Jewish people have inhabited Bessarabia – the territory that makes up the bulk of what is now Moldova – since the 15^th century. During that time, it was a key transit stop for Jewish merchants traveling between Constantinople and Poland. By 1812, the land had come under Russian rule. The Jewish population steadily increased, numbering more than 200,000 by 1897.

In 1903 and 1905, two of the most brutal pogroms in Jewish history took place in the capital city of Kishinev. Scores of people were murdered. Homes were looted and destroyed. Hundreds of children were gravely injured. The Kishinev pogrom of 1903 was later memorialized in Bialik’s famous poem "Al Hash’kita" ("On The Slaughter").

Following World War I, Moldova was ruled by Romania, and Jews were free to maintain their Jewish traditions.

On the eve of World War II, there were about 300,000 Jews living in Moldova, and some 80,000 Jews perished at the hands of German and Romanian forces during the Holocaust.

When Moldova became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union at the end of World War II, many Jewish institutions were closed and Jewish activities banned. The advent of independence in 1991 brought greater freedom and opportunity to Moldovan Jews, many of whom remembered the stories of their grandparents and were eager to reconnect to Jewish life. Between 1989 and 2001, 48,261 made aliyah. Those who remained – either by choice or by circumstance –have responded enthusiastically to the communal programs and Jewish renewal activities initiated by JDC since its return to Kishinev in 1989. With tremendous dedication, they have been working to build a strong, self-sufficient Jewish community.

2005