Kiryat Unsdorf (), also known as Sorotzkin, after its main street, is a

Haredi Haredi Judaism (, ) is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that is characterized by its strict interpretation of religious sources and its accepted (Jewish law) and traditions, in opposition to more accommodating values and practices. Its members are ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

neighborhood in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. It is located along the northern edge of the mountain plateau on which central Jerusalem lies. Constructed between 1970 and 1985, Unsdorf is home to several landmark educational centers. A large percentage of residents are American or British-born.

Name

Unsdorf is named in memory of the

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

n town of Huncovce (Yiddish: ''Unsdorf''), whose Jewish community was destroyed during the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. The main synagogue, Be'er Shmuel, is named after the Unsdorfer Rav, Rabbi Shmuel Rosenberg (1842-1919), a disciple of the Ksav Sofer and author of the work ''Be'er Shmuel''.

Location

Situated along the northern edge of the mountain plateau on which central Jerusalem lies, Unsdorf is one of a series of Haredi neighborhoods extending in a continuous line from the western entrance of Jerusalem to

Jaffa Gate Jaffa Gate (; , "Hebron Gate") is one of the seven main open gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. The name Jaffa Gate is currently used for both the historical Ottoman gate from 1538, and for the wide gap in the city wall adjacent to it to the ...

. Unsdorf is bordered by Kiryat Sanz to the east, Kiryat Belz to the south, and

Kiryat Itri Kiryat Itri () is a Haredi neighborhood in Jerusalem. It is located on the northern edge of the mountain plateau on which central Jerusalem lies. The neighborhood was established in the late 1960s by Rabbi Mordechai Elefant, in cooperation with ...

to the southwest. The main thoroughfare is Sorotzkin Street, named after Rabbi Zalman Sorotzkin.Eisen, Rochel, and Perl, Sarah. "Jewish Living in: Sorotzkin, Yerushalayim". '' Ami'', October 9, 2011, pp. 58-59. A small side street off Sorotzkin is Rechov Menachem Meishiv, named after the

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

work by Rabbi Menachem Sofer, a rabbinical leader in pre-war

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

and who was murdered in the Holocaust.

History

The land for the neighborhood was purchased by Rabbi Moshe Halevi Horowitz, the son of the Unsdorfer-Frankfurter Rav, Rabbi Yonah Tzvi Halevi Horowitz. He engaged Rabbi Akiva Ehrenfeld, who established the nearby community of

Kiryat Mattersdorf Kiryat Mattersdorf () is a Haredi neighborhood in Jerusalem. It is located on the northern edge of the mountain plateau on which central Jerusalem lies. It is named after Mattersburg (formerly ''Mattersdorf''), a town in Austria with a long Jewis ...

, to assist with planning and construction."Beacon on the Hilltop". ''

Hamodia ''Hamodia'' ( – "''the Informer''") is a Jewish daily newspaper, published in Hebrew language, Hebrew-language in Jerusalem and English language, English-language in the United States, as well as weekly English-language editions in England and I ...

'' Inyan Magazine, October 8, 2015, p. 17. The initial plan called for construction of 250 apartment units and public institutions. Construction took place from 1970 to 1985. The residential buildings averaged six stories in height. Further expansion of apartments, including the addition of new wings, was undertaken in the 2000s. Like Kiryat Mattersdorf, Unsdorf has a lack of

urban open space In land-use planning, urban green spaces are open-space areas reserved for parks and other "green spaces." These include plant life, water features also known as blue spaces and other kinds of natural environments. Most urban open spaces a ...

. In the 2000s, Unsdorf saw an influx of newly-wed Haredi couples from the United States and Europe. The Unsdorf Renter's Union was formed at this time, to control excessive rent hikes and halt the practice of inflating rental prices for new tenants. An English-speaking N'shei (women's social group) called N'shei Sorotzkin organizes '' shiurim'' (Torah lectures) and social evenings. The majority of residents identify with the

Litvish ''Misnagdim'' (, "Opponents"; Sephardi pronunciation: ''Mitnagdim''; singular ''misnaged / mitnaged'') was a religious movement among the Jews of Eastern Europe which resisted the rise of Hasidism in the 18th and 19th centuries. The ''Misnag ...

style of life and

Torah study Torah study is the study of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature, and similar works, all of which are Judaism's Sifrei kodesh, religious texts. According to Rabbinic Judaism, the study is done for the purpose of the ''mi ...

. A large percentage of residents are American-born. The foreign-born population increases noticeably over the

Sukkot Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles or Feast of Booths, is a Torah-commanded Jewish holiday celebrated for seven days, beginning on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei. It is one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals on which Israelite ...

holiday when tourists rent flats in the locale, which is an hour's walk from the

Western Wall The Western Wall (; ; Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: ''HaKosel HaMa'arovi'') is an ancient retaining wall of the built-up hill known to Jews and Christians as the Temple Mount of Jerusalem. Its most famous section, known by the same name ...

Educational institutions

Unsdorf is home to several landmark educational centers. Beth Jacob Jerusalem, a prestigious Haredi girls' seminary and teacher training institute, was established by Dr. Bruria David in the early 1970s. Kiryat HaYeled (Children's Town), an orphanage for Haredi boys, was founded in 1973 by Rabbi Menachem Porush. Kiryat Banot (Girls Town) is the second campus of the

Bayit Lepletot Bayit Lepletot (, literally, "Home for Refugees"), is an Orthodox Jewish orphanage for girls in Jerusalem, Israel. Established in 1949 in the Mea Shearim neighborhood to accommodate young Holocaust refugees and orphans, the orphanage opened a sec ...

girls' orphanage located in

Mea Shearim Mea Shearim (, lit., "hundred gates"; contextually, "a hundred fold", Ashkenazi Hebrew and Yiddish pronunciation: Meye Shorim) is one of the oldest Ashkenazi neighborhoods in Jerusalem outside of the Old City. It is populated by Ashkenazi Hared ...

. Founded in 1973, the campus is situated on a hillside below the neighborhood; its street address is 55 Sorotzkin Street. The main branch of the Sulam Special Education Center, an

early childhood intervention Early childhood intervention (ECI) is a support and educational system for very young children (aged birth to six years) who have been victims of, or who are at high risk for child abuse and/or neglect as well as children who have developmental d ...

center, occupies a multi-story facility atop the Shearit Yosef synagogue on Sorotzkin Street. Unsdorf also hosts several

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...

s: Yeshivas Daas Moshe, Yeshivat Zohar HaTorah, Yeshiva Toras Simcha and Yeshivat Ateret Shlomo. In the 2010s, a

Bais Yaakov Bais Yaakov (, also Beis Yaakov, Beit Yaakov, Beth Jacob or Beys Yankev; ) is a genericized name for full-time Haredi Jewish elementary and secondary schools for girls worldwide. Bais Yaakov, started by Sarah Schenirer in post-World War I K ...

seminary, Chemdat Bais Yaakov, moved onto the premises of the former Maon Tzvia Mother & Baby Convalescent Home, which had operated since 1984. In 2011 a new American Yeshiva opened under the leadership of Rabbi Yeshaya Portnoy a notable resident of the neighborhood and former Rabbi in Kol Torah Yeshiva

Synagogues

Synagogues and study halls in Unsdorf include: *Be'er Shmuel Synagogue (

Nusach Ashkenaz Nusach Ashkenaz is a style of Jewish liturgy conducted by Ashkenazi Jews. It is primarily a way to order and include prayers, and differs from Nusach Sefard (as used by the Hasidim) and Baladi-rite prayer, and still more from the Sephardic rit ...

and

Nusach Sefard Nusach Sefard, Nusach Sepharad, or Nusach Sfard, is the name for various forms of the Jewish '' siddurim'' designed to reconcile Ashkenazi customs with the kabbalistic customs of Isaac Luria (more commonly known as the Arizal). To this end, it ...

) *Shearit Yosef Synagogue (

Edot HaMizrach Mizrahi Jews (), also known as ''Mizrahim'' () in plural and ''Mizrahi'' () in singular, and alternatively referred to as Oriental Jews or ''Edot HaMizrach'' (, ), are terms used in Israeli discourse to refer to a grouping of Jews, Jewish c ...

) * Trisk

beit medrash A ''beth midrash'' (, "house of learning"; : ''batei midrash''), also ''beis medrash'' or ''beit midrash'', is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall". It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth knesseth''), although ...

*Halakha LeMoshe beit medrash *Schonfeld Synagogue (Children's Town)

Notable residents

*Rabbi Pinchos Horovitz, Rav of Kiryat Unsdorf *Rabbi Yitzchak Yechiel Ehrenfeld, Rav of

and

rosh yeshiva Rosh yeshiva or Rosh Hayeshiva (, plural, pl. , '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and th ...

, Yeshivas Beis Shmuel *Rabbi Yisroel Eichler, Member of Knesset *Rabbi Binyamin Rimmer, rosh yeshivas Tchebin and Yeshivas Kiryas Melech *Rabbi Eliyahu Abba Shaul, Jerusalem Religious Council representative for Kiryat Mattersdorf, Kiryat Itri, and Kiryat Unsdorf *Rabbi Yissochor ("Suki") Berry, music composer and producer. His son, Israeli singer/musician Yitzy Berry, grew up here. *Rabbi Yeshaya Portnoy, founder and Rosh Yeshiva of “Portnoys Yeshiva” and former director of the American program at Kol Torah - his son Yechezkel grew up here

References

External links

Girls Town Jerusalem home page

Sources

* {{Neighborhoods of Jerusalem Neighbourhoods of Jerusalem Orthodox Jewish communities in Jerusalem 1970 establishments in Asia Populated places established in 1970