Jewish Worms
The ShUM Sites are the first Jewish UNESCO World Heritage Site in Germany
There is practically no other city than “Warmaisa”, the Hebrew name for Worms, where you can admire so many important architectural testimonies to Jewish history and tradition from ten centuries. Worms was once known as “Little Jerusalem”.
Jewish tradition is still present in Worms today, whether the Jewish cemetery “Holy Sands”, the Hall of Mourning in the Art Nouveau style, the Jewish quarter with the synagogue, the ritual bath (mikveh) and the Jewish Museum, all on a historic site. Today, members of the Jewish community who live in Worms belong to the Jewish Community of Mainz.
The best way to learn about Jewish Worms is on a guided tour for visitors. The Tourist Information offers public guided tours (only in German) and city walks for groups.
Worms is the home of a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site
In July 2021, the cities of Worms, Speyer and Mainz – in medieval times the centre of Judaism in Europe – received from the UNESCO the title of World Cultural Heritage for their ShUM sites. They are thus the first Jewish World Heritage Site in Germany.
The medieval Community Centre In Worms with the synagogue, the women’s shul. the mikveh and the former Community House together with the cemetery “Holy Sands“, are a heritage of Ashkenazic Judaism and are now also world cultural heritage.
Eventful past
Rashi
The importance of Jewish Worms is due above all to him: Rabbi Salomon ben Isaak, called Rashi. This Jewish scholar and writer of a commentary on the Talmud is still today highly regarded in the Jewish world. Around the year 1060, he studied at the Jewish school (yeshiva) in Worms, at that time known throughout Europe. The Rashi House in Worms, named after him, houses the Jewish Museum and the city archives. It is situated where the Jewish school (yeshiva) is said to have stood – in Hintere Judengasse and very close to the synagogue.
Jewish Community
Worms has not had its own Jewish community since the time of the Nazis. The Jewish Community of Mainz takes care of the religious, cultural and social needs of its members who live in Worms. This community in Mainz owns the synagogue in Worms and is now making increased use of it for religious services.
"Stolpersteine"
Exiled, deported, murdered. But not forgotten. In several European countries, cobblestone-size brass memorials, so-called “Stolpersteine”, serve as reminders of victims of the Nazi regime during the Third Reich. Engraved with names and dates, they are set in front of the houses in which these people last lived. In Worms too they are reminders of the fates suffered by people who once lived here.
A centre of flourishing Jewish life
In the northern part of the old city, nestling close to where the city wall once stood, is the former Jewish quarter, and many of the old buildings have at least partly been preserved. The synagogue (with one building for men and one for women) (Synagoge) and the ritual bath (mikveh) formed the centre of flourishing Jewish life for many centuries.
There was a first synagogue here as long ago as 1034, and this is recorded on an inscription that has been preserved. A new place of worship was built in 1174/75, at the same time as the cathedral, and a women’s shul was added at the beginning of the 13th century. The synagogue was destroyed in the period of Nazi rule, rebuilt in 1961, and now serves its proper function again, although no new Jewish community has been formed since the war. The women’s bath (mikveh), dating from 1185/86, has survived undamaged.
More information
Guided tours
Public guided tours ( in German only)
This offer is for individual guests and groups up to 6 people.
- UNESCO World Heritage - the Jewish sites in Worms
Worms, known as “Little Jerusalem on the Rhine”, offers remarkable testimonies to 1000 years of Jewish life. As well as the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of the Jewish Cemetery “Holy Sands” (the oldest Jewish cemetery in Europe) the synagogue and the ritual bath mikveh, the tour also takes in the Jewish quarter in “Judengasse” (“Jews’ Alley”). Outdoor tour only.
Dates: April - October, every 1st Sunday of the month at 10.30 a.m.
Find more information here.
- Guided tour of the Jewish cemetery
"Heiliger Sand"
Tour of the oldest preserved Jewish cemetery in Europe. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 07/21.
Dates:
> all year round, always Fridays at 11 a.m. (NOT on Jewish holidays)
Find more information here.
Guided tours in foreign languages
- UNESCO World Heritage - the Jewish sites in Worms
Worms, known as “Little Jerusalem on the Rhine”, offers remarkable testimonies to 1000 years of Jewish life. As well as the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of the Jewish Cemetery “Holy Sands” (the oldest Jewish cemetery in Europe) the synagogue and the ritual bath mikveh, the tour also takes in the Jewish quarter in “Judengasse” (“Jews’ Alley”). Outdoor tour only.
Duration: 2 hours
Find more information here
more guided tours:
- Guided tour of the Jewish cemetery
"Heiliger Sand"
- Guided tour of the Jewish Museum in the Rashi House
Do you have any questions?
The Tourist Information team will be happy to help you:
Tourist Information
Neumarkt 14
67547 Worms
Phone: +49 (0) 6241 853-7306