History of the Jews in Kyrgyzstan

Until the 20th century, most Jews living in the Kyrgyz areas were of the Bukharian Jewish community. During World War II, many Jews fled from the European parts of the Soviet Union to central Asia. The Jewish community of KyrgyZstan combined out of an Ashkenazi community and a Bukhari Sephardic one. Since the dissolution of theSoviet Union, the great majority have emigrated to Israel and to the United States, while others have emigrate to Europe or Australia. The history of the Jews in the country is linked directly to the history of Bukharan Jews of Uzbekistan. The term "Djeet" similar to e.g. Polish żyd was used in order to describe Jews, and it is mentioned in the 10th century poem Manas. In Manas, several central-Asian cities are described as having Jewish communities in them, among them Samarkand, Bukhara and Baghdad, though none of them have ever been inhabited by a majority of KyrGYz people nor included in a Kyrgy Z territory.