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Chudniv Jewish Cemetery

Cemetery Information

Country
Ukraine
Region
Zhytomyr
District
Chudniv
Settlement
Chudniv
Site address
The cemetery is located by the southwest exit from the town. It is next to the last house on Hranychna street, on the left side of the road.
GPS coordinates
50.04716, 28.09134
Perimeter length
689 metres
Is the cemetery demolished
no
Type and height of existing fence
There is a 1.5m high wooden fence with a gate at the entrance to the cemetery, by the abandoned house. The rest of the perimeter is surrounded with dense thickets.
Preservation condition
Unfenced Jewish cemetery
General site condition
The cemetery is covered with dense seasonal vegetation. It is partly plowed up and built over. The perimeter surrounded with dense thickets. It needs clearing. There is some abandoned building and remnants of vegetable garden on the territory of cemetery.
Number of existing gravestones
There are around 300 gravestones.
Date of oldest tombstone
1885 (the earliest tombstone found by ESJF).
Date of newest tombstone
1939 (the latest tombstone found by ESJF).
Urgency of erecting a fence
High
Land ownership
Municipality
Preserved construction on site
No
Drone surveys
Yes

Historical overview

The exact period of the cemetery’s establishment is unknown. It was established no later than the late 19th century, as the earliest preserved tombstone dates to 1885.  It is marked on maps from the 1900s.

Jews first began to settle in Chudniv (Ukr. Чуднів, Rus. Чуднов, Yid. טשידנעוו) in the late 16th century. The Jewish community was destroyed during the Chmielnicki uprising of 1648–49. In 1756, Jews seeking refuge from a peasant revolt were attacked in Chudniv by the townspeople. In 1765, the total number of Jews in Chudniv and smaller dependent communities was 1,283. In the 19th century, the Jewish population grew from 2,623 in 1847 to 4,491 (80% of the town). The community maintained a synagogue and 5 prayer houses.

By 1910, the town had two private Jewish schools for girls, one for boys, and a talmud-torah. A Yiddish-language elementary school was opened by the Soviet authorities in the 1920s. There were 2,506 Jewish residents (46%) in Chudniv in 1939.

When the Germans arrived in July 1941, around 75% of the Jews remained in Chudniv. They were confined in a ghetto and subjected to forced labour. The majority of the Jews were killed in the autumn of 1941. According to the 2001 census, there were 10 Jews living in Chudniv and the neighbouring area.

The exact date of the establishment of the cemetery is unknown, however the oldest tombstone dates back to 1885.

3D model
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