News and Events
New Research Center at Yad Vashem
A new unit, The Center for Research on the History of Soviet Jews during the Holocaust, has recently begun operating under the auspices of The International Institute for Holocaust Research at Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority in Jerusalem. The purpose of the Center is to study in a comprehensive manner the World War II history of the Jews living on territories included within the borders of the Soviet Union as of June 22, 1941. The Center has been established with the kind support of the European Jewish Fund and the Genesis Foundation.
Among the main topics studied by the Center are the following: the fate of the Jews who were caught by the war on territories occupied by the Germans; Jews in the Red Army and in the Soviet rear; Soviet policy toward the Jews; and the impact of the Holocaust on the identity of Soviet and post-Soviet Jewry. The Center’s research focuses on events of the war period directly and the study of this topic in the postwar Soviet Union and in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Baltics. The Center conducts research in the areas of history and sociology, literature and the visual arts, film and theater, religion and Jewish identity.
The basic goal of the Center is to foster research on the Holocaust via cooperation with scholars from the CIS, the Baltic countries, Israel, the United States, and Europe. In order to pursue this goal the Center plans to offer grants and fellowships, as well as opportunities for young scholars and doctoral students to spend time at Yad Vashem to make use of its wealth of documentary collections related to the Holocaust.
One of the projects of the Center currently underway is the creation of a comprehensive on-line bibliography. Its scope encompasses not only books but also articles published in collections and in journals. In the future the Center intends to organize conferences on various topics connected with World War II and the Holocaust, and to publish collections of articles and annotated collections of relevant archival documents.
The work of the Center is being conducted in close cooperation with various scientific research institutes and organizations specializing in the study of the Holocaust and the history of World War II. The activities of the Center include joint projects involving leading specialists from around the world.
The director of The Center for Research on the History of Soviet Jews during the Holocaust at Yad Vashem is Dr. Arkadi Zeltser.
Please contact Dr. Zeltser at arkadi.zeltser@yadvashem.org.il
or by phone at +97226443467.
The Center will be happy to receive your proposals and requests.
