Map - Endingen, Switzerland (Endingen)

Endingen ( Swiss German: ) is a municipality in the district of Zurzach in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.

In the 18th and 19th century, Endingen was one of few villages in which Swiss Jews were permitted to settle. Old buildings in Endingen have two doors – one for Jews and one for Christians. Endigen's synagogue and Jewish cemetery are listed as a heritage site of national significance. Unusually for Swiss villages, there is no Christian church.

On 1 January 2014 the former municipality of Unterendingen merged into the municipality of Endingen.

Individual items from the Neolithic and Bronze Age have been discovered around Endingen. In the Early Middle Ages the Alamanni settled in the area. The modern village of Endingen is first mentioned in 798 as Entingas. Until 1945 it was known as Oberendingen. During the High Middle Ages the major landholders in village included Regensberg, the Bishop of Constance, the Freiherr of Tegerfelden and the lords of Endingen. Starting in the 13th century the village was under the Habsburgs. After the conquest of the Aargau in 1415 by the Swiss Confederation it was part of the high court of the bailiff of Baden. The low court rights lay with Sankt Blasien Abbey in the Black Forest. The land herrschaft rights were held by a number of different owners.

In accordance with the resolution of the Tagsatzung in 1678, Jews were allowed to settle in the communities of the Surb valley. After 1776, they were further restricted to living in only Endingen and Lengnau. This immigration slowly but steadily changed the appearance of the community. The village never built a Christian church, only a Jewish synagogue. The local Christians traveled to neighboring villages for church. The Jewish and Christian families are often under one roof. In the middle of the 19th century the village had about 2,000 inhabitants, about half Jews and half Christians. By comparison, the town of Baden had about 1,500 people at the same time. The Jewish population was fairly well tolerated (except for the Zwetschgenkrieg or "plum war" riots in 1802), self-managed and maintained its own school. In 1879 a Jewish village of Neu-Endingen was built. It remained mostly independent until 1983 when it merged back into the village of Endingen.

However, even though they were nearly a majority in Endingen, the Jewish residents were only allowed to enter a few professions, such as trade. Houses were built with two separate entrances, one for Jews and one for Christians. They were under the high and low courts of the Baden bailiff and had to buy "protection and safety" letters from the authorities. It wasn't until 1876 that Jews were granted full equality in civil rights and allowed to travel. By 1920, most Jews had left the community.

Since 1661, the Catholics in Endingen have been part of the parish of Unterendingen (previously Zurzach), while the Reformed members are part of the Tegerfelden parish. The only house of worship in the synagogue of Endingen. It was built in 1764 and rebuilt in 1852.