THE JEWISH DIASPORA

WHAT does Diaspora mean?

noun

the dispersion of the Jews beyond Israel.

A MAP OF THE DIASPORA

By Dakhomi - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=83510731

A BRIEF TIMELINE OF THE DIASPORA

1000 BCE: Earliest record of the Jews in historical documents dates back to 1000 BCE (that’s with the inclusion of Biblical literature, the first and second temples, and the kingdoms of David and Solomon).

300 BCE- dense populations in Phoenicia and Egypt → limited by Greek Rule, causes a cultural rift between Greek speaking Jews and Hebrew (Aramaic) speaking Jews.

1 CE- dense in many parts of the Parthian Empire → limited by Roman Rule, spread of Judaism to the “Latin Speaking” world.

600 CE- clear influence of Christianity (The Holy Roman Empire), densest area is Babylon.

900 CE- Influence of Islam moves diaspora to Northern Africa and Spain (Iberian Peninsula), estimated Jewish pop. between 750,000 and 1,500,000.

1200 CE- Religious persecution in the western Europe decreasing Jewish population, Eastward migration to Asia (better trading), total estimated pop 1,000,000-2,000,000

1500 CE- Steady migration to the east → consequence of expulsions from Lithuania (1495), Spain (1492), Sicily (1492), Portugal (1497), Sicily (1511) → Jews living under Islamic rule (the Ottoman Empire), refugees moving to Northern African villages.

1800 CE- Europe has a majority of Jewish population (over 1 million), North America has a pop. less than 3000 Jews, other concentrations of Jews in Africa and Asia.

The Great Migration (1881-1914)- Population explosions in rural Europe caused mass poverty, forcing people to flee/seek better opportunities + adverse political conditions in Europe→ over 2 million Jews emigrated, 85% settling in the United States (compared with 760,000 Jews that left Europe

WW1 impact on Jewish pop. (1914-1918)- war was fought in the among some of the most densely populated Jewish areas→ increased amount of Jewish participation in the war (estimated 140,000 Jewish soldiers killed) → emancipation of the Russian Jews after the 1917 Russian Revolution.

1930 CE- Over 15 million Jews worldwide, half live in Eastern and Central Europe, the United States has the largest Jewish community in the world (3.6% of total US pop).

The Holocaust and its impact on the Jewish world (1945-47)- 6 million Jews killed, over 1 million made homeless → Nazi’s responsible for destruction (and lack of antiquity) of European Jews → By 1947 over 200,000 displaced Jews in Europe.

Jewish migrations (1948-1980)- Rise in Jewish migration to Israel (established and recognized in 1948), America still on the rise in terms of Jewish pop, less of reliance of “old-world” centers for Jews.