Whats the difference between Carpathian and Russian backgrou

amother

Thu, Aug 06 2020, 12:12 pm

I know Carpathian area is in modern day Ukraine and used to be parts of other countries. When someone says they're Carpathian as opposed to Russian background what is the difference in their mentality, culture, views about life? Are they similar?

amother

Gold

Thu, Aug 06 2020, 12:15 pm

I remember years back dating a carpathian guy and I hadn’t heard of it but he was so proud of his heritage and seemed to have a cohesive community, I wondered the same thing as you .

chestnut

Thu, Aug 06 2020, 2:10 pm

They're probably more traditional in observance/knowledge than Russians as they became part of the USSR only around the Holocaust.
Wonder if they consider themselves more European.

amother

Blonde

Thu, Aug 06 2020, 4:14 pm

Jews from the carpathian mountains can actually be of different nationalities depending on the exact location and, more importantly, the time period they lived there. The area changed hands between many countries.so a parent may have been Czech, and their child Ukrainian without actually having moved locations.
Many chasiduyot of today originated in this region. After the Holocaust, most survivors left to other countries. The area then became communist and they were not allowed to practice Judaism openly, although many stayed very traditional and even very religious,especially in their homes. Its pretty rare today to find carpathian jews who are completely assimilated. They usually keep some traditions even when not religious.
A lot of carpathian jews speak Yiddish. They cook the traditional food of the nationality they grew up with.which is mostly considered "heimish", "hungarian", and some ukranian foods.
A lot of carpathians of a certain age do know Russian because their schooling was part of the soviet union for a number of years after the holocaust.

amother

Powderblue

Thu, Aug 06 2020, 8:18 pm

Hi, I'm from Kiev - would you consider me Russian? If you'd like to hear my opinion, I agree with the poster who said Carpathians are more traditional. You also have to know that these people come from small rural towns, they are usually hard working, and value financial stability. They definitely are proud of their heritage. These are obviously generalizations made from personal experience.