History of the Jews in New York City

Jews in New York

יהודים בניו יורק
Jewish shopkeeper in New York City, c. 1929
Total population
960,000
Languages
New York City English, American English, Hebrew, Yiddish
Religion
Orthodox Judaism, Haredi Judaism, Conservative Judaism, Reform Judaism, irreligious

Jews comprise approximately 10% of New York City's population, making the Jewish community the largest in the world outside of Israel. As of 2020^[update], over 960,000 Jews lived in the five boroughs of New York City,^[1] and over 1.9 million Jews lived in the New York metropolitan area, approximately 25% of the American Jewish population.^[2]

Nearly half of the city’s Jews live in Brooklyn.^[3][4] The first recorded Jewish settler was Jacob Barsimson, who arrived in August 1654 on a passport from the Dutch West India Company.^[5] Following the assassination of Alexander II of Russia, for which many blamed "the Jews", the 36 years beginning in 1881 experienced the largest wave of Jewish immigration to the United States.^[6] In 2012, the largest Jewish denominations were Orthodox, Haredi, and Conservative Judaism.^[7] Reform Jewish communities are prevalent through the area. Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan is the largest Reform Jewish synagogue in the world. Jews have immigrated to New York City since the first settlement in Dutch New Amsterdam in 1654, most notably at the end of the 19th century to the early 20th century, when the Jewish population rose from about 80,000 in 1880 to 1.5 million in 1920. The large Jewish population has led to a significant impact on the culture of New York City.^[8] After many decades of decline in the 20th century, the Jewish population of New York City has seen a sharp increase in the 21st century, owing to the high birth rate of the Hasidic and Orthodox communities.^[9]