Jewish Sites of Transcarpathia:
Berehovo, Mukachevo, and Uzhhorod

Situated in southwestern Ukraine, within Zakarpatska (Transcarpathia) are the cities of Berehovo, Mukachevo, and Uzhhorod. The region was part of Hungary before World War I and many residents of this part of Transcarpathia still speak Hungarian. Like all of present-day Ukrainian Transcarpathia, it was part of Czechoslovakia between the World Wars.

In addition to this page of Jewish sites, there is a general Transcarpathia page that includes photos of wooden churches, the Uzhhorod skansen, and the scenic countryside. There are also pages on Jewish sites in other parts of Ukraine: Lviv and Zhovka, Stryy, and Kyiv.

Berehovo Berehovo is also know by its Hungarian name, Beregszasz.We wanted to visit the city because it was one of the places in Transcarpathia identified by Carpatho-Rusyn.org as still having a Jewish community. After we saw Carpati, a film about the region's vanishing Jewish and Roma cultures witten and directed by Yale Strom, we were even more determined to go to Berehovo and try to locate its main character, Zev Godinger. According to the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the city has had a Jewish presence since the end of the 18th century, and had a Jewish population of 5,680 in 1930. However, as of 1970 there were only about 300 Jewish families. On our visit we were told by Zev Godinger that there were only about ten Jews still living and active in the community today, and none younger than 50-something. At the right is the deportation monument to the former members of this city's Jewish community, so few of whom returned.

From the producers of 'Carpati', we knew the street where Mr. Godinger lived, and we also knew the nickname by which he was known locally. Residents on the street told us they had seen him heading for the park in the center of town, so we went searching there.

This is the center of Berehovo, and as we entered it, we walked right past a former synagogue without even realizing it. It is not at all recognizable, inside or out, because it was disguised and turned into a theater after World War II.

Here it is:

Along the way to the park, we also passed the town hall:

When we arrived at the park, we almost immediately recognized Zev from the movie. He also seemed to realize that these obvious foreigners in the park were looking for him, as he leaned forward from his park bench and was looking at us.

Here we are with Zev. We spent some time with him, learning about his life and the community. He said we were the first to visit him in 2005 on account of the film, though he had had other such visitors in past years. He introduced us to another member of the community, Fred Berkowitz, who had recently returned to his home town after thirty six years living in Lakewood, New Jersey.

Zev showed us the synagogue that is in current use, a short walk from the center. Seeing it was a very moving experience, especially when Zev, who leads services although he is not a rabbi, read a prayer. He agreed to let us take photos of the inside, and we left him a small donation for his dwindling (and not very well off) community.

Above is the front gate of the synagogue, with Zev opening the lock and talking to a local. In the upper right is a monument that is located in front of the entrance. To the right is a detail of the Hebrew portion of this monument. Below are two pictures of the inside of this beautiful synagogue, now used by only a few people each sabbath.

The photos below show some street scenes near the synagogue. Berehovo really is a beautiful little city.

Mukachevo

Mukachevo is a significant regional city, and at one time it had a very large Jewish community. The city is known as Munkacs in Hungarian.

Above, left, is the current synagogue of Mukachevo. We went into the gate and as we were looking around the courtyard, a woman came out from the building and invited us in to look around, and told us about the community. A kosher meal was being cooked for later that day. It smelled fantastic.

On the right is the monument to the deportation of the Jews in 1944. The monument is located near the center of town, just as you enter from the main highway.

Uzhhorod

The capital of the Transcarpathian oblast, Uzhhorod is on the border with Hungary and has a definite Hungarian feel to it in its architecture and painted buildings. It is a very pleasant city.

An especially striking example of the city's architecture and bright colors is the former synagogue, which is now used as a theater:

For more photos of Uzhhorod, Mukachevo, and the surrounding region, please see the general Transcarpathia page.

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