Ireland
Jews have had a presence in Ireland for close to 1000 years, with the earliest mentions occurring in documents from the year 1079. Merchants from Europe would settle in Dublin, Cork, and Limerick, giving rise to several small Jewish communities throughout the Middle Ages. It was not until the 18th and 19th centuries that a stronger Jewish presence was established, and, in 1892, Dublin Hebrew Congregation was founded on Adelaide Road in Dublin. Over the following decades, the Jewish community rose to 5,000, with over half a dozen synagogues at the community’s peak in the early 1950s. Economic changes caused the community to shrink, leaving the community at just 1800 by the early 1990s. Since then, the Jewish population has risen to about 2500, supporting several synagogues and Jewish community organizations. Most Irish Jews live in and around Dublin.
PLACES OF INTEREST
- The Irish Jewish Museum
Dublin 8. 3 Walworth Road (near Victoria, Lennox & Harrington Streets), South Circular Road, Portobello, Dublin 8. www.jewishmuseum.ie
- The Weingreen Biblical Antiquities Museum Arts Building
Trinity College, Dublin 2. Open by appointment.
- Clonyn Castle
Delvin, Co. Westmeath not open to public. Over 100 orphaned children from concentration camps had a temporary home here until 1948.
SYNAGOGUES
- Dublin Hebrew Congregation the largest Orthodox synagogue,
now located in Terenure, affiliates informally with the British United Synagogue. 32 Rathfarnham Rd, Terenure, Dublin 6 – has services 7 days a week.
- Bloomfield Care Centre
A small Orthodox minyan also meets Saturdays at Bloomfield Care Centre, a senior care home in Rathfarnham on Stocking Lane. If you plan to attend, do call the minyan coordinator in advance – +353 87 247 1698. Stocking Lane, Rockbrook, Dublin 16.
- Machzikei Hadass an Orthodox congregation,
gathers weekly on Saturday mornings at the rear of 77 Terenure Road North in Terenure Village. Machzikei Hadass is the oldest surviving Dublin Jewish institution having been founded in 1883.
- Dublin Jewish Progressive Congregation (DJPC)
is a Progressive congregation that holds egalitarian, mixed-seating services. It is affiliated with Liberal Judaism, which falls under the World Union for Progressive Judaism umbrella. 7 Leicester Avenue in Rathgar, Dublin 6.
PLACES TO EAT
- Bretzel Bakery
1a Lennox Street , Portobello, Dublin 8 Phone: +353 1 4752724. Since 1870, Bretzel is Dublin’s oldest Jewish craft bakery. Not all items at Bretzel are kosher.
- Irish Jewish Yearbook
(available from the Office of the Chief Rabbi)
- The Really Kosher Food Guide is available online at http://www.kosher.org.uk
- IsItKosher is a website for identifying kosher products in the British Isles
RESOURCES
- Irish Jewish Community
Herzog House, Zion Rd, Rathgar, Dublin 6. Ph +353 1 492 3751. Email office@jewishireland.org
- The Belfast Jewish Community
49 Somerton Road, Belfast, BT15 3LH,
Guide Info
+353-87-268-1509, Whatsapp available
peterwhitetours@gmail.com
Contact Peter
Visit Jewish Ireland and explore the past and present with an incredible local guide. Start your tour of Jewish Dublin with a snack at Bretzel Bakery before making your way to the home of Rabbi Dr. Isaac Herzog, first Chief Rabbi of Ireland, and father of former Israeli president Chaim Herzog. At the Irish Jewish Museum, which was dedicated by Herzog, you’ll learn about Ireland’s thousand-year history. Your guide will be sure to point out all the Jewish sites from his childhood in Dublin, and the best pubs, along the way!
August 24, 2018
