Old Jewish Cemetery of Tangier, Rue du Portugal

This is the older of Tangier’s two Jewish cemeteries and was among the first structures built outside the old medina walls. Le Journal de Tanger dates it to the end of the 18th century; a 2007 survey judged that some stones are probably older, possibly from the 16th century. Burials continued into the 20th century. A new cemetery opened on the road to Rabat in 1935, and sources place the last burials here between the late 1930s and about 1950.

The cemetery belongs to the municipality of Tangier, which pays caretakers to look after it. In 2021 the Tangier Jewish community included it in a heritage circuit with the medina synagogues and the new Jewish museum, and renovation and tomb cleaning have been reported.

A continuous masonry wall with a locking gate encloses the site. Inside, most graves are marked with white stones. You will see flat, shaped Sephardic slabs laid over the grave, double tombstones, and a few graves enclosed by metal railings with inscriptions in English and Hebrew. Many inscriptions are in Spanish, reflecting the Judeo-Spanish heritage of the community.

Le Journal de Tanger notes the tombs of great rabbis of Tangier and of the city’s first independent dayanim (rabbinical judges). Among them is Rabbi Mordechai Bengio, venerated as a saint, whose tomb families still visit.

The setting is part of the experience: the cemetery sits right on the edge of the medina, hemmed in by buildings, with views over the port. Erosion and water damage have been long-standing problems, and in 2007 many older stones were cracked or toppled. Renovation and tomb cleaning have since been reported.

The tombstone inscriptions have been digitised, and an online map of the graves, searchable by name and date of death, has been published. Before you travel we can help you search it, so you arrive knowing where to look. Bring full names in Hebrew, Spanish or French and an approximate date of death. Not every stone is legible, so a record cannot always be matched to a grave on the ground.

Our Jewish roots trip guide explains how we prepare these searches, and the Tangier and Tetouan guide covers the region’s other cemeteries.

The cemetery is closed and guarded; caretakers open it by day. In 2019 entry was free and donations towards maintenance were welcome. Dress modestly, walk on the paths and never on the slabs, and ask before photographing other families’ graves. Caretakers may ask why you have come; a short explanation, or a guide who knows them, makes entry easier. It lies just outside the medina walls, close to the American Legation.

Families with later burials should also look at the newer cemetery on the road to Rabat, inaugurated in 1935. Sources give its size as roughly 10,000 to 20,000 square metres, and it has already been renovated. A roots visit to Tangier often includes both.