Alternate names: Barysaw [Bel], Borisov [Rus, Yid], Borysów [Pol], Baryssau [Ger], Borisovas [Lith], Borissow, Barysaŭ. Located at 5415 2830, 44 miles ENE of Minsk. in Borisov uezd, Minsk guberniya/Oblast, 44.9 miles ENE of Minsk. ShtetLink: JOWBR: Yizkor. Belarus SIG newsletter article.1900 Jewish population: 7,722. [March 2009]
I visited the Jewish cemetery in Borisov in October 1996 with local residents, Boris Gitlin and former resident (now in Israel) Alexander Rosenbloom. A few hundred gravestones exist, most carved out of rough boulders, dating from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Only some have last names. Many are in poor condition but many are quite legible. A modern section, still-active, has fine Russian-language tombstones, most with pictures of the deceased, and is in the front of the cemetery near the entrance. A monument to local Jews killed by Stalin also stands at the entrance of the cemetery. A second Jewish cemetery that I did not visit exists and was active from about the 1920's. Subsequently closed, burials continued in the old cemetery. On the outskirts of town, near an airfield, is a mass grave of 9,000 Jews from Borisov and nearby Zembin who were killed by the Nazis. An impressive monument, with signs in Russian and Yiddish, mark the site. Source: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 12 Monroe Place #2, Brooklyn, NY 11201, (718) 625-1058;
There are two Jewish cemeteries, the inactive one is in the newer part of the city where burials started a little before W.W.II (so people say). The active second cemetery is in the older part of the city. The person in charge of the active cemetery is Genadi Krasnik, who brought me to this cemetery. From my relative, Alexander Rosenbloom, I heard that there was also a third cemetery moved in 1930 to which we went. The cemetery is pretty big and has two types of burials. The older style of burying, which started at the beginning of the 19th century, spreads from one end of the cemetery to the other. The modern style of burying is done at the other end, to which direction the older buhrodnorying is advancing and even encroaching. The older style is more or less uniform: a stone tablet standing, rounded on top, humble text without praises and descriptions. For the men, it is written often "The Righteous and Honest Man", and for women "The Humble Woman". Despite the fact that the entire area is fenced off, passersby who wish to take shortcuts make gaps here and there. The older graves are bending from age; and some even are pushed down deliberately by vandalism. Grass grows over the entire area, which is used as food by the cows grazing there. Only the part with newer graves received fairly good care. I was given a list of those buried in the newer part until 1995 by Mr. Krasnik to pass on to Alexander Rosenbloom. This list includes family names, first names, and father's names as well as dates of birth and death. (All the names have been changed to the masculine). Source: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
"Unidentified assailants have smashed dozens of Jewish tombstones in Belarus, prompting Jewish activists to accuse Belarusian authorities Friday of inaction amid a string of anti-Semitic incidents. ... 19 tombstones destroyed at one cemetery in ... Minsk. ... Last week, more than 70 tombstones were desecrated in the city of Borisov east of Minsk, and police arrested some teenagers suspected of committing the attack... " Source: Ha'aretz English Edition: July 22, 2002-Av 13, 5762. [July 2002]
2007 vandalism: "16 Jewish memorials were broken on the cemetery. /In Barysau the criminal case was brought in May - soon after the act of vandalism. Then 16 monuments were broken on Jewish cemeteries.But, according to the head of local Jewish organization Mikhal Perats, the militia hasn't found the evil-doers:"The official answer - the identity of the criminals has not been established. And nothing more. The similar affair was in 1998. It repeated this year, but the result is the same. The governmental structures don't help us", - said Perats.Babruisk: "Stars of David on gallows are drawn. "People in Babruisk speak not only about impunity of the vandals. They say Aliaksandr Lukashenka's statements about Jews, he said 12 October, are provoking the unpredictable behavior of anti-Semites."It the town, where anti-Semitism is flourishing. The walls are drawn with the RNU (Russian National Unity) symbols. Stars of David on gallows are drawn. The inscriptions such as "Jews get away!" appear. And the authorities turn a blind eye to these facts", - Babruisk dweller Ales Chyhir said.
Cemetery photos. Photos. Other photos. [February 2010]
Burial list [October 2010]
Photo from Facebook [February 2017]
