Oldest Surviving Synagogue in Romania
Record holder
Record value
1671
The Great Synagogue of Iași is the oldest surviving synagogue in Romania, with its completion dated to 1671. It stands in Iași, a city that became one of the most important centers of Jewish life in Romania and once contained a large network of synagogues, schools and communal institutions. The synagogue has undergone repeated repairs, alterations and restorations over the centuries, reflecting both the growth of the community and periods of destruction and decline. It survived the profound upheavals that affected Romanian Jewry, including the twentieth century and the devastation of the Holocaust era. The building is protected as a historic monument and has been the subject of major conservation work. The word “Surviving” is necessary in the JWR title because the record concerns the oldest synagogue building in Romania that still physically survives, not necessarily the earliest synagogue ever established in the country.
- Holder country
- Romania
- Achievement location
- Iași, Romania
- Achievement date
- 1671