Tag #129237 - Interview #100063 (Edith Umova)

We observed Jewish traditions at home, though I wouldn’t say my parents were religious. My father never prayed at home and only visited the synagogue on Jewish holidays. We celebrated Jewish holidays at home according to the rules. My mother cooked traditional Jewish food and covered the table with a white tablecloth. On Pesach we had matzah at home and we ate no bread then. We also celebrated other Jewish holidays according to all the rules.

During the Estonian Republic [3] the attitude toward Jews was very good. Jews were treated like full members of the society, and there were actually no limitations of their rights. The only thing was that Jews weren’t allowed to be officers in the army or hold top-level official positions, but this was the only restriction of their rights. My father was a member of the Jewish society of culture in Tallinn. After the war we found a record in the archive confirming that my father was a member of this society between 1926 and 8th June 1940. When Estonia became a Soviet Republic [4], this society and other Jewish organizations were terminated.  

We spoke Jewish and Estonian at home. My grandmother and relatives spoke Jewish between themselves and to us, while my father spoke Estonian to my sister and me. He also spoke Estonian at work. My father believed that living in Estonia my sister and I simply had to speak the official language of the country. I think he was right. So my sister and I could speak fluent Estonian.