The first question to ask ourselves is which regions are the immigrants emerging from?
The Jewish population density within the Pale. Source: The Jewish Virtual Library circa 1832
This is a commonly cited map of the Pale of Settlement, which is another name for the region to which Jewish residential communities were restricted – and not without reason, for it gives an overview of this region in both geographic and demographic dimensions.
About 50% of the total global Jewish population lived in Eastern Europe in 1880. (5 million)
The Jewish population in Eastern Europe was for the most part situated in the Russian Empire.
The population was unevenly distributed among the various regions of Russia:
Source: East European Jews in Two Worlds
The Pale of Settlements
That 6% were the renowned artisans, Jewish merchants of the 1st guild, people with a higher/special education, and soldiers drafted in accordance with the 1810 Recruit Charter. They received special rights because they served directly under the aristocracy and therefore had to live in close proximity to their employers.
