Jews

File:Jews 1.jpg

Judas Iscariot • Karl Marx • Theodor Herzl • Lev Trotsky
Jacob Schiff • Albert Einstein • Rosa Luxemburg • Magnus Hirschfeld
Ayn Rand • George Soros • Sarah Silverman • Ben Shapiro

Jews are a Semitic people generally associated with the religion Judaism.

Ancestral origin controversies

There are several controversial theories that argue that some groups of Jews do not descend from the historical Israelites of the ancient Middle East.

One is that the Ashkenazi Jews descend from the Khazars. See also the Khazar theory.

More generally, Shlomo Sand has argued in the book The Invention of the Jewish People and elsewhere that many Jewish groups came about primarily through the religious conversion of local people.

A Jewish race

Many of the most prominent race denialists have been Jews. Regardless, other Jews have instead argued that genetic evidence supports that Jews are a race (excluding some groups such as the Ethiopian Jews, who do are argued to be converts). Jews are even argued to be one of the most genetically distinctive populations in the world due to Jewish endogamy (marrying within the group). At the same time, there has been some genetic exchange with surrounding non-Jewish group, which has contributed to Jewish group differences such as somewhat different physical appearance of different Jewish groups.

The race denialism is used as an argument for denying Europeans the right to their own countries, while the race realism regarding Jews is used as an argument for all Jews having the right to Israel.

As late as 1959, 90 per cent of Germans polled thought of Jews as belonging to a different race – while only 10 per cent thought of the English in these terms.

Recently Jewish organizations and Israel have advocated the use or started to use genetic testing of Jewish genetic ancestry. This for purposes such as genetically deciding the degree of Jewish genetic ancestry of an individual in order to determine if the individual has the right to Israeli citizenship or not. This to prevent for example Russians without the right Jewish genetic ancestry (but who wants to emigrate to Israel and therefore claim that they are Jews) from becoming Israeli citizens. Such genetic testing is also thought to "“offer opportunities for connecting, engaging and strengthening the bonds of the Jewish people.” Another advocated purpose of such genetic testing is to find more persons outside Israel with a partial Jewish genetic ancestry since this is thought to "“expanded circle of individuals with some Jewish roots who feel an affinity and identification with the Jewish people and the State of Israel.” A criticism is that "This demand for DNA tests for immigrants to Israel contrasts dramatically with the demand for open borders made by all Jewish organizations in America and elsewhere." Also, this is arguably at least implicit support for the existence of a Jewish race, the ability to identify this race through genetic testing, and the existence of ethnic nepotism.

Jewish expulsions

See Jewish expulsions.

Holocausts

See Holocaust, Holocaustianity, Holocaust industry.

Jewish demographics

Jews are divided into several different groups such as:

• Ashkenazi Jews / Ashkenazim ("German Jews"). Have spread widely and are by far the most common group of Jews outside of Israel.
• Sephardi Jews / Sephardim ("Spanish Jews"). Originally the descendants of the Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal in 1492 and 1496. Today the term sometimes instead refers to a broader group who follow the customs and traditions of the original group and in particular Sephardic style of liturgy.
• Mizrahi Jews / Mizrahim ("Oriental Jews"). Jews who descend from the recent Jewish communities of the Middle East. Today often part of the broader definition of Sephardi Jews.

In 2000, there were approximately 13 million Jews according to Jewish sources. 6 million were in North America, 0.4 million were in Latin America, 1.1 million were in Europe, 0.4 million were in the former Soviet Union, and 0.2 of million in the rest of the world except Israel.

95% of all Jews outside of Israel have been stated to be Ashkenazi Jews.

There is a small group of Ethiopian Jews who have been argued to face discrimination within Israel and sterilization attempts.

The total world Jewish population, however, is difficult to measure and is subject to the controversy regarding defining who is a Jew (for example, the status of those who have left Judaism and the status of those who have a partial Jewish ancestry).

Jewish influence

See Jewish influence.

The Jewish influence in Western nations has been described as extremely large as demonstrated by, for example, almost half of the 40 wealthiest Americans being Jewish and all major Hollywood studios having Jewish top executives.

It has been stated that having nothing of any cultural substance to off their host nations that "Jews are the original cultural appropriators".

Controversial ideologies, movements, and societal changes

Several controversial ideologies, movements, and societal changes have been argued to be created by, heavily influenced by, or otherwise associated with Jews.

• Jews and Communism
• Jews and immigration
• Cultural Marxism
• Sexual revolution
• Feminism
• Neoconservatism
• Psychoanalysis
• Race denialism
• Boasian anthropology
• Degenerate art

Jewish group evolutionary strategy

See Jewish group evolutionary strategy.

Jewish supremacy

See Jewish supremacy.

Israel and Zionism

See Israel and Zionism.

Argued personality characteristics

Regarding intelligence, see Jews and intelligence

Regarding the personality characteristics argued by Kevin MacDonald, see Jewish group evolutionary strategy.

Regarding various personality characteristics argued to explain the high Jewish influence, see Jewish Influence: Proposed causes.

External links

• Jewish Contributions