Bodrogkeresztúr Explained

Bodrogkeresztúr
Other Name:Kerestir or קערעסטיר
Settlement Type:Municipality
Pushpin Map:Hungary
Pushpin Label Position:bottom
Pushpin Map Caption:Location within Hungary
Coordinates:48.1603°N 21.3597°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type1:Region
Subdivision Name1:Northern Hungary
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén
Subdivision Type3:Processus
Subdivision Name3:Tokaji járás
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Májer József
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Total Km2:29.87
Population As Of:2015
Population Total:1109
Population Density Km2:37.96
Timezone1:CET
Utc Offset1:+1
Timezone1 Dst:CEST
Utc Offset1 Dst:+2
Postal Code Type:Postal code
Postal Code:3916
Area Code:47

Bodrogkeresztúr (shortly, "Keresztúr", yi|קערעסטיר) is a village in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, in the Tokaj District, Hungary.

Before World War II, there was a sizable Jewish community in Bodrogkeresztúr. At its height, there were 535 Jews in the community, but most of them were murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust in Hungary.[1]

Rabbi Yeshaya Steiner of the Kerestir Hasidic dynasty lived Bodrogkeresztúr at 67 Kossuth Utca.[2] The house still serves tens of thousands of people annually, especially on the anniversary of his death.[3] [4]

History

The area has been inhabited since prehistoric times, evidenced by significant Neolithic finds, including gold jewellery from 1200 BCE known as the "Treasure of Dereszla."

The exact origin of the village's name is unknown; it may have been named after crusader knights. The settlement and its fortress were first mentioned in 1239, likely destroyed during the Mongol invasion. From 1411, the village became part of the Tokaj estate. By the 16th century, it was mentioned as a market town, and from the end of that century until the mid-17th century, a printing press operated there.

The Rákóczi's War of Independence took a toll on the village, but it managed to recover, mainly due to viticulture, modernized significantly by Hasidic Jewish settlers who arrived in 1726.[5] During the 1848–49 War of Independence, the settlement was looted. A prominent member of the Jewish community was Rabbi Yeshaya Steiner (1851–1925), a revered rabbi who passed away in Bodrogkeresztúr in 1925. His former residence is now a memorial house and pilgrimage site.

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://library.hungaricana.hu/hu/view/NEDA_nemzetisegi_Zsido_1840-1941/?pg=369&layout=s&query=Bodrogkeresztúr The census of Jews in Hungary
  2. Web site: Official registration of company managing it . 2024-10-26.
  3. Web site: Reb Shayele Kerestirer Yahrzeit . 2024-10-26 . www.ravlehoishia.org.
  4. Web site: Viktor . Cseh . 2024-05-09 . Reb Sájele, akit a béke vezérelt Bodrogkeresztúrra . 2024-10-26 . Zsido.com . hu.
  5. Web site: www.vendegvaro.hu. 2011-06-15. https://web.archive.org/web/20100720180302/http://www.vendegvaro.hu/A-csodarabbi-sirja#. 2010-07-20.