ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses several of the major demographic features of Latin American Jewry. Although the principal data, estimates, and projections on Jewish population size are presented, the chapter focuses on aspects of internal sociodemographic stratification and change that are not directly related to Jewish population size. Most of the materials presented concern Jews in Argentina, whose demographic trends have decisively affected the total Jewish population balance in the region. The extent of mixed marriage—a rather crucial variable in the demographic balance of any subpopulation—has been very inadequately investigated among Latin American Jews. Regional, provincial, and local differentials in the distribution of sociodemographic characteristics offer a further important perspective on past and recent changes among the Jewish population. Sociodemographic differentiation of Jewish neighborhoods is significant. In 1960, northern areas of Buenos Aires included visible concentrations of immigrants from Western countries, of more educated persons, and of managers and professionals.