Jewish Life and Jewish Women in Germany Today

Publication Date: November 1999

Publisher: Hadassah International Research Institute on Jewish Women

Author(s): Tobe Levin; Susanna Keval

Research Area: Culture and religion; Population and demographics

Keywords: Women; History; Culture

Type: Brief

Coverage: Germany

Abstract:

When we survey the international Jewish community, the Jewish community in Germany stands out as truly dynamic, having nearly doubled in the last ten years to become the fourteenth largest in the world. Compared to the pre-war Jewish population of 500,000, seventy-thousand German Jews may seem a paltry number. But fifty years after the Shoah, Jews have begun to regain visibility in journalism, the arts, and various domains of public life. Our article opens with a brief historical overview of Jewish women before the war, followed by several contemporary voices. Then, in two parts, we will look at the present situation of German Jewish life from a more personal perspective.