History and Demography
Jewish communities were already present in the Balkans when the
Croats established a kingdom there in the 10th century CE. Jews lived
in Zagreb in the 14th century but were expelled from Croatia in 1456.
Their status and situation only improved in 1782 with the publication of
the “Toleranzpatent” by Emperor Joseph II.
The Jews of Croatia
and Dalmatia only received full emancipation in 1873. By the eve of WW
II there were 40 Jewish communities in the country and 24,000 Jews. The
Jewish Community of Zagreb grew to 11,000. In 1941, a pro-Nazi
government was sworn in Croatia, and it implemented a policy of
segregation and persecution against the Jews. This policy soon turned
into active collaboration with Nazi Germany and with the deportation and
extermination of thousands of Croatian Jews. Altogether, 78% of
Croatian Jews perished in the Holocaust.
Community
After World War II, only 2,500 Jews lived in Zagreb. Many of them
immigrated to Israel right after Israel’s independence. The remaining
1,500 Jews tried to rebuild their lives and preserve their identity
under Communist rule. In addition to other smaller communities, there
were also bigger Jewish communities in Zagreb, Belgrade and Sarajevo –
all of similar sizes and all officially affiliated to the Federation of
Jewish Communities in Yugoslavia.
The Federation of Jewish
Communities lost its raison d’?tre with the disintegration of Yugoslavia
in 1991 and with the war that ensued. The Jewish community of Zagreb
was one of the first victims of the war: in August 1991, both its
Community Center and its cemetery were targets of terrorist attacks.
During the war in Yugoslavia, many of Bosnia’s Jews found a safe haven
in Zagreb with the support of the American Joint Distribution Committee.
There are about 2,000 Jews and ten Jewish communities in
Croatia today (in the cities and towns of Cakovec, Daruvar, Dubrovnik,
Osijek, Rijeka, Slavonski Brod, Split, Virovitica, Koprivnica, and
Zagreb). Those communities are affiliated to the Coordinating Committee
of The Jewish Communities in the Republic of Croatia. The oldest are
in Dubrovnik and Split and the largest one is the Jewish community in
Zagreb, Croatia’s capital.
Culture and Education
As a result of Communist rule under Tito’s regime, the Jewish
community of Croatia is mostly secular. It is also aging, as many of
the young intermarry. Though, The Jewish community of Zagreb does have
young members and facilities for them such as: kindergarten, youth club,
Maccabi Sports Club, Sunday School… From 1952 numerous visiting rabbis
served the needs of the Community and in 1998, the Jewish Community of
Zagreb appointed a permanent rabbi for the first time in half a century.
In 2003 a Jewish Elementary School was established.
The
community center in Zagreb hosts a concert hall, art gallery, club,
Shoah Documentation Center, archive and the library that owns 20,000
books, among them the first edition of the Shulchan Arukh (4 volumes),
published in Venice in 1564 - 1567 as well as a synagogue with services
on Shabbat and for the Holidays. The Community also owns an Old Age Home
for almost 100 residents.
The Jewish community of Zagreb also
features a five-member ensemble that plays klezmer music, as well as a
dancing group called “Or Shemesh.” In 2006, the Jewish community of
Croatia celebrated its bi-centennial.
Israel
Israel and Croatia established full diplomatic relations in 1997.
Contact information
Co-ordinating Committee of the Jewish Communities
PRESIDENT : Ognjen KRAUS
Palmoticeva 16
10000 Zagreb
Tel. 385 1 4922692
Fax 385 1 4922694
Email :jcz@zg.t-com.hr