In this article, we will look at the 20 most Jewish cities in the world.
Judaism is one of the three most common Abrahamic religions. It is monotheistic in nature and is characterized by a belief in a God who showed himself to Abraham, Moses, and the Hebrew prophets. Judaism is the oldest of the three Abrahamic religions. In the recent past, Jews have seen many developments, most of which worked against them and mitigated their population. During the 19th century, many European countries started to emancipate Jews and granted them legal equality and civil rights. However, the process of integration was different throughout Europe. In the late nineteenth century, the Zionist movement emerged, which aimed to establish a national homeland for Jewish people. This movement, led by Theodor Herz, eventually culminated in the creation of Israel in the 20th century. During the First World War, many Jews around the world were affected. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 expressed British support for establishing a ‘national home for Jewish people’. However, between the first and second world war, the world saw a rise in anti-sementism and Nazi Ideology. The Nazi Party in Germany came to power in 1933 and took increasingly oppressive measures against Jews. During World War II, systematic genocide against Jewish people was carried out in the form of the Holocaust, which significantly affected the Jewish population. However, after the Second World War, international support for a Jewish homeland grew, and Israel was created in the region around Palestine. Jews from all over the world flew to this newly found Jewish state. It was in the late twentieth and the current century that Jewish communities went through a rebuilding stage. However, during the late twentieth and the current century, Israel has faced numerous conflicts with Palestine and Arab states.
Currently, the majority of Jews live in Israel. However, the United States has the biggest Jewish population, and they remain an important asset for the country. An estimated 2.4% of the total American population is Jewish, and the size of the Jewish population has been stable in percentage terms. The Jewish population in the country, like that of all Americans, continues to grow more racially and ethnically diverse. While 92% of Jewish American adults identify themselves as non-Hispanic white, 8% identify themselves with other racial and ethnic categories. In addition, American Jews also seem to be more accepting of other religions when it comes to choosing life partners. About 42% of Jews in the United States have a non-Jewish spouse.
The Jewish population also contributes significantly to America’s economy. As a whole, Jews are a relatively high-income group. Almost half of the Jewish households have an annual household income of at least $100,000. In addition, most Jewish adults report that they are satisfied with multiple aspects of their lives. Most Jewish adults are either full-time or part-time employed.
Jewish Americans are also an asset to the country’s business community. The co-founder of the multi-billion dollar software company Oracle Corporation, Larry Ellison, belongs to the Jewish community. The co-founder of Google, Larry Page, an American computer scientist and business person with a $85.2 billion net worth is Jewish. In addition, many Jewish Americans have made their marks in various fields, such as science, fashion, entertainment, and sports.
With that backdrop, let’s look at the 20 most Jewish cities in the world.
Sean Pavone/Shutterstock.com
Methodology
To curate our list of the 20 most Jewish Cities in the World, we primarily consulted The Jewish Virtual Library. However, we also used multiple sources around the internet to complete our list since our primary source only mentioned the top 15 most Jewish metropolitan areas. It should be noted that some of the entries in this list also include the surrounding metropolitan areas of the cities. We ranked the cities based on the number of Jews residing there.
20 – Atlanta, United States
Jewish Population – 119,800
Jews have been a part of Atlanta since the early years of the city’s establishment. However, in the early decades of its settlement, the city’s Jewish community was largely made up of German Jews who migrated to America for a better life. In the nineteenth century, although only 1% of Atlanta’s population was Jewish, they owned more than 10% of its retail businesses. Currently, Atlanta is the 20th most Jewish city in the world.
19 – Moscow, Russia
Jewish Population – 165,000
Moscow has the most Jews in Russia. The history of Jews in Moscow goes back to the 17th century, but the city became an important Jewish center in the 19th century. However, it is worth noting that currently because of increasing antisemitism in the country, the population of Jews in Moscow is decreasing.
18 – Ramat Gan, Israel
Jewish Population – 175,000
Amongst all Israeli cities, Ramat Gan has the lowest Jewish population. Ramat Gan, however, is known as Israel’s greenest city and almost entirely comprised of Jews. It is worth noting that although more recently Ramat Gan is recognized as a city, most people know it as a suburb of Tel Aviv.
17 -Toronto, Canada
Jewish Population – 188,710
Toronto has the largest Jewish community in Canada. Nearly one-half of Canada’s Jewish community lives in Toronto, and between 1980 and 2020, an average of 1500 jews immigrated to Canada annually. In addition, more than 90% of Canada’s Jews live in these five provinces: Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Alberta.
16 – Netanya, Israel
Jewish Population – 196,300
Netanya is a Mediterranean resort city in central Israel. However, despite being a resort city, it houses one of the largest Jewish populations in the world. The city houses the Museum of Yemenite Jews Heritage, which showcases the culture of Yemenite Jewry. An important thing to note about Netenya’s Jewish community is that approximately half of it is made up of secular Jews.
15 – Buenos Aires, Argentina
Jewish Population – 230,300
Buenos Aires has the highest Jewish population in Argentina. The country’s Jewish population is the largest in Latin America and the third largest in the American continent. Jewish expulsion from Spain led to the Jewish migration to Argentina in the sixteenth century. Currently, Buenos Aires alone has 230,000 Jews, which is marginally lower than the Jewish population of Be’er sheva.
14 – London, United Kingdom
Jewish Population – 230,400
London is one of the most Jewish cities in the world, although its Jewish population is quite close to Buenos Aires’ Jewish population. London and its surrounding counties host more than 70% of England’s Jewish population. The history of Jews in London dates back to the eleventh century when the Norman conquest forced Jews to move to England.
13 – San Francisco, United States
Jewish Population – 244,00
Although San Fransisco, the financial center of northern California, is currently the 13th largest Jewish city in the world, up until the 19th century, it was home to the second-largest Jewish community in the United States. Currently, the city has a vibrant and active Jewish community. Several synagogues are spread throughout the city, and the Jews are dispersed throughout its metropolitan areas.
12 – Be’er Sheva, Israel
Jewish Population – 247,600
Be’er Sheva is a city located in southern Israel. It is the largest city in the Negev desert and houses 247,60000 Jews, making it the 12th most Jewish city in the world. Be’er Sheva is also a holy site for Jews because according to their Holy Scriptures, it is the site where Abraham made a covenant with the Philistine King Abimelech.
11 – Boston, United States
Jewish Population – 257,460
Boston, a city in Massachusetts, is one of the most Jewish cities in the United States and the world. The Jewish community in Boston is increasing. It has seen an approximate population increase of 4.6% since 2005. One interesting thing to note about Boston’s Jewish community is that there was no significant presence of jews in the city until the mid-nineteenth century.
10 – Chicago, United States
Jewish Population – 294,280
Chicago is among the top 10 most Jewish countries. While the Jewish immigrants came to Chicago from several different countries, the most common one of them was Western and Eastern Germany. They arrived at the city soon after its incorporation in 1833. However, the population growth of Jews in Chicago has been moderate, at best, since 2010.
9 – Washington, United States
Jewish Population – 297,290
There are 297,200 Jews in Washington, D.C, making it one of the top nine most Jewish countries. The Jewish community of the metroplolitan areas of Washington, D.C. is younger than the national Jewish population. The Jewish community in Washington, D.C. is also quite diverse. Seven percent of Jews in Washington, D.C. identify as LGBTQ, and 7% as people of color. 53% of all couples in the household with married or partnered Jews include someone who does not identify as Jewish.
8 – Paris, France
Jewish Population – 337,600
Paris is home to the largest number of Jews in Europe, making it one of the most Jewish cities. The history of jews and France dates back to the middle ages when it was a center of Jewish learning. However, Jews faced persecution and saw multiple expulsions and returns. It was not until the late 19th century, during the French Revolution, Jews got emancipation in France.
7 – Philadelphia, United States
Jewish Population – 419,850
Jews have lived in Philadelphia since the late seventeenth century, but Jewish traders have operated in the region since at least the mid-seventeenth century. Nathan Levy, a prominent and wealthy Jew of his time, purchased a ground for Jewish burial in 1738. Jews of Philadelphia took a prominent part in the War of Independence, and several Jewish merchants, along with other citizens of Philadelphia signed the Non-Importations resolution.
6 – Miami, United States
Jewish Population – 535,500
The first permanent settlement of jews in Miami happened in the late nineteenth century. In the early twentieth century, the first bris, a Jewish ceremony in which a newborn is circumcised, happened in the city. The first Jewish congregation in the city was formed in 1913 by the name of B’nai Zion.
5 – Los Angeles, United States
Jewish Population – 622,480
Los Angeles is one of the top five most Jewish cities in the world. The jews in the city make up almost 17.5 percent of its total population. The Jewish community of Los Angeles is the largest outside Israel and New York. Jewish settlements in Los Angeles can be traced back to the time when it was part of the Mexican State of Alta California, but most of the migration happened at the end of the nineteenth century.
4 – Haifa, Israel
Jewish Population – 710,600
Haifa is home to more than 700,0000 jews, making it the third most Jewish city in Israel and the fourth most Jewish city in the world. The population of Haifa, although, is heterogeneous when compared to the rest of Israel. While 82% of the population is Jewish, almost 14% are Christians, and 4% are Muslim.
