British Jews
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
British Jews (often referred to collectively, but imprecisely, as Anglo Jewry) are British subjects of Jewish descent or religion who maintain a connection to the Jewish community, either through actively practising Judaism or through cultural and historical affiliation.
The United Kingdom contains the second largest Jewish population in Europe after France's Jewish Community and is the seventh largest community of all World Jewry. British Jews span a range of religious affiliations, from the ultra-Orthodox Haredi communities to the large segment of Jews who are entirely secular.
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[edit] History
See main article, History of the Jews in England
The first recorded Jewish community in the British Isles was brought to England in 1070 by King William the Conqueror, who believed that their commercial skills and incoming capital would make England more prosperous. This community was expelled in 1290 by King Edward I.
The current community dates itself back to 1656, when Oliver Cromwell made it clear that the ban on Jewish settlement would no longer be enforced. In 2006, the Jewish community celebrated the 350th anniversary of the resettlement.[1]
[edit] Population and Demographics
[edit] Population
As of the present time, there are 283,000 Jews in the United Kingdom. Currently, approximately two-thirds of the UK's Jews live in Greater London. Substantial communities outside the London area include Manchester, home to some 28,000 Jews, and Leeds, where 10,000 Jews live. Other substantial communities Glasgow and Liverpool, as well as other industrial cities. The community is somewhat aged: 24% of the community are at or over the age of 65 (compare to 16% of the general population of England and Wales).
[edit] Religious Demographics
Most people who identify religiously as Jews belong to one of the following organizations: the United Synagogue, the Movement for Reform Judaism (previously known as Reform Synagogues of Great Britain), Liberal Judaism, or the Assembly of Masorti Synagogues (a Conservative, or Masorti, movement). There are some 350 synagogues in the country, and it is estimated that 70% of the country's Jews are affiliated with one. Roughly one in five of British Jews attend a synagogue once a week.
| This article is a part of the series |
| Early history (1066-1200) |
| Statute of the Jewry (1275) |
| Edict of Expulsion (1290) |
| Resettlement (1655) |
| Marranos in England |
| Jew Bill of 1753 |
| Influences |
| Emancipation |
| Early literature |
| Chuts |
| Related |
| British Jews • List |
| History of the Jews in Ireland |
| History of the Jews in Scotland |
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[edit] Communal Institutions
[edit] Cross-communal Organizations
The British Jewish community enjoys a wide range of organizations, funded by private donations, which provide support to Jews of all religious denominations and none: The Board of Deputies, founded in 1760, contains members from each synagogue in the United Kingdom. The Jewish Leadership Council comprises the chairpeople of the major organisations in each sector of communal life, together with key individual leaders of the community. The Community Security Trust exists to combat those who seek to threaten the safety and security of the Jewish community in Britain. The Union of Jewish Students supports Jewish students at university.
[edit] Limmud
The annual Limmud winter conference is a high-profile educational event of the British Jewish community, attracting a wide range of international presenters.
[edit] Media
The Jewish Chronicle is the oldest Jewish newspaper in the world.
[edit] See Also
- History of the Jews in England
- History of the Jews in Ireland
- History of the Jews in Scotland
- List of British Jews
[edit] References
- ^ EJP looks back on 350 years of history of Jews in the UK: European Jewish Press. Retrieved 21 July 2006.
