History of the Jews in Northern Ireland
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The Jews of Northern Ireland have lived primarily in Belfast, where the Belfast Hebrew Congregation was established in 1870.[1] In addition, former communities were located in Londonderry and Lurgan.[2]
[edit] History
Jews reportedly lived in Northern Ireland in the 17th century, and a few records note a Jewish presence during the 18th and early 19th century. The Jewish population in the 19th century increased from 52 in the 1861 census, to 78 in 1881, to 273 in 1891.[1] For a short time, there was a second Jewish synagogue, the Regent Street Congregation.[3]
Otto Jaffe, Lord Mayor of Belfast, was life-president of the Belfast Hebrew Congregation and he helped build the city's second synagogue in 1904 (paying most of the £4,000 cost). This synagogue was located at Annesley Street, off Carlisle Circus in the north of the city where most Jews lived. [4]
During World War II, a number of Jewish children escaping from the Nazis, via the Kindertransport, reached and were housed in Millisle. The Millisle Refugee Farm (Magill’s farm, on the Woburn Road) and was founded by teenage pioneers from the Bachad movement. It took refugees from May 1938 until its closure in 1948.[5]
In 1901, the Jewish population was reported to be 763 people.[2] In 1929, records show that 519 Jews had emigrated from Northern Ireland to the U.S.[6] In 1967, the population was estimated at 1,350.[7]
Well known Belfast Jews include actors Harold Goldblatt and Harry Towb, pioneer of modern dance in Northern Ireland Helen Lewis and jazz commentator Solly Lipschitz.
[edit] Bibliography
- Aubrey Newman. Belfast from "Provincial Jewry in Victorian Britain" Conference papers, University College, London. Jewish Historical Society of Great Britain. Documents prepared July 6, 1975.[8]
- Funke, Phyllis Ellen. "The Jewish Traveller: Belfast." Hadassah Magazine, November 2003.
- Nelson, James and Norman Richardson Local People Global Faiths: Sikhs, Jews and Hindus in Northern Ireland. Newtownards: Colourpoint Books, 2005.
- Warm, David D. "The Jews of Northern Ireland" in P. Hainsworth, ed., Divided Society: Ethnic Minorities and Racism in Northern Ireland. London: Pluto Press, 1998. ISBN 0-7171-3634-5
[edit] References
- ^ a b Belfast article, Jewish Encyclopedia, 1901-1906.
- ^ a b Belfast Jewish Community on the JewishGen website
- ^ Belfast's Regent St. Congregation from the JewishGen website
- ^ EJ etc.
- ^ Lynagh, Catherine (2005-11-25). Kindertransport to Millisle. Culture Northern Ireland. Retrieved on 2007-10-05.
- ^ Linfield, H.S. "Statistics of Jews -- 1929" in American Jewish Yearbook"[1]
- ^ EJ
- ^ Belfast Hebrew Congregation hosted on the JewishGen.org website.
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