Historian, journalist, and political activist Simon Dubnov (1860-1941) was one of the founders of historical autonomism, a method of interpreting history in terms of national self-determination.

Simon Dubnov was born in Mstislav, in the district of Mohilov, in Latvia. He received a traditional Jewish education at his grandfather's home, but in his youth he turned away from Jewish tradition. He read widely and was deeply impressed by the writings of Enlightenment authors. In 1874 he started attending a Jewish state school, but soon transferred to a non-Jewish one. After graduation he attempted several times to get admitted to a teachers' seminary, but he failed in the entrance examinations.

In 1880 Dubnov moved to St. Petersburg, where he lived with his older brother. Four years later he returned to his native town, but in 1890 he moved to Odessa and began his research on eastern European Jewry. Between 1903 and 1906 he stayed in...