Giudecca di Trani

Trani's medieval Giudecca preserves the history of one of southern Italy's longest-lived Jewish communities, with two surviving synagogue buildings.

Why it matters

Unlike the enclosed ghettos established elsewhere, Trani's early Jewish quarter was an open district integrated into the city's commercial life near the harbour. The community contributed to trade and scholarship, especially during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.

What to notice

Street names such as Via della Giudecca, Via Sinagoga and Via Mosè da Trani preserve the area's history. Merchant palaces, including Palazzo Lopez, reflect the wealth of the quarter. The Scolanova synagogue remains a place of worship, while the former Scola Grande houses the Synagogue-Museum Sant'Anna.

Context and history

Jewish settlement in Trani is documented from Roman times. The community flourished under Frederick II in the thirteenth century, with merchants and scholars connected to a wider Mediterranean and European network. In the late fourteenth century synagogues were converted into churches and many Jews were forcibly baptised. An influx of Jewish families from other parts of Europe followed, before the 1541 expulsion of Jews from southern Italy.