Josvainiai (formerly pl, Jaswojnie, russian: link=no, Ясвойни, Ясвойне) is a small town in
Kėdainiai district
Kėdainiai () is one of the oldest cities in Lithuania. It is located north of Kaunas on the banks of the Nevėžis River. First mentioned in the 1372 Livonian Chronicle of Hermann de Wartberge, its population is 23,667. Its old town dates to ...
, central
Lithuania. It is located on the
Šušvė River 10 km southwest from
Kėdainiai
Kėdainiai () is one of the oldest cities in Lithuania. It is located north of Kaunas on the banks of the Nevėžis River. First mentioned in the 1372 Livonian Chronicle of Hermann de Wartberge, its population is 23,667. Its old town dates to ...
. In the town there is a Catholic All Saints Church, gymnasium, post office and public library, stud farm, culture house.
History
The toponym ''Josvainiai'' probably derives from the unattested Lithuanian personal name ''*Josvainis''.
Historians believe that there was a medieval castle in Josvainiai, and it was attacked by the
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians o ...
many times. In 1486 Josvainiai was mentioned as a town. During the 16th century the royal manor of Josvainiai and the first wooden church were mentioned. During the wars of the 16th–17th centuries Josvainiai castle was devastated by Swedes.
The town was granted
city rights and
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...
on March 29, 1792.
On July 19, 2006, the town was granted renewed coat of arms by a
presidential decree.
During the Soviet era Josvainiai was a center of a ''
selsovet
Selsoviet ( be, сельсавет, r=sieĺsaviet, tr. ''sieĺsaviet''; rus, сельсовет, p=ˈsʲelʲsɐˈvʲɛt, r=selsovet; uk, сільрада, silrada) is a shortened name for a rural council and for the area governed by such a cou ...
'' and ''
kolkhoz
A kolkhoz ( rus, колхо́з, a=ru-kolkhoz.ogg, p=kɐlˈxos) was a form of collective farm in the Soviet Union. Kolkhozes existed along with state farms or sovkhoz., a contraction of советское хозяйство, soviet ownership or ...
''.
Jewish community
Jews first settled in Josvainiai in the 17th century. By 1897, 534 Jews lived in the town, constituting 40% of the total population. There was a synagogue and a Jewish school. Most Jews were expelled during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. During their absence, a large portion of the town burned down. After the War, some returned. Before
The Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...
, the Jewish population was 270 and included about 70 families. They lived around the marketplace and the nearby streets. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, 282 Jews were murdered in a mass execution: 86 men, 110 women, and 86 children.
Demography
Images
Josvainių kapinės, mauzoliejinė koplyčia.JPG, A mausoleum in the Josvainiai Cemetery
Šušvė, Josvainiai.JPG, Šušvė in Josvainiai
Josvainiai, kultūros centras.JPG, Josvainiai town center
Josvainiai. Stotelė.JPG, Bus stop of Josvainiai (now destroyed)
References
Kėdainiai District Municipality
Towns in Kaunas County
{{KaunasCounty-geo-stub