Jewish Cemeteries in Latvia & Estonia

Cemeteries

In the Regions and Towns sections for each gubernia/region, Courland (Kurzeme/Zemgale), Livland (Vidzeme), and Vitebsk (Latgale), cemetery information is included in the listings of major towns, typically from JOWBR (see below). Some Kehilalinks websites (links included under towns as well) may also contain cemetery data. The links below are additional websites that provide information on Latvian and Estonian cemeteries.

JewishGen Online Worldwide Burial Registry (JOWBR) - The JOWBR cemetery inventory includes 51 cemeteries in Latvia with about 8.500 burials. Roughly 25% of the graves have photos. There are three Estonian cemeteries, with 323 burials. (statistics current as of 6/2021). The JOWBR inventory for Latvia includes more cemeteries than are included in the first draft of our town list, which we expect to expand over time.

The International Jewish Cemetery Project of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS) has sections on Latvia and Estonia, giving an overview of the history of each region, and providing detailed information on the cemeteries and other pertinent facts about each town.

JGuide Europe - Latvia's Jewish Cemeteries - a listing of cemeteries, although not nearly as comprehensive as JOWBR or IAJGS

Liepāja Jewish Cemetery Burials, 1909-1941 - This list of 20th century burials prior to World War II is a separate section of the Liepāja World War II memorial website.

FindaGrave - There are a number of cemeteries in Latvia, including Jewish cemeteries and Holocaust memorials, that show up on FindaGrave. Search "cemeteries" with the country "Latvia." The source of these entries is not known - it is possible they were extracted from other websites, including JOWBR. While there appear to be a high number of Estonian cemeteries, none appear to be Jewish, although there is a Klooga Concentration Camp memorial with six Jewish-sounding names.

Friedhofsproject - Klaus-Peter Rex has a website called the Friedhofsprojekt (Cemetery Project) that organizes volunteers to restore a Latvian cemetery annually. As of June 2021, the project has restored and translated gravestones for cemeteries in Gostini, Viški, Talsi, Preili, Aizpute, Livani, Ventspils, Saldus, Sabile, and Saldus.

Landsmanschaften

The Jewish Genealogical Society of New York has a searchable database of Landsmanschaften (burial societies) in the New York City metropolitan area. The project lists ten Landsmanschaften plots for Latvia in six different cemeteries, which include the cities and towns of Preili, Riga, Griva, Riebini, Rezekne, and Daugavpils, and three societies for the Couland (Kurland) region.

The Latvia Database includes membership information about the Kurlander Young Men's Mutual Aid Society, which was founded in 1889 as a mutual aid society to assist members from towns in Courland.