The Fifth Aliyah
The migration of Jews to Palestine (now known as Israel) between 1929-1939 was known as the Fifth Aliyah. An “aliyah” is defined as the migration of Jews to the Land of Israel, a migration symbolizing a return to the homeland (ReformJudaism). The Fifth Aliyah is historically the largest migration to the Land of Israel with over 250,000 Jews moving to Palestine (Jewish Agency). This great increase in migration was spurred by the rise of the Nazi party and Antisemitism throughout East and Central Europe.
The German Yekkes
Young Germans arriving to Palestine
A large portion of the Fifth Aliyah migrants came to Palestine from Germany. About 21% of the migrants came from Germany, largely to escape the rise of the Nazi party (Rubin, 2011). Once in Palestine, these Germans were referred to as “Yekkes” (or Yekkim) and their overwhelming numbers worried the Palestinians (Alroey, 2014). The Yekkim were not welcomed into the largely Zionist Jewish community, as their migration was usually out of necessity and not commitment to the creation of a Jewish state. The Yekkim were viewed as “not Jewish enough” (Rubin, 2011). In order to integrate them into society, classes in Hebrews and Bible lecture series were offered. Pre-emigration training was offered in many countries to prepare migrants to make aliyah and become members of the Israeli society.
Germans in pre-emigration training in a cooking class in Berlin, Germany.
Other Migrants
Although many of the Fifth Aliyah migrants came from Germany or other German-speaking nations, many also came from other nations facing a rise in antisemitism. 94,000 Polish Jews migrated during the years of the Fifth Aliyah (Band, 2003). In Poland, these Jews suffered through an economic depression as well as a boycott of Jewish-owned shops, leading many Polish Jews to join the Zionist movement and make aliyah to the Land of Israel (Mendelsohn, 1987).
About the Creator
Erin Harten is currently a first-year stu
dent at Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, PA, and is from
Kennett Square, PA. Erin is intending to graduate in 2020 with a degree in Biology. This project was created as Erin’s final project for the First-Year Seminar Migration: Now and Then taught by Professor Bohrer and was inspired by her Jewish heritage.
