Demography
Canada largest communities are Toronto (175,000) and Montreal (100,000), followed by Vancouver (30,000). Winnipeg (15,000), Ottawa (12,000), Calgary (7,500), Hamilton (5,000) and Edmonton (5,000). The level of intermarriage has increased over the last ten years, but remains significantly lower than in the United States. Most of the community is Ashkenazi, but there is a large population of French-speaking Moroccan Jews in Montreal. In the last decade, primarily due to immigration, Canadian Jewry grew by 14%, making it one of the fastest-growing communities in the Diaspora. Twenty-five percent of all the Jews who immigrated to Canada in the past ten years were born in the Soviet Union or its successor states, and 20% in Israel (an estimated 30,000 Israelis live in Canada).

History
After their exclusion during the period of French rule, Jews arrived together with the British soldiers who made their homes in Montreal. The first synagogue, Shaarei Israel, was consecrated there in 1768. The census of 1831 recorded 107 Jews (but there were probably others who did not declare their religion). In 1832 Canadian Jews were granted full civil rights. However, until the 1850�s aside from a few Jews scattered throughout the country, nearly all of Canadian Jewry lived in Montreal. In the 1850�s Jewish immigrants arrived from Lithuania and began to settle in Toronto and Hamilton, raising the number of Jews to 2,500 by the early 1880�s.
This was a watershed year for Canadian Jewry. Russian oppression brought a new influx of Jewish refugees which increased the Jewish population to 16,000 in 1900 and to 126,000 in 1921. In the face of the Nazi onslaught against European Jews, Canada slammed its doors shut. In the years preceding the war, and during the Holocaust itself, only a few thousand Jews managed to find sanctuary there (2,000 in 1940).
The energetic campaign of the Canadian Jewish Congress after the war helped to open the gates to Holocaust survivors and refugees from North Africa. This immigration significantly increased the size of Canadian Jewry from 170,000 (1941) to 260,000 (1961). Twenty years ago, the communities of Montreal and Toronto were similar in size (i.e. 100,000), but over the years many Jews moved from Montreal to Toronto out of concern for the consequence of a possible Quebec breakaway. In the past twenty years Toronto�s Jewish community frown by 70%

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Community
The community its well organized on both local and national levels, with programs in many different fields. The main national organization is the Canadian Jewish Congress with six regional sub-divisions and headquarters at Samuel Bronfman House in Montreal. The Zionist Federation, B�nai B�rith, WIZO and other organizations are also active, as are all the mayor international Jewish both Jewish and non-Jewish community.
The ongoing secessionist struggle of French-speaking Quebec, in which fully one-third of the community resides, is a cause of worry to Canadian Jewry. The Montreal community is about 20% Sephardi, and many of these are native French-speaker.
The Canadian Jewish community has been especially active in several international Jewish Campaigns (Soviet and Ethiopian Jewry, Israel and Jews in Arab lands) and in some domestic legal and public struggles against antisemitism, Holocaust denial and the presence of Nazi war criminals. The Canadian communities are part of the American-based Council of Jewish Federations and attend its meetings regularly.

Religious Life
Canadian Jews tend to be more traditional than their American co-religionist and in 1990 some 40% of the affiliated Jews identified themselves as Orthodox, 40% Conservative and 20% Reform. There are synagogues in nearly all the communities. In Montreal and Toronto there are Chassidic Jews and they worship in a number of shtiebelach. Kosher food is widely available and kosher retaurant are to be found in Toronto, Montreal, Winnipeg and Ottawa. Kosher food produced in Canada is also exported to other countries.

Culture and Education
Toronto and Montreal have 12 Jewish schools and several yeshivot. There are also Jewish schools in Calgary, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Ottawa. In Montreal some 60% of the Jewish children attend Jewish primary schools, and 30% Jewish high schools. In Toronto the figures are 40% and 12% respectively.
Some of the universities offer programs in Jewish studies, notably McGill in Montreal, which also offers courses in Yiddish.
There are about 20 Jewish periodicals and newspapers, of which the most widely read is the weekly Canadian Jewish News, based in Toronto. Jewish publications also appear in French, Hungarian and Yiddish. The Montreal Jewish Public Library is the only institution of its kind in North America.

Israel
Israel and Canada have full diplomatic relations. In addition to the embassy in Ottawa, ther are consulates general in Toronto and Montreal.
Aliya - Since 1948, 7,600 Canadian Jews have immigrated to Israel.

Sites
Canada boasts several impressive synagogues, notably in Montreal and Toronto. Montreal�s old Jewish neighborhood, the Main, looms large in Canadian Jewish consciousness and draws many visitors. The Beth Tzedec Synagogue in Toronto houses the Canadian branch of the New York Jewish Museum which features the Cecil Roth collection of Judaica. There are also small Holocaust museums in Toronto, Winnipeg and Ottawa.

Anecdotes
The rivalry between Montreal and Toronto Jewry is sometimes played out in discussions on the quality of the bagels produced by each community. The consensus, however, is that Montreal is the leader - a fact borne out by the vending of "Montreal Bagels" in certain Toronto stores. To date there are no shops in Montreal that sell Toronto�s bagels. In fact, Montreal�s preeminence in the field has led Fodor�s Guidebook to recognize the city as Canada�s bagel capital.

Addresses
Canadian Jewish Congress
Samuel Bronfman House
1590, Avenue Dr. Penfield
Montreal Que H3G 1C5
Tel 514 931 7531, Fax 514 931 0548

Embassy
50 O�Connor Street. Suite 1005
Ottawa, K1P 6L2
Tel 613 567 6450, fax 613 237 8865

ALBERTA

Calgary

Synagogue
House of Jacob Tel 403 259-3230
Beth Tzedec Tel 403 255 8688
Temple B�nai Tikva Tel 403 252 1654

Kosher
Cafe Merkaz, Jewish Center Tel 403 255 5311
Schaier�s meat & kosher Deli, Tel 403 251 2552
Wolf�s Kosher World & Deli, Tel 403 253 3354

Edmonton

Synagogue
Beth Israel Tel 403 482 2840
Beth Shalom Tel 403 488 6333
Temple Beth Ora Tel 403 487 0585 Fax 403 481 1854

Kosher food
Alberta bakery Tel 403 453 3861
Bagel bin Tel 403 481 5721
Bliss Kosher meats Tel 403 451 0774
Hello Deli Tel 403 454 8527
Kosher Mart Tel 403 453 3988
Kosher restaurant at Jewish Center Tel 403 444 4460

Lethbridge

Synagogue
Beth Israel Tel 403 327 8621

Medicine Hat

Synagogue
Sons of Abraham Tel 403 526 3880

BRITISH COLUMBIA

Kelowa

Synagogue
Beth shalom Tel 403 862 2305

Richmond

Synagogue
Eitz Chaim Tel 604 275 0007
Beth Tikva Tel 604 271 6262
Orthodox Rabbinical Council Tel 604 275 0042 Fax 277 2225

Kosher Deli Golda�s Tel 604 2241 5632

Surrey - white Rock

Jewish community Tel 604 535 3251

Vancouver

Synagogue
Congregation Emanu-El (Conservative)
1461 Blanshard Street,
Victoria, BC V8N 6K8
250-382-0615

emanuel@islandnet.com
brb@uvic.ca
Victoria, British Columbia
Canada V8N 6K8