The significance of German Jews for the city and province of Groningen:Migration movements in the Eems-Dollard region 1740-1940

To reach the city of Groningen from the nearby East Frisia and Emslandareas, there was only one possible way via land: crossing the border fromBunde to Nieuweschans and continuing through Winschoten to the city. Thisroute traversed extensive moorlands, which stretched into Germany. Apartfrom geographical similarities, these Dutch and German border regions alsoshared a common language and economic circumstances. For centuries thisregion functioned as one territory, and many marriages took place betweenfamilies from opposite sides of the border, as attested by the identical nameson tombstones in the cemeteries.This paper will focus on the Jewish communities of the socalledEems-Dollard Region. The city of Groningen lies close to the German border and far from Amsterdam: this determines the assumption that the presence and significance of German Jews must have been extensive. In this paper I will attempt to verify whether this assumption is correct