Kosher tax
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The Kosher tax was one of several indirect taxes imposed by the Russian Imperial government—and sometimes by the
Habsburg empire The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...
, Germany and Moldavia—on Jews. Rosenthal, Herman; Lipman, J.G.br>"Basket-Tax"
'' Jewish Encyclopedia''.
Leonid Vasilʹevich Belovinskiĭ. ''Энциклопедический словарь российской жизни и истории: XVIII-начало XX в'', Olma Media Group, 2003,
p. 357.
/ref>


Russia

In
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, the tax, known as the ''korobka'', was a tax paid only by Jews for each animal slaughtered in accordance with the kashrut rules and for each pound of this meat sold. It was part of the Russian Jewish "basket tax" or "box tax". Though it was used to refer to a tax on meat or slaughtering, the word ''korobka'' (Russian: коробка) actually means "box" in Russian. The tax came to be called that because Jews paying had to deposit a coin in a box at the kosher slaughterer. Diner, Hasia R. ''Hungering for America: Italian, Irish, and Jewish Foodways in the Age of Migration'',
Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...
, 2001,
p. 164.
/ref> According to
Herman Rosenthal Herman Rosenthal (October 6, 1843 – 1917) was an American author, editor, and librarian. Biography Rosenthal was born in Friedrichstadt (Jaunjelgava), Courland. He was educated at Bauske (Bauska) and Jakobstadt (Jēkabpils), graduating in 18 ...
and Jacob Goodale Lipman, the tax was "the most burdensome and annoying of the special taxes imposed upon the Jews of Russia by the government". The burden of taxes, and the ''korobka'' in particular, was one of the factors which drove many Jews to abandon the towns and settle in villages or on the estates of noblemen.


Galicia

With the annexation to Austria in 1772, special taxes were imposed on
Galician Jews Galician Jews or Galitzianers () are members of the subgroup of Ashkenazim, Ashkenazi Jews originating in the levant having developed in the diaspora of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, from contemporary western Ukraine (Lvivska, Lviv, Ivan ...
(" Eastern Jews") for marriage permits, kosher meat, synagogues, and similar items. Between 1777 to 1784, the Jews of
Horodenka Horodenka ( uk, Городе́нка, pl, Horodenka, occasionally ''Horodence'', yi, האראדענקע ''Horodenke'') is a city located in Kolomyia Raion, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, in Western Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Horodenka u ...
, a region on the south-east corner of Galicia, paid a number of special taxes, including the "Protection and
Tolerance Tax Tolerance tax or toleration tax (; german: Toleranzgebührer; ) was a tax that was levied against Jews of the Kingdom of Hungary, then part of the Austrian Empire, between 1747 and 1797.JewishGen. Hungary: Assorted Census Records, 1781-1850 atab ...
", and "Property and Occupation tax". In 1784, the Property and Occupation Tax was cancelled and replaced with the Kosher Meat Tax.


Moldavia

In 1741,
Moldavia Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and for ...
n prince Grigore Ghica confirmed the obligation of each Jew to pay the ''crupca'', an indirect tax on kosher meat similar to the Russian ''korobka''.


Germany

In the 18th and 19th centuries,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
appears to have had a "kosher meat tax" imposed by municipalities and used to support the local Jewish community.


See also

*
Taxation of the Jews in Europe Taxation of the Jews in Europe refers to taxes imposed specifically on Jewish people in Europe, in addition to the taxes levied on the general population. Special taxation imposed on the Jews by the state or ruler of the territory in which they wer ...
for other types of taxes imposed on the Jews


References

{{reflist, 40em Russian Jews Kashrut Taxation in Russia Jewish Galician (Eastern Europe) history History of Moldavia (1711–1822) Disabilities (Jewish) in Europe History of taxation Religious discrimination