Number of Jews worldwide nears 1925’s level, but still far short of pre-WWII
Central Bureau of Statistics says there were 14.7 million Jews at end of 2018, in figures released ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day; in 1939, there were 16.6 million
Ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins Monday evening, the Central Bureau of Statistics on Sunday released data on the number of Jews worldwide.
According to the CBS, there were 14.7 million Jews at the end of 2018, just shy of the 14.8 million there were in 1925 but still significantly fewer than the 16.6 million there were on the eve of World War II in 1939, and the Holocaust in which six million Jews were systematically murdered.
The 6.7 million Jews in Israel accounted for 45 percent of the world population. Of them, 5.2 million were born in Israel while the majority of the rest, 1 million, were born either in Europe or on the American continent.
The United States has the second largest Jewish population at 5.7 million, followed by France, Canada, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Russia, Germany and Australia.
Holocaust Remembrance Day is observed this year on April 21.
Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, earlier this month announced a global name-reading initiative to mark this year’s commemorations, instead of the normal annual ceremonies, which are impossible due to coronavirus-related restrictions.
The campaign, #RememberingFromHome #ShoahNames, calls on the international public to record themselves reciting the names of Holocaust victims and share the video on social media using the campaign’s hashtags.
JTA contributed to this report.
