| Official Name: | Zelva |
| Native Name: | |
| Settlement Type: | Urban-type settlement |
| Flag Size: | 150 |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Belarus |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Grodno Region |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Zelva District |
| Established Title: | First mentioned |
| Established Date: | 1258 |
| Population As Of: | 2024 |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Total: | 6,296 |
| Area Total Km2: | 15 |
| Pushpin Map: | Belarus |
| Timezone: | MSK |
| Utc Offset: | +3 |
| Coordinates: | 53.15°N 73°W |
| Elevation M: | 138 |
| Postal Code: | 231930, 231939, 231940 |
| Area Code: | +375-1564 |
Zelva (be|Зэльва|Zеĺva; ru|Зельва; pl|Zelwa; yi|זעלווא) is an urban-type settlement in Grodno Region, in western Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Zelva District.[1] [2] It is situated by the Zelvyanka River. As of 2024, it has a population of 6,296.[1]
Initially Zelwa was a private possession of various nobles, by the mid-16th century it became a possession of the Polish Crown, and in the 17th century it became again a private possession of nobility, including the Sapieha, Połubiński, Radziwiłł, Jarmołowicz and Konarzewski families.[3] In 1720 weekly markets and annual fairs were established.[3] In 1739 a Piarist monastery was founded.[3]
In the interbellum, it was administratively located in the Wołkowysk County in the Białystok Voivodeship of Poland. According to the 1921 census, the population was 63.4% Jewish, 31.1% Polish and 5.3% Belarusian.[4]
Following the joint German-Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939, it was first occupied by the Soviet Union until 1 July 1941, and then by Nazi Germany until 12 July 1944 and administered as a part of Bezirk Bialystok. When the Germans entered the town, they killed 40 to 50 Jewish men and kept the Jews of the town imprisoned in a ghetto in very harsh conditions. In November 1942, the Jews were deported and murdered at the Treblinka extermination camp.[5]