Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Who were the early ancestors of East European Ashkenazic Jews, how were they related to the biblical Israelites/Judeans, and when and from where did they arrive in Eastern Europe? This book intends to answer these questions, but first it discusses some of the important questions that are neglected in the literature but important in the author’s work such as the ethnic composition of Canaan/Palestine and the switch from a patrilineal system (Israelites/Judeans) to a matrilineal one including converts (Jews). The author also discusses more present-day topics such as whether it is possible to determine if someone is (Ashkenazic) Jewish and a descendant of the biblical Israelites based on a genetic profile, and whether Ashkenazic Jews are more Jewish than Indian or Ethiopian Jews. Jits van Straten argues that the answer is negative in both cases, based on the official definition of who is a Jew. Finally, it is shown why East European Ashkenazis speak Yiddish without originating from a German-speaking region.

Jews. --- Ashkenazic Jewry. --- Demography. --- Human Genetics. --- Jewish History.

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Although closely focused on the remarkable Hebrew First-Crusade narratives, Robert Chazan's new interpretation of these texts is anything but narrow, as his title, God, Humanity, and History, strongly suggests. The three surviving Hebrew accounts of the crusaders' devastating assaults on Rhineland Jewish communities during the spring of 1096 have been examined at length, but only now can we appreciate the extent to which they represent their turbulent times. After a close analysis of the texts themselves, Chazan addresses the objectives of the three narratives. He compares these accounts with earlier Jewish history writing and with contemporary crusade historiography. It is in their disjuncture with past forms of Jewish historical narration and their amazing parallels with Latin crusade narratives that the Hebrew narratives are most revealing. We see how they reflect the embeddedness of early Ashkenazic Jewry in the vibrant atmosphere of late-eleventh- and early-twelfth-century northern Europe.

Jews --- Jewish martyrs --- Crusades --- Church history --- Middle Ages --- Chivalry --- Martyrs, Jewish --- Hebrews --- Israelites --- Jewish people --- Jewry --- Judaic people --- Judaists --- Ethnology --- Religious adherents --- Semites --- Judaism --- History --- Persecutions --- Biography --- Germany --- Ethnic relations --- Juifs --- Martyrs juifs --- Croisades --- Sources --- Histoire --- Persécutions --- Allemagne --- Biographie --- Sources. --- Relations interethniques --- 1096. --- 11th century. --- 12th century. --- acculturation. --- anti jewish violence. --- antisemitism. --- ashkenazic jewry. --- assimilation. --- belonging. --- crusade. --- crusaders. --- discrimination. --- europe. --- exile. --- first crusade. --- genocide. --- gentiles. --- hebrew. --- history. --- jewish communities. --- jewish history. --- jewish lives. --- jewish people. --- jewish. --- judaica. --- judaism. --- martyrs. --- medieval. --- northern europe. --- prejudice. --- racism. --- religion. --- religious difference. --- religious persecution. --- rhineland jews.