Jews (Judaism)

Jews (Judaism)
Name	Jews
Native name	יהודים
Religion	Judaism
Regions	Israel, United States, Russia, France, Canada, United Kingdom, Argentina, Germany, Australia
Languages	Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, English, Russian
Scriptures	Hebrew Bible, Talmud, Mishnah

Jews (Judaism) are an ethnoreligious group originating in the ancient Near East associated with the religion of Judaism and a continuous cultural, legal, and liturgical tradition. Jewish identity encompasses ancestry, religious practice, cultural affiliation, and national ties, with major historical centers in the Land of Israel, Babylon, Iberia, and later Europe and the Americas. Jewish history and culture intersect with the histories of ancient Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, Rome, Byzantium, Ottoman Empire, and modern nation-states such as the United Kingdom and the United States.

Definition and Identity

Jewish identity is defined variously by descent from ancestral communities associated with figures like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; by conversion recognized under rabbinic law codified in the Mishnah and discussed in the Talmud; and by civic and national definitions enacted in states such as Israel and municipal institutions in the United States and France. Legal and religious authorities including the medieval codifier Maimonides and the later jurist Joseph Caro shaped ritual and legal criteria, while modern thinkers such as Theodor Herzl, Ahad Ha'am, and Martin Buber influenced national and cultural conceptions. Ethnic subdivisions include communities associated with Ashkenazi Jews, Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, Ethiopian Jews, and groups like the Beta Israel and Bukharan Jews.

History

Jewish history traces from Iron Age polities like the kingdoms of Israel (Samaria) and Judah (biblical kingdom) through exile and diaspora communities in Babylon and the Persian Empire. The Second Temple period involved interactions with Hellenistic Judaism, figures such as Herod the Great, and events including the Maccabean Revolt. Roman-era developments included the destruction of the Second Temple and revolts culminating in the Bar Kokhba revolt. Medieval eras saw Jewish scholarship flourish in centers like Babylonian academies, Al-Andalus, and the medieval academies of Talmudic Babylon while facing expulsions from kingdoms such as England, France, and Spain after the Alhambra Decree. Early modern and modern history includes emancipation in France after the French Revolution, migrations to the United States and Argentina, the influence of thinkers like Baruch Spinoza and Isaac Newton (in correspondence), nationalist movements culminating in the Zionist Congress, statehood in Israel in 1948, the catastrophe of the Holocaust under Nazi Germany and collaborationist regimes, and postwar resettlement shaped by laws and institutions such as the Law of Return.

Beliefs and Practices

Core religious texts include the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), the Mishnah, the Talmud, and codifications such as the Shulchan Aruch. Ritual life centers on observances like Shabbat, Passover, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot, and lifecycle events such as brit milah, bar mitzvah, and bat mitzvah, performed with rabbinic oversight derived from authorities like Rabbi Akiva and later responsa literature. Religious leadership spans roles from the ancient High Priest in the Temple in Jerusalem to medieval and modern rabbis such as Rashi and Joseph Soloveitchik. Halakha, developed through sources including the Jerusalem Talmud and Babylonian Talmud, guides dietary laws (kashrut), prayer rites like the Shema and Amidah, and ethical teachings found in works by Philo of Alexandria and medieval philosophers like Gersonides.

Culture and Language

Jewish cultural production includes liturgical poetry (piyyut), medieval philosophy, and modern literature by authors such as Sholem Aleichem, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Franz Kafka, Saul Bellow, and Philip Roth. Languages historically used by Jewish communities include Hebrew, Aramaic, Yiddish, Ladino, and regional tongues like Judeo-Arabic and Judeo-Persian. Musical traditions span cantorial liturgy, klezmer associated with Galicia and Lithuania, Sephardic melodies from Sepharad, and modern Israeli songs by artists such as Naomi Shemer. Visual and performing arts include contributions to cinema with figures like Steven Spielberg and Woody Allen and to classical music through composers like Felix Mendelssohn's descendants and performers such as Itzhak Perlman.

Demography and Distribution

Contemporary Jewish populations are concentrated in Israel and the United States, with significant communities in France, Canada, United Kingdom, Russia, Argentina, Germany, and Australia. Demographic trends reflect migration waves such as the Great Aliyah movements, nineteenth- and twentieth-century emigrations from Eastern Europe and the Pale of Settlement, the postwar movement of survivors from Europe to Americas and Palestine Mandate, and Middle Eastern exoduses from countries like Iraq and Yemen. Population studies by demographers referencing institutions like the Pew Research Center and the Jewish Agency analyze patterns of intermarriage, retention, fertility, and urban settlement in cities such as New York City, Jerusalem, and Buenos Aires.

Denominations and Movements

Religious and ideological movements include Orthodox Judaism with subgroups like Haredi Judaism and Modern Orthodox Judaism, Conservative Judaism (Masorti), Reform Judaism, and newer developments such as Reconstructionist Judaism and Humanistic Judaism. Zionist varieties range from political factions in the World Zionist Organization to religious Zionism associated with groups like Hapoel HaMizrachi. Hasidic dynasties such as Satmar and Chabad-Lubavitch emphasize charismatic leadership, while rabbinic authorities like the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and the Rabbinical Council of America shape communal norms.

Modern Issues and Antisemitism

Contemporary issues involve debates over Israel–Palestine conflict policies, secular-religious relations in Israel, legal questions under laws like the Law of Return, and cultural discussions in media institutions including The New York Times and broadcasters. Antisemitism persists in forms ranging from medieval expulsions to pogroms in Tsarist Russia, the genocidal policies of Nazi Germany, and modern incidents linked to extremist groups, online harassment, and state actors. Responses include international legal measures such as conventions arising from Nuremberg Trials, advocacy by organizations like the Anti-Defamation League and World Jewish Congress, and educational initiatives including museums like Yad Vashem and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Category:Ethnic groups Category:Religions