Jewish gauchos

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jewish gauchos (in Spanish, gauchos judíos) is a common name for Jewish immigrants that settled in fertile regions of Argentina, typically in "agricultural colonies". These colonies were mostly established by the Jewish Colonization Association of Paris (of which the Baron Maurice de Hirsch and the Baroness de Hirsch were the founders and practically the sole stockholders), which purchased the land and arranged the entrance of Russian refugees. Most of these immigrants were from Podolia and Bessarabia, in Imperial Russia.

The first eight Jewish families arrived in Argentina in October 1888. In August 1889, 824 Jewish immigrants arrived from Russia on the steamer "Weser", and settled in the Moïseville colony (today the town of Moisés Ville) in the province of Santa Fe.

The noted playwright Peretz Hirshbein briefly participated in this movement.

[edit] See also

• History of the Jews in Argentina
• Immigration in Argentina
• Jewish Encyclopedia - Agricultural Colonies in Argentina.

[edit] References

• This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, a publication now in the public domain.