 |
World Jewish CommunitiesLatin AmericaUruguayPopulation 3,205,000 Jewish Population 20,000*
Demography Nearly all the Jews of Uruguay live in Montevideo. There are several hundred families living in Paysande and in other small towns. Some 75% of Uruguayan Jews are of eastern European origin, 14% of western European descent, and 11% are Sephardim. History The history of Uruguay's Jewish community parallels that of the country, which has been a geographic buffer between Argentina and Brazil. Uruguay did not have an active Inquisition and there are some traces of Conversos who lived in the 16th century. Today's Jewish community dates back to 1880. For many Jews Uruguay was a temporary station on their way to Argentina or Brazil. In 1909 there were 150 Jews living in Montevideo. By 1916 there were enough Ashkenazi Jews to form a chevra kadisha, and in 1917 to open the first synagogue. In 1918 there were some 1,700 Jews in Uruguay, 75% of them Sephardim (from the Balkans, Syria, Cyprus, Morocco, Egypt, Greece, Turkey and France) and the rest from Eastern Europe (mostly from Russia, Poland and Lithuania). In the years 1925-28 and 1933 many Jews passed through on their way to Argentina. At the outset of World War II Uruguay imposed immigration quotas. Nevertheless, in 1939 some 2,200 Jews succeeded in entering the country, mostly from Germany, as did an additional 373 Jews who arrived in 1940. After the war, Jews from Hungary and from the Middle East also sought refuge in the country. Jews have always been well integrated in the cultural, economic and political life of Uruguay. That integration brought with it an increase in assimilation. Community The Jewish community of Uruguay is made up of some 10,000 families, organized into four separate religious communities-Polish-Russian, Sephardi, German, and Hungarian. The 60 Jewish organizations in Uruguay are all under the auspices of the Israelite Central Committee. There are several Zionist social and cultural organizations, B'nai B'rith, eight youth movements, several women's organizations, and the Association of Friends of Israeli Universities. Culture and Education Uruguayan youth have four Jewish schools with curricula both in Spanish and Hebrew. The "Integral" school is the largest and includes classes from pre-school through high school. The Chabad Center also runs an "integral" school. There are also several vocational schools offering special training. About a third of the country's Jewish children attend these schools. There are a few Jewish weekly and monthly publications and a regular radio program. Religious Life There are 14 Orthodox synagogues in Uruguay and a Conservative one (the German community). Two Orthodox rabbis and two Conservative rabbis cater to the needs of the religious communities. The Chabad Center, which has its own rabbi, is not affiliated with the community organization. Kosher food, both locally produced and imported, is readily available. There are several kosher restaurants, mainly in Jewish institutions. Israel Uruguay was the first country in South America to officially recognize Israel, and the first Israeli Embassy on the continent was opened in Montevideo in November 1948. Aliya: Since 1948, 6,850 Uruguayan Jews have emigrated to Israel. Sites Montevideo has a Jewish museum and documentation center, as well as a Holocaust memorial museum which has been declared an historic national landmark. A monument to Golda Meir stands in the square named for the late Israeli leader, adjacent to the opera house Teatro Solis. In Rodo Park by the seaside stands the Albert Einstein Monument. Within the Jewish cemetery there are monuments in memory of the victims of the Shoah, Israeli soldiers who fell in battle, and victims of the terrorist attack on the AMIA building in Buenos Aires. The old Jewish neighborhood of Goes contains traces of its Jewish past. Jewish Community Comite Central Israelita Del Uruguay (CCIU) Embassy *source The Jewish People Policy Planning Institute http://www.jpppi.org.il |
|