Kiryas Joel (New York) קרית יואל

The Name

Kiryas Joel is named after the Satmar Rebbe, Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum, who was the spirit behind the project ^[1]. Today the village is coterminous with the Town of Palm Tree — and the name "Palm Tree" is a translation of the name Teitelbaum: in Yiddish, "teitel" means a date palm, and "boim" means a tree ^[1].

History

Satmar Chassidim trace their origins to the city of Satmar (Satu Mare) in Romania, known under Hungarian rule as Szatmár ^[1]. After World War II, Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum rebuilt Satmar Chassidus anew, and in 1947 he settled with his Chassidim in Williamsburg ^[1].

In the 1970s the Rebbe decided to move the growing community to a more secluded location in the Town of Monroe, far from the harmful influences of the street, yet close enough to New York ^[1]. The land was purchased in the early 1970s, and in the summer of 1974 the first 14 Satmar families settled there ^[1]. Monroe officials were skeptical at first, but in 1976 the village was officially incorporated ^[1].

When Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum passed away in 1979, he was the first to be buried in the village's cemetery; according to reports, more than 100,000 people attended the levaya ^[1]. In 1985 the Satmar Rebbe, Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum, appointed his son, Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum, as Rav of Kiryas Joel ^[2].

In 2019 Kiryas Joel separated from the Town of Monroe and became part of the new Town of Palm Tree — the first new town in New York State in 38 years ^[1].

Population

According to the 2020 Census, 32,954 people lived in Kiryas Joel; the median age was 14.4, and 58.7 percent of residents were under 18 ^[1]. According to the 2000 Census, 91.5 percent spoke Yiddish at home ^[1]. Kiryas Joel has some 100 batei midrash, most of them Satmar, as well as shuls of Tosh, Spinka, Toldos Aharon and Breslov ^[2].

Abraham Wieder has been mayor of Kiryas Joel since 1997 ^[1].