Joseph and Nissim ben Berekhiah

The brothers Joseph and Nissim ben Berekhiah were two leading merchants in the Jewish community of Qayrawān, Tunisia, around the turn of the millennium. Several of their communications with the prominent merchant Abū ’l-Faraj Joseph Ibn ‘Awkal were preserved in the Cairo Geniza. Their letters were often carried by Muslim travelers. Some letters show the involvement of Joseph and Nissim in fundraising for the academies in Jerusalem and Baghdad. They sent these funds eastward by way of Ibn ‘Awkal, but at some point, Joseph and Nissim became frustrated that their personal and business ties with him had weakened.