How did the first Jews support themselves when they came to Norway?
How was Jewish daily life in Trondheim before the Second World War?
What happened to the Jews from Trondheim during the Second World War?

The history of the Jews in Norway is short compared to other European countries because Jews did not settle in the country until 1851. The first Jews in Trondheim came to the city around the 1880s. A rich Jewish social and religious community grew, and they actively participated in sports, the cultural scene, and social debates. The integration in the new country had come far when catastrophe struck in 1940. The German occupation of Norway led to a series of discriminating anti-Jewish measures, and later to the deportation and annihilation of the Jewish population of Trondheim and Norway.

With the peace came the terrible truth that almost none of those who were deported were coming back. Post-war times were tough for the Norwegian Jews who survived, however, the Jewish life was slowly built up again.

The educational programme “Home. Gone. The Jews from Trondheim” will give students an introduction to the history of the Jews from Trondheim and what happened in the city during the Second World War. The students get to explore the exhibition “Home. Gone. Holocaust in Trondheim” and the app “Home. Gone”. Here the students will gain knowledge of Norwegian-Jewish history through individuals and families. These histories makes the Jewish history more concrete and alive, and they give an insight into the different fates the Jewish people met during the war.

The students will work in groups with one historical person from the exhibition which they will present for the rest of the class. The groups will also get a historical source where they will gain first-hand experience of historical source material connected to events during the Second World War in Norway. In addition, through this session, the students will also learn about the term antisemitism, and how this and other examples of prejudice can lead to.

Read more about the exhibition here.