Litvako tapatybė ir jos kaita

LTStraipsnyje bandoma apibrėžti terminus "Lita" ir "litvakas" istoriniame ir nūdienos kontekste, ieškoma litvakų bendruomenės išskirtinumų iš kitų Vakarų ir Rytų Europos žydų bendruomenių, pristatomos litvakų tapatybės paieškos ir jų kaita. [Iš leidinio]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Tauta; Tapatybė; Žydų bendruomenė; Lita; Litvakas; Ortodoksas; Chasidizmas; Haskalos sąjūdis; Sionizmas; Bundas; Nation; Identity; Jewish community; Lithuania; Lita; Litvak; Orthodox; Hasidism; Haskalah movement; Zionism; Bund.

ENLife in different territories and different cultural environments determined the creation of different Jewish diaspora groups. The Jewish community in Lita (Lithuania) differed from those in Western Europe and others in the Russian Empire. Litvaks made a unique contribution to and formed Lithuania’s cultural heritage, leaving a clear mark on the country’s history. They managed their community’s internal affairs autonomously, they had their own prayer houses, courts, schools, abattoirs, saunas, later also establishing their own religious seminaries. The article tries to define the terms "Lita" and "Litvak" in the historic and contemporary context, and to find answers to the questions: what features are characteristic to the Litvak community, did other East European Jewish and non-Jewish communities include Litvaks as among their own, did the Litvaks themselves identify with the exclusiveness attributed to them? Each new phenomenon, and historic, political and economic event changes the way of life, traditions and value system of national communities. Interestingly, most of the factors that changed the Litvak identity were not external but internal, and arose within the Jewish community itself - Hasidism, the educational ideas of the Haskalah movement and Zionism. The article seeks to discuss the changes to the Litvak identity in answering how this happened, and what were the most important factors that brought about those changes. Does a Litvak community exist in Lithuania today?. [From the publication]