Judenrat

A Judenrat (German: [ˈjuːdn̩ˌʁaːt], lit. 'Jewish council') was an administrative body, established in any zone of German-occupied Europe during World War II, purporting to represent its Jewish community in dealings with the Nazi authorities. The Germans required Jews to form Judenräte within occupied territories at local and sometimes national levels.

Judenräte were particularly common in Nazi ghettos in Eastern Europe where in some cases, such as the Łódź Ghetto, and in Theresienstadt, they were known as the "Jewish Council of Elders" (Jüdischer Ältestenrat or Ältestenrat der Juden). Jewish communities themselves had established councils for self-government as early as the Middle Ages. The Jewish community used the Hebrew term Kahal (קהל) or Kehillah (קהילה), whereas the German authorities generally used the term Judenräte.