Not Only Kroke – A New History of Kraków’s Jews
02.07.2023 - 15.00 / Galicia Jewish Museum, ul. Dajwór 18, KrakówEdyta Gawron, Michał Galas (co-editors and co-authors of the book)
One thousand years of the history of Kraków’s Jewish community – all in one book. A monograph for which Kraków has been waiting for generations.
In Poland, we often brag that Jews escaping persecution all over Europe found refuge in Poland which they called “Po-lin”, “the place of rest.” But do we know anything more about the history of the Jews in Kraków, one of the first cities where they settled? This book is a monumental and gripping story of Kraków’s Jewish community, finally filling a major gap in Polish historiography.
In this extensive and illustrated work, the authors lead the reader through the history of Jews from medieval times and the first groups of Jews to reach the city. They explain the reasons for moving to Kazimierz and describe the development of Kraków’s Jewish district in the “Golden Age” of the Jagiellonian era, the participation of Kraków Jews in the national movement from the times of the partitions of Poland, and their role in the rebirth of Poland as a country. The sound of Kraków’s streets for centuries was a unique polyphony of Yiddish, Hebrew, and Polish. Chapters focusing on the Shoah describe how this sound was silenced. The monograph ends with a part which describes the rebirth of Jewish life in Kraków after the Second World War and the efforts to bring back the memory of Jewish Kraków.
Partner: Wydawnictwo Literackie
