Judaic Communities of the Crimea and Internal Colonization in the Russian Empire (at the end of 18th – on the First Half of 19th Centuries)

Abstract

At the end of the 18th – in the beginning of the 19th century in Crimea there took place significant changes in the ethnic and confessional spheres. The eviction of Christians, the mass emigration of the Crimean Tatars led to a reduction in the population. The Russian authorities have begun to implement measures to settle Novorossia in general and Crimea in particular with colonists from internal provinces and migrants from abroad. One of the main issues in the study of the past of the Jewish communities of Crimea is the problem of transforming the identity of the old-time population. The domestic policy of the Russian government in the “national regions” at the end of the 18th – in the first half of the 19th century greatly complicated interethnic and interfaith relations both between Jewish rabbis and representatives of the “titular” nation of the empire, and between the Karaite and rabbinic communities of Crimea. The Karaites had to prove their difference from the Rabbinical Jews in order to achieve civil and economic preferences. The assistance of the government in many matters allowed the Karaites to strengthen their economic and legal position. The paper analyzes the legislative acts and resolutions adopted by the Russian government in relation to Jewish rabbis and Karaites. In the legal field of the Russian Empire, the Karaites received a new legal status according to which they were granted various rights and freedoms. On the other hand, the tax burden and social oppression against the Jewish population increased.

Keywords

• russian empire
• crimea
• novorossia
• jews
• karaites
• colonization
• migration
• legislation
• economy
• religious communities