Ananyiv Old Jewish Cemetery

The cemetery was supposedly established in the mid-19th century. It appears on the city plan of Ananyiv from 1889. The cemetery was demolished between the 1960s and 1980s, and a regional road management office was built on its territory. It seems that so-called “old cemetery” and a new cemetery were two parts of the same cemetery, and the old part was demolished in Soviet period. Some gravestones from the old cemetery were moved to the new existing cemetery.

Jews settled in Ananyiv during the early 19th century. At the same time, the community opened a synagogue and a cemetery. From 1837, a hevra kadisha was operating. In 1856, 532 Jews lived in the town. In 1897, the Jewish population had reached 3,257 (20% of the total population). In the late 19th century, a Jewish government vocational school as well as a Jewish private vocational school for women were functioning. In the early 20th century, the Jewish community had five synagogues and two Jewish cemeteries. The first and most severe pogrom among a series of violent actions against the Jews of Ananyiv took place on April 27, 1881: 175 houses of the Jewish community were damaged. Pogroms also took place in 1905 and 1919, organised by parts of the Directory of the Ukrainian National Republic. The Jewish population in 1910 numbered 4,817 (22% of the total population). In 1926, there were 3,516 Jews living in the town (19% of the total population). At the beginning of WWII, the Jewish population numbered 1,779 (31% of the total population). In the early 1920s, a Jewish self-defence detachment with 300 members was created, 220 of whom died in battle with Tyutyunnik’s gang. In the 1930s, several synagogues existed. In 1934, the operating Jewish school was closed. On August 28, 1941, after the Nazi occupation, 300 Jews were shot. On September 3, 1941, the ghetto in Ananyiv was created. In October 1941, deportations to Transnistria began. During the occupation period from 1941 to 1944, approximately 3,700 Jews were murdered. In June 1995, a memorial sign was erected on the execution site. In 1998, about 30 Jews were residing in Ananyiv.