Daugavpils (formerly Dinaburg until 1893, and Dvinsk until 1920) is a district centre in the Republic of Latvia, located on the Daugava River (also known as the Western Dvina). It was annexed by the Russian Empire following the First Partition of Poland in 1772. From 1920 to 1940 it formed part of independent Latvia, and from 1940 to 1991 it lay within the USSR.
Jewish settlement in Daugavpils began in the latter half of the 18th century, at which time a community was established. Jews constituted a significant proportion of the city’s population: in 1772 there were 136 Jews (31.3 %), rising to 783 in 1787 and 1,559 (57 %) in 1815. Jews held municipal office—for example, in 1800 one of the two burgomasters was Sh. Movshovich; in 1826 it was N. Koblenz; and in 1836 M. Malkiel. A decree in 1812 forbade Jewish residence within the fortress walls. By 1830 Jewish entrepreneurs had founded tanneries, breweries and lime works. By 1847 the Jewish population reached 2,918.
From the 1860s the city expanded rapidly, fuelled by trade in grain, flax and timber, and especially following its development as a railway junction. Daugavpils became a hub of traditional Jewish learning, with several yeshivot. Around 1886, rabbi Meir Simḥah ha‑Kohen (1887–1926) led the Mitnagdim faction, while from 1889 the Hasidim were led by Rabbi I. Rozin. By the early 20th century Jews were dominant in commerce and industry, and comprised much of the workforce in match, tannery and button factories—especially women. In 1897, Jews numbered 32,400—46 % of the total—with 4,862 craftsmen, 1,760 wage-earners, and 909 apprentices. Educational institutions included a boys’ trade school (opened 1887, with 103 pupils by 1910), a girls’ vocational school (opened 1902, with 208 students by 1910), three free schools for the poor, and a model heder. However, poverty was widespread—around 1,996 Jewish families (30.9 %) were recorded as impoverished by the Jewish Colonization Association in 1910. Daugavpils became a centre for the Jewish labour movement, with the Bund and Po‘alei Ṣiyon playing leading roles. In 1903 workers organised self-defence during pogroms.
World War I brought devastation and mass evacuation. In 1921 Jews numbered 11,838 (40 %), falling to 11,106 (25 %) by 1935. Zionist movements strengthened in the interwar years, particularly Tze'irei Ṣiyon. By the early 1930s there were six Jewish schools, five teaching in Hebrew or Yiddish, enrolling over 2,000 pupils; there was also a municipal Jewish secondary school in Hebrew, a professional ORT school, and a local Jewish sports organisation. Community institutions included a hospital, pharmacy, aged-care home, orphanage, library and three credit unions. On the eve of World War II, the Jewish population reached approximately 13,000.
Following the Soviet annexation in 1940–41, many Jews—especially municipal figures and political activists—were deported to remote regions of the USSR. German forces occupied Daugavpils on 26 June 1941. Few Jews escaped. In July 1941, Jews were imprisoned in a ghetto, which also accommodated those deported from surrounding towns. A Jewish Council (Judenrat) was established under occupation. Between August and November 1941 Einsatzgruppe A, assisted by Latvian nationalist police units, carried out mass executions. On 9 November 1941, 1,134 Jews were shot. Looting accompanied the killings: in January 1942, gold and valuables seized from Jews reached Berlin. Approximately 950 Jews remained, deemed “skilled labour indispensable to the economy.” In May 1942 the last ghetto inmates were murdered.
Some survivors returned following the city’s liberation in July 1944. By 1970 around 2,000 Jews lived in Daugavpils, and a synagogue opened in 1974. A Jewish amateur theatre group was active in the late 1960s. Zionist activism also arose. With the advent of perestroika, Jewish cultural life revived: in December 1988 a branch of the Latvian Society for Jewish Culture was founded under chairperson A. Fishil. In the early 1990s a Sunday school, Maccabi sports society, and “Round Table” literary society were established. In 1992, the Jewish community was officially reconstituted, chaired by Sofya Meirova (born 1949). During the 1970s–80s, significant numbers emigrated to Israel, the United States, Germany and elsewhere.