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Collection 1: Contemporary European Jewry - 10 Key Studies

Taken together, these ten key studies provide a firm foundation for understanding the contemporary condition of Jews in Europe, and they are essential reading for both researchers and policy makers.

The studies have been chosen for their breadth and depth of coverage, and for their impact on the field of social research on contemporary European Jewry.

Collectively, these ten studies reflect some of the major preoccupations of Jewish researchers and policy-makers in Europe:

- The Jewish experience of antisemitism in European countries;
- The future of European Jewish communities;
- Immigration into and between European Jewish communities (and from the Former Soviet Union to Germany in particular);
- The social attitudes of Jews in European countries;
- The nature of Jewish identity and community;
- Jewish schooling and education.

The European Jewish Research Archive has many more studies on these topics, including numerous downloadable pdfs, from across Europe.





Collection 1: Contemporary European Jewry - 10 Key Studies
Jüdische Zuwanderer in Deutschland
Jüdische Zuwanderer in Deutschland
[Jewish Immigrants in Germany]

One of the most significant demographic trends in European Jewry has been the immigration of Jews from the Former Soviet Union to Germany. This report provides an overview of the state of research on this phenomenon. The legal situation of immigration and statistics on Jewish immigrants are also described.

One key finding is that, while Jewish immigrants often have a high level of educational attainment, they often find it difficult to integrate into the labour market, due to poor knowledge of German and other factors.

Discrimination and hate crime against Jews in EU Member States: experiences and perceptions of antisemitism
Discrimination and hate crime against Jews in EU Member States: experiences and perceptions of antisemitism
How do European Jews experience antisemitism today? This groundbreaking 2012 study surveyed Jews in nine EU member states on their experience of antisemitism.

The survey found that 75% of respondents believed antisemitism had become worse over the past five years and close to 25% said they had experienced an incident of of verbal abuse or harassment in the previous year. The survey also showed significant geographic variations in the experience of antisemitism.
Jews in the United Kingdom in 2013: Preliminary findings from the National Jewish Community Survey
Jews in the United Kingdom in 2013: Preliminary findings from the National Jewish Community Survey
JPR’s 2013 National Jewish Community Survey was a landmark study that provides a model for similar surveys in other European countries.

The survey reveals a community in which younger Jews are more religious than older Jews, the traditional middle-ground is shrinking, and people are more likely to be moving away from religiosity than towards it. The report also indicates that the prevalence of intermarriage is slowing down, a phenomenon also found in recent data on Jewish Americans.
L’an prochain à Jérusalem? Les Juifs de France face à l’antisémitisme
L’an prochain à Jérusalem? Les Juifs de France face à l’antisémitisme
[Next year in Jerusalem: The Jews of France facing antisemitism]

The upsurge of antisemitism in France, and the concomitant surge in Jewish emigration from France, has attracted considerable attention. This 2016 survey report looks at French Jews' experience of antisemitism.

It finds a worried community, with growing immigration to Israel and elsewhere and many others contemplating leaving amid fear for the future. Amongst those who stay, growing numbers are sending their children to Jewish schools and moving to areas in France that are perceived to be safer.
Jews and Jewish Education in Germany Today: Volume 3
Jews and Jewish Education in Germany Today: Volume 3
The Third Pillar? Toward a European Jewish Identity
The Third Pillar? Toward a European Jewish Identity
Diana Pinto's much-discussed paper argues that European Jewry can constitute a 'third pillar' of world Jewry, alongside Israel and North America. However, she argues that this will only be possible if European Jews can feel equally at home with their European and Jewish roots - which is only now possible in a reunited, democratic Europe.

Two political and cultural transformations made this possible: the transcendence of the ideological divisions based on Communism and the slow coming to terms with the Holocaust on the part of Europe s different countries. The road pointing to such a future European Jewish identity, however, is still fraught with controversy.
Identity à la Carte: Research on Jewish identities, participation and affiliation in five Eastern European countries
Identity à la Carte: Research on Jewish identities, participation and affiliation in five Eastern European countries
Given the considerable investment in Eastern European Jewish communities following the collapse of communism, the involvment and identities of Jews in Eastern Europe is of considerable global interest.

This report by the Joint Distribution Committee, describes the results of a research study on Jewish identity and community participation in Central and Eastern Europe. This two-year and wide-reaching study examined views on religious observance, Jewish identity, antisemitism, Israel, Jewish knowledge, and organisational affiliation among 1,270 Jews, ages 18-60.
Jewishness in Postmodernity: The Case of Sweden
Jewishness in Postmodernity: The Case of Sweden
With relevance to Jewish communities across Europe, this paper addresses the question ' What does it mean to choose to live as a Jew in the Diaspora?' through the case study of Swedish Jewry. Dencik argues that Swedish Jews practice a 'postmodern “Swedish smorgasbord” Judaism' which is manifested in a variety of ways, including: a strong Jewish self awareness, increased activity in Jewish culture and granting new meanings to traditional Jewish practices.

The paper also argues that Swedish Jews are moving from a 'largely negative' identity, formed around the Shoah, to a 'more positive Jewish self-awareness.''
Jews and Jewish Education in Germany Today: Volume 1
Jews and Jewish Education in Germany Today: Volume 1
This landmark research report describes a large-scale investigation of the Jewish population of Germany, the major current challenges facing it, and its educational institutions. The English version of the report apears in 3 volumes. Volume 1 presents the survey that was undertaken among close to 1,200 respondents throughout Germany.

The report also investigated and analysed the general landscape of Germany’s Jewish educational institutions, before conducting a content analysis of individual interviews of leading figures of Germany’s Jewish population that focused on how they perceive the present-day challenges of this community.
Jewish life in Hungary: Achievements, challenges and priorities since the collapse of communism
Jewish life in Hungary: Achievements, challenges and priorities since the collapse of communism
Part of a four-paper series looking at Jewish life in east-central Europe since the collapse of communism, this report takes a detailed look at Jewish life in Hungary, drawing on interviews with a broad range of Hungarian Jewish leaders.

The authors are sharply critical of community management structures and recommend urgent structural reform. They call for greater levels of co-operation between Jewish communal organizations and initiatives, and stress the need for a more religiously pluralist communal environment.

A Hungarian language version is also available.
Third Survey of European Jewish Leaders and Opinion Formers, 2015
Third Survey of European Jewish Leaders and Opinion Formers, 2015
How do European Jewish leaders see the European Jewish future? This report presents the results of the third triennial survey of Jewish leaders and opinion formers.

The survey posed Jewish leaders and opinion formers in 29 European countries a range of questions about major challenges and issues that concern European Jewish communities and about their expectations of how communities will evolve over the next 5-10 years. Particularly illuminating are responses to questions regarding antisemitism and immigration.

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