Jews

Jews
Zscout370 · Public domain · source
Group	Jews
Native name	יהודים
Population	~15 million (est.)
Regions	Israel, United States, Russia, France, United Kingdom, Argentina, Canada, Australia, Germany, Brazil
Religions	Rabbinic Judaism, Karaite Judaism, Kabbalah
Languages	Hebrew language, Yiddish language, Ladino language, Judeo-Arabic

Jews

Jews are an ethnoreligious group originating in the Levant with a continuous presence in Canaan, Kingdom of Israel (historical), Kingdom of Judah, and the broader Levant; they maintain religious, cultural, and national ties to Jerusalem and the land of Israel. Jewish identity integrates lineage, practice, law and collective memory shaped by texts such as the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, and the Mishnah, and by historical experiences including the Babylonian captivity, the Roman–Jewish wars, the Spanish Inquisition, and the Holocaust. Jewish communities have contributed to fields from philosophy through Maimonides to modern physics through Albert Einstein and institutions such as Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Jewish life is organized around synagogues, legal decisors, charities, and national movements including Zionism and diasporic communal organizations like the World Jewish Congress.

Etymology and Terminology

The English ethnonym derives from the Hebrew language term Yehudi, associated historically with the population of the Kingdom of Judah and the tribal territory of Judah (son of Jacob). Antiquity sources such as the Septuagint and Josephus render related forms; medieval scholars including Saadia Gaon and Rashi discussed nomenclature in rabbinic contexts. Modern terms—Jewish as adjective, Judaism as religion—appear in early modern European texts and in legal frameworks like citizenship laws enacted in states such as the Ottoman Empire and later British Mandate for Palestine. Debates over ethnoreligious, national, and secular definitions involve figures like Theodor Herzl and institutions such as the World Zionist Organization.

History

Jewish history traces to patriarchal narratives in the Hebrew Bible and archaeological contexts in Canaanite culture, evolving through monarchic periods in the Kingdom of Israel (historical) and Kingdom of Judah, conquests by the Neo-Assyrian Empire, the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the Achaemenid Empire, and the return under Cyrus the Great. The Hellenistic era and the Maccabean Revolt preceded Roman rule, the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE during the Great Jewish Revolt, and subsequent dispersals. Diaspora communities developed across the Roman Empire, Sassanian Empire, medieval Al-Andalus, and the Khazar Khaganate; intellectual centers arose in Babylonia with the compilation of the Talmud Bavli and in medieval Spain producing figures like Judah Halevi. Early modern migration included Ashkenazi movements into Poland and Lithuania, while Sephardi exile followed the Alhambra Decree. Modern era transformations involved emancipation in France and German Confederation debates, the rise of movements such as Reform Judaism and Orthodox Judaism, the emergence of political Zionism, mass migration to the United States and Ottoman Empire, and catastrophic losses in the Holocaust carried out by Nazi Germany and collaborators. The establishment of Israel in 1948 and subsequent conflicts such as the 1948 Arab–Israeli War reshaped political and demographic landscapes.

Religion and Belief

Religious life centers on texts and legal tradition: the Hebrew Bible, the Mishnah, the Talmud, and later codes like the Shulchan Aruch inform observance. Major denominations include Orthodox Judaism, Conservative Judaism, Reform Judaism, and alternative streams such as Reconstructionist Judaism and Karaite Judaism; mystical traditions include Kabbalah and schools like the Hasidic movement. Ritual practice involves lifecycle events such as Brit Milah, Bar and Bat Mitzvah, and rites associated with Passover, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Hanukkah; liturgical language often includes Hebrew language and Aramaic language. Halakhah (Jewish law) is adjudicated by authorities like rabbis associated with courts (batei din) and institutions including Yeshiva University and the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.

Culture and Society

Jewish cultural production spans languages—Hebrew language revival, Yiddish literature by authors such as Sholem Aleichem, Ladino traditions from expelled Sephardi communities—and contributions to music, visual arts, and cinema with figures linked to institutions like the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and festivals in cities such as New York City and Tel Aviv. Communal life features synagogues, Jewish day schools and universities, charitable organizations such as American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, and advocacy groups including Anti-Defamation League and American Jewish Committee. Intellectual figures include Spinoza, Maimonides, Karl Marx (born in a Jewish family), Sigmund Freud, Hannah Arendt, and scientists like Niels Bohr; cultural movements intersect with Enlightenment debates in Vienna and political movements like Labor Zionism. Culinary traditions vary by region—Ashkenazi, Sephardi, Mizrahi—with items such as challah and gefilte fish reflecting diasporic adaptation.

Demographics and Global Distribution

Contemporary population centers include Israel and the United States, with significant communities in France, Canada, United Kingdom, Argentina, Russia, Germany, Australia, and Brazil. Historical censuses, migration records like those processed at Ellis Island, and events such as the Pale of Settlement have shaped distribution. Internal diversity encompasses Ashkenazi, Sephardi, Mizrahi, Beta Israel, and smaller groups like Bene Israel and Mountain Jews; cultural and linguistic distinctions involve Yiddish language, Ladino language, and Judeo-Arabic variants. Demographic trends are influenced by birth rates, intermarriage, aliyah to Israel, and emigration following events such as the collapse of the Soviet Union and the 1967 Six-Day War.

Identity, Law, and Community Institutions

Jewish identity is defined variously by matrilineal descent according to rabbinic law, patrilineal recognition in some movements, conversion processes overseen by rabbinic courts, and legal frameworks in states like Israel (Law of Return) and historical decrees in the Ottoman Empire and British Mandate for Palestine. Community institutions include synagogues, batei din, yeshivot, charitable networks like HIAS, and political organizations such as the Jewish Agency for Israel. Legal challenges involve citizenship cases in courts such as the Supreme Court of Israel and debates over personal status administered by the Chief Rabbinate of Israel; international bodies like the United Nations have engaged with questions affecting communities in conflicts involving Israel and neighboring states.

Category:Ethnic groups