European Routes of Jewish Heritage
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WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON THE RENOVATION OF THIS PAGE
Soon we will publish the new catalog of European Routes of Jewish Heritage of the Council of Europe
Geographic Routes
Azerbaijan
Jews have lived in Azerbaijan for many centuries and can be divided into two groups: Jews of Persian origin, also known as Caucasian Mountain Jews, and Ashkenazim.
Czech Republic
Carried out by the Federation of Czech Jewish Communities, the 10 Stars project links newly restored historic synagogues and other Jewish buildings in 10 towns, cities and villages widely scattered over all parts of the country.
France
This interactive map will help everyone to prepare a trip to visit the most important French Jewish sites. Around 200 places of interest are described. We are prepared to add more! This map has been prepared by the B’nai B’rith Hirschler team (Strasbourg) for the “Journées Européennes de la Culture et du Patrimoine Juifs en France”.
Georgia
Georgia has been home to one of the oldest Jewish Diasporas in the world. According to one source, the Jewish people arrived after Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest of Jerusalem in 586 BCE and the Babylonian exile. Another chronicle ascribes the Jewish migration into Georgia to Alexander the Great in the 4th century BCE.
Germany
Today’s Germany is home to the third-largest Jewish community in western Europe, indeed the only European Jewish community that is growing rather than shrinking.
Ireland
Jews have had a presence in Ireland for close to 1000 years, with the earliest mentions occurring in the Annals of Innisfallen of 1079.
Italy
Italy has the oldest diaspora in Europe. Jews have been living here continuously for more than 2200 years. They settled all over the peninsula in different periods, leaving behind an artistic legacy that forms an important part of the Italian cultural heritage.
Lithuania
Travel around Lithuania and explore the 500-year-long history of the Lithuanian Jews (Litvaks). You will understand the incredible intertwined historical relations connecting Lithuania and the world.
Poland
Created by the Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland, the Chassidic Route is a tourist route following traces of Jewish communities through southeastern Poland. Goals of the project include stimulation of the socio-economic development of the region by promoting the multicultural heritage-oriented tourism.
Portugal
Portugal has a growing interest in its Sephardic heritage. In Lisbon, Porto and small villages, Jewish quarters, dormant for 500 years, are being restored. With nearly 20% of its population having Jewish ancestry, many Portuguese are searching for their Jewish roots.
Romania
Romania has been one of the most important Jewish centers in Eastern Europe: today, you can discover the Jewish history hidden in the beautiful region of Maramures.
Slovakia
Established by the Slovak Jewish Heritage Center, the Slovak Jewish Heritage Route is a network linking the most important synagogue buildings in Slovakia. Some are active houses of worship, while others serve today as cultural venues. Several historic Jewish cemeteries are also included.
Spain
The footprints of the Jewish community in Spain span more than a thousand years. Explore this heritage in the Network's cities and make your own searches in our illustrated interactive timeline.
Switzerland
History of the Jews in Switzerland reaches back at least a thousand years. Jews and Judaism have been present in the territory of what is now Switzerland since before the emergence of the medieval Old Swiss Confederacy in the 1400s.
Turkey
The history of the Jews in Turkey covers the 2,400 years that Jews have lived in what is now Turkey. There have been Jewish communities in Asia Minor since at least the 5th century BCE and many Spanish and Portuguese Jews expelled from Spain were welcomed into the Ottoman Empire (including regions part of modern Turkey) in the late 15th century, 20 centuries later, forming the bulk of the Ottoman Jews.
United Kingdom
There has been a Jewish community in the United Kingdom for nearly a 1,000 years and the community has a rich history, heritage and physical presence across the country, in city, town and countryside.
Thematic Routes
Women in Judaism
This itinerary is designed to celebrate the contribution of women to Jewish cultural heritage across the member countries of the AEPJ.
The Wooden Synagogues of Central and Eastern Europe
The surviving wooden synagogues are now all that remains of a completely unique piece of European architectural history.