Venetian Ghetto

The word

The English word ghetto comes from Venice, and its origin is disputed

The English word ghetto is derived from the Jewish ghetto in Venice. One theory ties it to a foundry that once made cannons near the first Jewish quarter. An etymologist who reviewed many theories concluded that all were speculative.

New and old

The New Ghetto is the older of the two

The Ghetto Nuovo and the Ghetto Vecchio take their names from newer and older foundry sites. In terms of Jewish residence, the Ghetto Nuovo is actually older than the Ghetto Vecchio.

Five synagogues

Five synagogues served communities from different places

Four of the five synagogues were divided by ethnic identity: German, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese, and Levantine Sephardi. The fifth, the Scuola Canton, also served the Venetian Ashkenazi community. Today two are still used for worship.

5synagogues, four of them for separate communities

The end

In 1797 the French army ended the ghetto's separation

In 1797 the French Army of Italy, commanded by the 28-year-old General Napoleon Bonaparte, occupied Venice. The separation ended on 11 July of that year. In the 19th century the ghetto was renamed the Contrada dell'unione.

The decree

In 1516 the Senate ordered all Jews in Venice into one locked quarter

The Venetian Ghetto was instituted on 29 March 1516 by decree of Doge Leonardo Loredan and the Senate. The decree ordered that the Jews would be locked into the ghetto overnight and be subject to Christian surveillance. The gates were opened in the morning and locked in the evening.