Original Community
Amateur historian Iacob Psantir found Jewish tombstones in Iasi dated 1467 and 1549, but it is assumed that there were also Jews in Iasi before that. Historian Rabbi Dr. Meyer Abraham Halevy disputed this claim, arguing that the oldest Jewish tombstones in Iasi were dated 1648, but it is hypothesized that he did not find the oldest Jewish cemetery because it was destroyed by damage caused over time. Most of the Jews in Iasi at that time were Sephardic Jews and Ottoman subjects, so in the late 16th century, when Aaron Voda (Aaron the Tyrant) killed the Turks (similar to the deeds of Michael the Brave from Bucharest), he also killed the local Jews, who were identified with the Turks.
Already in the 15th century, Stephen the Great, ruler of the Principality of Moldova, used Jewish doctors, and according to one source (whose reliability is disputed), had a Jewish logothete named Isaac Ben Benjamin Shor of Iasi. When Iasi became the capital of the Moldavan Principality, the local Jewish community arose, grew, and developed. Many Jewish refugees fleeing the Cossacks during the latter's uprising found refuge in the Moldavan Principality, some of them in Iasi itself.
This refugee, however, did not last. The Cossacks invaded the Moldovan Principality in order to exert pressure on the ruler, Vasile Lupu, to agree to the marriage of his young daughter, Roxanne, with Timosh, son of Bogdan Chmielnicki. The Cossacks seized Jews, tortured them to discover where they had hidden their money, killed some of the Jews, and released others only for payment. This pattern repeated itself when the Cossacks attended the wedding of Timosh Chmielnicki in Iasi in 1652. Only intervention by Bishop Macarius of Antioch, who happened to be in Iasi at the time, saved the community from complete destruction. This difficult period is described by Rabbi Nathan (Nata) ben Moses Hannover in his book, "Yeven Metzulah" (Miry Pit). A document seen by Prof. Gheorghe Ghibanescu mentions Jewish schools in Iasi during the reign of Ilias Alexandru (1666-1668).
(The First Rabbis and the Hakham Bashi Institution (Chief Rabbi) (1600-1800
In 1657, the Jews of Iasi bought the land on which the Great Synagogue of Iasi was built, the first stone synagogue built in the Romanian states. The synagogue was inaugurated by Rabbi Nathan (Nata) ben Moses Hannover. The brother-in-law of Dr. Moise is mentioned among those who signed the purchase documents, and Dr. Moise bought several houses on Ulita Strimba (the "crooked street") in Iasi in 1662.
The first rabbi mentioned as linked to Iasi in historical documents is Shlomo ibn Arvay, who came from Yemen, made his living from medicine, and wrote books on Kabbalah some time in the late 15th century and early 16th century. In the documents mentioned later, itinerant Jewish merchants are mentioned, some of whom settled in Iasi; doctors; and various healers: Rabbi Nathan (Nata) ben Moses Hannover and Rabbi Petachia, son of Rabbi David ben Aryeh Leib of Lida, author of "Yad Kol Bo" (His Hand Will Be Set Against Everyone).
In 1719, the Ottomans appointed the first Hakham Bashi (Chief Rabbi) in Iasi: Bezalel Hacohen, son of Naftali Hacohen, and he later bequeathed the position to his son, Yitzhak. In 1777, following the death of Yitzhak, Rabbi Mordechai Ben Moshe Chaim bought the position of Hakham Bashi of the Jews of Moldova by paying a hefty bribe to Caesar Constantin de Fonte, the ruler's chief room attendant. A year later, however, under pressure from Naftali, son of the previous rabbi, Yitzhak, and the rest of the Jewish community, who were dissatisfied with his actions and learning, Mordechai Ben Moshe Chaim was dismissed and the chief room attendant was obliged to return the bribe. Naftali Ben Yitzhak was appointed in his place. The ruler, Grigore III Ghica, who was also called Alexandru Ghica, approved the appointment and extended the Hakham Bashi's authority to collect taxes. After 1790, the position of Hakham Bashi reverted to the Cohen family through Naftali, Yitzhak's son, who was approved in 1793 by the ruler, Mihai Sutu, and ratified by his successor, Constantin Ipsilanti. The position passed from Naftali to his son, Yeshayahu, whose improper behavior contributed to the cancellation of the institution of Hakham Bashi in 1834.
(Development of the Community (1800
Starting in the mid-18th century, Jews in Iasi were concentrated in their own quarter of the city. They dominated many trade and handicraft sectors, and from the mid-19th century, they gradually drove the Turks and Greeks out of commerce and banking and took their places. In 1831, Jewish merchants and artisans accounted for 43% of all local merchants and artisans, and the percentage reached 78% in 1860. There were 1,353 households in Iasi in 1755, of which 65 were Jews, 30 Jews who converted to Christianity, and 33 mixed marriages. In 1808, there were 2,404 Jews in 574 families.
In the second half of the 19th century, the authorities in the Principality of Moldova issued decrees designed to halt Jewish immigration to their district and to expel Jews with no proven source of livelihood. On October 14, 1843, orders were given for handling vagrants; these orders were enforced primarily against Jews. A decree issued by the administrative council in Iasi barred Jews from owning apartments or stores on the main streets. The decree listed the streets that were forbidden to Jews, and a three-year period was given to terminate leases with Jews. Jews who had their own houses on these streets were given permission to live in them, but they were allowed to rent them out or sell them only to Christians, not to other Jews. Because of corruption among the local nobility, the orders were not fully enforced. Another order forbad the Jews to employ Christian servants under age 30, and Jewish professionals were forbidden to accept Christian apprentices.
In WWII
Bodies of Jews on a street in Iasi, as photographed during pogroms.
Bloody events took place in the city during WWII; these were among the cruelest pogroms in the history of Eastern European Jewry. For many, this pogrom was the beginning of the mass destruction of European Jewry.
On June 29, 1941 (Tammuz 4, 5701), Romanian ruler Ion Antonescu ordered the removal of the entire Jewish population from the city. Romanian military and police forces began the expulsion operation on the same day, together with anti-Semitic Romanian agitators and with the help of German army forces present in Iasi at the time. Jews were robbed during this action; their homes, businesses, and institutions were looted; and many Jews were murdered – the Romanian authorities counted 13,266 victims, while a list of names compiled by the Jewish community numbered 14,850 victims. In addition to these numbers, additional Jews murdered were not listed in the community records, so the exact total is unknown, and there are various estimates as high as 20,000 murder victims. Many other Jews were beaten, tortured, and humiliated.
There were at least 45,000 Jews in Iasi before the pogroms (34,753 according to a census conducted in April 1941), including many Jews, expelled from villages and provincial towns under decrees by the authorities, who came to nearby Iasi without property or livelihood. Following the pogroms, in May 1942, 32,364 Jews were counted in a "those of Jewish blood" census.
