List of Jewish ghettos in Europe during World War II

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List of ghettos in Nazi-occupied Europe
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The World War II ghettos established by Nazi Germany in which Jews were confined existed across the continent; their inmates were later shipped to Nazi concentration camps
Eastern Europe
Total
More than 1,000 ghettos. [1]

During World War II the Nazis created Jewish ghettos for the purpose of isolating, exploiting and finally eradicating Jewish population (and sometimes Romani people) on territories they controlled. Most of the ghettos were set up by the Third Reich in the course of World War II. In total, according to United States Holocaust Memorial Museum archives, "The Germans established at least 1,000 ghettos in German-occupied and annexed Poland and the Soviet Union alone." Therefore, the examples are intended only to illustrate their scope across Eastern and Western Europe. [2]

Contents

In Europe

Large Nazi ghettos in which Jews were confined existed across the continent. These ghettos were liquidated as Holocaust transports delivered their helpless victims to concentration and extermination camps built by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland. [1]

German-occupied Poland

Following the 1939 invasion of Poland, the new ghetto system had been imposed by Nazi Germany roughly between October 1939 and July 1942 in order to confine Poland's Jewish population of 3.5 million for the purpose of persecution, terror, and exploitation. [3] The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest ghetto in all of Nazi occupied Europe, with over 400,000 Jews crammed into an area of 3.4 square kilometres (1+3⁄8 square miles), or 7.2 persons per room. [4] The Łódź Ghetto was the second largest, holding about 160,000 inmates. [5]

A more complete list of over 270 ghettos with an approximate number of prisoners, dates of creation and liquidation, as well as known deportation routes to extermination camps, is available at Jewish ghettos in German-occupied Poland. Below, selected Nazi German designations are listed.

Other countries and occupied territories

Ghettos outside Europe

References

  1. 1 2 "The Ghettos". Yad Vashem The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority.
  2. ↑ "Types of Ghettos". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C.
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ "Holocaust Encyclopedia: Warsaw". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM), Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
  5. ↑ "Ghettos". United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Archived from the original on 27 May 2020. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
  6. ↑ "Yahad - in Unum".
  7. ↑ "Shanghai Jewish History". Shanghai Jewish Center. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 21 August 2025.

Bibliography

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