International Association of Jewish
Genealogical Societies - Cemetery Project
THAILAND
THE JEWISH COMMUNITY
The Jewish Community of Thailand
Tel: (662) 258-2195 Fax: 663-0245
The Jewish Association of Thailand
Beth Elisheva Synagogue, Mikveh & Jewish Center
Yosef C. Kantor, Rabbi
121 Soi Sai Nam Thip 2
Sukhumvit Soi 22
Bangkok, Thailand
Tel: (662) 258 2195 Fax: 663 0245
e-mail: ykantor@ksc15.th.com
Synagogue: Even Chen
2nd floor of The Bossotel Inn
55\12-14 Soi Charoenkrung 42\1 New Rd (Silom Rd. area)
Bangkok, Thailand
Tel: 630 6120; Fax 237 3225
http://www.amyisrael.co.il/asia/thailnd/index.htm
The Jewish Community of Thailand numbers about 250, of which only a few are Thai nationals of European and Asian origin. [January 2001]
Jewish Community of Thailand:
http://www.amyisrael.co.il/asia/thailnd/index.htm [2000]
http://www.jewishthailand.com/ [September 2002]
http://www.jcpa.org/dje/articles2/china.htm [September 2002]
http://www.hallbiography.com/ethnic_national/146.shtml (Book Review: China
Dreams : Growing Up Jewish in Tientsin, by Isabelle Maynard, Albert E. Stone,
Univ of Iowa Pr; ISBN: 0877455716 [September 2002]
http://servercc.oakton.edu/~friend/chinajews.html [September 2002]
http://www.joyfulnoise.net/JoyChina51.html [extensive links - September 2002]
"Nearly all the Jews of Thailand live in
Bangkok, the capital. The Jewish community is of recent origin. The first
permanent Jewish settlers arrived in the 1920s, having fled from Soviet Russia.
Their number was bolstered in the 1930s when refugees from central Europe made
their way to Thailand. Most of these left the country at the end of World War
II. However, in the 1950s and 1960s, a number of Jews settled in Thailand, and
in 1966 a synagogue and community center were established. The Jews are a
mixture of Sephardim from Syria and Lebanon and Ashkenazim from Europe, the
United States, and Shanghai. There is also an Israeli presence. Many Jews are
involved in trade and production of jewelry and precious stones." Source: Click on Thailand at
http://www.worldjewishcongress.org/comm_asia.html [August 2005]
THE CEMETERIES
BANGKOK:
The Jewish Association of Thailand {10192} has not been allowed by the Thai government to establish its own cemetery. The Jewish Cemetery in Thailand located on New Road (Charoen Krung Road) about 200 meters past the Menam Hotel on the same side of the road, opposite a petrol pump. There is a bank branch on the corner. The Jewish Cemetery is kept locked. The keys may be obtained from either Rabbi Kantor or the President of the Jewish Association of Thailand, Mr. Abraham Kashani. The Jewish Cemetery is adjacent to the Protestant Cemetery but completely separated from it by a high wall. There are still 29 Jewish persons buried in the Protestant Cemetery. The Jewish Association of Thailand plans to move all whose relatives can be contacted for permission. The Jewish Cemetery was consecrated in August 1997. Two persons have been interred since that time. Source: Myra Borisute, Jewish Association of Thailand, 121 Soi Sai Namthip 2, Sukhumwit Road, Soi 22, Bangkok 10110, Thailand; myra@ksc11.th.com.
Arthur S. Abramson transcribed 18 gravestones, e-mail: abramson@uconnvm.uconn.edu
KANCHANABURI: WESTERN THAILAND
- British Military Cemetery: There are some Jewish graves in the British Military Cemetery near the famous bridge over the River Khwae [=Kwai]. I took a photograph of the stone of just one British Jewish soldier. Source: Arthur s. Abramson; abramson@uconnvm.uconn.edu. The cemetery contains the graves of a number of Jewish POW's who lost their lives during the construction of the infamous Death Railway during World War II. The struggle of those hapless Allied soldiers, Jews and Gentiles, became the subject of the famous American film, "Bridge over the River Kwai." source:
http://www.virtual.co.il/communities/wjcbook/thailand/index.htm {link no longer available} [2000]
All individuals involved in the creation of this project are volunteers.
The right to make one copy for personal use with full citation is hereby granted;
however, no profit is to be made from the use of this website's information.
No reply will be made to inquiries about specific burials. All information that we possess is on the website. We have no other information so please do not write requesting any on either burial sites or individual burials.
Revised Wednesday February 18 2009