History of the Jews in Slovenia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The small Jewish community of Slovenia (Slovenian: Judovska skupnost Slovenije) is estimated at 400 to 600 members, with most living in the capital, Ljubljana. The Jewish community was devastated by the Holocaust, and has never fully recovered. Until 2003, Ljubljana was the only European capital city without a Jewish place of worship[1].
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[edit] History of the Community
[edit] Ancient Community
The Jewish community of Slovenia pre-dates the 6th century Slavic migration to Slovenia[2],[3]. The first Jews arrived in Slovenia in Roman times, with archaeological evidence of Jews found in Maribor and Škocjan. In Škocjan, an engraved menorah dating from the 5th century AD was found in a graveyard.[4]
In the 12th century, Jews arrived in Slovenia fleeing poverty in Italy and central Europe. Even though they were forced to live in ghettos, many Jews prospered. Relations between Jews and Slovenes were generally peaceful.
The wealth of the Jews bred resentment among the rulers and nobility of Slovenia, with many refusing to repay Jewish money-lenders. Individual regions began expelling their Jews, with the last Jews expelled in 1718.[5]
[edit] Hapsburg Rule
In 1809 Charles VI, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (and ruler of Slovenia), issued a decree allowing Jews to return to Slovenia. The decree was overturned in 1817 by Francis II, and even by 1910, only 146 Jews lived in Slovenia.[6]
Rampant anti-Semitism caused the Jewish population to remain small, and in 1919 the Slovenian Jewish community combined with the Jewish community of Zagreb, Croatia, due to too few members to function effectively.[7]
[edit] The Holocaust
The Jewish community, tiny even before World War II and the Holocaust, was further reduced by the Nazis.
[edit] Post-War Community
Under Communism in Yugoslavia, the Jewish community numbered fewer than 100 members. With the fall of Communism and the independence of Slovenia in the 1990s, the Jewish community revitalized.
[edit] Community Today
The Jewish community today is estimated at 400-600 members[8], although there are only 130 members of the Jewish Community of Slovenia. The community is mixed Ashkenazi (European) and Sephardi (Spanish) descent. In 1999, the first ever Chief Rabbi of Slovenia was appointed.
[edit] References
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Jewish Virtual Library - Slovenia
- ^ Jews of Yugoslavia 1941-1945 Victims of Genocide and Freedom Fighters, Jasa Romano
- ^ Slovenia
- ^ Excerpts from Jews in Yugoslavia - Part I
- ^ Jewish Virtual Library - Slovenia
- ^ Jewish Virtual Library - Slovenia
- ^ Jewish Virtual Library - Slovenia
- ^ Jewish Community of Slovenia - Demographic Overview
[edit] Sourced Articles
- Jewish Virtual Library - Slovenia, Stephanie Persin
- Jewish Monuments in Slovenia
- Excerpts from Jews in Yugoslavia - Part I
- Demographic Overview, Jewish Community of Slovenia
[edit] Links
- Jewish Community of Slovenia (English) (Slovenian)
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