What is the makeup of Israeli society?
Around 76% of Israel’s 7.5 million citizens are Jews. They originate from a wide range of countries. The earliest waves of modern Jewish immigrants came from Europe, and are known as Ashkenazi Jews. After the creation of the state, they were joined by large number of Jews from Middle Eastern countries, known as Sephardi Jews. The most recent waves of Jewish immigration, in the 1980s and 1990s, have been from the former Soviet Union and Ethiopia. Almost a third of the Jews in Israel were born outside of the state. Figures released by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics showed that 8% of Israel’s Jewish population defines itself as Haredi (ultra-Orthodox), 12% as religious, 13% as traditional-religious, 25% as traditional and 42% as secular, on a descending scale of religiosity. ‘Traditional’ indicates participation in Jewish traditions but not observance of the strictures of Halakha (Jewish law). Haredi Jews observe very stringent interpretations of Halakha and live very conservative
