Yidishland
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Absolutely. There will be waves of migration to the JSSR. There might be an initial surge, perhaps somewhat coerced, and I suspect that Stalin's paranoia may be slightly mitigated. The USSR IOTL did not allow migration to Israel until the 1970s; it could be later ITTL. Until then, the JSSR should be quite attractive for Soviet Jews. During the 1970s, as Israel becomes an option, migration to the JSSR will likely decline substantially and there may even be a net outflow; however, as the economy starts to improve somewhat during glasnost, there will be increasing economic migration (including Jews and non Jews) into the JSSR. After independence, there are lots of moving pieces.
ITTL, I don't imagine that the JSSR or Yidishland will surpass the USA or Israel in Jewish population; but it likely has a majority of Soviet Jews by 1989.
After independence, many may leave. But there's always the Haredim
I don't! I will likely be commissioning a flag and a map, unless I just try to do it myself.
There is this, though:
Jewish SSR flag competition- FINALS! (a poll)
Well, I am Happy to introduce the ones who went up to the finals. But first of all, some other cool stuff: Name: Jewish SSR. Nickname: Israel. National anthem: Back in the Jew's SSR by the Beatless- Flew in from Ukraine Beach BOAC Didn't get to bed last night Oh, the way the paper...
www.alternatehistory.com
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Disagree with this bit. 1970s has the Cold War in full swing, and the JSSR is behind the Iron Curtain. The people will not be able to simply leave. I would not expect any large migration waves until the Iron Curtain falls.
Secondly, glasnost had nothing to do with economic improvement, and in fact it the failure of Perestroika to turn around the economic situation was one of the causes that doomed the USSR, tho I digress.
It's also worth considering that the history of Israel would be fundamentally changed with the different demographic currents that the JSSR would bring. For once, the proportion of Ashkenazim would be MUCH lower.
FUNDAMENTAL LAWS OF YIDISHLAND
Note: I personally agree with @Jürgen 's assessment that the best name for the country would be Prussia or Prayzye. The choice to call in Yidishland will be a literary affectation, but we can imagine that even if it weren't the country's official name, many might call it that.
In the rather chaotic immediate post-Soviet period, the people of the former JSSR were given the rare opportunity to define themselves on the international stage. The process of creating a new constitution, which will be detailed in later chapters, produced lots of discussion but distressingly little consensus. The hardest part became determining how to determine consensus, including such options as having any proposed constitution approved by Jewish and non-Jewish citizens, but this proved to provide more questions than answers.
In the end, the Fundamental Laws of Yidishland were created as a set of guiding principles for the governance of Yidishland, rather than a strictly codified constitution.
However, as we shall see, a well-written "Fundamental Laws" may even be better than a constitution, especially in a country where the Jewish legalistic tradition will be so important.
Basic outline of the Fundamental Laws:
The preamble includes a territorial acknowledgement, though probably not called that at the time; it acknowledges the area as the traditional territories of the Prusai people; this is done primarily as a means to pre-empt any other territorial claims
The Fundamental Laws define the territory of the state to those it held at independence; it explicitly renounces any past, present, of future claims to any other territories outisde its present borders.
It defines itself as homeland for the Yiddish people, but acknowledges that it is a multiethnic and multilingual state. It confirms two Official Languages, Yiddish and Russian, and five more "National Languages", Belarusian, German, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Polish.
The state defines itself as secular but "sympathetic to the practice of religion",
It establishes that all legislative, executive and judicial authority ultimately resides with the People, as represented through their institutions.
It establishes the basic principle of independent branches of government; with explicit instructions that an independent judiciary is crucial for the rule of law. It establishes precedent and case law as defining principles of the judiciary
It confirms Yidishland to be a democracy and a unitary state, with direct and participatory democracy as guiding influences wherever practicable.
It has an incredibly robust Bill of Rights which incorporates the UN Declaration of Human Rights, as well Economic Rights similar to those proposed or considered by FDR, and a few compatible elements incorporated from the ten planks of communism or other of Marx's work
In the rather chaotic immediate post-Soviet period, the people of the former JSSR were given the rare opportunity to define themselves on the international stage. The process of creating a new constitution, which will be detailed in later chapters, produced lots of discussion but distressingly little consensus. The hardest part became determining how to determine consensus, including such options as having any proposed constitution approved by Jewish and non-Jewish citizens, but this proved to provide more questions than answers.
In the end, the Fundamental Laws of Yidishland were created as a set of guiding principles for the governance of Yidishland, rather than a strictly codified constitution.
However, as we shall see, a well-written "Fundamental Laws" may even be better than a constitution, especially in a country where the Jewish legalistic tradition will be so important.
Basic outline of the Fundamental Laws:
The preamble includes a territorial acknowledgement, though probably not called that at the time; it acknowledges the area as the traditional territories of the Prusai people; this is done primarily as a means to pre-empt any other territorial claims
The Fundamental Laws define the territory of the state to those it held at independence; it explicitly renounces any past, present, of future claims to any other territories outisde its present borders.
It defines itself as homeland for the Yiddish people, but acknowledges that it is a multiethnic and multilingual state. It confirms two Official Languages, Yiddish and Russian, and five more "National Languages", Belarusian, German, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Polish.
The state defines itself as secular but "sympathetic to the practice of religion",
It establishes that all legislative, executive and judicial authority ultimately resides with the People, as represented through their institutions.
It establishes the basic principle of independent branches of government; with explicit instructions that an independent judiciary is crucial for the rule of law. It establishes precedent and case law as defining principles of the judiciary
It confirms Yidishland to be a democracy and a unitary state, with direct and participatory democracy as guiding influences wherever practicable.
It has an incredibly robust Bill of Rights which incorporates the UN Declaration of Human Rights, as well Economic Rights similar to those proposed or considered by FDR, and a few compatible elements incorporated from the ten planks of communism or other of Marx's work
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Yeah, maybe. I mean, it was the 1970s IOTL that the Soviet Union allowed Jews to begin moving to Israel. I definitely think this will be delayed ITTL, but I don't think until after the fall.
And yeah, my original response had said "glasnost & perestroika".
It's also worth considering that the history of Judaism would be fundamentally changed with the different demographic currents that the JSSR would bring. Due to lower intermarriage and assimilation, there will be considerably more Soviet Jews. A lower percent will emigrate to Israel and America after 1991; but the overall numbers could be similar (or lower, or higher, lots of moving pieces - of course lower is the most likely. IOTL Israel currently has about 1.2m Jews from the former USSR and there descendants from the later Aliyahs (1970s onward), my demographics projections ITTL put that number between 600k-800k).
Anyway, thank you for your interest and your input, and I sincerely hope it continues
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I haven't actually decided the fate of the JAO yet; but it seems likely that it will become just another oblast
Stalin liked to move people around - it's entirely possible that the Jews of the JAO would wake up one day and find that they've all been issued train tickets. I doubt he'd see a need for two designated Jewish areas.
Yeah that seems right. Plus the biggest wave of Jewish migration to the JAO was after WWII, which would be butterflied. And Birobidzhan just becomes another footnote in Jewish history
I'm thinking that the ideological conflict of the Cold War would probably find a new front ITTL, in some kind of rivalry between the Communist JSSR and the Western backed Israel, leading to a sort of East and West Germany situation. I doubt the JSSR rulers would open up emigration if they can help it for the very same reasons the DDR ones didn't, that they would risk losing a significant part of their population.
Yes absolutely, especially after 1967 and the last labour government (which ends 1969).
Let me run some numbers.
What's the point in posting on AH if I don't show you guys the "back end" work right?
CENSUS DATA, 1959-2010
| Group | 1959 | % | 1970 | % | 1979 | % | 1989 | % | 2000 | % | 2010 | % | 2020 | % |
| Jewish | 891,147 | 45.93% | 1,378,344 | 51.16% | 1,574,428 | 51.49% | 1,761,724 | 51.83% | 1,830,317 | 58.08% | 2,099,833 | 66.60% | 2,279,227 | 70.03% |
| Russian | 556,448 | 28.68% | 704,599 | 26.15% | 821,464 | 26.87% | 905,515 | 26.64% | 703,243 | 22.32% | 557,119 | 17.67% | 437,587 | 13.44% |
| Poles/Masurians | 289,881 | 14.94% | 303,248 | 11.25% | 309,712 | 10.13% | 318,410 | 9.37% | 294,494 | 9.35% | 245,089 | 7.77% | 220,624 | 6.78% |
| Belarusian | 91,843 | 4.73% | 140,306 | 5.21% | 169,089 | 5.53% | 182,871 | 5.38% | 140,016 | 4.44% | 104,429 | 3.31% | 86,815 | 2.67% |
| Ukrainian | 47,132 | 2.43% | 78,560 | 2.92% | 98,685 | 3.23% | 136,890 | 4.03% | 86,132 | 2.73% | 62,221 | 1.97% | 73,765 | 2.27% |
| Lithuanian | 33,999 | 1.75% | 42,945 | 1.59% | 40,197 | 1.31% | 37,198 | 1.09% | 35,546 | 1.13% | 26,206 | 0.83% | 23,614 | 0.73% |
| Latvian | 11,465 | 0.59% | 9,996 | 0.37% | 8,688 | 0.28% | 8,274 | 0.24% | 6,187 | 0.20% | 4,596 | 0.15% | 3,594 | 0.11% |
| Roma | 5,539 | 0.29% | 7,307 | 0.27% | 8,440 | 0.28% | 9,762 | 0.29% | 10,776 | 0.34% | 8,604 | 0.27% | 7,089 | 0.22% |
| German | 3,513 | 0.18% | 7,390 | 0.27% | 5,915 | 0.19% | 5,841 | 0.17% | 17,874 | 0.57% | 16,626 | 0.53% | 16,031 | 0.49% |
| Other | 9,318 | 0.48% | 21,678 | 0.80% | 20,923 | 0.68% | 32,741 | 0.96% | 26,694 | 0.85% | 28,184 | 0.89% | 106,329 | 3.27% |
| Total | 1,940,285 | 100.00% | 2,694,373 | 100.00% | 3,057,541 | 100.00% | 3,399,226 | 100.00% | 3,151,279 | 100.00% | 3,152,907 | 100.00% | 3,254,675 | 100.00% |
In other words, you were right.
Other details which aren't visible here are that in 1989, less than 1% of the Jewish population is officially Haredi, by 2020, around 10% of the Jews are, I'd guess.
Very interesting! What's up with such a large number of Russians? That's significantly more than Kaliningrad Oblast ever had, and I'd guess there would be less of them ITTL.
Regarding the Haredi, I would expect them to be one of the groups who emigrate to Israel the most, given all its religious connotations.
Also, what would be the official name of the country post-independence?
Well it combines both Kaliningrad Oblast and the OTL warmian-masurian voivodship of Poland. So it's physically about three times as big. And Kaliningrad Oblast currently has about 800,000 Russians.
The main reason is economic opportunities and quality of life; because of the mass evacuation, East Prussia is relatively undamaged from the war and in a decent geographic location. Plus encouragement, I'd imagine, in the Stalin era, to make it less Jewish and more Russian.
As for the Haredi - most Haredi are actually opposed to the existence of Israel. And the non-Zionist or anti-Zionist ones also usually speak Yiddish, often as their primary language. ITTL, there will be a fairly even three way split of the global Haredim, at least in 2020.
For the purpose of the story I think the name of the country will be "Yidishland", maybe the "Yidishland Commonwealth" or "Yidishland Republic".
This will, as alluded to be @Jürgen, eventually lead to the creation of a separate "Yidishlander" identity which develops in the independence era among non-Jews who speak Yiddish as there primary language or even mame-loshn.
Also, in Yidishland, there will be no restrictions on intermarriage, so identities will get complex
"Yidishland: It's Complicated"
Honestly, I find it unlikely for the percentage of Russians to go down that much. I imagine Yidishland to be developed enough to retain a significant Slavic population, or even have a Slavic majority.
What can happen though is that the Jewish population might be inflated to include Russians declaring some trace of Jewish ancestry, likely for benefits reserved for the Jewish population.
I'm assuming the major increase in "other" from 2010 to 2020 is the result of either importation of guest workers, EU membership, or both?
Yes, a large part of the decline in Russian identity is due to the way people declare their nationality on the census. I project that Russian passes Yiddish as the most commonly spoken language around 1970, only to be passed back around 2010. Today, most people will be bilingual.
And hopefully, there aren't any benefits exclusively reserved for the Jewish population. It will be more about assimilation into Yidishkeit, due to intermarriage (illegal in Israel) and general government policy of intercommunity living. Singapore may be instructive in this light - although dominated by the Chinese ethnicity, it's not in territory that is traditionally Chinese and has substantial minority populations.
Yeah primarily the effects of economic take-off.
Yidishland might develop a complex relationship with the EU intended to allow them to retain free trade agreements with both the EU and the CIS.
Or they may join the EU because Putin gets to cosy.
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From what I’ve seen the total population of the Oblast is less than half a million.
Did the evacuation go any different ITTL? And was Königsberg bombed as per OTL?
Especially since I would expect the communist era government to be secular at least in name.