The resurgence of Jewish cultural life, which began in the Soviet Union during the late Perestroika era over thirty years ago, has ultimately yielded a rich landscape of Jewish periodicals and publishing houses across post-Soviet states. This development was the subject of an analytical report by Velvl Chernin, published in the online journal of the Institute for Euro-Asian Jewish Studies (Euro-Asian Jewish Policy Papers, No 34). To what extent are these publishing initiatives sought after by the very audience they are intended to serve? A comprehensive sociological survey of the Jewish population in four European post-Soviet countries—conducted in 2019 under the author’s direction on behalf of the Institute for Euro-Asian Jewish Studies—provides some answers. It suggests that while contemporary Jewish book publishers may maintain a degree of cautious optimism, publishers of Jewish periodicals must immediately begin addressing the challenges that lie ahead in the near future.

The mass revival of Jewish culture, which commenced over three decades ago in the late Soviet Union and persisted in the post-Soviet states following its dissolution, was a multifaceted process. It was clearly not limited to the reinstatement—or rather, the reconstruction—of religious Jewish culture. Its secular counterpart was equally, and at times more, expansive, and today encompasses theater, music, cinema, museums, as well as educational and academic institutions. This naturally includes numerous periodicals and publishing houses dedicated to Jewish literature and books on Jewish subjects. This cultural complex, along with other attributes of the transnational community of post-Soviet Jews (which many scholars now consider a distinct, newly formed Russian-speaking Jewish sub-ethnic group), functions predominantly in the Russian language, which in no way detracts from its Jewish substance.

This phenomenon was detailed in Velvl Chernin’s analytical report, published in the electronic journal of the Institute for Euro-Asian Jewish Studies. The report presents a comprehensive overview of the achievements of Jewish media and book publishing in Russian and other languages of the post-Soviet states over the past three decades. Among these are periodicals based in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kyiv, and Minsk, some of which exert an influence that extends well beyond their respective countries and the post-Soviet space at large (such as the journal "Narod Knigi v Mire Knig," the monthly "L'Chaim," the almanac "Yehupets," the magazine "Mishpoha," and the weekly "Khadashot"). The report also notes the presence of regional periodicals, partially supported by local authorities, in areas where Jews are recognized as a titular nationality (the Jewish Autonomous Oblast in the Russian Federation and the Republic of Dagestan). Furthermore, it highlights the influence within the post-Soviet space of contemporary Russian-Jewish literary periodicals published in Israel (most notably, the "Jerusalem Journal").

The volume of Russian-Jewish book publishing is equally remarkable, particularly within the post-Soviet territory. According to Chernin, lower production costs and collaboration with Russian-speaking Israeli specialists have enabled the region to host the vast majority of major publishing projects. These publications are subsequently distributed to bookshops in Israel and other countries with significant Russian-speaking Jewish populations. (Among others, Chernin highlights the Moscow-based publishing house "Knizhniki," the Moscow-Jerusalem "Gesharim/Bridges of Culture," the Kyiv-based "Dukh i Litera," the "Birobidzhan" Publishing House, and the monumental project "The Collected Works of Vladimir (Ze'ev) Jabotinsky," organized in Moscow and Minsk by the Israeli scholar Felix Dektor, who regrettably passed away a few weeks ago).

An analysis of the institutional infrastructure of this entire sector offers profound insights into the creative aspirations of post-Soviet Jewry, as well as its endeavors to bridge the vast gaps in a cultural heritage that suffered decades of systematic suppression under Communist rule. No less importantly, it sheds light on the identity of this community, which is currently finalizing its consolidation. On the ruins of the Yiddish-speaking East European Ashkenazi world, a new Russian-speaking Jewish sub-ethnic group has emerged, now spanning dozens of countries across five continents. Dr. Chernin has successfully captured this complex process.

Nevertheless, the question remains: to what extent are these publishing projects actually demanded by their target audience? A partial answer is provided by a large-scale sociological study of the Jewish population in four European post-Soviet countries—Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, and Russia—conducted in 2019 under the direction of the author by the Institute for Euro-Asian Jewish Studies. At first glance, the collected data does not warrant immediate concern: 17% of respondents reported reading books by Jewish authors or on Jewish themes on a regular basis, while nearly half (48%) did so "occasionally." Only a third of the respondents indicated no interest in reading Jewish literature or found it difficult to answer—perhaps because they were uncertain which publications fall under the definition of "Jewish literature." Notably, in Ukraine, Jewish literature is read slightly more by residents of the capital and major cities; in Belarus and Moldova, the opposite is true, with higher readership in provincial communities; while in Russia, the proportion of readers in the capitals (Moscow and St. Petersburg) is roughly equal to that in the provinces.

Applying these findings to the conservative estimates of Israeli demographers (such as Prof. Sergio Della Pergola and Dr. Mark Tolts) regarding the total size of the "extended Jewish population" in the post-Soviet space, the market for Jewish book publishing comprises at least 500,000 individuals. This figure excludes the non-Jewish population of the former USSR, as well as Russian-speaking Jews and non-Jews residing further abroad. Significantly, there was no substantial variance across different age cohorts (although the older generation reads books by Jewish authors slightly more frequently than other age groups, the difference was negligible). This is undoubtedly encouraging news for publishers of Jewish literature.

However, the outlook becomes more nuanced when the data is analyzed through the lens of Jewish identity. The study revealed that interest in Jewish literature among respondents with a strong, well-defined Jewish self-awareness was 1.5 times higher than the sample average. For those with a "fluid" or vague Jewish identity, the interest was average, while for those with a non-Jewish identity, it was 1.5 times lower. It remains to be determined whether a strong Jewish identity drives interest in Jewish literature, or conversely, whether individuals develop and strengthen their self-awareness by reading texts on Jewish subjects.

The former hypothesis is supported by the direct correlation, reconfirmed by our study, between ethnic origin and the stability of Jewish identity. Consequently, there is an equally direct correlation between the homogeneity of respondents' Jewish ancestry and their interest in Jewish literature. If this is indeed the case, the future of Jewish book publishing in the CIS appears highly uncertain. The younger cohorts within the local "extended Jewish population" show a progressively higher proportion of descendants of mixed marriages in the second, third, and in some cases, fourth generation. It is these individuals and their non-Jewish spouses who currently constitute a steadily growing segment of local Jewish communities.

On the other hand, no significant differences were observed across age groups regarding interest in books by Jewish writers or on Jewish themes. The only exception was the 61+ age group, whose members reported reading such books regularly slightly more often than average—though even here, the variance was not decisive. This suggests that identity and engagement with Jewish texts constitute a two-way street. (Indeed, nearly 13% of respondents indicated that their sense of Jewish identity was fostered through exposure to literary works on Jewish themes). This finding justifies a degree of cautious optimism among book publishers.

The situation regarding the Jewish press is somewhat different. Only a fifth of respondents read it regularly, though nearly another third do so "occasionally." While occasional readers of books can be considered part of the active consumer base, the viable audience for periodicals is traditionally defined by its regular readership. More importantly, while the correlations with identity and origin remain consistent with those for books, the variance in interest across age groups was far more pronounced in the case of periodicals. The older generation reads Jewish periodicals twice as actively as youth and young adults under 40, and 1.5 times more actively than those aged 41–60. Thus, newspapers and magazines remain primarily the domain of older demographics. Younger Jews and their family members, like their non-Jewish peers, are transitioning to social media and digital networks. Publishers, editors, and journalists of Jewish media must address this shift when considering how to respond to this challenge. Nevertheless, a sharp decline in demand for Jewish periodicals is not anticipated in the short or medium term, suggesting that there is still time to adapt and make strategic decisions.