Jewish Female Students in Saint Petersburg on the Eve of the Fall of the Autocracy

The article is devoted to the research of the socio-cultural image of Jewish female students in St. Petersburg at the beginning of the 20th century. The problem is studied in a broad context, taking into account the processes in Russia as a whole and in the Russian-Jewish society. The author focuses on the path of Jewish girls from the realization of the necessity for higher education to the very process of learning and life of Jewish female students. He tries to find out the possible influence of the cultural factor, professional, financial and social situation of the parents of potential students on their decision to get a higher education in St. Petersburg. The worldview of female applicants by the time they graduated from high school, their level of education and performance, involvement in Russian culture and passion for socio-political ideas are taken into account. The choice of the period for research is caused by the fact that this time is a turning point for the Russian-Jewish society. These are influence of Haskalah, economic processes, emergence of the Russian-Jewish intelligentsia. St. Petersburg as the optics of research is caused by its special significance in the life of the Russian Jews. The main sources are the petitions of Jewish female students addressed to the heads of higher educational institutions. The author comes to the conclusion that the increase in the number of female students indicates both a fundamental shift in the women’s issue in Russia and the final victory of the Haskalah in Jewish society.