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Kalarash

KALARASH (Rom. Cǎlǎrași, formerly also Tuzora), town in Bessarabia, Moldova. Jews began to settle there in the first half of the 19th century. They numbered 4,593 in 1897, forming 89% of the population. Most were engaged in trade, primarily in agricultural produce, and some in agriculture. Most of the Jews were ḥasidim and spoke Yiddish. The wave of pogroms in Russia in October 1905 also hit Kalarash, where 60 Jews were killed, 300 were injured, and over 200 houses were burned down. After Bessarabia passed to Romania in 1918, communal life flourished in Kalarash. The community had welfare organizations and educational institutions, including a hospital (founded in 1890), a talmud torah, a library, and a loan and savings fund. In 1930 the Jewish population numbered 3,631 (76% of the total population). Israel *Giladi was born in Kalarash. Zionist organizations were also active.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Judenpogrome in Russland, 2 (1909), 97–102; P. Cowen, Memories of an American Jew (1932), 212–24; Y. Yakir, in: Eynikeyt (Dec. 3, 1946). ADD. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Sefer Kalarasch (1966).


Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2007 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.