The Torah begins with G-D creating the world and humanity. This is the starting point of traditional Jewish chronology.
Year 1 · 3761–3760 BCE · Traditional Chronology
The Flood
Noach and his household survive the Flood in the Tevah. The covenant afterwards binds humanity to a renewed responsibility.
1656 AM · c. 2105 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Birth of Avraham
Avraham, the first patriarch, is born. His life becomes a foundation of covenant, hospitality and service to Hashem.
1948 AM · c. 1813 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Dispersion at Bavel
The building of the tower ends in the confusion of languages and the dispersion of peoples. Human ambition encounters Divine limits.
1996 AM · c. 1765 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Leaving Mitzrayim
Israel leaves bondage in Mitzrayim. Liberation leads towards covenant and the responsibilities of freedom.
2448 AM · c. 1313 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Giving of the Torah
At Sinai, Israel enters the covenant of Torah. Its commandments shape the duties of the individual and the community.
2448 AM · c. 1313 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Entering the Land
Under Yehoshua, Israel crosses the Jordan and enters the Land. A new period of settlement and communal responsibility begins.
2488 AM · c. 1273 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
First Temple completed
Shlomo completes the First Temple in Jerusalem. It becomes the central place of national worship and sacred service.
2935 AM · c. 827 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Division of the Kingdom
After Shlomo, the kingdom divides into Judah and Israel. Political separation brings enduring religious and communal consequences.
2964 AM · c. 797 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
First Temple destroyed
Babylon destroys the First Temple and Jerusalem. Exile becomes a defining wound in Jewish memory and prayer.
3338 AM · c. 423 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Second Temple completed
The returned exiles complete the Second Temple. Jewish life is rebuilt around worship, Torah and renewed communal institutions.
3412 AM · c. 349 BCE · Traditional Chronology · Approx.
Second Temple destroyed
Roman forces destroy the Second Temple. Its loss reshapes Jewish life, while Torah study and communal institutions sustain the people.
3829–3830 AM · 70 CE
Redaction of the Mishnah
Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi gathers and arranges the Mishnah, preserving a foundational body of oral teaching for later generations.
c. 3960 AM · c. 200 CE · Approx.
Formation of the Bavli
Generations of debate and teaching form the Babylonian Talmud. Its discussions become central to Jewish learning and halakhic reasoning.
c. 4260 AM · c. 500 CE · Approx.
Rhineland Massacres
During the First Crusade, attackers devastate Jewish communities in the Rhineland. Their victims are remembered among those killed for their faith.
4856 AM · 1096
Mishneh Torah
Rambam completes his systematic code of Jewish law. The Mishneh Torah brings a vast range of halakhic subjects into an ordered whole.
c. 4940 AM · c. 1180 · Approx.
York Massacre
Besieged by an anti-Jewish mob, the Jews sheltering in York Castle face catastrophe. Around 150 die in the massacre and collective deaths.
4950 AM · 16 March 1190
Expulsion from England
Edward I orders the Jews to leave England. Families lose homes and communities through a royal policy of exclusion.
5050–5051 AM · 1290
Black Death persecutions
False accusations that Jews poisoned wells fuel massacres during the plague. Communities are attacked and destroyed across parts of Europe.
5108–5110 AM · 1348–1349
Expulsion from Spain
Spain orders Jews who refuse conversion to depart. Exiles carry Sephardi learning, language and customs into communities across the Mediterranean and beyond.
5252 AM · 1492
Shulchan Aruch printed
Rabbi Yosef Karo’s Shulchan Aruch is printed in Venice. It becomes a central reference for practical Halakha and Sephardi legal tradition.
5325–5326 AM · 1565
Massacres of 1648–1649
During the uprising led by Khmelnytsky, Jewish communities suffer massacres and displacement. Survivors preserve the memory through chronicles and lament.
5408–5409 AM · 1648–1649
Jewish Community in Edinburgh
An organised Jewish congregation takes shape in Edinburgh. Sources differ between 1816 and 1817 for its foundation.
c. 5576–5577 AM · c. 1816–1817 · Approx.
Jewish MP takes his seat
Lionel de Rothschild takes his seat in the House of Commons after the oath barrier is removed for Jewish members.
5618 AM · 26 July 1858
Russian Empire Pogroms
A wave of anti-Jewish attacks spreads through the Russian Empire. Families face violence, looting and the destruction of homes and livelihoods.
5641–5645 AM · 1881–1884
Kishinev Pogrom
A pogrom in Kishinev brings murder, injury and widespread destruction. The attack shocks Jewish communities and exposes the insecurity of Jewish life.
5663 AM · April 1903
Civil-War Pogroms
Amid civil war after the Russian Revolution, armed groups perpetrate pogroms. Tens of thousands of Jews are murdered.
5678–5681 AM · 1918–1920
The Shoah
Nazi Germany and its allies and collaborators persecute and murder six million Jews. Families and communities are destroyed across Europe.
5693–5705 AM · 1933–1945
November Pogrom
The Nazi-organised November pogrom, known as Kristallnacht, targets synagogues, Jewish homes and businesses. Jews are murdered and thousands are imprisoned.
5699 AM · 9–10 November 1938
The Farhud
During Shavuot in Baghdad, anti-Jewish mobs murder, injure and loot. The Farhud leaves a deep wound in Iraqi Jewish memory.
5701 AM · 1–2 June 1941
Kielce Pogrom
After the Shoah, Jews in Kielce are attacked and murdered. The massacre demonstrates that survival did not bring an end to antisemitic violence.
5706 AM · 4 July 1946
State of Israel established
The establishment of the State of Israel is declared in Tel Aviv. Jewish sovereignty is renewed in the Land of Israel.
5 Iyar 5708 AM · 14 May 1948
Jerusalem in 1967
During the Six-Day War, Israel takes control of the Old City of Jerusalem. Jewish access to the Western Wall is restored.
28 Iyar 5727 AM · 7 June 1967
Simchat Torah Massacre
Hamas-led terrorists attack southern Israel on Shabbat and Simchat Torah, murdering civilians and taking hostages. Communities suffer devastating loss.
22 Tishri 5784 AM · 7 October 2023
Our Generation
Jewish history continues through learning, prayer, family and communal responsibility. Each generation receives an inheritance and bears responsibility for its future.
Beth Israel SynagogueLearning · Service · Continuity
One Organisation. A Shared Purpose.
Welcome to Hebrew Synagogue.
Hebrew Synagogue is a Scotland-based company limited by guarantee, operating Beth Israel Synagogue and a family of services supporting learning, community welfare and Jewish life.
We affirm that dividing Judaism into “Orthodox, Conservative and Reform” is an artificial construct. All Jews share one תורה. There are more-observant Jews and less-observant Jews, but we remain one people.
We describe our approach as Tanakh-Observant. The Tanakh is the foundational and controlling authority in Jewish observance. We study and value the Oral Torah and later rabbinic authorities as sources of interpretation, tradition and wisdom, provided that their application neither contradicts nor circumvents the clear meaning and commandments of the Tanakh.
Hebrew Synagogue Text Repository
Preserved Faithfully. Shared Freely.
Read the Tanakh
We are building a public collection of Jewish texts for reading and study, beginning with the original Hebrew of the Tanakh and the agreed Aramaic text of the Holy Zohar.
English and Yiddish translations will be added progressively, passage by passage, under the established HS editorial and publishing rules.
The collection is being prepared for lasting access: faithful texts, consistent references and a continuing commitment to accuracy.
Browse the Text Repository. Imported Hebrew and Aramaic texts are available now. English and Yiddish translations are added as they are approved.
The HS Family
Our Services and Programmes.
Distinct activities, connected by a shared commitment to learning and Community Life.
Our adult programmes bring together traditional learning, Hebrew language instruction and wider educational study, with opportunities to learn in person and online.
Teaching and assessments will be delivered in English, with Hebrew used where required for Hebrew language instruction and the study of original texts.
Course details and enrolment will be published as the new platform develops.
Our New Platform
A Growing Home for HS.
This is the first stage of our renewed website. English, Hebrew and Yiddish access, registered accounts and individual services are being developed progressively.
Enquiries and applications through the platform will require a registered account. Create your account or Sign In.