How to Read the Pew: A US Jewish Population Estimate for 2023

Differences of opinion regarding the numerical size of US Jewry are discussed in this chapter, with special reference to the 2020 Pew survey of Jewish Americans. Issues discussed involve understanding the theoretical assumptions, technical requirements, and accumulated body of knowledge of Jewish demography and population studies as a discipline; the different methods and biases of Jewish social survey research; the variety of possible Jewish population definitions in a world where identities are no more dichotomous; the essential role of children’s Jewish socialization in Jewish population estimates; the independence vs. circularity of existing Jewish population estimates. It is argued that different possible estimates can coexist side-by-side, provided assumptions, methods and definitions are fully transparent and amenable to clear common denominators. A detailed analysis of the 2020 Pew database is presented to support the presentation of a new set of contemporary Jewish population estimates. In the light of the suggested corrections, the whole set of estimates between 1945 and 2020 is also reconsidered, bringing to corrections to previously circulated Jewish population estimates for the US.