Belarus History
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History
Belarus developed under the influence of Kievan Rus and Eastern Orthodox Christendom. When Kiev succumbed to Mongol invasion in the 13th century, Belarus came under Lithuanian hegemony. Lithuania and Poland merged under one crown in 1569. Belarus lost its relative importance after this union and came more heavily under Polish rule. Following the partitions of Poland in 1772, 1793, and 1795, Russia tucked Belarus into its empire.
After the Union of 1569, part of the Belarusian population converted to Roman Catholicism. In 1596, many that maintained the Eastern Orthodox practices joined into an ecclesiastical union with Rome under the Uniate or Greek Catholic Church. In 1839, Uniates were coerced to readopt Eastern Orthodoxy.
The Jewish presence in Belarus dates back to at least the 14th century when they were welcomed by Polish King Casimir. They congregated primarily in small towns and cities. By the 19th century, the Jewish population constituted between one-third and two-thirds of most Belarusian cities.
Belarusians are ethnically Slavic in the following proportions: 78% Belarusian, 13% Russian, 4% Polish, 3% Ukrainian, 2% other ancestry. Eastern Orthodoxy is the primary religion for 80% of the population. The rest are Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim.[1]
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References
- ↑ The Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “Family History Record Profile: Belarus,” Word document, private files of the FamilySearch Content Strategy Team, 2002.