BRITISH JEWS

'British Jews' (often referred to collectively, but imprecisely, as 'Anglo-Jewry') are British subjects of Jewish descent or religion who maintain a connection to the Jewish community, either through actively practising Judaism or through cultural and historical affiliation. The United Kingdom contains the second largest Jewish population in Western Europe after France's Jewish Community and is the seventh largest community of all world Jewry. British Jews span a range of religious affiliations, from the ultra-Orthodox Haredi communities to the large segment of Jews who are entirely secular.

Contents

History

Demographics

Population

Religious affiliation

Communal institutions

Cross-communal organisations

Limmud

Media

References

See also

History

:''See main article, History of the Jews in England''
The first recorded Jewish community in the British Isles was brought to England in 1070 by King William the Conqueror, who believed that their commercial skills and incoming capital would make England more prosperous. This community was expelled in 1290 by King Edward I. A small community persisted in hiding despite the expulsion. The current community dates itself back to 1656, when Oliver Cromwell made it clear that the ban on Jewish settlement would no longer be enforced. In 2006, the Jewish community celebrated the 350th anniversary of the resettlement.^[1]

Demographics

Population

The Jewish population in the 2001 Census was published as 266,740 people. However, this figure did not include Jews who identified 'by ethnicity only' in England and Wales or Scottish Jews who identified as Jewish by upbringing but held no current religion. These broader definitions brought the total number of Jews enumerated in the United Kingdom in the 2001 Census to 270,499. ^[2]. Due to the reluctance of many strictly Orthodox Jews to participate in government surveys, however, this is thought to be an undercount. Estimates of the actual number of Jewish people in the United Kingdom vary between 250,000 and 350,000.
Currently, about two-thirds of the UK's Jews live in Greater London. Substantial communities outside the London area include Manchester, home to some 30,000 Jews, and Leeds, where 10,000 Jews live. Other substantial communities include Gateshead, Glasgow and Liverpool, as well as other former industrial cities. The community has somewhat aged with 24% of the community at, or, over the age of 65 (compared to 16% of the general population of England and Wales).

Religious affiliation

Most people who identify religiously as Jews belong to one of the following organisations: the United Synagogue, the Movement for Reform Judaism (previously known as Reform Synagogues of Great Britain), Liberal Judaism, or the Assembly of Masorti Synagogues (a Conservative, or Masorti, movement). There are some 350 synagogues in the country, and it is estimated that 70% of the country's Jews are affiliated with one. Roughly one in five of British Jews attend a synagogue once a week.

Communal institutions

Cross-communal organisations

The British Jewish community enjoys a wide range of organisations, funded by private donations, which provide support to Jews of all religious denominations and none:

★ The Board of Deputies, founded in 1760, contains members from every synagogue in the United Kingdom.

★ The Scottish Council of Jewish Communities is the representative body of all of the Jewish communities in Scotland.

★ The Jewish Leadership Council comprises the chairpeople of the major organisations in each sector of communal life, together with key individual leaders of the community.

★ The Community Security Trust exists to combat those who seek to threaten the safety and security of the Jewish community in Britain.

★ The Union of Jewish Students supports Jewish students at university.

Limmud

The annual Limmud winter conference is a high-profile educational event of the British Jewish community, attracting a wide range of international presenters.

Media

The Jewish Chronicle is the oldest Jewish newspaper in the world.

References

★ The Board Of Deputies Of British Jews

1. EJP looks back on 350 years of history of Jews in the UK: ''European Jewish Press''. Retrieved 21 July 2006.
2. "Jews in Britain: a snapshot from the 2001 Census", Institute for Jewish Policy Research 2007

See also

★ List of British Jews

★ History of the Jews in England

★ History of the Jews in Scotland

★ History of the Jews in Ireland