Educational Institutions in Monastir

Until 1863, Monastir had one Talmud Torah that taught traditional Jewish studies, including the Hebrew alphabet and the translation of the Torah word by word to Ladino. The city also had a kindergarten for children aged three to six, with their teachers involved mainly in looking after them but also engaging them in songs and stories.

1910 – Students at the Catholic school in Monastir, among them Jewish students. The school was run by the French Lazarite Order
Class of children, Monastir
Class of girls at the Jewish school in Monastir, prewar. The girls are holding their school certificates
Fourth grade students at a school in Monastir, 1937

In 1868, a school was established in Monastir by the Lazarite Order, in which six Jewish students studied. In 1869, the Lazarites set up a school for Jewish children, in which Torah studies, Turkish and Greek was taught by Jewish, Turkish and Greek teachers.

In addition to the Talmud Torah, in 1893 the community established a modern school of its own supported by the Alliance, headed by a teacher from Saloniki. The school offered courses in carpentry, blacksmithery, wagon-driving and more. Some two years later, an elementary school opened. Many of the Jewish students already enrolled in the Greek, Turkish and French schools opted to move to the new Jewish school, which was mixed. In 1903, the Alliance opened a school for girls in Monastir.

In 1902, 158 students were learning in the schools, of which 70 were exempted from paying fees due to their parents’ dire financial situation. In 1904, there were 357 students, over half of them girls.

In addition to these studies, some parents chose to continue sending their children to the Talmud Torah.