Jewish Households and Religious Identity in Mid-nineteenth-century Britain

Abstract

This article tests the impact of industrial life, migration, and religious ties on family life. Specifically, it examines Jewish households, asking whether they conformed to traditional patterns of nuclearity, and what this suggests about wider kinship or community networks. It shows that Jews accommodated a range of people in their households, from family members to Jewish lodgers and non-Jewish servants. Jewish lodgers frequently lived with coreligionists who also often shared birthplaces or occupations. In sum, the data suggest a strong degree of intracommunal solidarity despite high levels of migration and also emphasize the diversity of household forms in this period.