Kuršėnų miesto žydų istorija
ENThe first Jews must have settled in Kuršėnai in approximately 1750, because then their cemetery was opened. In 1833 there were 193 persons who lived in thirty-three wooden houses. For some occasions, they had two inns and a wooden church. In 1841 in the town there were already 390 inhabitants and, in 1986, 81 trade and production enterprises were founded and basically run only by Jews. According to the records of the 1897 population census in Kuršėnai there lived 3189 inhabitants. 1542 of them were Jews, which was 48,3% of the total number of people living in the town. By 1923, the Jews’ population had decreased because during that period part of them emigrated to South Africa, America, European countries and other places. Others suffered from World War I, during which 255 houses of Jews were burnt. According to the records of the 1923 population census, only 841 Jews remained in Kuršėnai, 404 men and 437 women. In 1939, about 2892 people lived in the town, among them 900 (about 31%) Jews. Between the wars the central part of Kuršėnai belonged to the Jewish people. In 1931 there were 55 shops and trading houses in the town, 50 of them belonged to the Jews and 27 out of 40 workshops also belonged to the Jews. But in 1937, 37 Jewish craftsmen, among them 10 shoemakers who repaired foot-wear, 6 tailors, 6 butchers, 3 tinners, 3 barbers, 2 hatters, 2 net makers, 2 shoemakers, one glazier and one tanner lived in Kuršėnai. In 1939, out of 84 telephone subscribers 17 (20%) were Jews and 27 enterprises (67,5%) in Kuršėnai out of 40 belonged to the Jews.
