History of the Jews in Amsterdam

Main article: History of the Jews in the Netherlands

Interior of the Portuguese Synagogue, modeled after the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem, Amsterdam 1695 by Romeyn de Hooghe

The history of the Jews in Amsterdam focuses on the historical center of the Dutch Jewish community, comprising both Portuguese Jews originally from both Spain and Portugal and Ashkenazi Jews, originally from central Europe. The two separate groups have had a continuing presence since the seventeenth century.[1] Amsterdam has been called a Jerusalem of the West and the "Dutch Jerusalem".[2] The Holocaust in the Netherlands devastated the Jewish community, with the Nazis murdering over 80% of Amsterdam's 79,000 Jews,[3] but the community has managed to rebuild a vibrant and living Jewish life for its approximately 15,000 present members.[4]

## Conversos and Portuguese Jews

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See also: Sephardic Jews in the Netherlands

Drawing of the interior of the Talmud Tora at Houtgracht (1639), demolished in 1931Esnoga  in 1675

At the end of the sixteenth century and beginning of the seventeenth, Portuguese Jews began settling in Amsterdam. They self identified not as Sephardic Jews or Sephardim,[5] but rather "Jews of the Hebrew Nation".[6] Conversos, Jews forcibly or otherwise converted to Christianity, arrived from Spain and Portugal. Some were sincere Christian converts who now wished to embrace the religion of their ancestors while other were crypto-Jews, Jews outwardly Christian but who continued practicing Judaism privately. With the creation of the Spanish Inquisition in 1478 to monitor Jewish converts to Christianity and the 1492 Alhambra Decree, mandating conversion to Christianity or expulsion for Spanish Jews, many migrated to the Kingdom of Portugal. In 1497, the Portuguese monarch forced the conversion of Jews to Christianity, but also prohibited their leaving the kingdom. However, the Inquisition there was not established until 1536. After 1536, Portuguese New Christians, used to de facto permission to practice Judaism privately so long as they were outwardly Christian, now came under scrutiny. Restrictions on their leaving Portugal were eased and some sought economic opportunities in Antwerp and in Amsterdam in the northern Spanish Netherlands, which had revolted against Habsburg rule. The newly independent Dutch provinces provided an ideal opportunity for these Portuguese New Christians, many of whom had been practicing Judaism privately, to establish themselves as a community in an increasingly thriving economy and to practice Judaism more openly.

Collectively, they brought economic growth and influence to the city as they established an international trading hub in Amsterdam during the 17th century, the so-called Dutch Golden Age. Perhaps the most notable example of Sephardic Jews in Amsterdam are the Curiel family, namely Jeromino Nunes da Costa (alias Moses Curiel),[7] son of Jacob Curiel.[8] Curiel was the single largest financial contributor to the building of the Portuguese Synagogue in Amsterdam.[9]

In 1593, Marrano Jews arrived in Amsterdam after having been refused admission to Middelburg and Haarlem. These Converso were important merchants, and men of great ability. Their expertise contributed materially to the prosperity of the Netherlands. They became strenuous supporters of the contender House of Orange and were in return protected by the Stadholder. At this time, commerce in Holland was increasing; a period of development had arrived, particularly for Amsterdam, to which Jews had carried their goods and from which they maintained their relations with foreign lands. Quite new for the Netherlands, they also held connections with the Levant, Morocco and the Caribbean Antilles.

The formal independence from Spain of the Dutch Republic, by the Act of Abjuration, theoretically permitted their openly practice of Judaism. In 1602 Moses Uri HaLevi arrived in the city. In 1614 the change came through a diktat from the States of Holland.[10] Soon many Jews settled at Vlooienburg. There were three struggling congregations which merged to Talmud Torah, a united Sephardic congregation when in 1638 a reconciliation was achieved. One synagogue was sold, one remained in existence and the third continued to be used as a schoolroom.[11] Spinoza's father was a parnassim and the school was located in the adjacent house at Houtgracht.

## Ashkenazim

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The first Ashkenazim, Jews from Central and Eastern Europe, who arrived in Amsterdam were refugees from the Chmielnicki Uprising in Poland and the Thirty Years War. Their numbers soon swelled, eventually outnumbering the Sephardic Jews at the end of the 17th century; by 1674, some 5,000 Ashkenazi Jews were living in Amsterdam, while 2,500 Sephardic Jews called Amsterdam their home.[12] Many of the new Ashkenazi immigrants were poor, contrary to their relatively wealthy Sephardic co-religionists. They were only allowed in Amsterdam because of the financial aid promised to them and other guarantees given to the Amsterdam city council by the Sephardic community, despite the religious and cultural differences between the Yiddish-speaking Ashkenazim and the Portuguese-speaking Sephardim.

Statue of Anne Frank, by Mari Andriessen, outside the Westerkerk in Amsterdam.

Only in 1671 did the large Ashkenazi community inaugurate their own synagogue, the Great Synagogue,[13] which stood opposite to the Sephardic Esnoga Synagogue.[14] Soon after, several other synagogues were built, among them the Obbene Shul[15] (1685-1686), the Dritt Shul[16] (1700) and the Neie Shul[17] (1752, also known as the New Synagogue). For a long time, the Ashkenazi community was strongly focused on Central and Eastern Europe, the region where most of the Dutch Ashkenazi originated from. Rabbis, cantors and teachers hailed from Poland and Germany. Up until the 19th century, most of the Ashkenazi Jews spoke Yiddish, with some Dutch influences. Meanwhile, the community grew and flourished. At the end of the 18th century, the 20,000-strong Ashkenazi community was one of the largest in Western and Central Europe.[12]

## The Holocaust

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Main article: The Holocaust in the Netherlands

Occupation of Amsterdam by Nazi Germany began 10 May 1940.[18] Amsterdam, the largest city in the Netherlands,[19] had an estimated 75–80,000 Jews, approximately 53–57% of the country's Jewish population.[20][21] Among them was the German Jewish family of Anne Frank.

Approximately 25–35,000 of the Dutch Jews were refugees.[22][23] but most of these were not in Amsterdam.[24]

Although less than 10 percent of Amsterdam's population was Jewish, there were two seemingly contradictory outcomes:

* a general strike against mass Nazi arrests of Jews[19][25]
* about 75–80% of the Jewish population was deported and murdered.[26][27]

Part of the Nazi action plan included consolidating the Dutch Jewish population into Amsterdam, prior to the "Final Solution."[19] Canadian Forces liberated Amsterdam in early 1945.

## Prominent Jewish politicians

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Six of Amsterdam's mayors were Jewish. Job Cohen was runner-up for the award of World Mayor in 2006.[28][29]

## Cheider

[edit]

Princess Margriet opening the Cheider with Arthur Juda Cohen

In 1964 Adje Cohen began Jewish classes with five children in his home. This grew into an Orthodox Jewish school (Yeshiva) that provides education for children from kindergarten through high school. Many Orthodox families would have left The Netherlands if not for the existence of the Cheider [citation needed]: Boys and girls learn separately as orthodox Judaism requires, and the education is with a greater focus on the religious needs. By 1993 the Cheider had grown to over 230 pupils and 60 Staff members. The Cheider moved into its current building at Zeeland Street in Amsterdam Buitenveldert. Many prominent Dutch Figures attended the opening, most noteworthy was Princess Margriet who opened the new building.[30][31]

## Jewish community in the 21st century

[edit]

Most of the Amsterdam Jewish community (excluding the Progressive and Sephardic communities) is affiliated to the Ashkenazi Nederlands Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap. These congregations combined form the Nederlands-Israëlietische Hoofdsynagoge (NIHS) (the Dutch acronym for the Jewish Community of Amsterdam). Some 3,000 Jews are formally part of the NIHS.[1] The Progressive movement currently has some 1,700 Jewish members in Amsterdam, affiliated to the Nederlands Verbond voor Progressief Jodendom. Smaller Jewish communities include the Sephardic Portugees-Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap (270 families in and out of Amsterdam) and Beit Ha'Chidush, a community of some 200 members and 'friends' connected to Jewish Renewal and Reconstructionist Judaism. Several independent synagogues exist as well.[32] The glossy Joods Jaarboek (Jewish Yearbook), is based in Amsterdam, as well as the weekly Dutch Jewish newspaper in print: the Nieuw Israëlitisch Weekblad.

### Contemporary synagogues

[edit]

The Tuschinski Theater, founded by Polish-Jewish-Dutch businessman Abraham Icek Tuschinski

There are functioning synagogues in Amsterdam at the following addresses.

Ashkenazi
Nederlands Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap (Modern Orthodox; Orthodox)

* Gerard Doustraat 238 (the Gerard Dou Synagogue [nl])[33] (congregation Tesjoengat Israël)[34]
* Gerrit van der Veenstraat [nl] 26 (the Kehillas Ja'akov)[35]
* Jacob Obrechtplein/Heinzestraat 3 (the synagogue is called the Raw Aron Schuster Synagogue [nl])[36]
* Lekstraat 61 (the Lekstraat Synagogue [nl] built in 1937; Charedi)[36]
* Nieuwe Kerkstraat 149 (called the Russische sjoel or Russian Shul)[36]
* Vasco da Gamastraat 19 (called the Synagogue West due to its location in the west of Amsterdam)
* There is also a synagogue present in Jewish nursing home Beth Shalom[37]

Progressive
Nederlands Verbond voor Progressief Jodendom (Progressive)

* Jacob Soetendorpstraat 8[38]

Reconstructionist
Beit Ha'Chidush (Jewish Renewal/Reconstructionist Judaism/Liberal Judaism)

* Nieuwe Uilenburgerstraat 91 (called the Uilenburger Synagoge [nl])[39]

Sephardic
Portugees-Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap (Sephardic Judaism)

* Mr. Visserplein 3 (the Esnoga Synagogue)

### Kashrut in Amsterdam

[edit]

Kosher food is available in Amsterdam restaurants and shops. [40] There is the possibility of eating kosher in Restaurant Ha-Carmel,[41] and the well-known Sandwichshop Sal-Meijer.[42]

### Jewish culture

[edit]

Joods Historisch Museum

The Joods Historisch Museum[43] is the center of Jewish culture in Amsterdam. Other Jewish cultural events include the Internationaal Joods Muziekfestival (International Jewish Music Festival)[44] and the Joods Film Festival (Jewish Film Festival).[45]

The Anne Frank House hosts a permanent exhibit on the story of Anne Frank.

### Jewish cemeteries

[edit]

Field A-7 of the Jewish Cemetery of Diemen, which can be seen from trains leaving Amsterdam from the East.

Six Jewish cemeteries exist in Amsterdam and surroundings, three Orthodox Ashkenazi (affiliated to the NIK), two linked to the Progressive community and one Sephardic. The Ashkenazi cemetery[46] at Muiderberg is still frequently used by the Orthodox Jewish community. The Orthodox Ashkenazi cemetery[47][better source needed] at Zeeburg, founded in 1714, was the burial ground for some 100,000 Jews between 1714 and 1942. After part of the ground of the cemetery was sold in 1956, many graves were transported to the Orthodox Ashkenazi Jewish cemetery[48] near Diemen (also still in use, but less frequent than the one in Muiderberg). A Sephardic cemetery, Beth Haim,[49] exists near the small town of Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, containing the graves of some 28,000 Sephardic Jews. Two Progressive cemeteries, one[50] in Hoofddorp (founded in 1937) and one[50] in Amstelveen (founded in 2002), are used by the large Progressive community.

Abraham Blooteling after Jacob van Ruisdael, Begraef-plaets der Joden, buyten Amsteldam (Jewish Cemetery outside Amsterdam), 1670, etching on laid paper; sheet size: 20.8 x 27.8 cm (8 3/16 x 10 15/16 in.). National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund, 1999.64.1

## See also

[edit]

* History of the Jews in the Netherlands
* Jodenbreestraat
* List of Dutch Jews
* National Holocaust Names Memorial (Amsterdam)
* November 2024 Amsterdam riots

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b NIHS General Information Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed July 17, 2007
2. ^ Baron, S.W. A Social and Religious History of the Jews, vol. 15, Late Middle Ages and Era of European Expansion, 1200-1650 chap. 63 "Dutch Jerusalem". New York: Columbia University Press 1952.
3. ^ "Amsterdam". encyclopedia.ushmm.org. United States Holocaust Museum and Memorial. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
4. ^ "The Netherlands". European Jewish Congress. 2025-01-06. Retrieved 2025-02-16.
5. ^ Swetschinski, Daniel M. Reluctant Cosmopolitans: The Portuguese Jews of Seventeenth-Century Amsterdam. London: Littman Library of Jewish Cibilization 2000, xii
6. ^ Bodian, Miriam. Hebrews of the Portuguese Nation: Conversos and Community in Early Modern Amsterdam. Bloomington: Indiana University Press 1997
7. ^ Abas, W. "Mose Curiel Abas (alias: Jeronimo Nunes Da Costa) (1620-1697) » Stamboom Abas » Genealogy Online". Genealogy Online. Archived from the original on 2019-10-01. Retrieved 2019-10-01.
8. ^ ISRAEL, JONATHAN I. (1984). "An Amsterdam Jewish Merchant of the Golden Age: Jeronimo Nunes da Costa (1620-1697), Agent of Portugal in the Dutch Republic". Studia Rosenthaliana. 18 (1): 21–40\. ISSN 0039-3347. JSTOR 41442146.21-40&rft.date=1984&rft_id=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41442146#id-name=JSTOR&rft.issn=0039-3347&rft.aulast=ISRAEL&rft.aufirst=JONATHAN+I.&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:History+of+the+Jews+in+Amsterdam" class="Z3988">
9. ^ "Woonhuis familie Nunes da Costa (Residence of the Nunes Da Costa family)". www.iamsterdam.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-01. Retrieved 2019-10-01.
10. ^ [https://www.theobakker.net/pdf/synagogen.pdf Hoe Amsterdam Mokum werd
11. ^ BARUCH SPINOZA
12. ^ a b Ashkenazi Jews in Amsterdam Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine. Edward van Voolen. Accessed July 21, 2007
13. ^ "Great Synagogue". Archived from the original on July 6, 2007. Retrieved July 21, 2007.
14. ^ Etching showing the Portuguese and High German Synagogues[permanent dead link‍], at the Amsterdam City Archives
15. ^ [1] Archived July 6, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
16. ^ "Dritt Sjoel". Archived from the original on July 6, 2007. Retrieved July 21, 2007.
17. ^ [2] Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
18. ^ Linda M. Woolf, Ph.D. "Survival and Resistance: The Netherlands Under Nazi Occupation". Archived from the original on 2018-06-26. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
19. ^ a b c "Amsterdam". Archived from the original on 2018-07-06. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
20. ^ Dutch Census tables, 1930, 1941
21. ^ Croes, Marnix (1 January 2006). "The Holocaust in the Netherlands and the Rate of Jewish Survival". Holocaust and Genocide Studies. 20 (3): 474–499\. doi:10.1093/hgs/dcl022.474-499&rft.date=2006-01-01&rft_id=info:doi/10.1093/hgs/dcl022&rft.aulast=Croes&rft.aufirst=Marnix&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:History+of+the+Jews+in+Amsterdam" class="Z3988">
22. ^ Voolen, Edward van. "Askhenazi Jews in Amsterdam"
23. ^ "Administrators of the German occupied Netherlands during WW II". Archived from the original on 2004-01-24.
24. ^ A rare photo of a round-up of Jews in 1943 in the Uiterwaardenstraat. [permanent dead link‍]
25. ^ lasting 3 days
26. ^ Tammes, Peter "Surviving the Holocaust: Socio-demographic Differences Among Amsterdam Jews
27. ^ The percentage of Pre-WW II Dutch Jewry surviving is estimated as under 20%
28. ^ "Amsterdam closes a window on its red-light tourist trade" Archived 2016-10-18 at the Wayback Machine by Anushka Asthana, The Observer, September 23, 2007.
29. ^ "John So, Lord Mayor of Melbourne wins the 2006 World Mayor Award". www.worldmayor.com. 2006-12-05. Archived from the original on 2012-05-01. Retrieved 2009-04-08.
30. ^ Cheider [nl]
31. ^ van Kemenade., J (4 February 1994). "Margriet opent Cheider" (PDF). Nieuw Israelietisch Weekblad. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
32. ^ Jewish Amsterdam[usurped]. Accessed July 20, 2007
33. ^ "Jewish Historical Museum - Gerard Dou Synagogue". 29 September 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007.
34. ^ "Gerarddou.org". Gerarddou.org. Archived from the original on 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
35. ^ "De Gerrit". Archived from the original on 2018-06-02. Retrieved 2022-03-01.
36. ^ a b c "Synagogues and Services - Chabad Central Amsterdam - בית חב"ד מרכז אמסטרדם". www.chabadamsterdamcenter.com. Archived from the original on 2013-08-15. Retrieved 2013-11-14.
37. ^ Siraad.nl Archived 2003-03-30 at the Wayback Machine (in Dutch)
38. ^ "Beeldbank.amsterdam.nl". Beeldbank.amsterdam.nl. 1998-12-04. Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
39. ^ "Jewish Historical Museum - Uilenburg synagogue". 29 September 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007.
40. ^ "NIK.nl". NIK.nl. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
41. ^ "Hacarmel.nl". Hacarmel.nl. Archived from the original on 2012-11-30. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
42. ^ "Sal-meijer.com". Sal-meijer.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-02. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
43. ^ "Joods Museum". Jck.nl. Archived from the original on 2011-02-26. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
44. ^ "Joodsmuziekfestival.nl". Joodsmuziekfestival.nl. Archived from the original on 2012-12-26. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
45. ^ "Joodsfilmfestival.nl". Joodsfilmfestival.nl. Archived from the original on 2012-11-30. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
46. ^ "Pagina niet gevonden / Page not found -". 4 March 2016. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. `{{cite web}}`: Cite uses generic title (help)[full citation needed]
47. ^ "Pagina niet gevonden / Page not found -". 3 March 2016. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. `{{cite web}}`: Cite uses generic title (help)[full citation needed]
48. ^ "Amsterdam Diemen cemetery". Jhm.nl. Archived from the original on 2013-03-07. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
49. ^ "Portuguese cemetery Beth Haim". Jhm.nl. Archived from the original on 2013-03-27. Retrieved 2012-12-11.
50. ^ a b "Begraafplaats Gan Hasjalom". Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.

## Sources

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This article incorporates text from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and has been released under the GFDL.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Berger, Shlomo. "East European Jews in Amsterdam: Historical and Literary Anecdotes." East European Jewish Affairs 33.2 (2003): 113–120. covers 1630 to 1952
* Bodian, Miriam. Hebrews of the Portuguese Nation: Conversos & Community in Early Modern Amsterdam (1997), 219 pp. covers 1600 to 1699. ISBN 0253332923
* Hofmeester, Karin. Jewish Workers & the Labour Movement: A Comparative Study of Amsterdam, London & Paris, 1870-1914 (2004).
* Israel, Jonathan I. "The Economic Contribution of Dutch Sephardi Jewry to Holland's Golden-Age, 1595-1713." Tijdschrift voor geschiedenis 96.4 (1983): 505–535. in English.
* Kaplan, Yosef. "The Curaçao and Amsterdam Jewish Communities in the 17th and 18th Centuries." American Jewish History 72.2 (1982): 193–211.
* Klooster, Wim. "Communities of port Jews and their contacts in the Dutch Atlantic World." Jewish history 20.2 (2006): 129–145.
* Leydesdorff, Selma; and Frank Heny. We Lived with Dignity: the Jewish Proletariat of Amsterdam, 1900-1940 (1995), 278 pp.
* Nadler, Steven M. "The Excommunication of Spinoza: Trouble and Toleration in the" Dutch Jerusalem"." Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies 19.4 (2001): 40-52.
* Sonnenberg-Stern, Karina. Emancipation & Poverty: The Ashkenazi Jews of Amsterdam, 1796-1850 (2000) 236 pp.
* Singer, Isidore, and Cyrus Adler, eds. (1916). The Jewish Encyclopedia. pp. 536–45.536-45&rft.date=1916&rft.au=Singer,+Isidore,+and+Cyrus+Adler,+eds.&rft_id=https://books.google.com/books?id=47o5AQAAMAAJ&pg;=PA536&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:History+of+the+Jews+in+Amsterdam" class="Z3988"> `{{cite book}}`: `|author=` has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
* Snyder, Saskia Coenen. "A narrative of absence: monumental synagogue architecture in late nineteenth-century Amsterdam." Jewish History 25.1 (2011): 43–67.
* Sutcliffe, Adam. "Identity, space and intercultural contact in the urban entrepôt: The Sephardic bounding of community in early modern Amsterdam and London." Jewish Culture and History 7.1-2 (2004): 93-108.
* Tammes, Peter. "'Hack, pack, sack': occupational structure, status, and mobility of Jews in Amsterdam 1851–1941." Journal of Interdisciplinary History 43.1 (2012): 1-26. (doi:10.1162/JINH_a_00336)
* Tammes Peter. “Jewish-Gentile intermarriage in pre-war Amsterdam.” History of the Family 15.3 (2010): 298–315. (doi:10.1016/j.hisfam.2010.05.003
* Tammes, Peter. “Residential segregation of Jews in Amsterdam on the eve of the Shoah.” Continuity and Change 26.2 (2011): 243–270. (doi:10.1017/S0268416011000129)
* Tammes, Peter. "Surviving the Holocaust: socio-demographic differences among Amsterdam Jews." European Journal of Population 33.3 (2017): 293–318. (doi:10.1007/s10680-016-9403-3)

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Judaism in Amsterdam.

* Esnoga Website
* Jewish and Kosher Amsterdam
* Information on the NIHS
* Jewish history of Amsterdam[usurped]
* Jewish Historical Museum
* United States Holocaust Memorial Museum - Amsterdam
* Amsterdam-based Jewish webshop includes info and Dutch-languages books on Jewish Amsterdam
* Story of a Dying Community: A Diary from the Amsterdam Jewish Community from the End of World War II
* The Jewish Community of Amsterdam Archived 2018-06-12 at the Wayback Machine, The Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot