Jewish Cemetery, Kolkata (Calcutta)

Jewish Cemetery

Phoolbagan, Narkeldanga Main Road, Kolkata (Calcutta)

Also See: Kolkata (Calcutta ) Jews

“The synagogue’s members followed a custom ……… of depositing their writing in a special chamber in the synagogue so that they could be disposed of with special rites later. The chamber in which the documents were kept were known by the term ‘Geniza,’ a word that thought to have come into Hebrew from a Persian root, ganj, meaning ‘storehouse’ – a common element in place – names in India and Iran, …. like ‘Ballygunge’ and ‘Daltongunj.'”

Amitav Ghosh, In An Antique Land

The Geniza towers above the graves of Jewish Cemetery, Kolkata (Calcutta)

It may seem strange that common localities in Kolkata (Calcutta), like Ballygunge and Tollygunge, have derived their name from Geniza, the store house of abandoned Jewish religious text!!!!

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