Eliyahu Hanavi Synagogue is a
synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
in
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
built in the
Neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style. It is located in Nabi Daniel street. An earlier synagogue was built on the site in 1354, but was bombed and destroyed by the French during their
invasion of Egypt in 1798. A new synagogue, the current building, began construction in 1850 with contributions from the
Muhammad Ali Dynasty. It is included on the
World Monuments Fund
World Monuments Fund (WMF) is a private, international, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of historic architecture and cultural heritage sites around the world through fieldwork, advocacy, grantmaking, education, and trainin ...
's 2018 list of monuments at risk.
Although services are still held in the synagogue, it now caters to a very small community due to the
dwindling number of Jews in Alexandria. The synagogue was closed for the 5773 (2012)
High Holidays
The High Holidays also known as the High Holy Days, or Days of Awe in Judaism, more properly known as the Yamim Noraim ( he, יָמִים נוֹרָאִים, ''Yāmīm Nōrāʾīm''; "Days of Awe")
#strictly, the holidays of Rosh HaShanah ("Jew ...
because of security reasons.
In 2017, the Egyptian government announced a project to restore the synagogue in a growing move of keeping its Jewish heritage alive. It was rededicated in January 2020, with three Jews present at the ceremony.
See also
*
History of the Jews in Egypt
Egyptian Jews constitute both one of the oldest and youngest Jewish communities in the world. The historic core of the Jewish community in Egypt consisted mainly of Egyptian Arabic speaking Rabbanites and Karaites. Though Egypt had its own com ...
*
History of the Jews in Alexandria
The history of the Jews in Alexandria, Egypt, dates back to the founding of the city by Alexander the Great in 332 BCE. Jews in Alexandria played a crucial role in the political, economic, and religious life of Hellenistic and Roman Alexandria, wi ...
*
List of synagogues in Egypt
A list of synagogues in Egypt:
Alexandria
* Azouz Synagogue
* Castro Synagogue
* Eliyahu Hanavi Synagogue
* Eliahou Hazan Synagogue
* Green Synagogue
* Menasce Synagogue
* Nezah Israel Synagogue
* Sasson Synagogue
* Shaaré Tefila Synagogu ...
References
1850 establishments in Egypt
Buildings and structures completed in 1354
Elijah
Orthodox Judaism in Egypt
Orthodox synagogues
Synagogues completed in 1850
Religious organizations established in 1850
Sephardi Jewish culture in Egypt
Sephardi synagogues
Synagogues in Alexandria
{{Egypt-synagogue-stub