Experiences and prospects of the conservation and promotion of Jewish heritage in Oradea and Timişoara, western Romania

Western Romania has long been characterized by ethnic diversity. However, due to deportations, emigration, and assimilation, both regions today have a large Romanian-speaking majority population. This contribution focuses on the Jewish heritage in the two largest cities of these two regions, Timişoara (Banat) and Oradea (Crişana). The two cities shared some historical events but also had different experiences, despite their relative geographical proximity. The Jewish community of Timişoara survived the Holocaust intact, an almost unique case in Central-Eastern Europe, but largely left the city after the war. The Jewish community of Oradea, instead, was almost completely deported and killed in Auschwitz and a renewed post-war community gradually emigrated abroad in the following decades. Both Jewish communities are now small in size but have inherited a vast tangible and intangible heritage, including several impressive synagogues, partially restored in recent years. The author’s field research shows that local Jewish stakeholders are aware of the potential of this heritage in terms of cultural and economic benefits, but significant weaknesses and concerns exist, as the small dimension of these communities, and their financial constraints, challenge their future role in promoting and managing this heritage, which is now essentially in the hands of non-Jewish public and private stakeholders.