After the implementation of the land reform act, the village of Židikai, founded in 1568, became a small town by the end of the 17th century. From 1614 Židikai belonged to the Jesuits of Kražiai who had a church built there in 1636. The Swedes burned Židikai down in 1659. The small town suffered from conflagration in 1824, 1825 and 1939. There is mention of a parish school in 1850 and a state primary school was founded there in 1865. Židikai was the township seat from the middle of the 19th century up to 1950.

Židikai is closely associated with the writer Marija Peckauskaite – Šatrijos Ragana, who lived here from 1915 right up to the time of her death in 1930. In Židikai she wrote some of her best work, engaged in charitable work, and founded a Lithuanian school there. The writer is buried in the Židikai cemetery and a redbrick chapel has been built in her honour (the project is by the architect Jonas Mulokas, ill.)

The old part of Židikai is an urban monument; the network of streets and the layout of the square are under a state preservation order. The plan of the small town is radial and began to be formed during the valakai reform when more main streets (there are now 4 of them) were added to the ends of the village street and the widened village street became the square. The plan in essence was being formed up to the beginning of the 19th century. By the square there is a small church of classical structure without a tower characteristic in form of romantic architecture (built by Gelgaudas in 1819). It is an architectural monument. There is a bell tower next to it (1841). In the territory of the urban monument there is a preponderance of 1-2 storey buildings from the first half of the 20th century, but there are also some buildings from the second half of the 20th century, built according to standard projects. There are quite a lot of trees and plants in the square and the streets.

Demographic changes between 1595 and 1979
1595	1614	1690	1833	1880	1897	1923	1959	1970	1979
19 families	46 families	76 families	432	780	1243	948	429	418	577