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The Jewish community of Argentina, with its more than 200,000 members, is one of the largest Jewish communities in the world, and accounts for about 50% of the Jews of Latin America. Many Jewish families ha e branches in Argentina, ma!ing this country a fre"uent ob#ect of genealogical in"uiry. $e will re iew the history of the Jewish immigration to Argentina to %ro ide a frame of reference for genealogical research in that nation. The Jewish immigration to Argentina can be broadly di ided into four different %eriods& '() from the disco ery of the American continent in (*+2 to (,,+, characteri-ed by a ery s%arse Jewish %o%ulation in ol ed mainly in business and trade. '2) from (,,+ to (+05, when many Jews who emigrated to Argentina settled as farmers under the aus%ices of the Jewish /oloni-ation Association 'J/A). '0) from (+05 to (+00, mass emigration, when Jews settled in urban areas and wor!ed in low1wage occu%ations. and '*) from (+00 to (+50, when Jews left 2uro%e to esca%e 3a-i %ersecution and the de astation created by $orld $ar 44.
8amenets17odols!iy '7odolia), who arri ed in 9uenos Aires on August (*, (,,+, aboard the 6. 6. $esser. They settled as farmers in the %ro ince of 6anta :e, some 000 miles northwest of 9uenos Aires. The settlement was recogni-ed by the %ro ince as the town of Moises =ille '8iriat Moshe) on January (0, (,+0. Their first year was e5tremely harsh. many of them, in %articular the children, fell ill or died from malnutrition. :ortunately, their situation im%ro ed due to the inter ention of ?r. $ilhelm Lowenthal, a Jewish scientist from 2uro%e who was hired by the @o ernment of Argentine to %erform certain agricultural studies. 3ot only did he com%lain to the Argentinean authorities about the terrible situation of his brethren, but, more im%ortantly, ?r. Lowenthal a%%ears to be the %erson that influenced the @erman Jewish %hilanthro%ist, 9aron Maurice Airsh, to su%%ort Jewish immigration to Argentina. Bn August 2*, (,+(, the J/A was founded in London, with funds %ro ided by 9aron Airsh, for the %ur%ose of establishing agricultural colonies in Argentina 'and later in other %arts of 6outh and 3orth America) for the 2ast12uro%ean Jewish immigrants. The colony of Moises =ille was the first of a grou% of about (, Jewish agricultural settlements established by the J/A in arious %ro inces of Argentina. Aere is a list of these settlements, including the year of foundation and location&
/olony :oundation 7ro ince Moises =ille (,,+ 6anta :e Mauricio (,+2 9uenos Aires /lara (,+2 2ntre >ios 6an Antonio (,+2 2ntre >ios Lucien ille (,+* 2ntre >ios Montefiore (+02 6anta :e 9aron Airsh (+05 9s. AsCLa 7am%a Lo%e- and 9erro (+0; 2ntre >ios 6anta 4sabel (+0, 2ntre >ios /urbelo and Moss (+0, 2ntre >ios 3arcisse Le en (+0+ La 7am%a ?ora (+(( 6antiago del 2stero 7aimar1Datay (+(2 2ntre >ios Louis Bungre (+25 2ntre >ios A igdor (+0< 2ntre >ios Leonard /ohen (+0; 2ntre >ios
4t is estimated that in (+0+ there were a%%ro5imately ;0,000 Jews in Argentina. About 00% li ed in 9uenos Aires, 25% in the central %ro inces '6anta :e, 2ntre >ios, /ordoba, and La 7am%a) but not in J/A colonies, (5% in the colonies of the J/A, and 00% in the rest of the country.
The /ity of 9uenos Aires and its surroundings became the %rinci%al center of Jewish life in Argentina in the early years of this century. 9y (+0*, more than half of the estimated 2(,,000 Jews of Argentina li ed there. $ithin the city, two districts, Bnce and =illa /res%o, stood out due to their high concentration of Jewish residents. 3ew institutions were created to satisfy the needs of the growing community& A Ae ra 8edusha was established in (+00 for burial %ur%oses, and the first Jewish cemetery of 9uenos Aires was o%ened in (+(0 in Liniers, a suburb of the big city. A 9i!ur Aolim was created in (+00 to assist the sic! and needy, leading to the establishment of a hos%ital 'Aos%ital 4sraelita) and a home for or%hans and seniors. The Jewish %o%ulation in the main cities of the central %ro inces also increased significantly. 9y (+0*, about 00% of the Jewish %o%ulation of Argentina li ed in these %ro inces, leading to the formation of local Jewish institutions and cemeteries. Among the cities with the largest communities are 6anta :e and >osario in the %ro ince of 6anta :e, and 7arana and /ordoba in 2ntre >ios.