Jewish Quarter

Jewish Quarter may refer to:

See also

Jewish Quarter of Třebíč

The Jewish Quarter of Třebíč placed in Moravian town Třebíč in the Czech Republic is one of the best preserved Jewish ghettos in Europe. Therefore it was listed in 2003 (together with the Jewish Cemetery and the St. Procopius Basilica in Třebíč) in the UNESCO World Heritage List and it is the only Jewish monument outside Israel specifically placed on the List.

The Jewish Quarter is situated on the north bank of the River Jihlava, surrounded by rocks and the river. In the Jewish Quarter there are 123 houses, two synagogues and a Jewish cemetery which isn't in the area of the town.

All original Jewish inhabitants (in 1890 there lived nearly 1,500 Jews, but in the 1930s only 300 of them were of Jewish faith) were deported and murdered in concentration camps by Nazis during the World War II. Only ten of them came back after the war. Therefore many buildings of the Jewish town (e. g. the town hall, rabbi's office, hospital, poorhouse or school) do not serve their original purpose any more and the houses are now owned by people of non-Jewish faith.

Jewish quarter (diaspora)

In the Jewish diaspora, a Jewish quarter (also known as juiverie, Judengasse, Jewynstreet or proto-ghetto) is the area of a city traditionally inhabited by Jews. Jewish quarters, like the Jewish ghettos in Europe, were often the outgrowths of segregated ghettos instituted by the surrounding Christian authorities. A Yiddish term for a Jewish quarter or neighborhood is "Di yiddishe gas" (Yiddish: די ייִדדישע גאַס ‎ ), or "The Jewish quarter." While in Ladino, they are known as maalé yahudí, meaning "The Jewish quarter". Many European and Middle Eastern cities once had a historical Jewish quarter and some still have it.

Jewish quarters in Europe existed for a number of reasons. In some cases, Christian authorities wished to segregate Jews from the Christian population so that Christians would not be "contaminated" by them or so as to put psychological pressure on Jews to convert to Christianity. From the Jewish point of view, concentration of Jews within a limited area offered a level of protection from outside influences or mob violence. In many cases, residents had their own justice system. When political authorities designated an area where Jews were required by law to live, such areas were commonly referred to as ghettos, and were usually coupled with many other disabilities and indignities. The areas chosen usually consisted of the most undesirable areas of a city. In the 19th century, Jewish ghettos were progressively abolished, and their walls taken down, though some areas of Jewish concentration continued and continue to exist. In some cities, Jewish quarters refer to areas which historically had concentrations of Jews. For example, many maps of Spanish towns mark a "Jewish Quarter", though Spain hasn't had a significant Jewish population for over 500 years.