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How many Jewish people live in Poland?


plg  17 | 262  
12 Jun 2011 /  #1
Jews and the hebrew language

How many Jewish people live in Poland and krakow especially.

How many people speak Hebrew in Poland?

How many people speak Hebrew in krakow?

And do all Polish Jews speak Hebrew? And if so what would be there first language be?

thanks!
SeanBM  34 | 5781  
12 Jun 2011 /  #2
According to Wikipedia:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_population#Largest_Jewish_populations_by_country

There are 50,000 Jews in Poland.
pawian  221 | 25517  
12 Jun 2011 /  #3
How come you want to know it?
Lyzko  
12 Jun 2011 /  #4
First of all, the more important issue is, whom d'you vis-a-vis whom do the Poles themselves, i.e. gentiles, classify as 'Polish Jews'??

My understanding is that there are (miraculously enough!!) somewhere between seven hundred to one thousand Polish nationals of the Jewish faith, living and working mostly around Warszawa and Kraków. These figures may not even begin to include non-affiliated Jews living in Poland, more likely still, Jewish converts to Catholicism, often too wary of declaring themselves Jews for fear of reprisals by local skinheads etc...

In other words, a Jewish "headcount" in countries such as Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, even Russia, Austria or Germany, is frequently problematic-:)

The actual Polish Jews of whom I'm aware are mostly professionals, doctors, lawyers, some high-ranking journalists, professors and a few member of the Sejm, yet most probably NOT practicing Jews!
sobieski  106 | 2111  
12 Jun 2011 /  #5
I doubt there are 50.000 Jewish people in Poland. This is a country antisemitic into its very bone marrow.
amelly  
12 Jun 2011 /  #6
This is a country antisemitic into its very bone marrow.

Why do you say so?
legend  3 | 658  
12 Jun 2011 /  #7
I doubt there are 50.000 Jewish people in Poland. This is a country antisemitic into its very bone marrow.

More like this country has 1000 years experience with these people. We perfectly know what they are up to ;)
aphrodisiac  11 | 2427  
12 Jun 2011 /  #8
We perfectly know what they are up to ;)

what are they up to ?
PennBoy  76 | 2429  
12 Jun 2011 /  #9
There are 50,000 Jew in Poland.

With full or partial ethnic Jewish background. Practicing Jews are a few thousand.
Lyzko  
12 Jun 2011 /  #10
I think Sobieski's take on things is sadly true! While 50,000 does seem a bit high, probably these are again not necessarily Polish Jews, but Jewish persons residing permanently in Poland!

Regarding Poland's history of antisemitism, just look back at Jedwabne and Kielce to confirm this regretable state of affairs.
PennBoy  76 | 2429  
12 Jun 2011 /  #11
I think Sobieski's take on things is sadly true! While 50,000 does seem a bit high

It might be even more than that, they lived in Poland (in large numbers) since Casimir the Great allowed them to come, you think some lived a non religious life or didn't mix a bit with the locals? It might be even 100 thousand people with full or partial Jewish background. Here in the States I've met quite a few Polish Jews, most love Poland and are patriotic.
RobertLee  4 | 73  
12 Jun 2011 /  #12
Here in the States I've met quite a few Polish Jews, most love Poland and are patriotic.

That is very interesting, cause most Jews you can meet on Jewish sites are very antipolish to the very bone marrow. Of course being antipolish is not nearly as bad as being antisemitic...
Grzegorz_  51 | 6138  
12 Jun 2011 /  #13
This is a country antisemitic into its very bone marrow.

How do you know that ? You don't even know the language.
delphiandomine  86 | 17823  
12 Jun 2011 /  #14
That is very interesting, cause most Jews you can meet on Jewish sites are very antipolish to the very bone marrow. Of course being antipolish is not nearly as bad as being antisemitic...

You visit Jewish websites often?

This is a country antisemitic into its very bone marrow.

I'd say that while the educated people couldn't care less about Jews (imaginary or real) - the uneducated classes have a huge, bitter grudge against them. As far as I can tell, it seems to be handed down within families.
Torq  
12 Jun 2011 /  #15
Because he's a complete and utter ignoramus, that's why.

There are Jewish publishing houses and cultural institutions in Poland, festivals of Jewish arts
and music are organized regularly, there is a Hebrew language academy in Toruń, in many
other cities people interested in Jewish history can attend language and culture classes
and in most good bookstores there are shelves labelled "Judaica". All this in a country which,
according to sobieski, is "antisemitic into its very bone marrow."
PennBoy  76 | 2429  
12 Jun 2011 /  #16
That is very interesting, cause most Jews you can meet on Jewish sites are very antipolish to the very bone marrow.

I've said it before, I had a neighbor Polish Jew who had a huge Polish flag up by his house whole year round, only took it down on Jewish holidays, for an Israeli flag. A Jewish lawyer here in the Philadelphia suburbs (a Krakow Jew) very nice guy, one of my best friends is of a Polish/Jewish mix, all good people. You were probably talking about American Jews, more specifically New Yorkers.

Of course being antipolish is not nearly as bad as being antisemitic...

Same thing, so that had to be your sarcasm....
pawian  221 | 25517  
12 Jun 2011 /  #17
There are good Jews as well as bad ones. The same with Poles. The same in other countries.
RobertLee  4 | 73  
12 Jun 2011 /  #18
I'm glad to hear that. I used to be curious and friendly towards Jews, but right from the beginning I came across very many examples of Jews simply hating Poles for being Poles. Always happy to find out that not every Jew is like this.
PennBoy  76 | 2429  
12 Jun 2011 /  #19
I'm glad to hear that. I used to be curious and friendly towards Jews, but right from the beginning I came across very many examples of Jews simply hating Poles for being Poles.

I've met them as well. The ones who have assimilated fully into a particular society, who see themselves as American or Poles first (depending on which country they live it) and the as Jews, are the nice ones, in general.
OP plg  17 | 262  
13 Jun 2011 /  #20
How come you want to know it?

First of all please guys dont fight about my post.
There is no need.
I asked the question because i visit Poland frequently.
Mostly krakow.
Which obviously is steeped in history and culture.
It has a Jewish district of course.
And i was just curious and interested.

Tez jestem studentem jezyka polskiego :))
na razie i dziekuje za pomoc
evefrscot3  - | 1  
13 Jun 2011 /  #21
[Moved from]: where in Poland can I get info about possible Jewish families before 1900's?

Any idea where in Poland or online you can get info about possible Jewish families before 1900's?
PlasticPole  7 | 2641  
13 Jun 2011 /  #22
And if so what would be there first language be?

Well, it might be Yiddish since many Polish Jews living in Shtetls spoke Yiddish and not Polish or Hebrew. Young Jews in Poland speak Polish, no doubt.
Des Essientes  7 | 1288  
13 Jun 2011 /  #23
Well, it might be Yiddish

I was wondering about this too. It would have been the first language of many, or most, of the Jews in Poland for several centuries up until WWII but do the Jews of Poland still speak it today?
Bzibzioh  
13 Jun 2011 /  #24
You may want to try this source:

cjnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=20004&Itemid=86
PlasticPole  7 | 2641  
13 Jun 2011 /  #25
At home, maybe a few, but most are brought up as Poles. Some might not even know they are Jewish. Many Jews who kept their identity left for Israel and are no longer in Poland.
Bzibzioh  
13 Jun 2011 /  #26
How many Jewish people live in Poland and krakow especially.

I visited Remuh synagogue in Kraków (as far as I know the only functioning synagogue in Kraków) 3 years ago and I was told that there is 113 signed members. Old ones mostly.
rybnik  18 | 1444  
13 Jun 2011 /  #27
Here in the States I've met quite a few Polish Jews, most love Poland and are patriotic.

Living in the New York metropolitan area and working in the medical profession I come into contact with many Jews on a daily basis. The overwhelming reaction to Poland and being Polish is non-plussed. 25% share some horror story with me and another 25% have good things to say.
Des Essientes  7 | 1288  
13 Jun 2011 /  #28
Living in the New York metropolitan area and working in the medical profession I come into contact with many Jews on a daily basis.

There is a posh Polish restaurant in Santa Monica and everytime I've been there I've seen Jewish looking guys eating alone and staring at the other diners with thoughtful eyes and I suspected they were trying to get a feel for what it was like for their ancestors to be surrounded by Poles. I remember that one of them seemed really interested when a family dining sang Stolat.
wielki pan  2 | 250  
13 Jun 2011 /  #29
the uneducated classes have a huge, bitter grudge against them. As far as I can tell, it seems to be handed down within families.

Lol, this is just nonsense talk, talk from a person who doesn't know what he is talking about, why would a polish person hold a grudge agaisnt the jews.
michaelmansun  11 | 135  
13 Jun 2011 /  #30
There are 50,000 Jew in Poland.

And most pretend to be Catholics.

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