Narodichi

A Jewish presence in Narodichi was first reported in regard to the beginning of the 17th century. In 1897 Narodichi had a Jewish population of 2,054, which amounted to approximately 45 percent of its entire population. At the beginning of the 20th century Jews played an important role in the Narodichi economy, owning some businesses and working as bakers and butchers, and in workshops. During the civil war in Russia Narodichi suffered from pogroms, during which many Jews were killed. In 1939 the number of Narodichi's Jews had declined to 1,233 or approximately 18 percent of the total residents. German forces occupied the town on August 22, 1941. At the end of August 1941 or, according to other sources, during the first days of September, the Germans killed Jews on the road between Narodichi and Katsovshchina. Hundreds of Jews (different sources report 208, about 350, and about 500) were shot to death and buried at the Jewish cemetery in Narodichi. In a mass shooting on November 16, 1941, the Germans killed 370 Jews at the same cemetery. The Red Army liberated Narodichi on November 14, 1943. In 1986 Narodichi suffered from the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. The town was evacuated. In 1991 the Ukrainian government declared that the town had recovered and that former and new residents could repopulate the town.