Russian Language Listings Compiled by Alexander Ivanov, Center “Petersburg Judaica” at European University-St. Petersburg Russia

Abstract

siia could have strengthened the analysis further, as the fates of these interrelated and interconnected policies differed. In regard to the republic’s titular population, the policy of korenizatsiia – in the sense of promoting ethnic Belorussians – continued until the end of the Soviet era. Linguistic Belorusizatsiia, on the other hand, was scaled back, rather than abolished, whereas Yiddishizatsiia was indeed abandoned. Whether the reversal was “razor-sharp” could be debated; arguably, the reversal was inconsistent and contradictory; the number of Yiddish language schools actually kept increasing for much of the 1930s. The reversal, as Leonid Smilovitskii has shown, was of a somewhat later date: 1935–1937, with Yiddish retaining its status as an official language until 1938. If some of Sloin’s bold interpretations may prove contentious, they in no way diminish the value of his study, which skillfully restores voices and agency to local, often forgotten Jewish actors. Combining economic, social, and political history, this sophisticated original work is a significant contribution not only to Soviet Jewish history, but also to our understanding of Soviet nationalities policy.