Editing Culture of France (section)

===Judaism===
{{Main|History of the Jews in France}}
The current [[Religions in France|Jewish community in France]] numbers around 600,000, according to the [[World Jewish Congress]] and 500,000 according to the Appel Unifié Juif de France. It is concentrated in the metropolitan areas of Paris, [[Marseille]] and [[Strasbourg]].

The history of the Jews in France dates back over 2,000 years. In the early [[Middle Ages]], France was a center of Jewish learning, but persecution increased as the Middle Ages wore on. France was the first country in Europe to emancipate its Jewish population during the [[French Revolution]], but despite legal equality anti-Semitism remained an issue, as illustrated in the [[Dreyfus affair]] of the late 19th century. However, through the 1870 ''[[Cremieux Decree|Décret Crémieux]]'', France secured full [[citizenship]] for the Jews in then French-ruled [[Algeria]]. Despite the death of a quarter of all French Jews during the [[Holocaust]], France currently has the largest [[Jewish population]] in Europe.

In the early 21st century, French Jews are mostly [[Sephardi Jews|Sephardic]] and of North African origins. More than a quarter of the historic Ashkenazi Jewish community was destroyed during the [[Holocaust]] of World War II after German forces occupied France and established the [[Vichy Regime]]. Jewish religious affiliations range from the ultra-Orthodox [[Haredi]] communities to the large segment of Jews who are secular and identify culturally as Jews.