The Levy Maduro Families of Nicaragua

In the history of Jewish families throughout the world, Nicaragua is not often mentioned. In fact the Jewish population in that country has probably never been more than a couple of hundred people. The majority of modern day Jews began arriving in Nicaragua from Eastern Europe in the later part of the 1920's. The majority of them settled in Managua, the capital city. The Jewish population before this time is rarely if ever mentioned.

The fact they Jews are not mentioned before this time does not mean they didn't exist. In the records of the Jew's of St. Thomas, we find records of some residents of Nicaragua. Amazingly the three main families that recorded births from Nicaragua are all from the same family. In Leon, Abraham Haim Levy Maduro and his wife Anne have daughters Judith (1866) and Hilda (1874). Also in Leon, Elias Levy Maduro and his wife Anna, have sons Samuel (1869) and Jacob (1870). A third member of the family, Solomon Levy Maduro, a merchant and his wife Esther Lindo, record the birth of a son, Edward (1901) in the city of Grenada.

Amazingly, this family appears to be in Nicaragua 60 years before the first mention of Jews in Managua. Were they the only Jewish families at that time, or were their others that helped build a foundation for later families. This search should be interesting.

The records of the Jews of St. Thomas have now been added to the Jews of the Caribbean database and will be available after the next update.