History of the Jews in Russia
The history of Jews in Russia and nearby areas goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have always been a large religious and ethnic group. At one point, the Russian Empire had the largest Jewish population in the world.[1] In these regions, mostly Ashkenazi Jewish communities thrived and developed many important parts of modern Judaism. They also faced antisemitism, discriminatory policies, and violent attacks called pogroms. Since the beginning of the 21st century, some say there has been a "renaissance" in the Jewish community in Russia. However, the number of Jews in Russia has sharply decreased since the Soviet Union fell apart and continues to go down, although it is still one of the largest Jewish populations in Europe. [2]