Europe Lost 60% Of Its Jewish Population In 50 Years

Europe has lost 60 percent of its Jewish populaton since 1970 according to a new study by the London-based Institute for Jewish Policy Research. Its key findings were published by The Guardian with the decline attributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union which resulted in many Jews leaving Eastern Europe as borders were opened. Across Eastern Europe, the Jewish population fell 85.3 percent over the past 50 years while Western Europe has experienced an 8.5 percent decline.

It is estimated that 1.3 million Jews live in Europe in 2020 with two-thirds of that total living in France, Germany and the United Kingdom. As this infographic shows, Russia's Jewish population contracted by 81 percent between 1970 and 2020 while Poland experienced a 44 percent drop. The disappearance of the USSR has led to a considerable increase in Germany's Jewish population which has climbed 293 percent over the past five decades.