The first Jews arrived in Uruguay at the end of the 19th century from neighboring countries. From the twentieth century began to arrive from overseas pushed by the crisis of the Ottoman Empire and the persecution of the Tsarist Empire. Later the Jews came from Hungary, and finally from Germany with the assumption of Hitler to power in January 1933 in Germany. The degree of religiosity was an especially differentiating feature since among these immigrants there were strict orthodox believers who maintained only the most important traditions, freethinkers and agnostics. Despite these differences, they built a deep sense of solidarity. Little by little synagogues, schools, libraries, Yiddish, Ladino and Spanish newspapers, and a Jewish cemetery were built.
These immigrants came mostly from modest homes and when they arrived in Uruguay, they worked in the most diverse jobs: in the refrigeration industry, in the streetcar company, in street vending, in commerce and in small clothing and carpentry workshops. .Also, those who settled in the interior of the country formed some agricultural cooperatives. Uruguay was a country that had opened its doors to immigrants from all backgrounds and where the Church was separated from the state. The economic possibilities offered by the country helped a social ascent. With a clear sense of identity, the Jews were gradually integrated into society. Their children were starting to be born in the new Latin American country where they had decided to take root. The disturbing European situation with the growth of Nazism and fascism, and the social consequences in our country, made the Judeo-Uruguayan community organized and waged an intense struggle, in collaboration with the democratic sectors of Uruguayan society.
Since 1940, the Central Committee of Israel has played an important role in these difficult years and, to this day, it is the representative entity of the Uruguayan Jews and of the Jewish Zionist institutions.
The Committee also actively contributed to the task that made possible the creation of the State of Israel.
Today the majority of the Jewish population lives in Montevideo. However, there are population centers in Paysandú in an organized way. The Jewish population of Uruguay is 1% of the total Uruguayan population.
Kehilá was founded on July 18, 1916, with the mission of satisfying the needs of the members of the Jewish community of Uruguay: to promote their development as whole people, seeking a harmonious balance in all its dimensions: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual
