Bulgarian Jewry

Bulgaria, situated at the intersection between East and West, has attracted Jews from all different sects of Judaism. The history of the Jewish community in Bulgaria most probably dates back to before the destruction of the Second Temple. Jews settled in Bulgaria as far back as the Byzantine times, however the community grew substantially after the expulsion of the Jews from Spain. At that time Bulgaria was part of the Ottoman Empire. The invitation of the Sultan and his forgiving attitude towards the Jews made all the Baltic countries an attractive destination for the Jewish refugees. Spanish Jews settled in the cities of trade where the inhabitants were mostly Ashkenazi Jews. They came to Bulgaria from Saloniki, by way of Macedonia, and from Italy through Regusa and Bosnia. Until 1640 there were three separate communities in Sofia: Romanites, Ashkenazim and Sepharadim. The Bulgarian Jews lived peaceful Jewish lives until the middle of the 1900's. The rise of the Haskalah movement, at this time, brought about changes. The rise of nationalistic voices brought with it pogroms and persecution of the Jews. At the same time Zionistic and nationalistic feelings began to rise among the Jews of Bulgaria. During these difficult times the Jews of Bulgaria began to understand the problems that stemmed from the fact that their community was divided into small groups. In addition they suffered because they were far away from the main centers of Jewry in the Ottoman Empire. Up until the Shoah the Jews enjoyed complete equal rights. The Chief Rabbi of the community was recognized as the representative of the Jews vis-à-vis the Government, and was appointed by them, as was accepted in other communities as well, in the Ottoman Empire. In 1943 the Germans began putting pressure on their Bulgarian allies to expel the Jews and send them to concentration camps in Poland. More than 10,000 Jews were taken to Auschwitz from Macedonia and Trakiya. The original Bulgarian Jews were next on the list, however the King of Bulgaria blocked the plan to expel the Jews, despite pressure from the Germans. Directly after WWII half the Jews of Bulgaria made Aliyah to Israel. Those who stayed found their life and their religious organizations taken over by the Communist Party. This was the start of a new era in the lives of Bulgarian Jewry. The photographs presented in the album were collected by Avraham Hatal who previously worked in the library at Yad Ben-Zvi. Read more