Židikai
| Židikai | ||
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 Židikai
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| Coordinates: 56°19′N 22°01′E / 56.317°N 22.017°E | ||
| Country |
 Lithuania
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| Ethnographic region | Samogitia | |
| County | Telšiai County | |
| Municipality | Mažeikiai district municipality | |
| Elderate | Židikai elderate | |
| Capital of | Židikai elderate | |
| First mentioned | 1568 | |
| Population (2011) | ||
| • Total | 440 | |
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) | |
| • Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) | |
Židikai (Samogitian: Žėdėkā) is a town in Mažeikiai district municipality, Lithuania. It is located 21 km west of Mažeikiai. Židikai is the centre of Židikai elderate. Židikai's Jewish community perished in World War II. However, the village progressed during the Soviet era and is regarded as an urban monument. It is known for being the home of Marija Pečkauskaitė – Šatrijos Ragana, a famous Lithuanian writer (1877–1930).
Židikai originates from the words Žydi kaip laukas, or from the word Židikis (meaning tough). Židikai was first mentioned in historic records in 1568 AD.
From 1614, Židikai was held by the Kražiai Jesuits. In 1659, during the Northern Wars, Swedish forces burnt down Židikai.
Between 1918 and 1939, when Lithuania was established as an independent state, Židikai prospered. It was a parish centre, a service centre and a centre of governance. Židikai population in the interwar period was nearly 1000.
Before World War II, Židikai had an important Jewish community. According to the census of 1923, there were 893 residents in the shtetl, 799 being Jewish (89%). During summer 1941, hundreds of Jews are murdered in mass executions perpetrated by an einsatzgruppen of Germans and Lithuanians collaborators.
Economic activity in the village stalled. After the war, during the years of Soviet occupation, Židikai developed similarly to other small villages of Lithuania: in 1952, a hospital was established in a former parsonage; in 1954, a secondary school was added to the primary school; and in 1956, Židikai's House of Culture was founded. Židikai's population in 1959 was 429.
After the re-establishment of Lithuania in 1990, Židikai became centre of the Židikai elderate.
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