Metadata: Archive of the Jewish congregation of Gothenburg, F: communal life
Collection
- Country:
- Sweden
- Holding institution:
- Regional Archive of the region of Västra Götaland and the city of Gothenburg
- Holding institution (official language):
- Regionarkivet – Västra Götalandsregionen och Göteborgs Stad
- Postal address:
- Otterhällegatan 5, 411 18 Gothenburg
- Phone number:
- +4631– 701 50 00
- Reference number:
- Judiska Församlingen i Göteborg, F: Handlingar ordnade efter ämne
- Title:
- Archive of the Jewish congregation of Gothenburg, F: communal life
- Title (official language):
- Judiska församlingen i Göteborg: F församlingsliv
- Creator/accumulator:
- Jewish community of Gothenburg
- Date(s):
- 1776/1980
- Language:
- Danish
- English
- French
- German
- Hebrew
- Norwegian
- Swedish
- Yiddish
- Extent:
- 4 linear metres
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Photographic images
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
-
The collection, part of the F series of the archive of the Jewish Community of Gothenburg, covers over 200 years of the history of Gothenburg’s Jewish community, from its official establishment in 1779 to the creation of its archive in 1980.
A significant amount of material is related the community’s administrative, financial, material and social history. These include, among other things, the community’s original statute and its future revisions (vol. F17, 1779-1971), member registrations and de-registrations (vol. F11A-F, 1870-1960), salaries of rabbis and cantors (vol. F12A-M, 1869-1880, 1959-1960), matters of member taxations (vol. F19, 1944-1959), steering committee rosters and minutes of meetings (vol. F1, F12A-M, 1940-1956), donations to the community as well as associated stipends and funds (vol F16A-J, 1938-1944). Documents related to the legal standing of Jews in Sweden can also be found in the collection (vol. F18, 1838-1882). The stored material furthermore includes the architectural plan of the Gothenburg synagogue (vol. F25, 1852), its building description, the original city permit authorising its function from 1847 (vol. F15, 1847). Documents related to organisations affiliated with the community, such as the Jewish association of Gothenburg, the Jewish gentlemen’s club and the Jewish pensioners’ club can also be found in the collection (vol. F14f, 1951-1955). Moreover, the collection provides an overview of the community’s cultural and social activities related to theatre, film and sports, as well as its relations with other communities in Sweden, primarily those of Stockholm and Malmö (vol. F4b-e, 1905-1955). Photographs of members of the community’s committee, photographs of regular members, as well as commemorative awards to the community’s most prominent supporters are also present in a number of volumes (vol. 25, vol. F28-29, 1912-1950).
The collection also includes a wide array of material regarding the community’s religious life and observances (vol. F3a, 1943-1958, vol. F3d, 1937-1957). These include documents related, among others, to the celebration of Hanukkah (vol. F3c, 1939-1958) and Pesach (vol. F3b, 1858-1958), documents related to ceremonies and observances, e.g. Milah (vol. F3e, vol. 1873-1947) and Mikveh (vol. F3f, 1868, 1954) and guidelines on how to perform various prayers and rituals (F2, 1837-1958). Song and prayer books distributed to community members (vol. F3m, 1850-1975), as well as sheet music for synagogue use (vol. F27, 1855-1957), are also part of the collection.
- Archival history:
- The records were transferred to the Regional Archive in Gothenburg in 1980.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The Jewish Community of Gothenburg was founded in 1780 and over the following decades the small community grew to around 415. On 12 October 1855 the town’s new synagogue was inaugurated. From the 1830s, the community leaders were known to be very liberal. Jews contributed greatly to the flourishing industry and cultural life of Gothenburg and several also served as politicians in the city council. Of the Jewish families who immigrated to Gothenburg before the 1870s only a few remain as members of the Jewish community. Most current members are descendants of immigrants from Tsarist Russia, Holocaust refugees and survivors as well as refugees from countries in Eastern Europe, not least Poland.
- Access points: locations:
- Gothenburg
- Access, restrictions:
- The congregation needs to be contacted in advance to request permission to access the material.
- Finding aids:
- A finding aid is available online.
- Links to finding aids:
- https://www.goteborg.se/wps/portal/enhetssida/regionarkivet
- Yerusha Network member:
- Jewish Museum in Stockholm