Old Jewish Cemetery of Larache

Jews expelled from Spain settled in Larache from the start, and Portuguese crypto-Jews (families who had lived as nominal Christians) later came directly by sea from the Algarve. Under the Spanish Protectorate, Larache had the largest Sephardic population in the zone after Tetouan and Tangier. Departures began after Moroccan independence in 1956, and a 2012 account says the last Jews had left only a few years earlier.

The old cemetery closed in 1930, when the new one opened next to it. Its decline accelerated from the early 1970s, when no Jewish community remained in the town. In July 2010 local residents raised the alarm about the state of the cemeteries, and a campaign led by Carlos Amselem, with Jewish and non-Jewish Larache residents behind it, pressed for their repair.

The Moroccan Jewish community took on the work, with community leader Serge Berdugo personally behind the decision. Restoration of the old cemetery began in October 2013 and was complete by early 2014. Seventeen workers removed 91 truckloads of earth and debris, reinforced walls and rebuilt damaged tombs where they could. Under about a metre of soil they found anthropomorphic tombstones of the kind called “Castilla” in Tetouan, dating from the first generations of exiles. By February 2014 Amselem had photographed 93 identifiable headstones, and the tomb of the revered Rebbi Moshe Benchluch was restored.

Upkeep has not lasted. In 2017 Amselem reported that the newer cemetery had been neglected again, and a visitor in March 2022 described the old one as “quite neglected and run down” while the new one was being renovated. Sources disagree on whether Larache has two Jewish cemeteries or three.

If your family came from Larache, the 2013–14 photographs of identifiable headstones are the best starting point. We can try to trace whether those records are available, but we cannot promise that a particular grave survives or can be read. Our Jewish roots trip guide explains how we prepare.

In 2022 a local caretaker held the keys to both Larache Jewish cemeteries, so visits must be arranged in advance; we do this when we plan the trip. Dress modestly, cover your head, and walk carefully, as uneven ground and broken stones are likely. Larache makes an easy stop on the Atlantic coast road between Tangier and Rabat, combined with Asilah.