Brazil has an ancient Jewish presence—in fact, it was home to the first synagogue and rabbi in all of the Americas! Today, its Jewish community is one of the largest in the world, with significant groups of both Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews. Read on for 10 facts about the past and present of the Jews of the largest country in Latin America.
1. The First Jews Were Portuguese Conversos
In the early 1500s, Portugal established a colony on the newly discovered Americas, in what is now Brazil. Not long before, the Jews of Portugal had been forcibly made to give up their faith and adopt Christianity. These Jews were called conversos, and many continued to practice Judaism in secret. When word of the new colony spread, many conversos made their way to Brazil, hoping to escape the long arm of the Inquisition—making them the first Jews to set foot on Brazilian soil.
2. It Was Home to the First Synagogue in the Americas
In 1630, the Dutch conquered the region of Pernambuco in northeastern Brazil from the Portuguese. With a liberal attitude toward religious freedom, the Dutch colony attracted Jews from the Netherlands who quickly built a thriving community in Recife. In 1636, they established the Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue—the first synagogue in the Americas—and brought over Rabbi Yitzchak Aboab de Fonseca from Amsterdam to lead it. Unfortunately, the community did not last long, disbanding when the Portuguese recaptured the region in 1654.
3. The First New York Jews Were Brazilian
Some of the Jews who fled Recife in 1654 sailed to the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, today known as New York. The colony’s governor, Peter Stuyvesant, tried to expel them—but thanks to the intervention of the Dutch West India Company, he did not succeed. These Brazilian Jews became the seed of what would eventually grow into the largest Jewish community outside of Israel.
4. The Inquisition Laid a Heavy Hand
The Portuguese Inquisition eventually extended its reach into Brazil. In the 17th and 18th centuries, many conversos were denounced and persecuted for secretly practicing Judaism, and some were shipped back to Portugal to be burned at the stake—the ultimate sanctification of G‑d’s name. One famous example was Isaac de Castro Tartas, who died a martyr’s death in 1647 with the words of “Shema Yisrael” on his lips.
Read: The Inquisition
5. Independence Brought New Arrivals
In 1822, Brazil declared independence from Portugal. The end of Portuguese rule and its anti-Jewish policies opened the door for Jewish immigration. Moroccan Jews were among the first to arrive, settling in the Amazon region and thriving during Brazil’s rubber boom. They were followed by Jews from Eastern Europe in the late 19th century and by German Jews fleeing Nazism in the 1930s, most of whom settled in major cities like São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
Read: Brazil Celebrates Century of Eastern European Immigration
6. A Rabbi’s Resting Place Attracts Non-Jewish Pilgrims
In 1908, Rabbi Raphael Enkawa, a leading Moroccan rabbi, sent Rabbi Shalom Emanuel Muyal to the Amazon to report on the Moroccan Jewish communities there, assist them, and collect funds for the Jews in Morocco. Tragically, during his stay, Rabbi Muyal fell victim to yellow fever and passed away. With no Jewish cemetery of their own, the community buried him in the local Christian cemetery, separated from the other graves by a small wall. When someone once tried to deface the tomb, he was suddenly struck with paralysis—and word spread of the tomb’s holiness. Since then, Rabbi Muyal’s resting place has become a holy site for the local non-Jewish population, with many reporting miracles after praying there.
7. It Has the 10th-Largest Jewish Community in the World
After World War II, Brazil’s Jewish community grew rapidly, as Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews continued to arrive. Today, approximately 130,000 Jews call Brazil home—the 10th largest Jewish community in the world! Most live in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, with smaller communities scattered across this vast country. Jews have become so woven into the fabric of Brazilian life that a popular saying goes: “A town without a Jewish (and Lebanese) inhabitant doesn’t deserve to be called a town.”
Read: In Brazil’s Largest City, Charitable Organization Thrives
8. Chabad Has Been Active There for Almost 75 Years
In 1952, the Rebbe sent his first emissaries to Brazil—Rabbi Hirsch and Rivka Chitrik. The Chitriks devoted themselves to Jewish education and outreach, first in São Paolo and then in Rio, laying the groundwork of what would come. Over the decades, many more emissaries were sent, and today there are over 120 Chabad representatives across the country.
Watch: The Missing Farewell
9. A Brazilian Yeshivah Raised Generations of Leaders
In 1966, a Chabad yeshivah (Talmudic academy) was established in Petrópolis, just outside Rio de Janeiro, headed by the late Holocaust survivor Rabbi Chaim Binjamini. The yeshiva was soon joined by a girls’ school in neighboring Teresópolis, directed by his wife Rivkah. Over the decades, thousands of young men and women studied in these institutions, transforming the face of Jewish life in Brazil. Most of the Chabad emissaries active in Brazil today are alumni of that yeshivah, as are many Torah-observant laypeople from all walks of life. Two additional Chabad yeshivahs have since opened in the country.
Read: Rabbi Chaim Binjamini, Pioneer of Yeshiva Education in Brazil
10. The Tanya Was Printed in 100 Places in Brazil
In late 1983, the Rebbe called for copies of the Tanya—the foundational text of Chabad Chassidic philosophy—to be printed wherever Jews live, all over the world. Rabbi Shabsi Alpern, Chabad representative in São Paulo, immediately set out to fulfill this directive, arranging for the Tanya to be printed in 100 small cities across Brazil. One copy was even printed at a Brazilian outpost in Antarctica!
Read: 16 Facts About the Tanya
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