Finnish Jews
Suomen juutalaiset
Finländska judar
יהודים פיניים
The location of Finland (dark green) in the European Union (light green)
Total population
1,650[1]
Regions with significant populations
Helsinki (80% of the Finnish Jewish community), Turku (13%), Tampere (3%)[1]
Languages
Finnish, Swedish, Hebrew, Yiddish, German, Russian[2]
Religion
Judaism
Related ethnic groups
Ashkenazi Jews: notably Russian Jews, Ukrainian Jews, and others.

The history of the Jews in Finland goes back to the 1700s. The country is home to some 1,800 Jews, of which 1,400 live in the Greater Helsinki area and 200 in Turku.[1] Most Jews in Finland have Finnish or Swedish as their mother tongue, and many speak Yiddish, German, Russian and Hebrew.[2] Jews originally came to Finland as Russian soldiers who stayed in Finland in the 19th century after their military service ended (knows as Cantonists).[1] There are Jewish congregations in Helsinki and Turku with their own synagogues built in 1906 and 1912. The Wiborg Synagogue built 1910–1911 was destroyed in air bombings during the first day of the Winter War in 30 November 1939.[1] Since data collection began in 2008, incidents of antisemitism have been on the rise in Finland.[3] The number of incidents are likely under-reported as Finland does not account for specific forms of hate speech that incite violence or hatred.[4]

Early history, 1700–1917

Graves of the Jewish soldiers who served in the army of the Russian Empire, located next to the Eastern Orthodox cemetery in Hamina.

The first Jew said to have settled on Finnish soil was Jacob Weikam, later Veikkanen, in 1782, in the town of Hamina, which was at that point under Russian rule. During that time, most of Finland was included in the Kingdom of Sweden. In Sweden, Jews were allowed to reside in 3 towns – all of them outside the territory that is now modern-day Finland. In 1809 Finland became part of the Russian Empire, as an autonomous Grand Duchy, but Swedish laws remained in force, meaning Jews were still unable to settle in Finnish territory according to the Judereglementet.[5]


Despite the legal difficulties, during the period of Finnish autonomy (1809–1917) Russian Jews established themselves in Finland as tradesmen and craftsmen. As Jews were in principle prohibited from dwelling in Finland, almost all these Jews were retired soldiers from the Imperial Russian army. Being cantonists, forced into the Russian army in childhood, they were required to serve at least 25 years. After their term expired, they had, however, the right to remain in Finland regardless of the Finnish ban on Jewish settlement, a right forcefully defended by the Russian military authorities. It was only after Finland declared independence in 1917 that Jews were granted full rights as Finnish citizens.

Rabbi Naftali Zvi Amsterdam, one of the foremost disciples of Rabbi Yisrael Salanter and the Mussar Movement, served as chief rabbi of Helsinki on Rabbi Yisrael's instruction, from 1867 to 1875.[6]

Jewish youths in Helsinki founded in 1906 the sports association IK Stjärnan (later Makkabi Helsinki) That the society is founded in 1906 makes it the oldest Jewish sports club in the world that has an uninterrupted history.[7]

World War II

A Finnish field synagogue with soldiers at the Continuation War.

Finland's involvement in World War II began during the Winter War (30 November 1939 – 13 March 1940), the Soviet Union's invasion of Finland prior to Operation Barbarossa (launched in June 1941). Finnish Jews evacuated Finnish Karelia along other locals.[8] Also, the Jewish Wiborg Synagogue was destroyed by air bombings.[9]

Following Soviet air strikes, Finland waged war against the Soviet Union in the Continuation War (1941–1944). While Germany launched Barbarossa, Finland simultaneously resumed hostilities against the Soviet Union. This resulted in Finland fighting alongside Nazi Germany. 327 Finnish Jews fought for Finland during the war, of which were 242 rank-and-file soldiers, 52 non-commissioned officers, 18 officers and 15 medical officers. Additionally, 21 Jews served in the women's auxiliary Lotta Svärd. 15 Finnish Jews were killed in action in the Winter War and eight in the Continuation War.[10][11]

As Finland's forces had substantial numbers of German forces supporting their operations, the Finnish front had a field synagogue operating in the presence of Nazi troops. Jewish soldiers were granted leave on Saturdays and Jewish holidays.[12][13][14] Finnish Jewish soldiers later participated in the Lapland War against Germany.

In November 1942, eight Jewish Austrian refugees (along with 19 other deportees) were deported to Nazi Germany after the head of the Finnish police agreed to turn them over. Seven of the Jews were murdered immediately.[15][16] According to author Martin Gilbert, these eight were Georg Kollman; Frans Olof Kollman; Frans Kollman's mother; Hans Eduard Szubilski; Henrich Huppert; Kurt Huppert; Hans Robert Martin Korn, who had been a volunteer in the Winter War; and an unknown individual.[17] When Finnish media reported the news, it caused a national scandal, and ministers resigned in protest.[16] After protests by Lutheran ministers, the Archbishop, and the Social Democratic Party, no more foreign Jewish refugees were deported from Finland. Approximately 500 Jewish refugees arrived in Finland during World War II, although about 350 moved on to other countries, including about 160 who were transferred to neutral Sweden to save their lives on the direct orders of Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, the commander of the Finnish Army.[16] About 40 of the remaining Jewish refugees were sent to do compulsory labor service in Salla in Lapland in March 1942. The refugees were moved to Kemijärvi in June and eventually to Suursaari Island in the Gulf of Finland. Although Heinrich Himmler twice visited Finland to try to persuade the authorities to hand over the Jewish population, he was unsuccessful.[16]

In 1942, an exchange of Soviet POWs took place between Finland and Germany. Approximately 2,600–2,800 Soviet prisoners of war of various nationalities then held by Finland were exchanged for 2,100 Soviet POWs of Baltic Finn nationalities (Finnish, Karelian, Ingrian, or Estonian) held by Germany, who might have volunteered in the Finnish army. About 2000 of the POWs handed over by Finland joined the Wehrmacht. Among the rest there were about 500 people (mainly Soviet political officers) who were considered politically dangerous in Finland. This latter group most likely perished in concentration camps or were executed as per the Commissar Order. Based on a list of names, there were 47 Jews among the extradited, although they were not extradited based on religion.[18]

Jews with Finnish citizenship were protected during the whole period. Late in the war, Germany's ambassador to Helsinki Wipert von Blücher concluded in a report to Hitler that Finns would not endanger their citizens of Jewish origin in any situation.[19] According to historian Henrik Meinander, this was realistically accepted by Hitler.[19]

Three Finnish Jews were offered the Iron Cross for their wartime service: Leo Skurnik, Salomon Klass, and Dina Poljakoff. Major Leo Skurnik, a district medical officer in the Finnish Army, organized an evacuation of a German field hospital when it came under Soviet shelling. More than 600 patients, including SS soldiers, were evacuated. Captain Salomon Klass, also of the Finnish Army, who had lost an eye in the Winter War, led a Finnish unit that rescued a German company that had been surrounded by the Soviets. Dina Poljakoff, a member of Lotta Svärd, the Finnish women's auxiliary service, was a nursing assistant who helped tend to German wounded, and came to be greatly admired by her patients. All three refused the award.[20][16][14]

President of Finland, Marshal Mannerheim attended the memorial service for the fallen at the Helsinki Synagogue on 6 December 1944.[21]

Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen issued an official apology in 2000 for the extradition of the eight Jewish refugees.[22]

Today

The synagogue of Turku

During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, about 28 Finnish Jews, mostly Finnish Army veterans, fought for the State of Israel. After Israel's establishment, Finland had a high rate of immigration to Israel (known as "aliyah"), which depleted Finland's Jewish community. The community was somewhat revitalized when some Soviet Jews immigrated to Finland following the collapse of the Soviet Union.[8][23]

The number of Jews in Finland in 2020 was approximately 1,800, of whom 1,400 lived in Helsinki, about 200 in Turku, and about 50 in Tampere.[1] The Jews are well integrated into Finnish society and are represented in nearly all sectors. Most Finnish Jews are corporate employees or self-employed professionals.[1]

Most Finnish Jews speak Finnish or Swedish as their mother tongue. Yiddish, German, Russian, and Hebrew are also spoken in the community. The Jews, like Finland's other traditional minorities as well as immigrant groups, are represented on the Advisory Board for Ethnic Relations.

There are two synagogues: one in Helsinki and one in Turku. Helsinki also has a Jewish day school, which serves about 110 students (many of them the children of Israelis working in Finland); and a Chabad Lubavitch rabbi is based there.

Tampere previously had an organized Jewish community, but it stopped functioning in 1981.[24] The other two cities continue to run their community organizations.[24] There are also some Reform Jewish activities in Finland today.[25]

Antisemitism

Antisemitic incidents figures since 2008[26]

Historically, antisemitic hate crimes have been rare, and the Jewish community is relatively safe. However, there have been some antisemitic crimes reported in the last decade; the most common types include defamation, verbal threats, and damage to property.[27]

In 2011, Ben Zyskowicz, the first Finnish Jewish parliamentarian, was assaulted by a man shouting antisemitic slurs.[28] Four years later, a few campaign advertisements containing Zyskowicz's picture were sprayed with swastikas in Helsinki.[29] In 2023, Zyskowicz was attacked by a man who shouted insults about NATO, Jews and immigrants.[30]

In 2015 the Fundamental Rights Agency published its annual overview of data on antisemitism available in the European Union. The document displays information from a report of the Police College of Finland. Since 2008, the report has covered religiously motivated hate crimes, including antisemitic crimes. The recent documented data is from 2013, when most of the incidents (six out of eleven) concerned verbal threats/harassments.[3]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Short History of Finnish Jewry". Jewish Community of Helsinki. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  2. 1 2 Arnö, Kaj (2 November 2020). "About language and the Jews of Finland". Projekt Fredrika r.f. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Antisemitism: Overview of antisemitic incidents recorded in the European Union 2011–2021". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  4. ↑ "Fundamental Rights Report 2022, p. 87-88". European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. 8 June 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  5. ↑ Jewish Heritage Europe – Finland
  6. ↑ Muir, Simo; Tuori, Riikka (May 2019). "'The Golden Chain of Pious Rabbis': the origin and development of Finnish Jewish Orthodoxy". Nordisk Judaistik/Scandinavian Jewish Studies.
  7. ↑ Makkabi. Helsingin juutalaisen urheiluseuran historia. Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura. 2016. ISBN 978-952-222-705-8. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  8. 1 2 Hannu Reime (8 October 2010). "Un-Finnish business". Haaretz.
  9. ↑ "The Jews of Finland". The Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  10. ↑ Simon, John (2017). Mahdoton sota: Kun suomenjuutalaiset taistelivat natsi-Saksan rinnalla [The Impossible War: When Finnish Jews Fought Alongside with the Nazi Germany] (in Finnish). Translated by Antero Helasvuo. Helsinki: Siltala. ISBN 978-952-234-473-1.
  11. ↑ Simon, John B. (2019). Strangers in a Stranger Land: How One Country's Jews Fought an Unwinnable War alongside Nazi Troops... and Survived. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 183. ISBN 978-951-44-7702-7.
  12. ↑ Kendall, Paul (9 March 2014). "The Jews who fought for Hitler: 'We did not help the Germans. We had a common enemy'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
  13. ↑ Suomen juutalaiset sotaveteraanit saivat muistopaaden MTV3. 28 April 2002. Retrieved 26 February 2010.(in Finnish)
  14. 1 2 Paul Kendall, The Telegraph (11 March 2014). "For the Jews who fought for Hitler, discomfort still – despite rejecting Nazi Iron Cross for saving German lives". National Post. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  15. ↑ Cohen, William B. and Jörgen Svensson (1995). Finland and the Holocaust. Holocaust and Genocide Studies 9(1):70–93.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Jewish Quarterly". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  17. ↑ Gilbert, Martin (1985). The Holocaust. Holt. p. 534. ISBN 0-03-062416-9.
  18. ↑ Jukka Lindstedt: Juutalaisten sotavankien luovutukset. Historiallinen aikakauskirja 2/2004: 144–165
  19. 1 2 Meinander, Henrik (2009). Suomi 1944. Siltala. p. 17. ISBN 978-952-234-003-0.
  20. ↑ STT-IA. "Juutalaiset sotilaat taistelivat saksalaisten rinnalla Suomen itsenäisyyden puolesta". 1997 12 5. Verkkouutiset. Archived from the original on 19 January 2005. Retrieved 5 December 2011.
  21. ↑ Lumi, Llena. "Mannerheim Synagoogassa". Leena Lumi Blog. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  22. ↑ Vuonokari, Tuulikki (2003). "Jews in Finland During the Second World War". University of Tampere (Finnish Institutions Research Papers). Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
  23. ↑ Siegel, Matt. "A Short but Convoluted History for Finland's Jewish Community". Archived from the original on 4 April 2013. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
  24. 1 2 "About Our Community". Jewish Community of Helsinki. Archived from the original on 1 November 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
  25. ↑ "Progressive Judaism in Finland". progressivejudaismfinland.blogspot.com. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  26. ↑ "Antisemitism Overview of data available in the European Union 2004–2014" (PDF). European Union agency for fundamental rights. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  27. ↑ European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights: Antisemitism – Summary overview of the situation in the European Union 2001–2011, p. 26.
  28. ↑ "Man tries to punch Jewish Finnish parliament speaker". The Jerusalem Post - JPost.com. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  29. ↑ "Swastikas appeared on Zyskowicz election posters". CFCA. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  30. ↑ "Finland's longest-serving MP, Ben Zyskowicz, attacked while campaigning". Yle. 25 March 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2023.

Further reading

  • Cohen, William B. and Jörgen Svensson (1995). Finland and the Holocaust. Holocaust and Genocide Studies 9(1):70–93.
  • Rautkallio, Hannu (1988). Finland and the Holocaust. The Rescue of Finland's Jews. N.Y.:Holocaust Publications. ISBN 0-89604-121-2.
  • Cohen, William B. & Jürgen Svensson (2001). Finland. In Walter Laqueur, ed., The Holocaust Encyclopedia. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. pp. 204–206. ISBN 0-300-08432-3.
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