The Jews in Sydney

Main Article Content

Suzanne D Rutland

Abstract

With the arrival of around 16 Jewish convicts on board the First Fleet in 1788, a rudimentary Jewish community was present from the beginning of European settlement in Sydney. However, it took time before formal communal structures were created. The first developments related to burial, because correct interment of the dead is one of the most important religious imperatives a Jewish community must observe. From 1817, Jews in Sydney came together to perform Jewish burials. In 1832, a section of Devonshire Street Cemetery (where Central Station stands today) was consecrated as Jewish.

Article Details

Section
Sydney's People
Author Biography

Suzanne D Rutland, University of Sydney

Associate Professor and and Chair of the department of Hebrew, Biblical & Jewish Studies in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Sydney