Map of western Russia showing the Jewish Pale of Settlement

Map of western Russia showing the Jewish Pale of Settlement

The Russian Empire was a multinational state, and the Jews were a significant minority group in the empire. The Tsarist government imposed many restrictions on the Jews, including geographical confinement. Jews had to live in the Pale of
Settlement, which was located in the western part of the Russian Empire.The Pale spanned across all of modern day Belarus, Lithuania, and Moldova, the vast majority of Ukraine and Latvia, much of modern day Poland, as well as the Western parts of modern day Russia. By 1885, there were more than 4 million Jews living in the Pale.

Within the Pale, there were some towns (such as Kiev) where Jews could only live if they had special residence permits. Similarly, some Jews were allowed to live outside the Pale with special permission, although this was rare.

Before you is a map of the Pale of Settlement from 1901. As you can see, The Pale covered a huge area that consisted of more than 20 gubernii or provinces. On this map, the province names are written in capital letters and the towns are in lower case. There are also some rivers noted on the map.

The map legend details the percentages of Jews that lived in each of the provinces of the Pale. As noted, the Northwestern area had the highest percentage of Jews within the provinces. In areas such as Grodno and Minsk, more than 15% of the population was Jewish.

This map is important due to the fact that it visually demonstrates the confinement and segregation of the Jews within the Russian Empire. Understanding the geographical restrictions of living in the Pale gives context to the history of the Jews in the Russian Empire. Visualizing the vast area of the Pale as well as the percentage of Jews in each town, demonstrates the size and significance of the Jewish population in Russia. The map conveys the demographics of the Jews and enables a broader understanding of their circumstances. The geographical picture obtained from this map, frames the conditions that influenced the massive migration of more than 2 million Jews from Russia.

Isidore Singer and Cyrus Adler

The Jewish Encyclopedia; a Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day (1901)

Funk & Wagnalls Company

1901