History of the Jews in the Republic of Macedonia

The history of the Jews in the Republic of Macedonia stretches back two thousand years.

The history of Jews in the territory of the present-day Republic of Macedonia began during Roman antiquity, when Jews first arrived in the region. Today, following the Holocaust and immigration to Israel, around 200 Jews reside in the Republic of Macedonia, mostly in the capital, Skopje and a few in Štip and Bitola.

The first Jews arrived in the area now known as Republic of Macedonia during Roman times, when Jews fled persecution in other Roman territories, with some settling in Macedonia. The presence of Jews in Macedonia is proved by Agrippa's letter to Caligula

At Stobi, in 165 AD, Tiberius Polycharmus, who is designated “father of the synagogue,” converted his villa into a synagogue containing a prayer hall, a dining hall (triclinium) and a portico, reserving the upper story of the complex for his residence and that of his successors. The information comes from a very impressive and informative inscription, arguably the most important one found to date in a Diaspora synagogue.

The remnants of a Jewish synagogue excavated in Stobi (Macedonia) date back to that period and the conclusion that a developed Jewish Community existed in that locality those days is based on these findings.

The Jewish community persisted in Macedonia after Roman rule. The medieval Jewish population of Macedonia cosisted until the 14th-15th century primarily of Romaniote Jews. The First Crusade devastated the Jewish population in Pelagonia and Skopje. However, the Jews in Macedonia continued to have prominent members of their communities. For instance, Leo II Mung, the Philosopher, converted to Christianity and succeeded Theophilactus of Ohrid as the archbishop of Ohrid from 1108 to 1120. A leading Jewish scholar, Judah Leon ben Moses Mosconi, born in Ohrid in 1328, wrote commentaries stating that incorrect interpretations of scripture often resulted from neglect of grammar. He later became the physician of the king of Majorca, where he assembled a vast library that was used by scholars for centuries to come. The first known synagogue in Skopje, Beth Aharon, was built in 1366.

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