Editorial Note

Throughout the first half of 2019 and early 2020, at the initiative of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EAJC), the Institute for Euro-Asian Jewish Studies (IEAJS) conducted a large-scale sociological study of the Jewish population in five post-Soviet states (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, and Kazakhstan). The purpose of this study, which involved approximately 2,300 respondents, was to gain an understanding of several key dimensions of various groups of full and partial Jewish descent, as well as non-Jewish members of their families, a quarter of a century after the collapse of the USSR. This included the developmental paths of Jewish and other ethnic identities, trends in the formation of Jewish communities, migration dynamics, the socio-economic status of these Jewish groups in the country, and their attitudes toward Israel and its place in their cultural, value, and behavioral frameworks.

The study of recent processes, including the findings of our research, indicates that new ethno-civic (or, according to other theoretical concepts, local ethnic) groups of East European Jewry are forming in the post-Soviet space. This new local identity is being strengthened by the erosion of the collective identity of (former) Soviet Jews. Consequently, an additional objective of this project was to determine how far this process has progressed, particularly regarding the differences between Jews of the "European" and "Asian" countries of the former USSR. This explains the interest in the survey data from Kazakhstan, the fieldwork for which was carried out by staff of the BISAM Central Asia Center for Sociological and Marketing Research. An analysis of part of the collected data is presented in the following article by the heads of the BISAM Center, Prof. Leonid Gurevich and Kirill Kartashov. The full version of their report will be published in the upcoming issue of the IEAJS Yearbook "Jews of Europe and Asia: State, Heritage, and Prospects."

Prof. Zeev Khanin, Academic Director of the IEAJS

Ethnocultural Self-Identification of Jews: Key Features and Specifics in Kazakhstan

A socially significant presence of the Jewish ethnic group in Kazakhstan emerged only during the Soviet era. The influence of Jews on the social, intellectual, and spiritual development of the republic increased significantly during the Great Patriotic War, when the elite of the Soviet intelligentsia became concentrated in Kazakhstan. Many evacuated scientists, figures of literature and art, engineers, designers, and production managers of Jewish nationality remained to work in Kazakhstan. In subsequent years of Soviet history, the Jewish ethnic group in Kazakhstan transformed in line with trends characteristic of the entire Soviet Union. Primarily due to assimilation processes, its numbers declined, and its influence on various spheres of public life waned, while elements of its self-identification and self-organization progressively weakened.

In the post-Soviet period, the Jews of Kazakhstan were involved in complex and contradictory social developments. On one hand, they were affected by the growing national and religious consciousness observed throughout the post-Soviet space. On the other hand, migration processes intensified dramatically, particularly through mass emigration (Aliyah) to Israel.

What are the outcomes of the post-Soviet development of the Jewish ethnic group after nearly 30 years of Kazakhstan's independence? A certain understanding of the social profile and consciousness of Kazakhstani Jews is provided by this sociological study conducted in early 2020. The methodology employed was a questionnaire survey using the personal formalized interview technique supported by CAPI technology. Ethnic Jews and their second- and third-generation descendants aged 16 and older were surveyed. The sample comprised 250 respondents, which is statistically significant for the general population, whose exact size has not been established by official statistics but is realistically estimated to be in the range of 7,000 to 15,000 people.

The key question for establishing the level of Jewish identity was: "Who do you feel you are first and foremost?" The largest share of respondents showed no ethnic priority in this self-perception: 36% of those surveyed stated that they feel like "just a person, regardless of nationality." Only 16% of respondents feel solely Jewish, 18% feel like Russian Jews, and 13% feel like Kazakhstani Jews. A dual perception of ethnic identity emerged among 8%, who feel simultaneously Jewish and representatives of another nationality (Russian or Kazakh). In this core question of self-identification, notable differences were found between affiliated (regular attendees of Jewish events) and unaffiliated (those weakly connected to the Jewish community) respondents. 30% of affiliated respondents and 40% of unaffiliated respondents consider themselves just a person, regardless of nationality.

Table 1. Who do you feel you are first and foremost?

Women proved to be more cosmopolitan in outlook than men: nationality is not important for 39% of women, compared to 30% of men. At the same time, 26% of men feel solely Jewish, whereas only 10% of women do. Contrary to expectations, there is no pronounced age dynamic in the basic perception of identity. No clear correlation was identified between Jewish identity and the mono-ethnic or poly-ethnic composition of the respondents' families. Among respondents with Jewish (fully or partially) spouses, 25% consider themselves solely Jewish, compared to 17% of those living in ethnically mixed marriages. However, beyond this, the correlations invert and deviate from the expected logic. For instance, the unimportance of nationality was declared by 39% of respondents with Jewish spouses, but by only 29% of those in mixed marriages.

For the majority of respondents, the consciousness of belonging to the Jewish community is based on worldview and cultural factors. 49% of those surveyed believe that to be Jewish means to be proud of the history and culture of one's people. 46% believe that to be Jewish is to feel a sense of belonging to the Jewish people. Only 25% feel Jewish simply by virtue of having Jewish parents.

Figure 1. In your opinion, what does it mean to be Jewish?

For the vast majority of respondents, Jewish identity is combined with patriotic feelings toward their country of residence. 54% of respondents are convinced that Jews should, first and foremost, be patriots of the country in which they live. 35% believe that Jews should be patriots of both their country of residence and Israel. Only 5% of those surveyed stated that Jews should be patriots of Israel, regardless of their country of residence. In response to the question "Which country do you consider, first and foremost, your own?", 85% of respondents named Kazakhstan, while only 7% named Israel, and 8% named other countries, primarily the Soviet Union and Russia.

Significantly, the focus of patriotic feeling differs little between affiliated and unaffiliated respondents. However, a notable correlation is revealed here based on the age of the respondents. For instance, the belief that Jews should, first and foremost, be patriots of the country they live in was expressed by 46% of respondents under the age of 30, 52% of those aged 30-54, and 60% of those over 55. Soviet patriotism has clearly transitioned into patriotism for the post-Soviet state. The orientation of patriotic feelings is most strongly correlated with the degree to which respondents feel Jewish. Among those who unconditionally feel Jewish, "dual patriotism" (toward both the country of residence and Israel) is characteristic of 45%; among those who feel Jewish only under certain circumstances, it is 29%; and among those who do not feel Jewish at all, it is 14%. However, the share of clear Israeli patriots does not exceed 6% in any of these categories.

The nature of the respondents' patriotism was influenced by how they perceive the category of "Jews" itself. 45% of those surveyed believe that Jews in Kazakhstan have much more in common with Kazakhs or local Russians than with Jews living in other countries. A noticeably smaller share of respondents, 40%, hold the view that Jews worldwide are a single nation. A fairly significant portion of respondents, 15%, was unable to form an opinion on this matter. The local orientation of patriotism for the majority of respondents affects their core behavioral attitudes within the ethno-social environment. Only for a quarter of the respondents is it important that their children and grandchildren be Jewish, while for 64% it is not important. About 12% found it difficult to answer this question. Here, however, there is a very large difference between affiliated and unaffiliated respondents, as well as between respondents based on their perception of belonging to the Jewish people. For 37% of affiliated respondents, it is important that their children and grandchildren be Jewish, whereas only 17% of unaffiliated respondents expressed this desire. Among those who unconditionally consider themselves Jewish, 45% deem the Jewishness of their descendants important, whereas among those who feel Jewish only under certain circumstances or not at all, this figure is only 7-8%.

At the same time, despite a significant portion of respondents wishing to preserve the Jewish character of their descendants, rejection of mixed marriages is virtually absent among those surveyed. Only 4% of respondents oppose mixed marriages between Jews and non-Jews. 49% view such marriages positively, while for 38% the nationality of the spouse does not matter. 10% stated that it is desirable, though not essential, for Jewish men and women to marry within their own nationality.

Figure 2. What is your attitude toward mixed marriages between Jews and non-Jews?

The survey did not reveal any acute or painful perception of antisemitism in Kazakhstan. 58% stated that antisemitism does not exist in the country and never has. 16% felt that there have been no positive or negative changes in the prevalence of antisemitism. 11% believe that antisemitism in Kazakhstan has decreased noticeably, and only 4% are convinced that it has increased. No significant differences in these assessments were found among various groups of respondents, including the variable most expected to correlate in this context—the degree of feeling of belonging to the Jewish people. Thus, the ethnocultural consciousness of the Jews of Kazakhstan contains meaningful features of Jewish identity, yet is highly integrated into the Kazakhstani civic community.

The main trend for the Jews of Kazakhstan is highly likely to remain cultural assimilation, driven by demographic processes developing in the same direction.