Jews Forced Into Commerce a Myth Wynne

The Galitzianers: The Jews of Galicia, 1772-1918, by Suzan F. Wynne. 2006

The Myth of Jews Uncommon as Farmers Because They Were Barred From It. Early Atheism Among Galicia’s Jews

This work covers the years 1772-1918, which is the time that Poland as a state did not exist, and was ruled by Prussia, Russia, and Austria. Most of this work provides profuse detail about archival sources in places such as Poland and Ukraine. Numerous place names are listed, along with Jewish surnames.

The first part of this book is a brief historical survey of the Jews of Galicia–both eastern Galicia and western Galicia. I now discuss a few issues:

JEWISH OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE: JEWS DIDN’T TURN TO FARMING EVEN WHEN ALLOWED

One common explanation (or exculpation) for Jews being concentrated in certain professions is their barring from other professions. For instance, it is argued that Jews were prevented from becoming farmers, and that the huge fraction of doctors and lawyers being Jewish, in interwar Poland, owed to Jews filling those default occupations available to them.

The “Jews barred from occupations” notion is a chicken-and-egg question and, at best, an oversimplification. For instance, soon after the Partitions, in the late 18th century, the Austrian emperor Josef II encouraged Jews to become farmers. (p. 24). Yet this did cause a large increase of Jews engaged in agriculture.

In 1869, the Austrian emperor Frank Josef lifted all occupational restrictions on Jews. (p. 41). Now consider the fact that Jews had been prohibited from being doctors or pharmacists in or before 1829. In 1869, they were allowed to, and, by 1890, Jews already comprised 25% of physicians and 48% of lawyers in Galicia (p. 16), even though they comprised only 11% of Galicia’s population. (p. 18). Obviously, the strong Jewish overrepresentation among doctors and lawyers had long preceded the re-establishment of the Polish state in 1918!

For more on how the restriction of Jews to certain occupations had been a late development, please click on, and read, the detailed Peczkis review of The Chosen Few: How Education Shaped Jewish History, 70-1492 (Princeton Economic History of the Western World).

SECULARIZATION OF THE GALITZIANERS: CARDINAL AUGUST HLOND WAS RIGHT

The departure of Jews from religion is best known in Russian-ruled Poland, notably among the Litvaks (Litwaks). However, it also occurred, if to a lesser extent and slower pace, among Galicia’s Jews. Thus, by the late 19th century, the impact of Zionism, the Haskalah, and German-style Reform Judaism, began to be noticeable, especially among the Galician Jews living in large urban areas. (p. 53). In fact, “Young people began to identify themselves with Zionist youth movements rooted more strongly in socialism than Judaism.” (p. 53). Furthermore, in spite of the continued dominance of traditional Jewish ways at this time, secularization became a trend (Author Wynne uses the word trend), among the Jewish young people of Galicia’s cities. (p. 54).

These Jewish youth, of course, became the adults and elderly of the Jewish community in the interwar Polish state. [The self-atheization of Poland’s Jews accelerated once Poland was resurrected as a state in 1918. This prompted Polish Cardinal August Hlond’s 1936 “Jews are freethinkers” statement, for which he has been endlessly criticized ever since.]