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Israelite (Hebrew language
ישראל Yiśrā’ēl, Yisra'el "Strugged
with God") a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, or
Children of Israel (Hebrew
בני ישראל Bənê
Yiśrā’ēl, Bene Yisra'el, Bnei Yisra'el), the twelve sons of the Biblical
patriarch Jacob who was renamed Israel by God
in the book of Genesis. They were a group of Hebrews (Hebrew עברים
‘Ibhrîm, Ivrim or עבריים ‘Ibhriyyîm, Ivriyim), as described in
the Bible. There are modern historical
debates about the origins of the Hebrews/Israelites. Please read this entry in conjunction with the entry on the History of ancient Israel and Judah,
Bnai Israel, Children of Israel, and the Bible
and history.
Israelites in Biblical times
According to the Bible, the Israelites were the descendants of the
children of Jacob, later known as Israel. His twelve male children were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Gad, Naphtali, Asher, Joseph, and Benjamin. Twelve tribes of Israel are listed in the Tanakh (Hebrew
Bible, Old Testament).
- Tribe of Reuben
(ראובן Rə’ûbhēn, Re'uven,
R'uven; ראובני Ru’ûbhēnî,
Ru'uveni)
- Tribe of Simeon
(שמעון Šim‘ôn, Shim'on;
שמעני Šim‘ōnî, Shim'oni)
- Tribe of Levi (לוי
Lēwî, Levy) (This is a special case; see below)
- Tribe of Judah
(יהודה Yəhûdhāh, Yehuda, Y'huda;
יהודי Yəhûdhî, Yehudi, Y'hudi)
- Tribe of Dan (דן
Dān, Dan; דני Dānî, Dani)
- Tribe of Naphtali
(נפתלי Naphtālî, Naftali)
- Tribe of Gad (גד
Gādh, Gad; גדי Gādhî, Gadi)
- Tribe of Asher (אשר
’Āšēr, Asher; אשרי
’Āšērî, Asheri)
- Tribe of Issachar
(יששכר Yiśśâkhār, Yisachar;
יששכרי Yiśśâkhārî, Yisachari)
- Tribe of Zebulun
(זבולן Zəbhûlun, Zevúlun, Zvúlun;
זבולני Zəbhûlōnî, Zevuloni,
Zvuloni)
- Tribe of Joseph (יוסף
Yôsēph, Yosef; יוספן Yôsēphî,
Yosefi) which was replaced over by those of his sons:
- Tribe of Benjamin
(בנימין Binyāmîn, Binyamin;
בן־הימיני Ben-haYmînî, Ben
haYmini)
In Biblical Israel, the tribes were collectively Hebrews and organized into a
northern and a southern kingdom. In 722 BC the Assyrians conquered the northern Kingdom of Israel Bnai
Israel and sent it into exile. Many Israelites from the northern Kingdom of Israel fled to the southern Kingdom
of Judah , and likewise portions of Judah went with Israel.
In 586 BC (this date is according to some secular historians only, as rabbinical
scholars have a later date) the nation of Judah was conquered by Babylon. About 50 years later, in 537 BC the Persians (who conquered Babylon 2 years before) allowed Jews to move back to Jerusalem. By the end of
this era, members of the tribes seem to have abandoned their individual identities.
Today's Jews are mostly descended from the Hebrews of the Kingdom of
Judah. Note that over time people joined the Jews via conversion, and
married with the descendants of the Judaic Hebrews. The number of converts is unknown, but not so large as to swamp out the
original Jewish people. It is thus fair to say that Jews today are descendants of those Hebrews who lived in the Southern Kingdom
of Judah, along with some converts who joined Judaism.
One should take note of the historical debate over the accuracy of the Bible's account of the origin of the Hebrews, discussed
more fully in the entry on the History of ancient Israel and Judah. Secular Biblical theories are very
controversial.
The Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Ten "Lost Tribes"
The "ten lost tribes" are those from the northern Kingdom of
Israel who were deported by the Assyrians in the 8th century BC to Khorason. In Jewish popular culture they disappeared from
history, leaving only the tribes of Benjamin and Judah and the Levi who
evolved into the modern day Jews.
Most people believe that the southern Kingdom was only populated by the tribe of Judah and Benjamin, but this is not exactly
so. Prior to King Saul, Israel was divided by its tribes with certain leaders
from various tribes becoming judges of the tribe or surrounding tribes to fight the enemies of Israel. This is reflected in the
book of Judges. Saul was selected as king, but after he acted rashly, the Bible says that
God rejected his kingship and sought one who would replace him. David was then selected
to be king, and his descendants were to rule over the House of Israel. For two generations, Israel had been united first under
David for 33 years and remained so under Solomon for 40 more years.
Eventually, Israel suffered a civil war in 922 BC which split it into two parts.
Jeroboam, Solomon's assistant, rejected the leadership of Solomon's son Rehoboam who wanted to tax the people heavily and this
led to the revolt of the northern tribes and to the establishment of the (northern) Kingdom of Israel. It consisted of nine
landed tribes: Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, Dan,
Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben and Gad, and some of Levi (which had no land allocation). This makes ten tribes, which
later became known in the Jewish mind as "the lost ten tribes". However, Manasseh and Ephraim technically count as just one full
tribe, so there were really eight full landed tribes, and part of one tribe without land. Samaria was its capital.
Judah, the southern Kingdom, had Jerusalem as its capital and
was led by King Rehoboam. It was populated by the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and
Simeon (and also some of Levi). Simeon and Judah later merged together, and Simeon lost its separate identity.
In 722 BC the Assyrians, under Shalmaneser, and then under Sargon II, conquered Israel (the northern Kingdom), destroyed its capital Samaria, and sent the Israelites into exile and captivity in Khorasan, which at the time was
Eastern Iran and Western Afghanistan. However, what is less commonly known is that many people from the conquered northern
kingdom fled south to safety in Judea, the Southern Kingdom, which maintained its independence.
Thus, Judah then was populated with Israelites from Judah, Benjamin, Shimeon, some of Levi, and many from all of the other
tribes as well. Today's Jews are descended from the inhabitants of this kingdom.
Jews as Israelites
Whatever the historical origin of the Israelite tribes, they had a distinct identity as recently as 722 BC, when the Assyrians conquered the northern Kingdom of Israel and sent its populace into exile. Many
Israelites from the northern kingdom fled to the Southern Kingdom of Judah. At this point in time Judah's population melded into
a conglomerate of people from all the Israelite tribes. In 586 BC the nation of Judah
was conquered by Babylon. About 50 years later, in 537 BC the Persians (who conquered
Babylon 2 years before) allowed Jews to move back to Jerusalem. By the end of this era, members of the tribes seem to have
abandoned their individual identities.
Today's Jews are mostly descended from the Israelites of Judah, and thus are often identified as Israelites. Note that over
time many people married with the descendants of the Israelites. The number of converts is not trivial, but not so large as to
swamp out the origin. It is thus fair to say that Jews today are descendants of those Israelites who lived in the Southern
Kingdom of Judah, along with many converts who joined them.
One should take note of the historical debate over the accuracy of the Bible's account of the origin of the Israelites,
discussed more fully in the entry on the History of ancient Israel and Judah.
Quasi-Jewish and Non-Jewish Israelite Traditions
Some modern religions maintain that its followers are "Israelites" or "Jews" although the meaning of these claims differs
widely. The Samaritans do not claim to be Jewish, but they claim to be
Israelites.
Some religions outside traditional practice of the Law of Moses and with no proven historical connection to the Israelites
also believe themselves to be among the modern descendants and inheritors of the Israelites. Such groups include the Mormons, and various others such as British Israelism and even some anti-semitic
groups.
Samaritans
Samaritans are a very small ethnic group and religious sect living in the
State of Israel and the West Bank with many beliefs in common with Judaism. They accept the
canonization of the five books of the Torah and the Book of Joshua (but no other books), and that the only prophet is Moses. They also
preserve their own unique form of Hebrew, and regard themselves as
the descendants of Aphrime (Ephraim) and Manatch
(Manasseh). Many regard them as a sect of Judaism, but they regard themselves as distinct from Jews.
Mormons
Mormons are a series of religious groups, of which the largest by far is the
LDS Church of
12 million members. Almost half of them live in the United States, and
the rest are scattered in countries on every continent all over the world. They believe that through baptism and receiving the
Gift of the Holy Ghost, they become "regathered" Israelites, either as recovered from the scattered seed of Israel, or as
Gentiles adopted and grafted into Israel, and thus becoming among the chosen people of God. Mormon Israelite belief is not strictly ethnic, and as
such, Mormons don't consider themselves to be Jews, but rather as Israelites of many
different cultures occasionally including Jews. (For more details, see Mormonism and Judaism.)
Anti-Semitic Groups
There are also many anti-semitic groups which claim to be the only
"true Israelites", a claim that Jews generally regard as ironic since these groups
are openly hostile to Judaism. Such anti-semitic groups generally do not recognize
the validity of Jews or any other group that claims Israelite descent, nor do Jews recognize the validity of these anti-semitic
groups.
See also: History of ancient
Israel and Judah, Bible and The Bible and history.
See also
External links
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