Overview
The State of Orthodoxy
Assimilation and Birthrate
Analysis by Continent and Country
Analysis by City
1.
OVERVIEW
(top)
The worldwide Jewish population is 13.3
million Jews. Jewish population growth worldwide is close to zero
percent. From 2000 to 2001 it rose 0.3%, compared to worldwide population
growth of 1.4%.
In 2001,
8.3 million Jews lived in the Diaspora and 4.9 million lived in Israel.
Just about half of the world’s Jews reside in the Americas, with about 46
percent in North America. (top)
Approximately 37% of worldwide Jewry lives in Israel. Israel's Jewish
population rose by 1.6% the past year, while the Diaspora population
dropped by 0.5%.
Europe,
including the Asian territories of the Russian Republic and Turkey,
accounts for about 12 percent of the total. Fewer than 2 percent of the
world’s Jews live in Africa and Oceania.
Metropolitan Tel Aviv, with 2.5 million Jews, is the world's largest
Jewish city. It is followed by New York, with 1.9 million, Haifa 655,000,
Los Angeles 621,000, Jerusalem 570,000, and southeast Florida 514,000.
In 2001,
8 countries had a Jewish population of 100,000 or more; another 5
countries had 50,000 or more. There is not a single Diaspora country where
Jews amounted to 2.5 percent of the total population. Only 3 Diaspora
countries had more than 1 percent. Gibraltar (24.0 per 1000), United
States (20.1), Canada (11.9), France (8.8), Uruguay (6.7), Argentina
(5.3), Hungary (5.2), and Australia (5.1)[1]
had the highest ratios.
ESTIMATED
JEWISH POPULATION
BY
CONTINENTS AND MAJOR GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS:
(Figures rounded of to the nearest 100,000)
|
World
Population
13.3 million
|
|||
|
Diaspora
8.35 million
63%
|
Israel
4.95 million
37%
|
||
|
N.
America
6.5 million
46%
|
Europe
1.6 million
12%
|
S.
America, Africa,
Asia,
Australia
5%
|
|
The top twelve Jewish
populations in the world are:
1.
USA
6,500,000
2.
Israel
4,950,000
3.
France
600,000 (750,000)
4.
Canada (5) 364,000
5.
Britain (6) 275,000
6.
Russia
(3/4) 275,000 (650,000)
7.
Argentina
197,000 (250,000)
8.
Ukraine
112,000
9.
Germany 98,000 (115,000)
10.
Brazil
(11) 97,500
11.
South Africa
(12) 88,000 (65,000)
12.
Hungary
(10) 55,000 (100,000)
The placement ratings in parentheses reflect
alternative population estimates.
Divided by
language, the figures look like this:
LANGUAGES OF TOTAL JEWISH POPULATION
Rank Language % In the World % In Diaspora
1. English (US,
U.K, Canada, S.A., Australia)
50.0 75.3
2. Hebrew
(Israel)
34.8
4. Russian
(Russia)
2.8 2.8
5. Ukrainian
(Ukraine)
1.4 4.0
6. French
(France)
4.0 6.2
7. German
(Germany)
0.5 0.7
8. Hungarian
(Hungary
4.0 0.6
Largest Populations
The largest
Jewish populations, by country, outside of the USA and Israel are:
|
Country with the highest number of Jews per
1000 population:
|
Canada (11.8)
(The USA by contrast, has a ratio of 20.1)
|
|
Country with the highest Jewish Day School
attendance:
|
Mexico (90%)
|
|
Country with over 30,000 Jews with the least
amount of kiruv relative to the population:
|
Hungary
|
What this means is that 90% of world Jewry is
contained in only 6 countries. Even if we exclude Israel from these
figures, it takes only eight countries to reach that figure. Of those
eight, three (USA, Canada and the U.K) are English speaking. South Africa
and Australia, also English speaking, are also reckoned in the first 14
countries. North American Anglo Jewry (The United States and Canada)
comprises 71% of the Diaspora and 46.4% of total world Jewry. The total
Jewish Anglo-Saxon population comprises 76.8% of the Diaspora. The other
major language groupings are Hebrew, Russian, French and Spanish.
Considered in isolation, without reference to
the kiruv potential or finances of different places, demographics would
require that these are the countries on which the lions share of outreach
efforts ought to be focused.
Historical Perspective
In 1939, there were 17 million Jews in the
world, and by 1945 only 11 million. While in the 13 years following the
Holocaust the Jewish population grew by one million, it took another 38
years for it to grow another million. These sobering figures reflect how
severely Jewish population growth has slowed down over the past 40 years.
Even a fertility increase of 0.4% will add millions of Jews over the next
50 years. But this is not happening right now.
As we know, the distribution of the Jewish
population now is completely different from before WW II. Europe was
decimated of its Jewish population and Israel and America became the new
major centers of Jewry. France, the Soviet Union and Hungary were the
three Holocaust-hit countries left with reasonable populations. The war
left 250,000 displaced Jews who were mainly supported by the Joint
Distribution Committee until they could relocate.
But there were further changes after the war.
The Moslem countries emptied out, and the world Jewish population has
continued to consolidate over time in fewer countries with large urban
Jewish populations over time. The main counter trend in Europe has been
Germany, with a large Russian immigrant influx of over 100,000 Jews.
The Jews from Arab Moslem countries went in
the main to Israel, but not always. The Algerian Jews, and also
considerable numbers of Moroccans (75,000) and Tunisians (80,000),
especially the more wealthy ones, went to France, doubling the French
community from 300,000 to 600,000 overnight and creating a large Sephardic
presence. (The Algerian Jews had French citizenship already in Algeria and
had automatic rights of immigration to France.) The vitality of Orthodoxy
in France today is largely a result of these immigrants, giving France a
high kiruv potential to this day.
Many people do not realize how large and vital
the Jewish populations of these Moslem-Arab countries were, with our
historical consciousness swamped by Holocaust and pre-Holocaust
literature. A number of these countries would make it to the top ten in
numbers, were they to exist today. Morocco had 285,000 Jews, Iraq 140,000,
Algeria 135,000, Iran 120,000 and Tunisia an estimated 105,000. Several
others would be in the next ten. Libya, which was down to 20 Jews in 1974,
had a population of 48,000 in 1948. Egypt had 75,000. Of these, possibly
the most tragic was Iraq, for the community there had a direct lineage
back to the original exile in Babylonia.
Some 150 Iraqi Jews have managed to leave the country
in the past five years, leaving just 38 Jews in Baghdad, and a handful in
the Kurdish-controlled northern areas of the country. There are just two
or three young people left. Whereas Baghdad once had 53 active synagogues,
only one remains open. Amazingly, Saddam Hussein's regime has in recent
years shown reasonable tolerance toward the Jewish community, even
refurbishing the tombs of Yechezkiel Hanavi and Ezra HaSofer (also
considered sacred by Muslims), as well as that of Yonah.
Current Demographic Shifts
Countries
with growing populations:
(Mainly due to
immigration)
Germany
Canada
Australia
Hong Kong
Panama
Germany is the
fastest growing community of any size due to mass emigration from USSR.
The non-Russian population of Germany is quite small, about 15,000 out of
approximately115,000 Jews today.
Countries with Decreasing Jewish Populations
·
South Africa - now
between 88,000 and 65,000, down from a peak of 120,000 or possibly more.
Immigration primarily to: Sydney, Melbourne, Atlanta, Toronto, Phoenix,
San Diego, Los Angeles, Israel and to a lesser degree London, Manchester,
Perth and New Zealand.
·
Argentina – Leaving for
Mexico City, Miami, Spain and Israel. However, the vast majority of
Argentineans are staying put.
·
Russia – Population
beginning to stabilize due to a developing economy and the Israeli
security situation. However, together with all CIS countries, still
experiencing emigration. Largest current exodus is to Germany, followed by
Israel and the USA.
·
Ukraine – Represents the
biggest immigrant group to the USA over the last 10 years.
·
Mexico – Steady
immigration to the States. However, replenished by immigration from other
Latin American countries to Mexico. Those leaving are much wealthier than
those coming, though immigration to Mexico has positively impacted on its
Judaism. Most Klei Kodesh in Mexico today are from Argentina.
Projections for the Future
One study predicted that in the next 80 years
America's Jewish population would decline by one-third to 3.8 million if
current fertility rates and migration patterns continue[3].
In the same period, according to the study, the number of Jews in Israel
would likely double, swelling to 10 million. The study also anticipated a
severe decline in the number of Jews in the former Soviet Union. By 2080,
the data suggested, the Jewish community there would be virtually
non-existent.
Among the study's conclusions was that Israel
would be home to the world's largest Jewish community as early as 2020,
and the majority of the world's Jews by 2050. Between the years 2030 to
2040 the majority of Jews will be living in Israel rather than in the
Diaspora, where communities are aging.
In 2000, 48.35% of Jewish children 14 and
under lived in Israel. By 2020, that number is expected to reach 59.20%.
The study noted in particular the rapidly
aging Diaspora community, saying that by the year 2080, more than 40
percent of Diaspora Jews would be 65 and older.
Ira Sheskin of the University of Miami, a
principal architect of the 2000 National Jewish Population Survey, which
is currently under way, called the recent projections "a great starting
point for discussion." But, he added: "Think if this were the year 1900,
what could we have predicted? The Holocaust? The State of Israel? The very
concept" of projections "is a difficult one."
2. The State of Orthodoxy (top)
The present estimate for Orthodox Jews in
Eretz Yisrael is between 900 thousand and one million; in North America,
between 550-650 thousand; and in the rest of the world between 120-150
thousand, making for a total of between 1.67-1.8 million[4].
In virtually every city in the world,
institutional Orthodoxy is on the rise. As an example, in 1975 there were
480 Chabad institutions worldwide. By the year 2000, there were 2,600. Or
take the number of Yeshivas and Kollelim that have been established
outside of North America and Israel in the last ten years. Cities that can
be counted here include Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Montevideo, Caracas,
Johannesburg, Cape Town, Moscow, Saratov, Tula, Kiev, Budapest, Berlin and
Manchester amongst others.
In Russia and other former Soviet
countries, Orthodoxy is the overwhelming presence. Claims by Reform in
Russia are widely exaggerated, with many of the Reform communities barely
existing or not at all. Orthodox shuls are the majority in Germany
too, though other streams of Judaism remain well represented. (Below we
will discuss Russia and Germany in greater depth.)
In South Africa, there is no
Conservative, with almost no Reform to speak of. Becoming frum in South
Africa is as legitimate a choice as becoming a lawyer or a doctor. Like
England, Australia and many Southern towns in the USA, a good deal of the
South African Orthodox are mechalelei Shabbos, but would fire the Rabbi if
they caught him breaking Shabbos. South Africa has the most successful
outreach movement of any country outside of Israel. Australia has the
largest Lakewood Kollel in the world (Melborne), though in kiruv terms it
is still waiting to take off.
South America is also dominated
by the Orthodox in the main. Buenos Aires has 50 Orthodox
synagogues, five Conservative, and one Reform. In Uruguay, there
are 14 Orthodox synagogues and a Conservative one. There are some 15
synagogues in Venezuela, all but one considered Orthodox.
Yet, not everywhere is Orthodoxy already at
the forefront. In Hungary, Orthodoxy can boast only one Orthodox
shul and another two minyanim. Most Synagogues are Neolog, which as a
movement is more observant than Conservative, and at least two Neolog
Shuls are fully halachik. However, despite the painful tragedy of
Hungarian Jewry, there is now a little kollel of locals and an initiative
is underway to open a yeshiva. Alternatives to Orthodoxy remain strong in
Brazil as well. Until 1930 the main religious stream was Orthodox. Today
most synagogues are Conservative or Reform. However, there too the
direction is definitely towards Orthodoxy.
In some countries, notably France and
Argentina, there is a notable distinction between Sephardim who are
quite involved with their Judaism, and Ashkenazim, who are overall more
well to do and much more assimilated. In Argentina, 80% of the Jews are
Ashkenazi, but 80% of the frum Jews are Sephardic. Moreover, the religious
population is highly ghettoized, and in one area, Villa Crespo, there is
one Shul left to service a population that may be as high as 50,000 Jews.
The Israeli baal teshuva movement also attracts few Ashkenazim, though
efforts by Shorashim and others are showing that this need not be the
case.
Orthodoxy in Israel
Last
year, the AviChai foundation put out the results of a study it
commissioned on the relationship of Israelis with Judaism in 2000. The
results were in the main very encouraging. While 43% of the population
described itself as non-religious, only 5% of the population described
itself as anti-religious. A majority described themselves as traditional
or more (35% traditional, 12% religious, 5% haredi), and even the secular
population keeps quite a few Mitzvot as we shall see. The Israeli
population still overwhelmingly identifies itself with their Jewish
identity. 98% put up Mezuzahs, and a large majority fast on Yom Kippur,
don’t eat chometz on Pesach, have a Seder and light Menorahs on Chanukah.
Yet, in a
much smaller way, Israelis are beginning to mimic the trends of
personalized religion we wrote about Americans in our last edition. On the
one hand belief in G-d is slightly up from the 1990 survey (from 63% -
65%). Belief in reward and punishment, that the Torah is G-d given, and
that we are the Chosen Nation is all up. Yet, the number of people
defining themselves as traditional has dropped from 42% to 35% while the
number who define themselves as non-religious has risen from 38% to 43%.
This reflects a greater polarization of Israeli society, and it means that
future kiruv efforts towards the secular Israeli population are likely to
become more challenging.
3. Assimilation and Birthrate (top)
Established (approximate) assimilation figures for the year 2000:
·
Over 70% of Jews in Russia,
Ukraine and some Western countries, with small Jewish communities. (Moscow
may be as high as 90%)
·
55% for Europe overall.
·
54% for South America overall.
·
53% for former CIS countries
overall.
·
50-52 % among Jews of America
and France.
·
Close to 40% among British Jews.
·
Over 30% among Jews in Canada
and Australia.
4.
Analysis by Continent and Country
(top)
Worldwide Jewish Birth Rates
Overview
It is
difficult to come up with exact population figures on a country by country
basis, let alone city by city around the world. Figures for Russia and
other CIS countries are but educated guesses. Chabad and the Jewish Agency
tends to give the highest figures, although the Jewish Agency is talking
about Zakaeh Aliyah (Right of Return), making no pretense that most of
those are not Jewish. In addition, some countries have large numbers of
missing Jews, those who do not identify with being Jewish in any way. For
example, the official figures for Buenos Aires show a Jewish population of
200,000 Jews. However, all leading communal figures believe that the
figure could be as much as twice that. France is given a population of
600,000 Jews. In the field, a figure of 750,000 is used. We have generally
put the official figure down first, with a second ‘field’ estimate in
parentheses.
Israel
On eve of 5761,
(2000/01) Israel’s population reached 6.3 million[5].
During 5760, the country's population grew by 2.5%, or 165,000, slightly
less than in the previous year.
Jews and immigrants arriving under the Law of
Return constituted 82% of the population, growing 2.5% to 4.95 million, a
growth rate that is still high by world standards, where the average rate
is 1.3%. Registered Jews were 78.57% of the total population.
There are some 200,000 non-Jewish immigrants and their families living here, of which 180,000 are Christian and 20,000 unclassified.
There are some 200,000 non-Jewish immigrants and their families living here, of which 180,000 are Christian and 20,000 unclassified.
The Arab population reached 1.15 million, 18%
of the total. This includes Moslems, Druse, and Christians and has
remained constant for the past few years.
Net immigration constituted 34% of the rise in the Jewish population, compared to the previous year's 36%. Some 63,000 immigrants arrived, down from the previous year's 73,000. Almost 90% of the immigrants came from the former Soviet Union, 36% from the Russian Federation.
Net immigration constituted 34% of the rise in the Jewish population, compared to the previous year's 36%. Some 63,000 immigrants arrived, down from the previous year's 73,000. Almost 90% of the immigrants came from the former Soviet Union, 36% from the Russian Federation.
|
|
2000
|
2025
|
|
Rate of natural increase (percent)
|
1.3
|
|
|
Life expectancy at birth (years)
|
78.6
|
81.6
|
|
Total fertility rate (per woman)
|
2.6
|
|
Israeli populations abroad:
Israelis
are included in the figures for Israel and not the host country. However,
this is misleading, since most Israelis are de facto permanent residents
of the host country. Current figures are
US 350,000 (500,000)
Canada 40,000
France 40,000
UK 30,000
South Africa 10,000 (15,000)
Germany 8,000
Australia 5,000
In 2001,
the Indian embassy in Israel noted a 50% increase on applications for
immigration of Israelis to India. The British embassy recorded a 25%
increase and the American embassy a 10% increase. (These figures may
include Israeli Arabs and West Bank Arabs.)
Demographic Balance with Israeli Arabs
The overall fertility rate of the Moslems is 4.6%, while that of Israeli
Jews is 2.6%. The 110,000 Bedouins of the Negev have the highest fertility
rate, with a 5.9% growth rate. Half the Bedouins are below the age of 13.
The population doubles every 12 years. Excluding the Bedouins, the Moslem
growth rate is 3.2%, still way above the 2.6% of the Jews. Put
differently, there are 2.6 births per Jewish woman, against 4.6 births per
Moslem woman. (In 1970, there were 9 births per Moslem woman.)
Within
the Jewish population, the Hareidim as well as the Ethiopians have a
growth rate of 3.5%. The annual growth rate of the rest of Israeli Jews is
about 0.8%, somewhat higher than the average in Western countries[6].
Since
independence, the Arab population has risen more than sixfold, from
160,000 in 1949 to 1.1 million today[7].
The
immigration policy of Israel also favors a demographic shift away from a
Jewish population. It is generally believed that 60% of those who have
made aliyah in the last ten years are not Jewish.
Total
immigration to Israel has in any case fallen significantly. In 2001 it was
down to 33,858 and by September of 2002 there were 25,296 immigrants. Only
13,792 came from Eastern Europe this year, meaning probably less than
6,000 Jews. (This is compared to close to 26,000 the previous year and
close to 38,000 for 2000.)[8]
There are
an additional 1.5 million Palestinians in the West Bank and a further 1
million in Gaza.
North and South America
Estimated Jewish Population distribution in
the Americas 1/1/2001:
Country
Jewish Population Jews Per 1,000 Population
Canada
364,000 11.8
United States
2.01
Mexico
40,500 (60,000) 0.4
Argentina
197,000 (250,000) 5.3
Brazil
97,500 0.6
Uruguay 22,000
(30,000)
Venezuela 16,000
Canada.
The 1996 Canadian census reported 351,705 Canadians of a Jewish ethnic
origin, and due in part to immigration from South Africa, this is now
estimated at 364,000 making the Canadian Jewish population the world’s
fourth largest. A further 50,000 or so Canadians report being Jewish by
ethnic origin but identified with another religion.
Toronto
is today a major Torah city, with lots of outreach as well. Montreal is
vibrant, and possibly the easiest city in North America in which to do
kiruv, even as the population sees continued losses to Toronto. Vancouver,
the third largest Jewish population, is still struggling to take off,
though tens of baalei teshuva have already emerged from there. New
initiatives are taking place in Victoria Island, Hamilton and elsewhere.
Mexico : Mexico City
metropolitan area pointed to a community less affected than others in the
Diaspora by the common trends of low fertility, intermarriage, and aging.
Almost everyone in Mexico is Orthodox affiliated, although a relatively
recent Conservative Shul is growing. An astonishing 90% of Jewish children
attend Jewish day schools. Mexico has about 40,000 Jews today, though
many say the real figure is close to 65,000.
Argentina: The Jewish population of Argentina, the largest in Latin
America and the sixth largest in the world. The population peaked in the
early 1960’s when the Jewish population was estimated at 310,000. Most
Jews lived in the Greater Buenos Aires, with about 25,000-50,000 left in
provincial cities, mainly Cordova, Tucuman and Rosario. There are
approximately 190,000 Jews left in Buenos Aires, with local community
leaders putting the figure much higher.
Argentina
has many Orthodox (and non-Orthodox) schools, shuls, kollelim and
yeshivas. Outreach began in earnest when Rabbi Eliezer Ben David, a
Persian Jew and Talmid of the Chazon Ish arrived there in the sixties and
built up a huge and vibrant community from scratch. Argentina has since
then been the main source of Klei Kodesh for all of Latin America. The
religious population is mainly Sephardi and quite concentrated, while the
majority of Jews, Ashkenazim, remain quite assimilated.
The
financial collapse of Argentina has created unprecedented challenges for
the local community, while it has also created a new wave of Jewish
children entering Orthodox schools and outreach programs wherever tuition
breaks and hot meals are provided. The expectations of a mass exodus of
Argentinean Jews is not taking place, though there is a steady immigration
to Mexico, Miami, Spain and Israel.
Brazil: Brazil has an official Jewish population of 100,000, with
about 45,000 in Sao Paulo, 26,000 in Rio and the rest mainly in Porto
Alegre and Belem. However, some local community leaders put the figures as
high as 60,00-80,000 for Sao Paulo, 30,000-40,000 for Rio and 15,000 for
Porto Alegre.
Sao Paulo
is today a Torah City, with the Sephardim in the lead. Sao Paulo has four
Orthodox schools and four traditional ones. Rio has had a reputation
amongst Bnei Torah as the ‘forbidden city’ of pritzus though here too
Judaism is going forward with two Orthodox run schools, a mini-kollel, a
Bnei Akiva and a branch of Binyan Olam and a huge Chabad community
complex. Unlike Sao Paulo, however, the primary Klei Kodesh are all
imported, mainly as Shelichim from Israel. Porto Alegre has, for the first
time, allowed an Orthodox rabbi to teach in its school, a major
breakthrough.
Other: Montevideo, Uruguay, despite its impoverishment (it suffered a
greater financial collapse than Argentina) recently opened up an Orthodox
high school and has a dynamic complex (Yavneh) which includes a school,
mini-kollel, adult outreach and community. However, mature Orthodoxy is
still a distance away, and the community remains heavily dependent on
Shelichim from Israel. Chile has about 21,000 Jews, Panama 5,000, Costa
Rica 2,500. Santiago, Chile has a new deluxe Orthodox school, and a kollel
and is relatively stable. Panama also has a strong Orthodox base today.
The Hillel movement recently opened up in Sao Paulo, Rio, Montevideo and
Buenos Aires. All of these are being Orthodox run.
Europe
About 1.6
million Jews lived in Europe at the beginning of 2001; 66 percent lived in
Western Europe and 34 percent in Eastern Europe and Balkan countries-
including the Asian territories of the Russian Republic and Turkey. The
European Union (EU) had an estimated combined Jewish population of
1,032,100.
France: With the breakup of the USSR, France had the third largest
Jewish population in the world, after the United States and Israel. Paris
is the largest Jewish city outside of America and Israel, with a total of
27 Jewish day schools. Although there has been a huge outbreak of
Anti-Semitism since the beginning of the new Intafada, French Jewry is
fairly stable. Overall, the political clout of the community has been
growing over the last 30 years (although this is balanced out by the
presence in France of 5 million Moslems), and there has been a slow but
steady growth of Judaism. However, there is a strong polarization between
the Sephardim, who are highly mekarevable, and the original Ashkenazi
population, who are very assimilated. There is also a steady aliyah to
Israel, though the vast majority of French Jewry are staying put.
Britain[9]:
Britain’s Jewish population has been dropping at least since 1970, and
was estimated at 285,000 for 1995. This is due to low birth rates[10]
and high intermarriage[11],
with some aliyah to Israel[12].
The estimate for 2001 is 275,000, the fifth largest worldwide.
Germany. When Hitler came to power, Germany had 500,000 Jews. 350,000
managed to relocate. 16 – 17,000 remained after the war, half of whom were
intermarried with most of the children of these being brought up as
non-Jews[13].
In 1990, Germany was politically reunited, with an approximate Jewish
population of 32,000 people estimated to have dropped to 28,000 by now.
Since then over 100,000 immigrants, including non-Jewish family members,
have come to Germany from former Soviet countries. This is due to
Germany’s extremely liberal refugee policy. The American Year Book’s
estimation of ‘core’ Jews is 98,000 making Germany the ninth largest
Jewish community worldwide. The Jewish population is very spread out, the
largest community being Berlin, which has 25,000 Jews and a Lauder
Foundation funded Yeshiva.
In
Germany, anyone who declares a religion has to pay a 9% tax which flows
back to the local religious bodies. Because of this, the community
buildings, built from the sixties onwards, are modern and attractive. But
they are controlled by laymen who are usually only partially observant,
making outreach by the Rabbinate quite challenging. In addition, there are
only two Orthodox run schools in the entire country and Germany has failed
to attract the type of outside interest which Russia has. The tax also
means that it is very difficult to fundraise in Germany for any new
project. Nevertheless, things are definitely moving in a positive
direction overall.
Former
Soviet Countries: During the Soviet era, there was a steady decline in
the official Jewish population from 2,267,800 in 1959 to 1,450,500 Jews in
1989. Then, from 1990-2000 period, a further 980,000 Jews (1.4 million by
the Law of Return definition of a Jew[14])
emigrated from the FSU (Former Soviet Union). Meanwhile, in Russia, there
were then about 2.8 Jewish births and 30.0 deaths per 1,000 Jewish
population[15].
Intermarriage was about 70 percent. and close to 80 percent in Ukraine and
Latvia in 1996; furthermore a non-Jewish nationality was generally
preferred for the children of outmarried.
The total Jewish population for the FSU
was estimated at 462,000 at the beginning of 2001, though some
organizations like Chabad claim that the figures are much higher; a
million or more for Russia alone. Russia, with 275,000[16]
is currently the fifth largest Jewish community in the world. (Ner LeElef
estimates the Russian population at about 650,000.) Jews in the Ukraine
were estimated at 112,000[17],
making the Jewish community the eighth largest worldwide. There are 25,000
Jews in Belarus and 16,000 for the three Baltic states, Latvia,
Lithuania, and Estonia combined[18].
The
American Jewish Year Book, from which most of these figures come, claims
that some of the larger figures attributed in recent years to the size of
Soviet Jewry did not relate to the core but to various (unspecified)
measures of an enlarged Jewish population.
These FSU
countries have seen an enormous influx of manpower and financial resources
in the attempt to rebuild Russian Jewry. An astonishing number of Jewish
organizations, religious and secular, have participated in this effort and
continue to do so. Some organizations, like Chabad (Feori) and Keroor
(the umbrella body for non-Chabad communities), have engaged in local
community building, while others, like Migdal Ohr, have until recently
engaged in interesting Russians in their Judaism and then getting them to
schools and yeshivas elsewhere as quickly as possible. As of 2001, Keroor,
the umbrella of communities related to REK (the Russian Jewish Congress),
registered 71 communities, while FJC (FEOR of Chabad) registered 73
communities. The Reform registered 30 communities. (However, some of these
communities are registered more than once). In Moscow alone, there are 2
Jewish universities, 3 yeshivas, 2 girls seminaries and 2 kollelim.
Besides Moscow and St Petersburg, there are several cities which, together
with their satellite towns, number Jewish populations between 5 and 20
thousand. Amongst these are Yekaternburg, Saratov, Samara, Novosibirsk,
Rostov and Tchelabinsk.
The
Hillel organization has, for the past four years, trained hundreds of
Jewish students in the FSU to lead Pesach seders in far-flung communities,
often in partnership with visiting Hillel students from North America and
Israel. The Conservative movement has virtually no presence in Russia.
The
Reform movement has a training program to train para-professional leaders
to work in Reform congregations throughout the FSU, as does Migdal Ohr, an
Orthodox organization together with the Joint. (These succinct comments
are not intended to give an overview of the scope of activities in Russia,
which are quite large and complex.)
Hungary: Hungary has an enlarged Jewish population of about
150,000-200,000 persons. On the other hand a detailed assessment of Jewish
migrations and vital statistics based on an end-1945 estimate of about
144,000 Holocaust survivors produced a total of 50,000-55,000 for
end-2000, with a significant excess of deaths over births. Many communal
figures put the population at about 100,000, with 80,000 of those living
in Budapest.
Spain:
Spain ended WW II with less than 1000 Jews, nearly all Ashkenzaim. The
original Sephardic population had almost completely disappeared. Since
then, there has been a steady increase in the population, reaching 10,000
Jews, many from Morocco, by 1976. Since 1945, Jews were allowed to pray,
but only in a private building, and surrounded by Franco-anti-Semitism. In
1965 the first public Jewish prayer service since the Inquisition was held
on the island of Majorca. In 1967, public prayer service was legalized for
non-Catholics and in 1968, Spain finally revoked the 1492 expulsion edict
of Ferdinand and Isabella. Franco died in 1975 and since then Jews have
been arriving from Argentina, Chile and Israel, as the population
continues its steady growth. Figures are difficult to come by, but the
population is approaching the 30,000 mark, making it larger than most
European Jewish populations[19].
Other
European Countries: Belgium, Italy, and the Netherlands each have
Jewish population ranging around 30,000. (The 15,000 Jews who live in Rome
belong to the oldest Jewish community in the Western world, dating back 22
centuries.) Turkey has 19, 000 Jews, Switzerland 17,577, Sweden and Spain,
15,000 and 12,000 respectively. Romania has about 11,000. The Czech
Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Bulgaria all have between 1,000 and 3,500
Jews.
Asia
Estimated Jewish population distribution in
Asia 1/1/2001
COUNTRY
JEWISH POPULATION
Azerbaijan
7,500
Georgia 5,500
Kazakhstan
5,200
Uzbekistan
7,000
Iran
11,500[20]
The total Jewish population in the Asian
republics of the former USSR was estimated at 28,000. The largest
community remained in Azerbaijan (7,500 in 2001 versus 30,800 in 1989),
followed by Uzbekistan (7,000 in 2001 vs. 94,900), Georgia (5,500 vs.
24,800), Kazakhstan (6,800 according to the 1999 census and 5,200 in 2001
vs. 19,900 in 1989).
In other Asian countries with small, old
communities the Jewish population tended to decline, even to the point of
disappearance. The recent reduction was more notable in Syria and Yemen
after Jews were officially allowed to emigrate.
Africa
South
Africa: Of the 88,000 Jews in Africa, 90% lived in the Republic of
South Africa. The official estimate for South Africa is 79,000 in 2001,
though this means that the original population was much larger than the
120,000 traditionally estimated. According to the latter figure, there are
no more than 65,000 Jews left in South Africa. Many tens of cities no
longer have communities at all, and more than half of South African Jews
are concentrated in a relatively small area of Johannesburg. Within this
area, however, Judaism is thriving. Cape Town is the only other vibrant
community, with an Ohr Somayach, a kollel and a new Orthodox Shul all
opening up in the last three years.
Ethiopia: In 1991 the Jewish community - about 20,000 people – were
brought to Israel, most of them in a dramatic one-day airlift. Between
1992 and 2000, 17,700 immigrants from Ethiopia arrived in Israel.
Morocco and Tunisia: The remnant of Moroccan and Tunisian Jewry tended
to shrink slowly through emigration, mostly to Israel, France and Canada.
The 2001 estimate was 5,700 or Morocco and 1,500 for Tunisia.
5. Analysis by City (top)
Metropolitan areas with the largest Jewish populations:
Rank |
Metro area |
Country |
Jewish Population |
Share of World’s Jews |
Cumulative % |
1 Tel Aviv
Israel 2,560,000 19.3
19.3
2 New York
U.S. 1,970,000 14.9
34.2
3 Haifa
Israel 655,000 4.9
39.1
4 Los Angeles
U.S. 621,000 4.7
43.8
5 Jerusalem
Israel 570,000 4.3
48.1
6 Southeast Florida
U.S. 514,000 3.9
52.0
7 Paris
France 310,000 2.3
54.3
8 Philadelphia
U.S. 276,000 2.1
56.4
9 Chicago
U.S. 261,000 2.0
58.4
10 Boston
U.S. 227,000 1.7
60.1
11 San Francisco
U.S. 210,000 1.6
61.7
12 London
U.K. 195,000 1.5
63.1
13 Buenos Aires
Argentina 175,000 1.3 64.5
14 Toronto
Canada 175,000 1.3
65.8
15 Washington
U.S. 165,000 1.2
67.0
16 Be’er Sheva
Israel 165,000 1.2
68.3
17 Moscow
Russia 108,000 0.8
69.1
18 Baltimore
U.S. 95,000 0.7
69.8
19 Montreal
Canada 95,000 0.7
70.5
20 Detroit
U.S. 94,000 0.7
71.2
Counted
on a country by country basis, these twenty cities break down as follows:
1. United States 10
2. Israel 4
3. Canada 2
4. France 1
5. England 1
6. Russia
1
7. Argentina 1
If, however,
we exclude the USA and Israel, then the top ten cities are
1.
Paris
2.
London
3.
Buenos Aires
4.
Toronto
5.
Moscow
6.
Montreal
7.
St. Petersburg
8.
Kiev
9.
Budapest
10.
Sao Paulo
3 of these are English speaking, 3 are Russian
speaking, and the remaining four are each different languages.
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[1]
Information from Hebrew University demographer, Prof. Sergio De La
Pergola as well as the American Jewish Year Book
[2]
With the exception of Brazil, which is Portuguese speaking. Surinam,
which is English speaking, has a negligible Jewish population.
[3]
The findings are of a team of scholars from Hebrew University,
published by the American Jewish Committee in the American Jewish Year
Book 2000. The article, "Prospecting the Jewish Future: Population
Projections, 2000-2080" offers demographic projections for Jewish
communities throughout the world in the years 2020 and 2050, as well as
2080. It also offers adjusted scenarios based on changes in fertility
rates. Sergio Della Pergola, chairman of the Harman Institute of
Contemporary Jewry of Hebrew University headed the study.
[4]
Menachem Berger, letter to the editor, The Jewish Observer
(February 2000)
[5]
According to the Central Bureau of Statistics.
[6]
The above paragraphs are all from the Institute of Policy and Strategy
in Herzliya
[7]
Figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics
[8]
Figures from the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption
[9]
A significant revision of the size of Jewish population in the United
Kingdom was released in 1998 by Community Research Unit (CRU) of the
Board of Deputies of British Jews
[10]
There are an excess of deaths over births in the range of about
1,000-1,500 a year
[11]
50% for married men under 30
[12]
Over 7,000 emigrants to Israel in 1980-1989 and about 6,000 in 1990-2000
[13]
Diaspora, Howard M Sachar, pgs. 13- 15
[14]
Of these, nearly 900,000 went to Israel, about 300,000 to the United
States, and over 200,000 chose other countries, mainly Germany.
[15]
Aging in the countries of origin was exacerbated by the significantly
younger age composition of Jewish emigrants. In Ukraine, the respective
figures were 4.2 and 35.9 per 1,000.
[16]
In 2001, the 275,000 core Jews and their 245,000 non-Jewish household
members produced an enlarged population of 520,000.
[17]
Down from 487,300 in 1989.
[18]
Versus 39,900 in 1989.
[19]
Diaspora, Howard Sachar
[20]
It is difficult to estimate the Jewish population on Iran, last counted
in 1986 national census. Based on evidence of continuing decline, the
2001 estimate was reduced to 11,500.
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