Located between 2 rivers – the Bira and the Bidzhan, the town Birobidzhan (Биробиджан) seems to have gotten its name in a rather natural and logical way. In 1915 there was only a railway station Tihonkaya (the Silent One) on the Trans-Siberian rail route in the Russian Far East but with time it transformed into a town and the administrative center of the Jewish Autonomous Region. Jewish culture was revived here much earlier than elsewhere in the Soviet Union.
In 1980s – 1990s during the wave of emigration many residents of Birobidzan moved to Israel therefore the statement “Birobidzhan – a place where there are no Jews, but everyone keeps pretending they are still there” is not very far from truth. The number of Jewish people currently living in Birobidzhan is only around 5 percent of the town’s total population.
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migratory birds
unknown routes to discover
trees with empty nests
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interesting to say the least, blessings
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Thanks for another great history tidbit.
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yes I reacted to that as well.. well told,.. and what a great idea to connect it to the migratory birds.
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Very interesting history to make an interesting haiku.
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