The Jewish community of the Izhevsk factory settlement in the documents of the First General Census of the Russian Empire in 1897

Based on materials from the 1897 First General Census of the Russian Empire, the article examines the Jewish community that formed in the 19th century in the settlement attached to the Izhevsk Armament and Ironworks in Sarapul district, Vyatka province. Using methods of historical research (historical-systemic, statistical), the author analyzes the social structure, place of birth and place of registration of the Jews, their occupations and sources of income, literacy levels, and demographic indicators (age-sex and family composition). The results provide a comprehensive profile of the Jewish community living in the factory settlement of a military department enterprise. The author concludes that the relaxation of the Pale of Settlement during the reforms of Alexander II, on the one hand, and the transfer of the factory population to civil administration, on the other, led to changes in the social structure of the Jewish ethnic community at the Izhevsk plant. Specifically, this included a reduction in the number of military personnel (lower ranks, ordinary soldiers in invalid and garrison companies) among local Jews. By the end of the 19th century, representatives of the urban estate - the meshchane (townspeople) - already predominated within the Izhevsk Jewish community. Part of the rural Jewish inhabitants also originated from the meshchane stratum. Many were registered in towns within the Pale of Settlement, i.e., in the western and southwestern provinces of the Russian Empire, which typically served as the birthplace for the older generation and family heads. However, members of the middle and younger generations were often natives of Vyatka, Kazan, Perm, and other interior provinces. The primary spheres of activity for Jews in the Izhevsk plant settlement were traditionally crafts and trade, predominantly the production and sale of clothing and food items. An investigation into the literacy levels of members of the Izhevsk Jewish commrunity revealed some dependence on age and sex, but not on social estate: across the three examined social groups (meshchane, rural inhabitants, retired soldiers), this indicator differed only marginally. Meanwhile, the education of the majority of the Jewish population was limited to the crurriculum of an elementary school, home schooling, or a Jewish school (the presence of a Jewish teacher allowed for teaching children Jewish law and language directly within the factory settlement). Finally, the analysis of the census data indicate a demographic profile marked by a predominance of nuclear, two-generation households, a significant proportion of youth, and a relatively small elderly population - a pattern consistent with a traditional model of population reproduction. The author declares no conflicts of interests.

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