnic division within Judaism as Madagascar Sepharad.