From the 13th century, the Jewish community of La Seu d’Urgell became one of the most prosperous of the Catalan Pyrenees. Unlike other Jewish communities, those from La Seu were closely related to those originating from the South of France rather than the Sephardic Jews coming from the rest of the Iberian Peninsula.
The Jews of Urgell did not all live in the same neighbourhood or on the same street, as happened in other cities of the Crown of Aragon, but lived in different parts of the city, in close coexistence with their neighbours. It is possible that the old synagogue, rebuilt in 1391, had been located on the street which is now known as Carrer de Sant Emigdi.
The Jews of La Seu were devoted to business, money lending and other more or less skilled trades. We know the names of some of the members of the Jewish community, such as the Cohens, Mazeres, Bonció, the Bonmacips, the Marmandas, Bendits and Vidals.
