The presence of Jews in Transylvania is first mentioned in the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, prince Gabriel Bethlen permitted Sephardi Jews from Turkey to settle in the Transylvanian capital Gyulafehérvár (Alba Iulia), in 1623.

In the early 18th century, Jews were allowed to settle in Sathmar.
Some of them became involved in large-scale agriculture, becoming landlords or lessees, or were active in trade and industry, or distilled brandy and leased taverns on crown estates.
In 1715, when Sathmar became a royal town, they were expelled, beginning to resettle in the 1820s.
In 1841, several Jews obtained the permission to settle permanently in Sathmar; the first Jewish community was formally established in 1849, and in 1857, a synagogue was built.
After a great number of traditional Ashkenazic Jews had settled in the town, the Jewish community split in 1898, when a supporter of the Hasidic movement was elected chief rabbi, into an Orthodox and a Status Quo community, led by a Zionist rabbi, which erected a synagogue in 1904.

In the 1920s, there were several Zionist organizations in Satu Mare, and the yeshiva, one of the largest in the region, was attended by 400 students.
In 1930, the city had five large synagogues and about 20 shtiebels.
In 1928, a conflict within the Orthodox community broke out over the election of a new chief rabbi, lasting six years and ending in 1934 with the appointment of the Hasidic rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, a traditionalist and anti-Zionist, who later re-founded the Satmar Hasidic dynasty in Williamsburg, New York.
Another Hasidic rabbi, Aharon Roth, the founder of the Shomrei Emunim and Toldot Aharon communities in Jerusalem, was also active in Satu Mare.

After Satu Mare became part of Hungary again in 1940, the civil rights and economic activities of the Jews were restricted, and in summer 1941, "foreign" Jews were deported to Kamenets-Podolski, where they were murdered by Hungarian and German troops.
In 1944, the Jewish population was forced into the Satu Mare ghetto; the majority of men were sent to  forced labor battalions, and the others were deported to the extermination camps in Poland, where the majority of them were murdered by the Nazis.
Six trains left Satu Mare for Auschwitz-Birkenau, starting on May 19, 1944, each carrying approximately 3300 persons.
The trains passed through Kassa (Košice) on May 19, 22, 26, 29, 30, and June 1.
In total, 18,863 Jews were deported from Satu Mare, Carei and the surrounding localities.
Of these, 14,440 were killed.
Only a small number of the survivors returned to Satu Mare after the war, but a number of Jews belonging to linguistically and culturally different groups from all parts of Romania settled in the city.
The majority of them later emigrated to Israel.
By 1970, the town's Jewish population numbered 500, and in 2011, only 34 Jews remained.

In 2004, a Holocaust memorial was dedicated in the Decebal Street Synagogue's courtyard.
Aside from the synagogues, two Jewish cemeteries also remain.

Among the notable members of the local Jewish community have been historian Ignác Acsády, parliamentary deputies Ferenc Chorin and Kelemen Samu, politician Oszkár Jászi, writers Gyula Csehi, Rodion Markovits, Sándor Dénes, and Ernő Szép, painter Pál Erdös, and director György Harag.
The presence of Jews in Transylvania is first mentioned in the late 16th century. In the 17th century, prince Gabriel Bethlen permitted Sephardi Jews from Turkey to settle in the Transylvanian capital Gyulafehérvár (Alba Iulia), in 1623.
In the early 18th century, Jews were allowed to settle in Sathmar. Some of them became involved in large-scale agriculture, becoming landlords or lessees, or were active in trade and industry, or distilled brandy and leased taverns on crown estates. In 1715, when Sathmar became a royal town, they were expelled, beginning to resettle in the 1820s. In 1841, several Jews obtained the permission to settle permanently in Sathmar; the first Jewish community was formally established in 1849, and in 1857, a synagogue was built. After a great number of traditional Ashkenazic Jews had settled in the town, the Jewish community split in 1898, when a supporter of the Hasidic movement was elected chief rabbi, into an Orthodox and a Status Quo community, led by a Zionist rabbi, which erected a synagogue in 1904.
In the 1920s, there were several Zionist organizations in Satu Mare, and the yeshiva, one of the largest in the region, was attended by 400 students. In 1930, the city had five large synagogues and about 20 shtiebels. In 1928, a conflict within the Orthodox community broke out over the election of a new chief rabbi, lasting six years and ending in 1934 with the appointment of the Hasidic rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, a traditionalist and anti-Zionist, who later re-founded the Satmar Hasidic dynasty in Williamsburg, New York. Another Hasidic rabbi, Aharon Roth, the founder of the Shomrei Emunim and Toldot Aharon communities in Jerusalem, was also active in Satu Mare. 
After Satu Mare became part of Hungary again in 1940, the civil rights and economic activities of the Jews were restricted, and in summer 1941, "foreign" Jews were deported to Kamenets-Podolski, where they were murdered by Hungarian and German troops. In 1944, the Jewish population was forced into the Satu Mare ghetto; the majority of men were sent to  forced labor battalions, and the others were deported to the extermination camps in Poland, where the majority of them were murdered by the Nazis. Six trains left Satu Mare for Auschwitz-Birkenau, starting on May 19, 1944, each carrying approximately 3300 persons. The trains passed through Kassa (Košice) on May 19, 22, 26, 29, 30, and June 1. In total, 18,863 Jews were deported from Satu Mare, Carei and the surrounding localities. Of these, 14,440 were killed. Only a small number of the survivors returned to Satu Mare after the war, but a number of Jews belonging to linguistically and culturally different groups from all parts of Romania settled in the city. The majority of them later emigrated to Israel. By 1970, the town's Jewish population numbered 500, and in 2011, only 34 Jews remained.
In 2004, a Holocaust memorial was dedicated in the Decebal Street Synagogue's courtyard. Aside from the synagogues, two Jewish cemeteries also remain.
Among the notable members of the local Jewish community have been historian Ignác Acsády, parliamentary deputies Ferenc Chorin and Kelemen Samu, politician Oszkár Jászi, writers Gyula Csehi, Rodion Markovits, Sándor Dénes, and Ernő Szép, painter Pál Erdös, and director György Harag.
Satu Mare