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The Jews Of South Africa
Located on the tip of the African continent, South Africa is famous for its diamond and gold mines. Cape Town, South Africa’s first city, was founded in 1652 by the Dutch to provide fresh produce and meats to the members of the Dutch East India Company, who were traveling between Europe and the Orient. In 1806, the colony switched hands and became part of the British Empire. Discoveries of gold and diamonds changed South Africa from an agricultural society to modern metropolis.
Jews have been a part of South Africa’s development from the very beginning. Portuguese Jewish cartographers and scientists contributed to Vasco Da Gama’s discovery of the Cape of Good Hope in 1497. A number of non-professing Jews were among the first settlers of Cape Town in 1652, despite restrictions against the immigration of non-Christians. The earliest evidence of Jews in Capetown comes from a record of the baptism of two Jewish men living in the Western Cape on Christmas day in 1669. Until the early 1800s, only a few Jews came to South Africa as a part of the Dutch East India Company, which required that all its employees and colonists be Protestant.
Religious freedom was granted by the Dutch colony in 1803 and guaranteed by the British in 1806. Among the first British settlers to come to Cape Town were 20 Jews. The first South African Jewish congregation was founded in 1841 when 17 men gathered to form a minyan at the home of Benjamin Norden, Helmsley Place. Eight years later, the first synagogue, Tikvat Israel ("Hope of Israel" - referring to the Cape of Good Hope) was established in Cape Town and is still standing today. Over the next three decades, British Jewish immigrants established additional synagogues, as well as cemeteries and other philanthropic institutions.
Early 19th Century
Jewish immigrants from Germany and Holland arrived in Cape Town in the early 19th century seeking fortune and adventure. Some choose to join the Boers on their Great Trek into South Africa’s hinterland and some traveled into Rhodesia (present day Zimbabwe and Zambia). The Jews began building a commercial infrastructure for the Boer farmers and set up trading stations in villages and at railway sidings, which soon became local business centers. A credit system was established by the Jews to finance new industries. In the 1840's, Jews developed shipping, fishing and coastal trading and sugar enterprises. Jews were also active in the production of wine, clothing and steel.
The discovery of diamonds in 1867 in Kimberly attracted Jewish entrepreneurs and businessman from all over the world. Because of the extensive Jewish trade network, Jews immediately became involved in the diamond and precious stones industry, many moving north from Cape Town to Johannesburg. Two famous Jewish South African entrepreneurs were Barney Barnato and Sammy Marks. Barnato founded the De Beers Consolidated Mines for mining diamond fields. In 1897, Barnato mysteriously died while sailing to England.
Marks became involved in diamond trading and mining and, after amassing a huge fortune, he focused his attention on the Witwatersrand gold fields. Next, Marks became an industrialist and developed Transvaal; he planted fruit farms and forests, manufactured bricks, glass, steel and leather goods, exploited Transvaal’s coal and established the South African Breweries. He also founded the town of Veeringing, along Transvaal’s border. Marks openly practiced Judaism and served as a mediator between the British and the Boers during the Boer-British Wars. Eventually Marks served as senator for the first Parliament in South Africa.
The movement of Jews to Johannesburg caused Cape Town's Jewish community to shrink to only a few hundred families, who mostly assimilated and intermarried. However, between 1880 and 1910, the Jewish population swelled from 4,000 to 40,000 with Yiddish speaking immigrants from Lithuania, thus revitalizing the Jewish community of Cape Town. The new arrivals were fleeing political persecution and pogroms in Europe. South Africa became known as a Lithuanian colony. Many of the Eastern European immigrants discarded their old garb and mores and adopted new Anglo-Jewish customs. While many started out as peddlers, they eventually became shopkeepers.
These new immigrants infused South Africa with a love of Israel and a strong Zionist connection. They were instrumental in the creation of the South African Zionist Federation in 1898, responsible for coordinating all the Zionist activities throughout the country.
First Half of the 20th Century
During the Boer War, Jews served on both sides, although the arrival of English Jews helped out the British side. Some Boers harbored prejudices against the Jews, while others felt a kinship toward them. In 1902, the British defeated the Boers and, in 1910, they formed four British South African colonies. The British gave the Jews equal status to the other white citizens, giving British authority legitimacy among Jews.
Following the mining boom, Jews became part of the rapid industrialization of South Africa. They became involved in food processing; clothing, textile and furniture manufacturing; insurance; hotel management; advertising and entertainment. Jews also established supermarkets, department stores and discount store chains.
The Jewish community of Cape Town formed its own community organization, the Cape Jewish Board of Deputies, and, a year later, a similar board was created for the Transvaal and Natal regions. In 1912, the two boards merged and became the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD). Today the SAJBD represents nearly all of the Jewish community institutions and synagogues, works as a watchdog against anti-Semitic articles in the media, examines legislation concerning the Jewish community and maintains contact with diaspora communities world-wide, as well other political and religious organizations in South Africa.
In 1903, attempts were made to restrict immigration; a strong Jewish lobby was able to influence legislation and Eastern European Jews were allowed to enter the country. Between 1920 and 1930, 20,000 Jewish immigrants arrived in South Africa.
In 1930, increased feelings of anti-Semitism and the rise of Nazism in Germany sparked the passing of the Quota Act, which restricted immigration from Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Palestine. While not expressly stated, the aim of the Quota Act was to restrict Jewish immigration. Still, the quota excluded Jews from Germany and, by 1936, another 6,000 Jews fleeing Nazi Germany came to South Africa. The new German immigrants were integral in starting the Reform movement in South Africa, which was formally instituted by an American-born rabbi in 1933.
As Nazism further influenced militant and nationalistic Afrikaners, anti-Semitic organizations began to form. Another anti-immigration law, The Aliens Act, was passed in 1937, closing the doors to Jewish immigrants fleeing Nazi Germany. Further fear developed after the anti-Jewish National Party came to power in 1948.
Apartheid Regime
With the institutionalization of apartheid agenda, anti-Semitism was no longer a major issue. Many Jewish South Africans, both individuals and organizations, helped support the anti-apartheid movement. Most Jews, in fact, had actually voted against the apartheid National Party, casting their votes for either the Progressive Party or the United Party. One organization, the Union of Jewish Women, sought to alleviate the suffering of blacks through charitable projects and self-help schemes. Fourteen of the 23 whites involved in the 1956 Treason Trial were Jewish and all five whites of the seventeen members of the African National Congress who were arrested for anti-apartheid activities in 1963 were Jewish. Still, the Jewish Board of Deputies refused to take a stand against apartheid until 1985, arguing that it was not a Jewish one. The rabbinate also avoided taking a stance on the issue until the late 1980's.
One of the great leaders of the anti-Apartheid movement, Nelson Mandela, wrote this about Jews in South Africas: “I have found Jews to be more broadminded than most whites on issues of race and politics, perhaps because they themselves have historically been victims of prejudice." Mandela's defence attorney, Isie Maisels, was Jewish.
Jewish university students, in particular, vehemently opposed the apartheid movement. Jews, in fact, were largely represented in the percentage of white citizens who were arrested for anti-apartheid protests. A large proportion of Jews were also involved in organizations such as The Springbrook Legion, The Torch Commando, and the Black Sash. These anti-apartheid organizations led protests that were both active (ie. marching through the streets with torches) and passive (ie. standing silently in black). Other Jews sought to teach, train, and include black citizens in South African society. Ian Bernhardt lived in Johannesburg and led the Union of South African Artists in which he helped teach and protect black artists. Jews could be found in the majority of anti-apartheid organizations and protests throughout the apartheid regime.
Israel maintained diplomatic relations with South Africa throughout the period, as did most Arab countries, Taiwan, Belgium, and Britain. Despite the arms embargo, these countries sold arms to South Africa during the apartheid era. There have even been reports of nuclear cooperation. Various Israeli leaders publicly condemned the apartheid system. During the early 1960's, Israel aligned with other African countries against the apartheid system, straining its relationship with South Africa. After the Six-Day War in 1967, most African countries broke diplomatic ties with Israel, except for South Africa, and this led to increased relations between the two.
Violence in South Africa during the 1970's led to an exodus of many white citizens, including Jews, who were fearful of their future in the country. Many children were sent to live and study abroad and remained in their host countries.
Two Jewish organizations were formed in 1985: Jews for Justice (in Cape Town) and Jews for Social Justice (in Johannesburg) tried to reform South African society and build bridges between the white and black communities. Also in 1985, the South African Jewish Board passed a resolution rejecting apartheid.
Jews prospered during the apartheid era, as did many non-Jewish white citizens. The Jewish population, however, contained a higher than usual percentage of college graduates. More than 50 percent of the Jews were matriculated, compared to the average 23% in the total white population. Ten percent of the Jewish community had university degrees, compared to only 4% of the total white population. Jews were disproportionately represented in the commercial and financial sectors of society. The Jewish population peaked in the early 1970's reaching nearly 119,000 people.
Between 1970 and 1992, more than 39,000 Jews left South Africa, during this same period approximately 10,000 Israelis moved into the country.
Post-Apartheid Regime
The Jewish community welcomed President De Klerk’s rise to power in 1990 and his decision to dismantle apartheid. Jews stood firmly behind the negotiation process and the first democratic election in 1994. The country’s new Bill of Rights gave complete freedom of religion. While supportive of the new regime, many Jews worry about the future of the Jewish community in South Africa. Concerns included the freedom to practice a full Jewish life individually and collectively, the right to pursue Zionist activities and the continuation of relations between South Africa and Israel.
In 1995, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was established to investigate crimes committed under apartheid. The first Jewish organization to contribute to the Commission was Gesher, a Jewish social action group based in Johannesburg. In the commission’s first report, religious communities (including the Jewish community) were censured for their lack of action against the apartheid regime. Individual and group efforts made by the Jews to fight for justice were noted in the report.
A visit by former South African President Nelson Mandela to Israel in October 1999 marked a process of reconciliation between the two. Because of Israel’s relations with the apartheid regime, Mandela had been critical of Israel in the past. Israelis had also been critical of Mandela because of his relationship with Yasser Arafat and support for the Palestinians.
Prior to the second half of 2003, the Jewish community in South Africa were in a state of transition. Approximately 1,800 Jews left the country every year, primarily due to concerns about crime and the economy. South Africa had the highest violent crime rate in the world, about ten times that of the United States; residences in the middle of cities were often surrounded by electrified ten-foot-high walls topped with barbed wire. The prevalence of crime, and the consequent economic woes, led to the depletion of the Jewish "viable middle," the young and middle aged adults who are needed to sustain the community. Many members of the disproportionately aged population, whose children have left, face problems as they grow ill, as government welfare subsidies have decreased sharply.
Despite the economic and demographic woes, however, the South African communities remained mostly optimistic. The Jewish population is very religious, 80% Orthodox and rising. This increase in religiosity has been attributed to a desire for stability in an otherwise unstable society. Anti-Semitism is negligible, and the intermarriage rate is only 7%. Many of the Jews who remain in the country do so out of the conviction that post-apartheid South Africa needs their support, and will soon pay social and economic dividends; of course, the rest of those who remain do so simply because they cannot afford to leave.
Since the latter half of 2003, South Africa's community of 75,000-80,000 Jews has largely stabilized.
Institutions
South Africa’s Jewish population is mainly found in five urban centers: Johannesburg, Cape Town, Pretoria, Durban and Port Elisabeth. The Jewish community of South Africa is run by a number of institutions. The South African Jewish Board of Deputies takes care of political matters. The United Communal Fund-Israel United Appeal (IUA-UCF), is that major fund raising body. The Union of Orthodox Synagogues (UOS) serves as the umbrella body for all of the Orthodox synagogues across the country, maintains the office of the Chief Rabbi, the Johannesburg and the Cape Town Bet Dins. Another coordinating body is the South African Union for Progressive Judaism, which organizes events for the Reform congregations of South Africa. The Jewish educational system is run by the South African Board of Jewish Education (SABJE). Over 80 percent of Jewish children are enrolled in the Jewish day school system. The South African Zionist Federation serves as the umbrella organization to all South African Zionist organizations.
South Africa was home to many famous Jewish personalities. Henry Gluckman served as the only Jewish cabinet member in 1945. Harry Schwartz was South Africa’s first Jewish ambassador to the U.S. Helen Suzman was the only women in Parliament for many years and also the sole representative of the liberal Progressive Party and a vigorous opponent of apartheid.
Cape Town Community
Jews have lived in Cape Town since its creation and the population has grown from about 20 Jews in 1820 to more than 17,000 members today (down from a high of 25,000 in the 1980's), constituting more than 25 percent of the Jewish community in South Africa. In 1841, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation was founded a week after 17 Jewish males conducted the first Orthodox Service in South Africa. Services were held at a private home, Helmsley Place, which today forms part of the Mount Nelson Hotel complex. Eight years later, the first Synagogue was established next to Parliament and Reverend Isaac Pulver was the first Spiritual Leader. By 1863, the Congregation had grown to the point where a new building was needed, it was constructed on what is today the Jewish Museum complex. In 1905, a still larger building was required and the present Great Synagogue (Gardens Shul) was constructed alongside the Old Shul. Cape Town had its first Jewish Mayor that year, who was also the president of the Congregation — Hyman Liberman. The Rev Alfred Bender had arrived to lead the Shul in 1895, and served as their Rabbi for 42 years.
The Cape Town Jewish community is fairly homogenous. Approximately 80 percent of the Jewish community is of Lithuanian descent. The same percentage is Orthodox, while the other 20 percent are Reform. There are 12 Orthodox synagogues in Cape Town and two Reform synagogues. The Great Synagogue, Gardens Shul, or Cape Town Hebrew Congregation, which was consecrated in 1905, is the oldest active congregation in South Africa and is located just to the right of the first synagogue and now, the Jewish museum. The Gardens Shul is an “Egyptian-revival-style house of worship” that currently seats over 1,400. In addition to the Great Shul, other Orthodox synagogues include the Green and Sea Point Hebrew Congregation, which has more than 2,000 members, and is the largest synagogue in all of Africa, and the Claremont synagogue. There are also a couple small Lubavitch and Sephardic synagogues. While the majority of Cape Town Jews belong to Orthodox synagogues, most are not strictly observant.
Nearly 80 percent of Cape Town’s Jewish children are enrolled in Jewish day schools, which run from primary school to high school. Cape Town has the Herzlia school, catering to grades first through 12th and three other primary day schools; most of which are Orthodox.
The Holocaust and Zionism are central to South African Jewish identity. The community successfully lobbied the government to require Holocaust education in all public schools and recently built the Cape Town Holocaust Centre, the only Holocaust institution in Africa. A siren was sounded from the Jewish community center on Holocaust Remembrance day last year and was broadcast throughout the country. Even the parliament observed a moment of silence. Jews express their Zionism through philanthropy. The Cape Town Jewish community donates more to Israel per capita than any other Jewish community in the world.
While the majority of the Cape Town population disapproves of Zionism, this generally does not affect attitudes towards Jews. In fact, many Jews have strong relationships with the local government. Prominent political figures often appear at Jewish events, despite their criticism of Israel.
The Cape Town Jewish community is not completely immune to violence and anti-Semitism. In 1997 gasoline bombs were thrown at the home of community members and, in December 1999, a bomb was thrown at one of Cape Town’s synagogues. Fortunately no one was injured in either attack.
Sites in Cape Town:
* The Jewish Museum: Located in Cape Town’s oldest synagogue, Tikvat Israel; the Museum contains a collection of ceremonial objects belonging to the original community members.
* The Mendelsohn Library: Located in South Africa’s Parliament’s Library, the library consists of the private collections, books and artwork, of Sidney Mendelsohn, an English born Jew.
* Lieberman Doors: Hyman Lieberman was Cape Town’s first Jewish mayor. He donated these doors depicting biblical scenes to the African National Gallery. The Gallery also houses the private collection of de Pass family, another well-known South African Jewish family.
* Max Michaelis Art Gallery
* Helmsley Hotel: Site of the home of Benjamin Norden, which housed South Africa’s first Jewish congregation in1841.
*Kaplan Center: Located in the University of Cape Town, the Center has a collection of photographs of South African Jewish history.
* Cape Town Holocaust Center: It is the only Holocaust Center established in Africa and works to combat anti-Semitism, as well as all other forms of discrimination and prejudice. The museum compares early Nazi Germany to the apartheid government and explains the Holocaust through the framework of racial injustice.
*Gitlin Library: Housed in the Holocaust Center, the Gitlin Library holds 20,000 Jewish-themed Hebrew, Yiddish, and English books and periodicals, photographs, DVD's, CD's, videos and cassettes.
* Zaandwijk Winery, located right outside Cape Town, is the only kosher winery in South Africa.
Johannesburg Community
Nine year’s after its establishment in 1886, 6,000 Jews lived in Johannesburg. Jewish immigrants hailed from Britain, Germany and Eastern European Jews, mainly from the Baltics and Russia. Many came in search of wealth in the gold fields. Both the Witwatersrand Goldfields Jewish Association and the Witerwatersrand Old Hebrew Congregation were founded in 1887. The former bought two plots of land for the first synagogue in Transvaal, which later became known as the President Streets Synagogue. Mendelssohn served as its first president, as well as its chairman during various periods.
Four years later, President Paul Kruger of South Africa dedicated the Park Synagogue to the Johannesburg Hebrew Congregation. Another synagogue, the Great Synagogue, opened in 1914; the Great Synagogue is modeled after Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia mosque. Johannesburg’s other major synagogue, the Mooi Street Synagogue, founded by Lithuanian immigrants, has recently been declared a national landmark.
During the late 1800's and early 1990's, many of Johannesburg’s Jewish institutions were created. Charitable organizations, such as the Hevra Kadisha (burial society), a Jewish soup kitchen, Jewish Ambulance Corps, Bikkur Holim Society and a Jewish Ladies Benevolent Society, were formed to take care of the new immigrants and the poor members of the community.
A Jewish Hospital was built in 1896 to administer to Orthodox Jews who insisted on kosher food and who felt more comfortable with Jewish doctors and nurses. Eventually the Jewish Hospital became part of the Johannesburg General Hospital and, today, it still offers kosher meals.
Social clubs were also founded in this period, including a Jewish Dramatic Society and the Jewish Guild. Johannesburg’s first Jewish school opened in 1890 and served as a forerunner to the National Jewish Day School movement. Jewish education transformed over the years and is rarely carried out by the traditional cheders (one-room classes).
Johannesburg is home to many Jewish institutions and organizations, including the Jewish Board of Deputies, a Jewish library and a Jewish museum, which contains African-sculpted stones mezuzas, two Torahs from Maputo (found in Mozambique) and other interesting memorabilia from the South African Jewish community.
In the suburbs of Johannesburg, one can find the Johannesburg Bet Din and the Etz Chayim Synagogue, which houses a Holocaust memorial.
Another Holocaust-related site is a sculpture found at the entrance to the Westpark Cemetery. Created by artist Herman Wald, it features thee hands, each holding a shofar and the three shofars spiral inwards.
Today, Johannesburg has a Jewish population of approximately 50,000 people, the largest in all of South Africa.
Jews have been a part of South Africa’s development from the very beginning. Portuguese Jewish cartographers and scientists contributed to Vasco Da Gama’s discovery of the Cape of Good Hope in 1497. A number of non-professing Jews were among the first settlers of Cape Town in 1652, despite restrictions against the immigration of non-Christians. The earliest evidence of Jews in Capetown comes from a record of the baptism of two Jewish men living in the Western Cape on Christmas day in 1669. Until the early 1800s, only a few Jews came to South Africa as a part of the Dutch East India Company, which required that all its employees and colonists be Protestant.
Religious freedom was granted by the Dutch colony in 1803 and guaranteed by the British in 1806. Among the first British settlers to come to Cape Town were 20 Jews. The first South African Jewish congregation was founded in 1841 when 17 men gathered to form a minyan at the home of Benjamin Norden, Helmsley Place. Eight years later, the first synagogue, Tikvat Israel ("Hope of Israel" - referring to the Cape of Good Hope) was established in Cape Town and is still standing today. Over the next three decades, British Jewish immigrants established additional synagogues, as well as cemeteries and other philanthropic institutions.
Early 19th Century
Jewish immigrants from Germany and Holland arrived in Cape Town in the early 19th century seeking fortune and adventure. Some choose to join the Boers on their Great Trek into South Africa’s hinterland and some traveled into Rhodesia (present day Zimbabwe and Zambia). The Jews began building a commercial infrastructure for the Boer farmers and set up trading stations in villages and at railway sidings, which soon became local business centers. A credit system was established by the Jews to finance new industries. In the 1840's, Jews developed shipping, fishing and coastal trading and sugar enterprises. Jews were also active in the production of wine, clothing and steel.
The discovery of diamonds in 1867 in Kimberly attracted Jewish entrepreneurs and businessman from all over the world. Because of the extensive Jewish trade network, Jews immediately became involved in the diamond and precious stones industry, many moving north from Cape Town to Johannesburg. Two famous Jewish South African entrepreneurs were Barney Barnato and Sammy Marks. Barnato founded the De Beers Consolidated Mines for mining diamond fields. In 1897, Barnato mysteriously died while sailing to England.
Marks became involved in diamond trading and mining and, after amassing a huge fortune, he focused his attention on the Witwatersrand gold fields. Next, Marks became an industrialist and developed Transvaal; he planted fruit farms and forests, manufactured bricks, glass, steel and leather goods, exploited Transvaal’s coal and established the South African Breweries. He also founded the town of Veeringing, along Transvaal’s border. Marks openly practiced Judaism and served as a mediator between the British and the Boers during the Boer-British Wars. Eventually Marks served as senator for the first Parliament in South Africa.
The movement of Jews to Johannesburg caused Cape Town's Jewish community to shrink to only a few hundred families, who mostly assimilated and intermarried. However, between 1880 and 1910, the Jewish population swelled from 4,000 to 40,000 with Yiddish speaking immigrants from Lithuania, thus revitalizing the Jewish community of Cape Town. The new arrivals were fleeing political persecution and pogroms in Europe. South Africa became known as a Lithuanian colony. Many of the Eastern European immigrants discarded their old garb and mores and adopted new Anglo-Jewish customs. While many started out as peddlers, they eventually became shopkeepers.
These new immigrants infused South Africa with a love of Israel and a strong Zionist connection. They were instrumental in the creation of the South African Zionist Federation in 1898, responsible for coordinating all the Zionist activities throughout the country.
First Half of the 20th Century
During the Boer War, Jews served on both sides, although the arrival of English Jews helped out the British side. Some Boers harbored prejudices against the Jews, while others felt a kinship toward them. In 1902, the British defeated the Boers and, in 1910, they formed four British South African colonies. The British gave the Jews equal status to the other white citizens, giving British authority legitimacy among Jews.
Following the mining boom, Jews became part of the rapid industrialization of South Africa. They became involved in food processing; clothing, textile and furniture manufacturing; insurance; hotel management; advertising and entertainment. Jews also established supermarkets, department stores and discount store chains.
The Jewish community of Cape Town formed its own community organization, the Cape Jewish Board of Deputies, and, a year later, a similar board was created for the Transvaal and Natal regions. In 1912, the two boards merged and became the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD). Today the SAJBD represents nearly all of the Jewish community institutions and synagogues, works as a watchdog against anti-Semitic articles in the media, examines legislation concerning the Jewish community and maintains contact with diaspora communities world-wide, as well other political and religious organizations in South Africa.
In 1903, attempts were made to restrict immigration; a strong Jewish lobby was able to influence legislation and Eastern European Jews were allowed to enter the country. Between 1920 and 1930, 20,000 Jewish immigrants arrived in South Africa.
In 1930, increased feelings of anti-Semitism and the rise of Nazism in Germany sparked the passing of the Quota Act, which restricted immigration from Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Palestine. While not expressly stated, the aim of the Quota Act was to restrict Jewish immigration. Still, the quota excluded Jews from Germany and, by 1936, another 6,000 Jews fleeing Nazi Germany came to South Africa. The new German immigrants were integral in starting the Reform movement in South Africa, which was formally instituted by an American-born rabbi in 1933.
As Nazism further influenced militant and nationalistic Afrikaners, anti-Semitic organizations began to form. Another anti-immigration law, The Aliens Act, was passed in 1937, closing the doors to Jewish immigrants fleeing Nazi Germany. Further fear developed after the anti-Jewish National Party came to power in 1948.
Apartheid Regime
With the institutionalization of apartheid agenda, anti-Semitism was no longer a major issue. Many Jewish South Africans, both individuals and organizations, helped support the anti-apartheid movement. Most Jews, in fact, had actually voted against the apartheid National Party, casting their votes for either the Progressive Party or the United Party. One organization, the Union of Jewish Women, sought to alleviate the suffering of blacks through charitable projects and self-help schemes. Fourteen of the 23 whites involved in the 1956 Treason Trial were Jewish and all five whites of the seventeen members of the African National Congress who were arrested for anti-apartheid activities in 1963 were Jewish. Still, the Jewish Board of Deputies refused to take a stand against apartheid until 1985, arguing that it was not a Jewish one. The rabbinate also avoided taking a stance on the issue until the late 1980's.
One of the great leaders of the anti-Apartheid movement, Nelson Mandela, wrote this about Jews in South Africas: “I have found Jews to be more broadminded than most whites on issues of race and politics, perhaps because they themselves have historically been victims of prejudice." Mandela's defence attorney, Isie Maisels, was Jewish.
Jewish university students, in particular, vehemently opposed the apartheid movement. Jews, in fact, were largely represented in the percentage of white citizens who were arrested for anti-apartheid protests. A large proportion of Jews were also involved in organizations such as The Springbrook Legion, The Torch Commando, and the Black Sash. These anti-apartheid organizations led protests that were both active (ie. marching through the streets with torches) and passive (ie. standing silently in black). Other Jews sought to teach, train, and include black citizens in South African society. Ian Bernhardt lived in Johannesburg and led the Union of South African Artists in which he helped teach and protect black artists. Jews could be found in the majority of anti-apartheid organizations and protests throughout the apartheid regime.
Israel maintained diplomatic relations with South Africa throughout the period, as did most Arab countries, Taiwan, Belgium, and Britain. Despite the arms embargo, these countries sold arms to South Africa during the apartheid era. There have even been reports of nuclear cooperation. Various Israeli leaders publicly condemned the apartheid system. During the early 1960's, Israel aligned with other African countries against the apartheid system, straining its relationship with South Africa. After the Six-Day War in 1967, most African countries broke diplomatic ties with Israel, except for South Africa, and this led to increased relations between the two.
Violence in South Africa during the 1970's led to an exodus of many white citizens, including Jews, who were fearful of their future in the country. Many children were sent to live and study abroad and remained in their host countries.
Two Jewish organizations were formed in 1985: Jews for Justice (in Cape Town) and Jews for Social Justice (in Johannesburg) tried to reform South African society and build bridges between the white and black communities. Also in 1985, the South African Jewish Board passed a resolution rejecting apartheid.
Jews prospered during the apartheid era, as did many non-Jewish white citizens. The Jewish population, however, contained a higher than usual percentage of college graduates. More than 50 percent of the Jews were matriculated, compared to the average 23% in the total white population. Ten percent of the Jewish community had university degrees, compared to only 4% of the total white population. Jews were disproportionately represented in the commercial and financial sectors of society. The Jewish population peaked in the early 1970's reaching nearly 119,000 people.
Between 1970 and 1992, more than 39,000 Jews left South Africa, during this same period approximately 10,000 Israelis moved into the country.
Post-Apartheid Regime
The Jewish community welcomed President De Klerk’s rise to power in 1990 and his decision to dismantle apartheid. Jews stood firmly behind the negotiation process and the first democratic election in 1994. The country’s new Bill of Rights gave complete freedom of religion. While supportive of the new regime, many Jews worry about the future of the Jewish community in South Africa. Concerns included the freedom to practice a full Jewish life individually and collectively, the right to pursue Zionist activities and the continuation of relations between South Africa and Israel.
In 1995, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was established to investigate crimes committed under apartheid. The first Jewish organization to contribute to the Commission was Gesher, a Jewish social action group based in Johannesburg. In the commission’s first report, religious communities (including the Jewish community) were censured for their lack of action against the apartheid regime. Individual and group efforts made by the Jews to fight for justice were noted in the report.
A visit by former South African President Nelson Mandela to Israel in October 1999 marked a process of reconciliation between the two. Because of Israel’s relations with the apartheid regime, Mandela had been critical of Israel in the past. Israelis had also been critical of Mandela because of his relationship with Yasser Arafat and support for the Palestinians.
Prior to the second half of 2003, the Jewish community in South Africa were in a state of transition. Approximately 1,800 Jews left the country every year, primarily due to concerns about crime and the economy. South Africa had the highest violent crime rate in the world, about ten times that of the United States; residences in the middle of cities were often surrounded by electrified ten-foot-high walls topped with barbed wire. The prevalence of crime, and the consequent economic woes, led to the depletion of the Jewish "viable middle," the young and middle aged adults who are needed to sustain the community. Many members of the disproportionately aged population, whose children have left, face problems as they grow ill, as government welfare subsidies have decreased sharply.
Despite the economic and demographic woes, however, the South African communities remained mostly optimistic. The Jewish population is very religious, 80% Orthodox and rising. This increase in religiosity has been attributed to a desire for stability in an otherwise unstable society. Anti-Semitism is negligible, and the intermarriage rate is only 7%. Many of the Jews who remain in the country do so out of the conviction that post-apartheid South Africa needs their support, and will soon pay social and economic dividends; of course, the rest of those who remain do so simply because they cannot afford to leave.
Since the latter half of 2003, South Africa's community of 75,000-80,000 Jews has largely stabilized.
Institutions
South Africa’s Jewish population is mainly found in five urban centers: Johannesburg, Cape Town, Pretoria, Durban and Port Elisabeth. The Jewish community of South Africa is run by a number of institutions. The South African Jewish Board of Deputies takes care of political matters. The United Communal Fund-Israel United Appeal (IUA-UCF), is that major fund raising body. The Union of Orthodox Synagogues (UOS) serves as the umbrella body for all of the Orthodox synagogues across the country, maintains the office of the Chief Rabbi, the Johannesburg and the Cape Town Bet Dins. Another coordinating body is the South African Union for Progressive Judaism, which organizes events for the Reform congregations of South Africa. The Jewish educational system is run by the South African Board of Jewish Education (SABJE). Over 80 percent of Jewish children are enrolled in the Jewish day school system. The South African Zionist Federation serves as the umbrella organization to all South African Zionist organizations.
South Africa was home to many famous Jewish personalities. Henry Gluckman served as the only Jewish cabinet member in 1945. Harry Schwartz was South Africa’s first Jewish ambassador to the U.S. Helen Suzman was the only women in Parliament for many years and also the sole representative of the liberal Progressive Party and a vigorous opponent of apartheid.
Cape Town Community
Jews have lived in Cape Town since its creation and the population has grown from about 20 Jews in 1820 to more than 17,000 members today (down from a high of 25,000 in the 1980's), constituting more than 25 percent of the Jewish community in South Africa. In 1841, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation was founded a week after 17 Jewish males conducted the first Orthodox Service in South Africa. Services were held at a private home, Helmsley Place, which today forms part of the Mount Nelson Hotel complex. Eight years later, the first Synagogue was established next to Parliament and Reverend Isaac Pulver was the first Spiritual Leader. By 1863, the Congregation had grown to the point where a new building was needed, it was constructed on what is today the Jewish Museum complex. In 1905, a still larger building was required and the present Great Synagogue (Gardens Shul) was constructed alongside the Old Shul. Cape Town had its first Jewish Mayor that year, who was also the president of the Congregation — Hyman Liberman. The Rev Alfred Bender had arrived to lead the Shul in 1895, and served as their Rabbi for 42 years.
The Cape Town Jewish community is fairly homogenous. Approximately 80 percent of the Jewish community is of Lithuanian descent. The same percentage is Orthodox, while the other 20 percent are Reform. There are 12 Orthodox synagogues in Cape Town and two Reform synagogues. The Great Synagogue, Gardens Shul, or Cape Town Hebrew Congregation, which was consecrated in 1905, is the oldest active congregation in South Africa and is located just to the right of the first synagogue and now, the Jewish museum. The Gardens Shul is an “Egyptian-revival-style house of worship” that currently seats over 1,400. In addition to the Great Shul, other Orthodox synagogues include the Green and Sea Point Hebrew Congregation, which has more than 2,000 members, and is the largest synagogue in all of Africa, and the Claremont synagogue. There are also a couple small Lubavitch and Sephardic synagogues. While the majority of Cape Town Jews belong to Orthodox synagogues, most are not strictly observant.
Nearly 80 percent of Cape Town’s Jewish children are enrolled in Jewish day schools, which run from primary school to high school. Cape Town has the Herzlia school, catering to grades first through 12th and three other primary day schools; most of which are Orthodox.
The Holocaust and Zionism are central to South African Jewish identity. The community successfully lobbied the government to require Holocaust education in all public schools and recently built the Cape Town Holocaust Centre, the only Holocaust institution in Africa. A siren was sounded from the Jewish community center on Holocaust Remembrance day last year and was broadcast throughout the country. Even the parliament observed a moment of silence. Jews express their Zionism through philanthropy. The Cape Town Jewish community donates more to Israel per capita than any other Jewish community in the world.
While the majority of the Cape Town population disapproves of Zionism, this generally does not affect attitudes towards Jews. In fact, many Jews have strong relationships with the local government. Prominent political figures often appear at Jewish events, despite their criticism of Israel.
The Cape Town Jewish community is not completely immune to violence and anti-Semitism. In 1997 gasoline bombs were thrown at the home of community members and, in December 1999, a bomb was thrown at one of Cape Town’s synagogues. Fortunately no one was injured in either attack.
Sites in Cape Town:
* The Jewish Museum: Located in Cape Town’s oldest synagogue, Tikvat Israel; the Museum contains a collection of ceremonial objects belonging to the original community members.
* The Mendelsohn Library: Located in South Africa’s Parliament’s Library, the library consists of the private collections, books and artwork, of Sidney Mendelsohn, an English born Jew.
* Lieberman Doors: Hyman Lieberman was Cape Town’s first Jewish mayor. He donated these doors depicting biblical scenes to the African National Gallery. The Gallery also houses the private collection of de Pass family, another well-known South African Jewish family.
* Max Michaelis Art Gallery
* Helmsley Hotel: Site of the home of Benjamin Norden, which housed South Africa’s first Jewish congregation in1841.
*Kaplan Center: Located in the University of Cape Town, the Center has a collection of photographs of South African Jewish history.
* Cape Town Holocaust Center: It is the only Holocaust Center established in Africa and works to combat anti-Semitism, as well as all other forms of discrimination and prejudice. The museum compares early Nazi Germany to the apartheid government and explains the Holocaust through the framework of racial injustice.
*Gitlin Library: Housed in the Holocaust Center, the Gitlin Library holds 20,000 Jewish-themed Hebrew, Yiddish, and English books and periodicals, photographs, DVD's, CD's, videos and cassettes.
* Zaandwijk Winery, located right outside Cape Town, is the only kosher winery in South Africa.
Johannesburg Community
Nine year’s after its establishment in 1886, 6,000 Jews lived in Johannesburg. Jewish immigrants hailed from Britain, Germany and Eastern European Jews, mainly from the Baltics and Russia. Many came in search of wealth in the gold fields. Both the Witwatersrand Goldfields Jewish Association and the Witerwatersrand Old Hebrew Congregation were founded in 1887. The former bought two plots of land for the first synagogue in Transvaal, which later became known as the President Streets Synagogue. Mendelssohn served as its first president, as well as its chairman during various periods.
Four years later, President Paul Kruger of South Africa dedicated the Park Synagogue to the Johannesburg Hebrew Congregation. Another synagogue, the Great Synagogue, opened in 1914; the Great Synagogue is modeled after Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia mosque. Johannesburg’s other major synagogue, the Mooi Street Synagogue, founded by Lithuanian immigrants, has recently been declared a national landmark.
During the late 1800's and early 1990's, many of Johannesburg’s Jewish institutions were created. Charitable organizations, such as the Hevra Kadisha (burial society), a Jewish soup kitchen, Jewish Ambulance Corps, Bikkur Holim Society and a Jewish Ladies Benevolent Society, were formed to take care of the new immigrants and the poor members of the community.
A Jewish Hospital was built in 1896 to administer to Orthodox Jews who insisted on kosher food and who felt more comfortable with Jewish doctors and nurses. Eventually the Jewish Hospital became part of the Johannesburg General Hospital and, today, it still offers kosher meals.
Social clubs were also founded in this period, including a Jewish Dramatic Society and the Jewish Guild. Johannesburg’s first Jewish school opened in 1890 and served as a forerunner to the National Jewish Day School movement. Jewish education transformed over the years and is rarely carried out by the traditional cheders (one-room classes).
Johannesburg is home to many Jewish institutions and organizations, including the Jewish Board of Deputies, a Jewish library and a Jewish museum, which contains African-sculpted stones mezuzas, two Torahs from Maputo (found in Mozambique) and other interesting memorabilia from the South African Jewish community.
In the suburbs of Johannesburg, one can find the Johannesburg Bet Din and the Etz Chayim Synagogue, which houses a Holocaust memorial.
Another Holocaust-related site is a sculpture found at the entrance to the Westpark Cemetery. Created by artist Herman Wald, it features thee hands, each holding a shofar and the three shofars spiral inwards.
Today, Johannesburg has a Jewish population of approximately 50,000 people, the largest in all of South Africa.
Researching Jewish Genealogy in South Africa
By Saul Issroff, London UK
The Jewish links to South Africa are said to start with the Portuguese voyages of exploration around the cape in 1452. Jews were involved in these early voyages as mapmakers, navigators and sailors.The Portuguese were not interested in settling in the Cape, but used it as a route to the profitable trading areas of Asia.
In 1652 the first permanent settlement of Dutch colonists led by Jan van Riebeck took place. Samuel Jacobson and David Hijlbron were the earliest recorded Jews, converting to Christianity by baptism on Christmas day in 1669 (these are records in the registers of the Dutch Reformed Church).
Under the control of the Dutch East India Company from 1652 to 1795 only Protestant Christians were permitted to reside at the Cape (despite a significant number of Jewish shareholders in the company). This contrasts with the Dutch West India company which sent two hundred Jews in 1642 to colonise Brazil.
Greater religious freedom, permitted under the short lived Batavian Republic in 1803 was continued after the British took control in 1806.
Early British Jewish immigration occurred with about 16 Jews arriving amongst the 1820 Settlers and by the 1860's other European Jews started to arrive.
Colourful characters such as the soldier Isaac Moses, known as "old Moses the Moneychanger" and Joseph Suasso de Lima of Amsterdam who started the first Dutch newspaper in SA, arrived. Nathaniel Isaacs, an early explorer of Natal who befriended the famous Zulu chief, Chaka, was a Jew. Early British families include De Pass, who played a major part in the establishment of the shipping, sugar and fishing industries .
Saul Solomon founded the English press in Cape Town and although he converted he retained a prominent position in the Jewish community.
The first Jewish congregation was founded in 1841 in Cape Town by an English Jew, Benjamin Norden. He was one of several Jews who arrived in the eastern Cape as part of the 1820 Settlers- the first real British attempt to provide permanent colonial settlement. Most of these early Jewish settler families have totally assimilated.
By 1880 there were about 4000 Jews in the country. Jewish immigration increased rapidly. The pogroms (1881-1884) and other catastrophes - droughts, floods, deportation and fires particularly in Kovno Gubernia were major factors in the emigration. The choice of South Africa was determined by special circumstances and not, on the whole by the attractions it offered to the general run of settlers who were not refugees. There was the potential for success - in particular with the discovery of the diamond fields in Kimberley in 1869 and the goldfields
in the Transvaal in 1886. Sammy Marks, from Neustadt in Suwalki Gubernia is regarded as the pioneer of Lithuanian emigration - he became a friend of President Paul Kruger and was highly successful as an industrialist.
Barney Barnato,London born, was a partner of Cecil John Rhodes in the formation of the De Beers Diamond company (later control passing to the German Jewish family of Ernest Oppenheimer with the assistance of the Rothschilds).
Over 47,000 Jews were enumerated in the first nationwide census of 1911. Most of these were Lithuanian (Litvaks) from the then provinces of Kovno, Vilna, Grodno and Northern Suwalki (East Prussia and later Poland) and from the Byelorussian provinces Vitebsk, Mogilev and Minsk.
As an undeveloped country SA offered opportunities to early immigrants that were far better than anything they could have had in Eastern Europe. The travelling hawker, or "smous" became an institution in the remote rural areas . Many settled in small towns as shopkeepers and tradesmen . A number of very efficient entrepreneurial farmers were founders of the ostrich feather industry and the citrus industry.
THE CONTEMPORARY COMMUNITY
The distinctive characteristics of this community as compared to other new world communities are:-
1) The predominance of Litvaks hence the unusually homogenous
composition of the community. This appears to be changing with a large emigration of Jews to the USA, Canada, Australia, Britain and Israel. Political and economic change has led to an influx of Zimbaweans, Israelis and Russian Jews.
2) The very strong influence of Zionism in the SA community
3) The amalgam of Anglo-Jewish form and Lithuanian spirit which
characterises the institutions, both lay and religious of the community.
The Jewish day school movement is a powerful educational presence and its pupils consistently get excellent scholastic results.
4) The distinctive situation where Jews have formed part of a privileged minority dominating a multiracial society. This has also led to Jews becoming prominent in the anti-apartheid and
liberation movements.
At various times attempts were made to limit the influx of Jews, eg in 1903 by placing them in the same category as Asiatics on the grounds that Yiddish was not a European language. This ruling was successfully challenged and reversed. About 15000 Jews entered between 1925-1938. In 1930 the Quota Act, without specifically mentioning Jews, was introduced with the effect of limiting the influx to a small number by making "assimilability" a criterion for admission. The rise of Afrikaner nationalism coupled with its overt Nazi sympathies led to more severe restrictions. Between 1933- 1936 only 3600 Jews were permitted to enter.
Probably less than 500 Jews entered during the Second World War period.
Genealogists require a minor knowledge of some historical dates. This is a country initially under Dutch rule, later British, then after a rebellion culminating in the Anglo Boer War (1899-1902) consisted of four self-governing colonies until the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910. In 1961 when SA left the Commonwealth it became a Republic. The present political process is still, in 1995, undergoing constitutional change and the final structure is still emerging.
ARCHIVAL SOURCES: Different archives existed for each original colony or province. (Cape , Transvaal, Orange Free State and Natal). The colonies evolved into four provinces, each with its own seat of administration. Thus several central State and regional provincial archives exist. There are few professional researchers and no-one specialising in Jewish genealogy. A central computerised archive listing of a particular name, and many microfilms of archives are available in the reading rooms of the Human Sciences Research Council and the individual regional archives.These listings may be very informative giving vital statistics( Births, Marriages, Deaths), court cases,
passport applications, naturalisations, wills and probates.
If preliminary enquiries are unsuccessful it is worth repeating later.
SA Consular representatives are often helpful in forwarding enquiries and will take payment in foreign currency.
CENSUS RECORDS: South Africa must be one of the few countries where census enumeration records have been destroyed! The statistics from each census have been kept.However, voters rolls are available in certain archives.
The State Archives in Cape Town advises that the Cape Colony
Publications contain census lists for 1875, 1891, 1904 and 1911 only.
These documents provide collective population statitics for various areas throughout the Cape but do not specify names of individuals.
Places of birth are mentinoned pertaining to the number of people
resident in different areas born outside South Africa. Blue books and statitisical Registers, part of the archives of the Colonial Office (CO)cover the period 1821-1809.
The Orange Free State has census reports of censuses taken 31 March 1880,1890 and 17th April 1904. These have information and statistical data on birthplaces, ages, education, religions, occupations and sickeness and infirmaties of the inhabitants. No information regarding relationships of individuals is given. In addtition old republican and colonial voters rolls of 1884,1888,1889,1893,1895,1896,1897,1898,1899,,1900 and 1907 are also available. These have surnames, first names, occuoations and places of residence. Some post 1910 rolls are also available. These are accessible for personal research and photocopies
can be made.
Census and tax Registers for Transvaal : 1873 and 1890 ,1904 -
Transvaal Archives . census and Tax Records for South Africa as a whole:
Department of Statistics, Private Bag 44 Pretoria. A Johannesburg census was held on 15 July 1896.
NATURALISATION RECORDS
Naturalisation certificates -State Archives have copies of
Naturalisation certificates and background papers to applications (copy certificates may be obtained by mail but lot of the background papers are only available on persoanal searches). The majority of Lithuanians applied for Naturalisation and this was usually granted.
Many Jews from Britain did not need passports or any assistance from the Board of Deputies and information about these people may be difficult to find unless they became prominent in the community. A register of Jews arriving at the Cape is in the Library of the Jewish Board of Deputies in Johannesburg. This deals with naturalisation applications in the Cape between 1904-1906. The board had to investigate aliens prior to
naturalisation approval. These 1236 appplicants represented 6.5% of the Jewish population of the Cape at that time. Details of birth place, occupation, age, length of residence and addresses are given. Over half were born in Lithuania, 30% from Kurland (Latvia) and 10% gave Russia as an origin (mainly Minsk and Dvinsk). A quarter were under 21years of age. A similar register exists for the 1920's.
Jewish immigrants came by ship with the major port of entry being at Cape Town, although a minority entered at Port Elizabeth, Durban and Lourenco Marques (now Maputo). The major waves of migration occured from 1895 onwards. A Jewish firm of shipping agents, Knie and Company, had part time subagents in shtetls who accepted bookings for passage to South Africa. Many of the Jews embarked initially at the ports of Libau and were transported on small cargo boats under crude conditions to England.
Few passed through Hamburg. Many came first to Grimsby or London and were taken to the Poor Jews Temporary Shelter inLeman Street in the East End of London. A lot of these records of the inmates of the Shelter are available at the present shelter in London. Some assistance in the form of board, lodging, medical advice and advice on travel was given by the Shelter. In one year from Nov 1902 , 3600 out of 4500 inmates went onto SA. (For a more detailed discussion of these and shipping records see the article by Prof A Newman SHEMOT Vol 1:3 1993). >From here most went on the Union Castle Line to SA . In 1902 the fare
was 10.10.0 ( ten guineas)- more than the fare to America.
SHIPPING RECORDS : Public Records Office Kew, London (BT76)
State Archives Cape Town. Some Hamburg shipping records.
DEATH NOTICES are in The Department of Home Affairs (see above). These give name, birthplace and nationality of the person, parents names, occupation, ordinary place of residence, name and approximate date of death of predeceased spouse, place of last marriage, day and place of death, names of children, what marriages they are from, any moveable property and approximate value and whether a will existed. The probate or estate files of people who died in the Transvaal 1873-1970 are in the Transvaal Archives department. Information on wills and estates of
people who died in the Transvaal after 1950 available from the Master of the Supreme Court Pretoria 0001. These can be very informative.
Enquiries can be made by mail but personal searches are welcomed.For deaths in other provinces consult the Master of the Supreme Court in that province. For earlier estates prior to 1900 consult the Magistrates Archives of the South African Republic.
BURIALS and Cemeteries:
The Johannesburg Jewish Helping Hand and Burial Society (Chevra Kadisha).The major cities in SA have their own burial societies which control burials of all Jewish persuasions. The majority of Jews have been buried in large cities. These records are available they are a very useful source of information. Johannesburg probably accounts for over 75% of all burials. The earliest record is that of Albert Rossetenstein in May 1887. So records start in 1887 for
Braamfontein cemetery, Brixton in 1914 and West Park in 1942. Burials still occasionally take place in the two older cemeteries. Registers are kept on the premises but in addition in 1980 the Mormons were given permission to microfilm burial records. LDS Film no 1259151 refers to the Braamfontein cemetery. With reference to other burials the Chevra Kadisha now have an easily accessed database of every burial in West Park, the major cemetery since approximately 1942. A computer terminal is kept at the cemetery and at their central offices. The complete database has been given to the AJGS Cemetery Project and details are available from Arlene Sachs <[email protected]>. The records of the two older cemeteries, Brixton and Braamfontein, are small and easy to look up. At present about 700 burials take place each year in Johannesburg.
They get many requests from abroad for information and are often stumped by changes in the spelling of names after families have migrated. Anglicisation of Jewish surnames in South Africa was relatively uncommon.
Cape Town, Durban, Pretoria and Port Elizabeth have extensive records of deaths dating back to the founding of these communities. In Johannesburg all written records of burial authorisations prior to 1970 have now been destroyed owing to lack of storage space.
Smaller country communities have largely vanished and the cemeteries are maintained by the local councils. The LDS ( FHL) microfilms have some details on a few of these, but very little specifically Jewish. The Board of Deputies has a travelling Rabbi visiting the remaining outlying communities and he is apparently willing to make specific enquiries.
The FHL also have microfilms relating to the following:-
Naturalisation ( citizenship) PP 1865-1910, 1883-1908, lists 1910,1901-,1909-11 (I-Z). Foreigners in Port Elizabeth 1905-approx 1910. FHL film no.1281594. Naturalisation in the Cape of Good Hope 1904-1908 (H-S) FHL film no. 1281593, 1909-1911 (A-H) FHL film no. 1281594. The majority of these naturalisations were Jews of Lithuanian origin (also some non-Jewish Syrians and Lebanese). Death Notice indexes for the various provinces are also available at the FHL.
Jewish Sources
Specific information about individuals or communities may often be obtained from the South African Jewish Board of Deputies. The Board controls cultural, educational, religious and social activities . They will arrange for publication of a family query in the Jewish press at no charge. The Library at the Board of Deputies in Johannesburg has:- An extensive collection over at least 60 years of newspaper items referring to individual Jews. These are indexed and include obituaries. The SA Jewish Yearbooks of 1928, 1953/4 and 1961/2 have brief biographies of many well known Jews, including their towns of origin. The Library has microfilmed various publications of the SA Jewish press from the turn of the century. A useful potential source of genealogical information are the several Yiddish newspapers that were published in the early part of the century. In the 1920's many lists of people in Eastern Europe looking for relatives who had moved to SA were published on a weekly basis. In addition many communal records of now defunct country communities have been filmed. Some Landsmanshaften records are also on microfilm. Unfortunately these do not appear to be indexed. Copies of the microfilms are held by the Central Archives of the Jewish People at the Hebrew University and at the Kaplan Centre for Jewish Studies at the University of Cape Town. The Kaplan Centre in addition has records of small Cape Communities that are not available elsewhere. The records of the Cape Jewish orphanage are also here. There are also Zionist archives that may be of interest. Some individual family trees are in the
archives.
A number of books have been published on individual Jewish communities in smaller towns and in addition many general town histories give a story of the local Jewish community. Several recent works have dealt with the economic history of the South African Jews and are useful
sources.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS:
Orthodox : The Office of the Chief Rabbi is not very helpful. However they apparently answer written requests for copies of marriage and divorce certificates. (United Hebrew Congregation) There is also a strong Lubavich movement and smaller Sephardi and Masorti congregations.
Reform communities keep separate records. Reform in South Africa equates to Conservative in Great Britain. (United Progressive Jewish Congregation of Johannesburg ). Many Jews remain with a strong identity but outside the religious net. Intermarriage is very common, but emigration is the main limiting factor to population growth.
Military records
Jews served and died fighting both for the British and the Boers in the Anglo Boer Wars. Many Jews served in the 1914-1918 war and some were killed in action in German South West Africa- now Namibia. By the time of the Second World War most eligible males served, many in the North African campaigns. Records of service can be obtained from the military archives in Pretoria.
South Africa is still a small tight community (now probably 70,000) and personal contacts are a good method of starting research. Jewish Genealogical Societies have started in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
By Saul Issroff, London UK
The Jewish links to South Africa are said to start with the Portuguese voyages of exploration around the cape in 1452. Jews were involved in these early voyages as mapmakers, navigators and sailors.The Portuguese were not interested in settling in the Cape, but used it as a route to the profitable trading areas of Asia.
In 1652 the first permanent settlement of Dutch colonists led by Jan van Riebeck took place. Samuel Jacobson and David Hijlbron were the earliest recorded Jews, converting to Christianity by baptism on Christmas day in 1669 (these are records in the registers of the Dutch Reformed Church).
Under the control of the Dutch East India Company from 1652 to 1795 only Protestant Christians were permitted to reside at the Cape (despite a significant number of Jewish shareholders in the company). This contrasts with the Dutch West India company which sent two hundred Jews in 1642 to colonise Brazil.
Greater religious freedom, permitted under the short lived Batavian Republic in 1803 was continued after the British took control in 1806.
Early British Jewish immigration occurred with about 16 Jews arriving amongst the 1820 Settlers and by the 1860's other European Jews started to arrive.
Colourful characters such as the soldier Isaac Moses, known as "old Moses the Moneychanger" and Joseph Suasso de Lima of Amsterdam who started the first Dutch newspaper in SA, arrived. Nathaniel Isaacs, an early explorer of Natal who befriended the famous Zulu chief, Chaka, was a Jew. Early British families include De Pass, who played a major part in the establishment of the shipping, sugar and fishing industries .
Saul Solomon founded the English press in Cape Town and although he converted he retained a prominent position in the Jewish community.
The first Jewish congregation was founded in 1841 in Cape Town by an English Jew, Benjamin Norden. He was one of several Jews who arrived in the eastern Cape as part of the 1820 Settlers- the first real British attempt to provide permanent colonial settlement. Most of these early Jewish settler families have totally assimilated.
By 1880 there were about 4000 Jews in the country. Jewish immigration increased rapidly. The pogroms (1881-1884) and other catastrophes - droughts, floods, deportation and fires particularly in Kovno Gubernia were major factors in the emigration. The choice of South Africa was determined by special circumstances and not, on the whole by the attractions it offered to the general run of settlers who were not refugees. There was the potential for success - in particular with the discovery of the diamond fields in Kimberley in 1869 and the goldfields
in the Transvaal in 1886. Sammy Marks, from Neustadt in Suwalki Gubernia is regarded as the pioneer of Lithuanian emigration - he became a friend of President Paul Kruger and was highly successful as an industrialist.
Barney Barnato,London born, was a partner of Cecil John Rhodes in the formation of the De Beers Diamond company (later control passing to the German Jewish family of Ernest Oppenheimer with the assistance of the Rothschilds).
Over 47,000 Jews were enumerated in the first nationwide census of 1911. Most of these were Lithuanian (Litvaks) from the then provinces of Kovno, Vilna, Grodno and Northern Suwalki (East Prussia and later Poland) and from the Byelorussian provinces Vitebsk, Mogilev and Minsk.
As an undeveloped country SA offered opportunities to early immigrants that were far better than anything they could have had in Eastern Europe. The travelling hawker, or "smous" became an institution in the remote rural areas . Many settled in small towns as shopkeepers and tradesmen . A number of very efficient entrepreneurial farmers were founders of the ostrich feather industry and the citrus industry.
THE CONTEMPORARY COMMUNITY
The distinctive characteristics of this community as compared to other new world communities are:-
1) The predominance of Litvaks hence the unusually homogenous
composition of the community. This appears to be changing with a large emigration of Jews to the USA, Canada, Australia, Britain and Israel. Political and economic change has led to an influx of Zimbaweans, Israelis and Russian Jews.
2) The very strong influence of Zionism in the SA community
3) The amalgam of Anglo-Jewish form and Lithuanian spirit which
characterises the institutions, both lay and religious of the community.
The Jewish day school movement is a powerful educational presence and its pupils consistently get excellent scholastic results.
4) The distinctive situation where Jews have formed part of a privileged minority dominating a multiracial society. This has also led to Jews becoming prominent in the anti-apartheid and
liberation movements.
At various times attempts were made to limit the influx of Jews, eg in 1903 by placing them in the same category as Asiatics on the grounds that Yiddish was not a European language. This ruling was successfully challenged and reversed. About 15000 Jews entered between 1925-1938. In 1930 the Quota Act, without specifically mentioning Jews, was introduced with the effect of limiting the influx to a small number by making "assimilability" a criterion for admission. The rise of Afrikaner nationalism coupled with its overt Nazi sympathies led to more severe restrictions. Between 1933- 1936 only 3600 Jews were permitted to enter.
Probably less than 500 Jews entered during the Second World War period.
Genealogists require a minor knowledge of some historical dates. This is a country initially under Dutch rule, later British, then after a rebellion culminating in the Anglo Boer War (1899-1902) consisted of four self-governing colonies until the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910. In 1961 when SA left the Commonwealth it became a Republic. The present political process is still, in 1995, undergoing constitutional change and the final structure is still emerging.
ARCHIVAL SOURCES: Different archives existed for each original colony or province. (Cape , Transvaal, Orange Free State and Natal). The colonies evolved into four provinces, each with its own seat of administration. Thus several central State and regional provincial archives exist. There are few professional researchers and no-one specialising in Jewish genealogy. A central computerised archive listing of a particular name, and many microfilms of archives are available in the reading rooms of the Human Sciences Research Council and the individual regional archives.These listings may be very informative giving vital statistics( Births, Marriages, Deaths), court cases,
passport applications, naturalisations, wills and probates.
If preliminary enquiries are unsuccessful it is worth repeating later.
SA Consular representatives are often helpful in forwarding enquiries and will take payment in foreign currency.
CENSUS RECORDS: South Africa must be one of the few countries where census enumeration records have been destroyed! The statistics from each census have been kept.However, voters rolls are available in certain archives.
The State Archives in Cape Town advises that the Cape Colony
Publications contain census lists for 1875, 1891, 1904 and 1911 only.
These documents provide collective population statitics for various areas throughout the Cape but do not specify names of individuals.
Places of birth are mentinoned pertaining to the number of people
resident in different areas born outside South Africa. Blue books and statitisical Registers, part of the archives of the Colonial Office (CO)cover the period 1821-1809.
The Orange Free State has census reports of censuses taken 31 March 1880,1890 and 17th April 1904. These have information and statistical data on birthplaces, ages, education, religions, occupations and sickeness and infirmaties of the inhabitants. No information regarding relationships of individuals is given. In addtition old republican and colonial voters rolls of 1884,1888,1889,1893,1895,1896,1897,1898,1899,,1900 and 1907 are also available. These have surnames, first names, occuoations and places of residence. Some post 1910 rolls are also available. These are accessible for personal research and photocopies
can be made.
Census and tax Registers for Transvaal : 1873 and 1890 ,1904 -
Transvaal Archives . census and Tax Records for South Africa as a whole:
Department of Statistics, Private Bag 44 Pretoria. A Johannesburg census was held on 15 July 1896.
NATURALISATION RECORDS
Naturalisation certificates -State Archives have copies of
Naturalisation certificates and background papers to applications (copy certificates may be obtained by mail but lot of the background papers are only available on persoanal searches). The majority of Lithuanians applied for Naturalisation and this was usually granted.
Many Jews from Britain did not need passports or any assistance from the Board of Deputies and information about these people may be difficult to find unless they became prominent in the community. A register of Jews arriving at the Cape is in the Library of the Jewish Board of Deputies in Johannesburg. This deals with naturalisation applications in the Cape between 1904-1906. The board had to investigate aliens prior to
naturalisation approval. These 1236 appplicants represented 6.5% of the Jewish population of the Cape at that time. Details of birth place, occupation, age, length of residence and addresses are given. Over half were born in Lithuania, 30% from Kurland (Latvia) and 10% gave Russia as an origin (mainly Minsk and Dvinsk). A quarter were under 21years of age. A similar register exists for the 1920's.
Jewish immigrants came by ship with the major port of entry being at Cape Town, although a minority entered at Port Elizabeth, Durban and Lourenco Marques (now Maputo). The major waves of migration occured from 1895 onwards. A Jewish firm of shipping agents, Knie and Company, had part time subagents in shtetls who accepted bookings for passage to South Africa. Many of the Jews embarked initially at the ports of Libau and were transported on small cargo boats under crude conditions to England.
Few passed through Hamburg. Many came first to Grimsby or London and were taken to the Poor Jews Temporary Shelter inLeman Street in the East End of London. A lot of these records of the inmates of the Shelter are available at the present shelter in London. Some assistance in the form of board, lodging, medical advice and advice on travel was given by the Shelter. In one year from Nov 1902 , 3600 out of 4500 inmates went onto SA. (For a more detailed discussion of these and shipping records see the article by Prof A Newman SHEMOT Vol 1:3 1993). >From here most went on the Union Castle Line to SA . In 1902 the fare
was 10.10.0 ( ten guineas)- more than the fare to America.
SHIPPING RECORDS : Public Records Office Kew, London (BT76)
State Archives Cape Town. Some Hamburg shipping records.
DEATH NOTICES are in The Department of Home Affairs (see above). These give name, birthplace and nationality of the person, parents names, occupation, ordinary place of residence, name and approximate date of death of predeceased spouse, place of last marriage, day and place of death, names of children, what marriages they are from, any moveable property and approximate value and whether a will existed. The probate or estate files of people who died in the Transvaal 1873-1970 are in the Transvaal Archives department. Information on wills and estates of
people who died in the Transvaal after 1950 available from the Master of the Supreme Court Pretoria 0001. These can be very informative.
Enquiries can be made by mail but personal searches are welcomed.For deaths in other provinces consult the Master of the Supreme Court in that province. For earlier estates prior to 1900 consult the Magistrates Archives of the South African Republic.
BURIALS and Cemeteries:
The Johannesburg Jewish Helping Hand and Burial Society (Chevra Kadisha).The major cities in SA have their own burial societies which control burials of all Jewish persuasions. The majority of Jews have been buried in large cities. These records are available they are a very useful source of information. Johannesburg probably accounts for over 75% of all burials. The earliest record is that of Albert Rossetenstein in May 1887. So records start in 1887 for
Braamfontein cemetery, Brixton in 1914 and West Park in 1942. Burials still occasionally take place in the two older cemeteries. Registers are kept on the premises but in addition in 1980 the Mormons were given permission to microfilm burial records. LDS Film no 1259151 refers to the Braamfontein cemetery. With reference to other burials the Chevra Kadisha now have an easily accessed database of every burial in West Park, the major cemetery since approximately 1942. A computer terminal is kept at the cemetery and at their central offices. The complete database has been given to the AJGS Cemetery Project and details are available from Arlene Sachs <[email protected]>. The records of the two older cemeteries, Brixton and Braamfontein, are small and easy to look up. At present about 700 burials take place each year in Johannesburg.
They get many requests from abroad for information and are often stumped by changes in the spelling of names after families have migrated. Anglicisation of Jewish surnames in South Africa was relatively uncommon.
Cape Town, Durban, Pretoria and Port Elizabeth have extensive records of deaths dating back to the founding of these communities. In Johannesburg all written records of burial authorisations prior to 1970 have now been destroyed owing to lack of storage space.
Smaller country communities have largely vanished and the cemeteries are maintained by the local councils. The LDS ( FHL) microfilms have some details on a few of these, but very little specifically Jewish. The Board of Deputies has a travelling Rabbi visiting the remaining outlying communities and he is apparently willing to make specific enquiries.
The FHL also have microfilms relating to the following:-
Naturalisation ( citizenship) PP 1865-1910, 1883-1908, lists 1910,1901-,1909-11 (I-Z). Foreigners in Port Elizabeth 1905-approx 1910. FHL film no.1281594. Naturalisation in the Cape of Good Hope 1904-1908 (H-S) FHL film no. 1281593, 1909-1911 (A-H) FHL film no. 1281594. The majority of these naturalisations were Jews of Lithuanian origin (also some non-Jewish Syrians and Lebanese). Death Notice indexes for the various provinces are also available at the FHL.
Jewish Sources
Specific information about individuals or communities may often be obtained from the South African Jewish Board of Deputies. The Board controls cultural, educational, religious and social activities . They will arrange for publication of a family query in the Jewish press at no charge. The Library at the Board of Deputies in Johannesburg has:- An extensive collection over at least 60 years of newspaper items referring to individual Jews. These are indexed and include obituaries. The SA Jewish Yearbooks of 1928, 1953/4 and 1961/2 have brief biographies of many well known Jews, including their towns of origin. The Library has microfilmed various publications of the SA Jewish press from the turn of the century. A useful potential source of genealogical information are the several Yiddish newspapers that were published in the early part of the century. In the 1920's many lists of people in Eastern Europe looking for relatives who had moved to SA were published on a weekly basis. In addition many communal records of now defunct country communities have been filmed. Some Landsmanshaften records are also on microfilm. Unfortunately these do not appear to be indexed. Copies of the microfilms are held by the Central Archives of the Jewish People at the Hebrew University and at the Kaplan Centre for Jewish Studies at the University of Cape Town. The Kaplan Centre in addition has records of small Cape Communities that are not available elsewhere. The records of the Cape Jewish orphanage are also here. There are also Zionist archives that may be of interest. Some individual family trees are in the
archives.
A number of books have been published on individual Jewish communities in smaller towns and in addition many general town histories give a story of the local Jewish community. Several recent works have dealt with the economic history of the South African Jews and are useful
sources.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS:
Orthodox : The Office of the Chief Rabbi is not very helpful. However they apparently answer written requests for copies of marriage and divorce certificates. (United Hebrew Congregation) There is also a strong Lubavich movement and smaller Sephardi and Masorti congregations.
Reform communities keep separate records. Reform in South Africa equates to Conservative in Great Britain. (United Progressive Jewish Congregation of Johannesburg ). Many Jews remain with a strong identity but outside the religious net. Intermarriage is very common, but emigration is the main limiting factor to population growth.
Military records
Jews served and died fighting both for the British and the Boers in the Anglo Boer Wars. Many Jews served in the 1914-1918 war and some were killed in action in German South West Africa- now Namibia. By the time of the Second World War most eligible males served, many in the North African campaigns. Records of service can be obtained from the military archives in Pretoria.
South Africa is still a small tight community (now probably 70,000) and personal contacts are a good method of starting research. Jewish Genealogical Societies have started in Johannesburg and Cape Town.