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Cemetery at Guelma, Algeria
Description
Jewish Presence in Guelma: Scholars believe that Jews first started living in Guelma during the Roman period. The first documented Jewish community in Guelma emerged during the French conquest when a permanent camp and settlement was established in 1834.
After the development of the area by the French in 1843, the Jewish population reached a total of 49, as Jews from Constantine and semi-nomadic Jews from southern Algeria settled in Guelma and began to engage in trade. Starting in 1848, French Jews began to settle in the city and by the 1850s Guelma had a synagogue, a cantor, and a shohet. The community continued to grow and by 1911 there were 6761 Jews and 9002 in 1954.
After the Crémieux Decree of 1870 Guelma saw a rise in antisemitism. During the Algerian war for independence, Jews in Guelma were killed and wounded and Jewish businesses were boycotted. Soon families began to leave, and between 1954 and 1957 10 Jewish families3 left for France with many following suit. By the time Algeria won independence in 1962 the entire Jewish community of Guelma ceased to exist.
Guelma, Algeria
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Sources
Notes
1 Ayoun
2 Ayoun
3 Ayoun
Works Cited
1. Ayoun, Richard. ‘Guelma’. In Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World, edited by Norman A. Stillman, Phillip I. Ackerman-Lieberman, Yaron Ayalon, Avigdor Levy, Vera B. Moreen, Meira Polliack, Angel Saenz-Badillos and, and Daniel Schroeter. Accessed July 20, 2022. https://referenceworks.brillonline.com:443/entries/encyclopedia-of-jews-in-the-islamic-world%252Fguelma-SIM_000119.