History of the Jews in Chile
Bicur Joilim, the oldest synagogue in the Chilean capital. | |
| Total population | |
| 28,153 (2024 census) 150,000 to 175,000 (descendants) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Santiago, Valparaíso | |
| Languages | |
| Chilean Spanish, Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino | |
| Religion | |
| Judaism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Peruvian Jews |
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| Jews and Judaism |
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The history of the Jews in Chile dates back to the arrival of Europeans to the country. Over time, Chile has received several contingents of Jewish immigrants. Currently, the Jewish community in Chile comes mainly from the migrations occurring in the 19th and 20th centuries, mostly of Ashkenazi background.
Chile is home to the third-largest Jewish community in South America, with an estimated population of 28,153 people practicing Judaism as of 2024, representing about 0.2% of the total Chilean population. Most of the community is concentrated in Santiago, with smaller groups in other regions. Local sources estimated in 2010 and 2012 that the number of people of Jewish descent ranged from 150,000 to 175,000, making it one of the largest Jewish communities in South America after Argentina and Brazil. Foreign sources, however, estimate that the total number of Chileans with Jewish ancestry is roughly 18,300 (defined as individuals having at least one Jewish parent or grandparent, as well as the spouses of such persons) as of 2019.