A yeshiva is a Jewish highest religious educational institution. It was built in Mir in 1815. The Mir’s yeshiva was the second most important in the Belarusian-Lithuanian lands after Valožyn’s. It was closed in 1939 after the accession of Western Belarus to the BSSR.

The Mir’s yeshiva is a rectangular building with a four-pitched roof. Rectangular windows and an unadorned facade give the building a seasoned, strict look.

The yeshiva was founded in 1815 by the authoritative connoisseur of the Torah, Šmueĺ Cikcinski. Later in the affairs of managing the institution Šmueĺ was assisted by his son. In 1835 the father and the son tragically died and the local rabbi led the yeshiva. In 1850, the legacy of Šmueĺ Cikcinski in Mir was continued by his grandson Chaim-Liejb Cikcinski – also a connoisseur of the Torah. At the end of the XIX century, the famous rabbi Elijahu-Baruch Kamaj was invited to manage the Mir’s yeshiva. This fact further increased the credibility of the institution.

The year 1939 became tragic for the Mir’s yeshiva. With the outbreak of World War II, Western Belarus was accessed to the BSSR. As a result of anti-religious policies, Jews, like representatives of other faiths, suffered persecution from the Soviet government. In the same 1939, the Mir’s yeshiva was closed and moved to Viĺnia. It existed there until 1940, until the time when Lithuania was annexed to the USSR. In 1940, Japan gave the staff of the yeshiva the opportunity to leave the USSR.

Now the building of the yeshiva is partially renovated, but continues to be empty.

Publication date: 17.08.2020.

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