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Mosaic of the 12 Tribes of Israel. From a synagogue wall in Jerusalem.
A reconstructed Israelite house, Monarchy period, 10th-7th BCE. Eretz Israel Museum, Tel Aviv,
Israel.
According to the Bible, the Israelites were the descendants of the Biblical patriarch Jacob. They
were divided into twelve tribes, each descended from one of twelve sons or grandsons of Jacob.
The term Israelite derives from Israel (Hebrew: ( ישראלStandard Yisraʾel Tiberian Yiśrāʾēl)), the
name given to Jacob after the death of Isaac. (Genesis 32:28-29). His descendants are called the
House of Jacob, the Children of Israel, the People of Israel, or the Israelites.
The Hebrew Bible is mainly concerned with the Israelites. According to it, the Land of Israel was
promised to them by God. Jerusalem was their capital and the site of the temple at the center of
their faith.
The Israelites became a major political power with the United Monarchy of Kings Saul, David
and Solomon, from c. 1025 BCE. Zedekiah, king of Judah (597-586 BCE), is considered the last
king from the house of David.
The Israelites, though related, should not be confused with Israelis, the contemporary inhabitants
of Israel.
Contents
[hide]
• 1 Terminology
• 2 Biblical Israel
○ 2.1 Jacob's sons
○ 2.2 The Twelve Tribes
○ 2.3 Camps following the exodus
○ 2.4 The division of the land
○ 2.5 Israelite kingdoms
• 3 Genetic evidence of common descent
• 4 The archeological record
• 5 Other groups claiming descent
○ 5.1 Samaritans
○ 5.2 Karaites
○ 5.3 Beta Israel
○ 5.4 Bnei Menashe
○ 5.5 Hebrew Israelites
○ 5.6 Rastafari
○ 5.7 Bnai Israel
• 6 Christian theology
○ 6.1 Latter-day Saints
○ 6.2 Christian Identity
○ 6.3 New Israel
• 7 Islamic theology
• 8 See also
• 9 References and notes
• 10 External links
[edit] Terminology
See also: Hebrews and Who is a Jew?
The term Israelites is the English term, first adopted in the King James translation of the Bible,
to describe the ancient people directly descended from the Biblical patriarch Jacob (who was
renamed as Israel; Genesis 32:29). It is an adoption of the Hebrew Bnei Yisrael (literally "Sons of
Israel" or "Children of Israel"). Similarly, the singular "Israelite" is the adoptation of the
adjective Yisraeli which in Biblical Hebrew refers to a member of the Bnei Yisrael (e.g Leviticus
24:10). Other terms used to refer to this Biblical patriarchal clan include "Daughters of
Israel",[citation needed] "House of Jacob", "House of Israel", or simply "Israel".
"Israelites" as used in the Bible includes both descendants of Jacob who followed the Jewish
faith as well as apostates who turned to other gods. In contrast the term Jew is used in English
for members of the Jewish faith, regardless of the historical period or ancestry.
In modern Hebrew Bnei Yisrael can denote the Jewish people at any time in history and is
typically used to emphasize Jewish religious identity and thus does not include apostates. The
adjective Yisraeli is used in modern Hebrew for any citizen of the modern State of Israel,
regardless of religion or ethnicity and translated into English as "Israeli".
Another term is Hebrews which typically refers to the same people as the Israelites. They gave
their name to Hebrew, the language of Israelites, Jews and the State of Israel. [1]
It should be noted that these three words, Israelites, Hebrews and Jews, are historically related
and often used (incorrectly) as synonyms. "Israelites" and "Hebrews" are occasionally used in
English as synonyms for Jews.
[edit] Biblical Israel
[edit] Jacob's sons
Jacob's wives gave birth to twelve sons: Reuben (Genesis 29:32), Simeon (Genesis 29:33), Levi
(Genesis 29:34), Judah (Genesis 29:35), Dan (Genesis 30:5), Naphtali (Genesis 30:7), Gad
(Genesis 30:10), Asher (Genesis 30:12), Issachar (Genesis 30:17), Zebulun (Genesis 30:19),
Joseph (Genesis 30:23), and Benjamin (Genesis 35:18).
Children of Jacob by wife in order of birth (D = Daughter)
Reuben Simeon Levi Judah Issachar Zebulun Dinah
Leah
(1) (2) (3) (4) (9) (10) (D)
Joseph Benjamin
Rachel
(11) (12)
Bilhah
Naphtali
(Rachel's Dan (5)
(6)
servant)
Zilpah
(Leah's Gad (7) Asher (8)
servant)
Tribes of Israel
The Tribes
• Reuben
• Simeon
• Levi
• Judah
• Dan
• Naphtali
• Gad
• Asher
• Issachar
• Zebulun
• Joseph
○ Menasheh
○ Ephraim
• Benjamin
Related topics
• Israelites
• Ten Lost Tribes
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The Israelites were divided along family lines, each called a shevet or mateh in Hebrew meaning
literally a "staff" or "rod". The term is conventionally translated as "tribe" in English, although
the divisions were not small isolated distinct ethnic groups in the modern sense of the term.
In Egypt the house of Joseph was divided into two tribes, Ephraim and Manasseh, by virtue of
Jacob's blessing. (Genesis 48:8-21)
Some English speaking Jewish groups view the pronunciation, English transcription and Hebrew
spelling of the tribal names to be extremely important. The transcriptions and spellings are as
follows:
• Reuben: ראובן, Standard Rəʾuven, Tiberian Rəʾûḇēn
• Simeon: שמעון, Standard Šimʿon, Tiberian Šimʿôn
• Levi: לוי, Standard Levi, Tiberian Lēwî (which did not share in the apportionment of the
Land)
• Judah: יהודה, Standard Yəhuda, Tiberian Yəhûḏāh
• Dan: דן, Standard Dan, Tiberian Dān
• Naphtali: נפתלי, Standard Naftali, Tiberian Nap̄tālî
• Gad: גד, Standard Gad, Tiberian Gāḏ
• Asher: אשר, Standard Ašer, Tiberian ʾĀšēr
• Issachar: יששכר, Standard Yissaḫar, Tiberian Yiśśâḵār
• Zebulun: זבולן, Standard Zəvúlun, Tiberian Zəḇûlun
• Joseph: יוסף, Standard Yosef, Tiberian Yôsēp̄, containing the tribes:
○ Manasseh: מנשה, Standard Mənašše, Tiberian Mənaššeh, Samaritan Manatch
○ Ephraim: אפרים, Standard Efráyim, Tiberian ʾEp̄ráyim / ʾEp̄rāyim, Samaritan
Afrime
• Benjamin: בנימין, Standard Binyamin, Tiberian Binyāmîn
[edit] Camps following the exodus
Following the Exodus from Egypt, the Israelites were divided into thirteen camps (Hebrew:
machanot) according to importance [2] with Levi in the center of the encampment around the
Tabernacle and its furnishings surrounded by other tribes arranged in four groups: Judah,
Issachar and Zebulun; Reuben, Simeon and Gad; Ephraim, Manasseh and Benjamin; Dan, Asher
and Naphtali.[3] Thus additionally Aaron and his descendants although descended from Levi were
appointed as priests (kohanim) and came to be considered a separate division to the Levites.
[edit] The division of the land
1759
The tribes were assigned territories following the conquests of land under Moses and Joshua.
Moses assigned territories to Reuben, Gad and a portion of Manasseh on land east of the Jordan
which they had requested (Numbers 32:5). Joshua assigned territories to Judah, Ephraim and the
rest of Manasseh on land west of the Jordan which they had conquered. The tribe of Manasseh
thus came to be divided into two parts by the Jordan each part referred to as a half-tribe (chatzi-
shevet) of Manasseh, the part lying east of the Jordan being referred to as the half-tribe of
Manasseh in Gilead. Following the conquest of the remainder of Canaan, Joshua assigned
territories to Asher, Benjamin, Dan, Issacher, Naphtali, Simeon and Zebulun. The land of Judah
was considered too large for that tribe alone and Simeon was assigned a portion within the land
of Judah instead of its own territory in the newly conquered land. Because the Levites, and
kohanim (descendants of Aaron) priests played a special religious role of service at the
Tabernacle to the people they were not given their own territories, but were instead assigned
cities to live in within the other territories. Dan was assigned territory lying between Ephraim
and Manasseh but was later displaced and subsequently settled in territory to the north of
Naphtali.
[edit] Israelite kingdoms
The Israelites became a major political power with the United Monarchy of Kings Saul, David
and Solomon, from c. 1025 BCE. With the breakup of the United Monarchy in c. 930 BCE, the
southern Kingdom of Judah comprised the tribes of Judah, Simeon, Benjamin, and a part of Levi,
while the northern Kingdom of Israel comprised the tribes of Reuben, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher,
Issachar, Zebulun, Manasseh, Ephraim, and the remainder of Levi.
The Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Assyrians under Shalmaneser V in the 720s BCE
and then again by Sargon II, who, after conquering the land, destroyed Samaria, its capital, and
deported most of the occupants into exile. The southernmost tribe of Benjamin managed to
survive by joining the Kingdom of Judah. However, Assyrian chronicles of the time report that
only a small number of people were deported. Assyrian policy was for the deportees to be
scattered, with the objective that they be assimilated into the Assyrian empire. As a result, the
deported tribes lost their cultural identity and became to be known as the Ten Lost Tribes.[4] Other
defeated peoples of the Empire were in turn settled in the land.
Zedekiah, king of Judah (597-586 BCE), is considered the last king from the house of David. In
586 BCE, his kingdom was conquered by the Babylonians, who ransacked Jerusalem, killed his
children before his eyes, before deporting the population into the Babylonian Captivity. The elite
was allowed to return from exile after some fifty years, but the country was to remain an integral
part of the Persian Empire as long as the empire existed.
[edit] Genetic evidence of common descent
Main articles: Haplogroup J1 (Y-DNA) and Y-chromosomal Aaron
Patrilineal descent can be documented by analysis of the Y-chromosome, passed from father to
son. Of the many variants, or haplogroups, of the Y-chromosome, haplogroups J1 and J2, both
originating from the Middle East, are the most common among Jewish men.
• J2 is found in 23% of Ashkenazi Jews and 29% of Sephardi Jews. It is equally common
among Muslim Kurds (28%), Northern Iraqis (29.7%), Modern Turks (27.9%), Greeks
(22.8%), Italians, and Lebanese (29%). J2 is thought to have originated in the Northern
Levant and curiously appears to have the highest frequencies within the borders of what
once was the ancient Hellenic world.
• J1 is found in 19.0% of Ashkenazim and 11.9% of Sephardim. It is more common among
Arab populations, especially Arab Bedouins. J1 is believed to originate from the Southern
Levant or Egypt approximately 10,000 - 15,000 years ago. [5]
• A variant of J1 and J2, called the Cohen Modal Haplotype, is found in a high proportion
(about 65%) of Jewish males with the surname Kohen or its variants, less frequently
among other Jews (25%) and other Middle-Eastern people (22% or less)[6]. Kohanim
claim descent from Aaron, brother of Moses and the first priest of the temple. Aaron was
from the house of Levi, the third son of Jacob.
Some Rastas believe that the black races are the lost Israelites – literally or spiritually [17]. They
interpret the Bible as implying that Haile Selassie was the returned Messiah, who would lead the
world's peoples of African descent into a promised land of full emancipation and divine justice.
There are some Rastafarians that believe they are Jews by descent through Ras Tafari, Ras Tafari
being a descendant of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba via Menelik I. One Rastafari order
named The Twelve Tribes of Israel, imposes a metaphysical astrology whereby Aries is Reuben,
Aquarius is Joseph, etc. The Twelve Tribes of Israel differ from most Rastafari Mansions (sects)
because they believe that Jesus Christ is their Lord and Savior, while other Mansions claim that
Haile Selassie I is the true God. With his famous early reggae song The Israelites Desmond
Dekker immortalised the Rastafari concept of themselves as the Lost Children of Israel.
However, sometimes peoples native to Africa are identified with descendants of Ham, whereas
the Old Testament of the Bible states that Abraham is descended from Shem.
[edit] Bnai Israel
There is an ethnic-religious group in Pakistan and Afghanistan which refers to itself as the Bnai
Israel, or House of Israel, or Beit Israel. This group is referred to in English as the Pashtuns.
Some Pashtuns claim to be the patriarchal historical descendants of the "ten lost tribes" of the
northern Kingdom of Israel which were taken into captivity by Assyria.
Certain groups of Jews in other parts of South Asia are sometimes referred to as Benai Israel.
[edit] Christian theology
[edit] Latter-day Saints
See also: Mormonism and Judaism
The Latter Day Saint movement (commonly termed Mormons), believe that through baptism and
receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, they become "regathered" as Israelites, either as recovered
from the scattered tribes of Israel, or as Gentiles adopted and grafted into Israel, and thus
becoming part of the chosen people of God[18]. These religious denominations derive from a
movement started by Joseph Smith, Jr., and almost half of all members live in the United States;
the movement does not strictly believe that they are ethnic Jews as such, but rather that Israelites
can refer to many different cultures, on occasion including Jews[19]. They believe that certain Old
Testament passages[20] are prophecies implying that the tribe of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh)
will take a prominent role in the spread of the gospel to all of scattered Israelites in the last days,
and that the tribe of Judah (ie. Judah) also has a prominent role in the last days and during the
Millennium[21].
[edit] Christian Identity
The Christian Identity movement comprises a number of groups with a racialized theology which
claim to be the only true Israelites on the basis that white Europeans are, in their belief, the literal
descendants of the Israelites through the ten tribes, and who are accordingly still God's Chosen
People. These groups generally deny that present-day Jews are descended from the Israelites nor
Hebrews (who were in Egypt and were in the Exodus) but are instead descended from Turco-
Mongolian blood, or Khazars, and of the Biblical Esau (who was also called Edom) who traded
his birthright for a bowl of soup. (Genesis 25:29-34)[3]
[edit] New Israel
Based on passages in the New Testament, some Christians believe that Christians are the "new
Israel" that replaced the "Children of Israel" since the Jews rejected Jesus. This view is called
Supersessionism. Many European settlers in the New World saw themselves as the heirs of those
ancient tribes, hence one finds that they named their children and many towns they settled in
with names connected to the figures in the Bible.
On the other hand, other Christians believe that the Jews are still the original children of Israel,
and that Christians are adopted children of God but are not the new Israel. This view is a part of
dispensationalist theology.
[edit] Islamic theology
In the Qur'an there are forty-three specific references to "Banū Isrāʾīl" (meaning the Children of
Israel).[22] There is a Surah (chapter) in the Qur'an titled Bani Israel (Arabic: بني اسرائيل, "The
Children of Israel"), alternatively known as Al-Isra (Arabic: سورة السراء, "The Night Journey").
This Surah was revealed in the last year before Hijrah and takes its name from [Qur'an 17:4]. See Bani
Israel (Quran sura). Also starting from verse 40 in Sura Al-Baqara (" سورة البقرةThe Cow") is the
story of "Bani Israel".
[edit] See also
• Archaeology of Israel
• Biblical archeology
• The Bible and history
• Who is a Jew?
• Groups claiming an affiliation with the ancient Israelites
• Shavei Israel
• Kingdom of Israel
• Kingdom of Judah
• Noahides
• History of ancient Israel and Judah
• House of Israel (Ghana)
• Gentile
• British Israelism
• Bible and The Bible and history.
• Israelis
• Anusim
• Half Jewish
[edit] References and notes
1. ^ entry in thefreedictionary.com
2. ^ http://www.biu.ac.il/JH/Parasha/eng/bamidbar/coh.html "How Fair Are Your Tents, O
Jacob", Dr. Gabriel H. Cohen, Bar-Ilan University
3. ^ Numbers 10:12-28
4. ^ Lost Tribes of Israel program on NOVA, Original broadcast date: 02/22/2000
5. ^ https://www3.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/atlas.html; Semino, et al, “Origin,
Diffusion, and Differentiation of Y-Chromosome Haplogroups E and J: Inferences on the
Neolithization of Europe and Later Migratory Events in the Mediterranean Area.” Am J
Hum Genet. 2004 May; 74(5).
6. ^ Ekins, JE; E.N. Tinah, N.M. Myres, K.H. Ritchie, U.A. Perego, J.B. Ekins, L.A.D.
Hutchison, L. Layton, M.L. Lunt, S.S. Masek, A.A. Nelson, M.E. Nelson, K.L.
Pennington, J.L. Peterson, T. Tolley, S.R. Woodward (2005). "An Updated World-Wide
Characterization of the Cohen Modal Haplotype" (PDF). ASHG meeting October 2005.
http://www.smgf.org/resources/papers/ASHG2005_Jayne.pdf.
7. ^ Kleiman, Yaakov (2000-01-13). "The fascinating story of how DNA studies confirm an
ancient biblical tradition". aish.com.
http://www.aish.com/societywork/sciencenature/the_cohanim_-_dna_connection.asp.
Retrieved on 2008-09-26.
8. ^ Y Chromosomes Traveling South: The Cohen Modal Haplotype and the Origins of the
Lemba—the “Black Jews of Southern Africa”,
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1288118, retrieved on
15.06.2008
9. ^ Behar, DM; Thomas MG, Skorecki K, Hammer MF, Bulygina E, Rosengarten D, Jones
AL, Held K, Moses V, Goldstein D, Bradman N, Weale ME (2003). "Multiple Origins of
Ashkenazi Levites: Y Chromosome Evidence for Both Near Eastern and European
Ancestries". Am. J. Hum. Genet. 73: 768–779.
10. ^ An Updated World-Wide Characterization of the Cohen Modal Haplotype, Sorenson
Molecular Genealogy Foundation (SMGF), Salt Lake City, UT, USA; [1]
11. ^ Bunimovitz, Schlomo; Avraham Faust (2003). "The four room house: Embodying Iron
Age israelite society". Near Eastern archaeology (Scholars Press, Atlanta, GA) 66 (1-2):
22-31.
12. ^ Rainey, Anson (2008-11). "Inside Outside: where did the early Israelites come from?".
Biblical Archeology Review (Biblical Archeology Society) 34 (6): 45-50.
13. ^ Elizabeth Bloch-Smith and Beth Alpert Nakhai, "A Landscape Comes to Life: The Iron
Age I", Near Eastern Archaeology, Vol. 62, No. 2 (Jun., 1999), pp. 62-92
14. ^ Abercrombie, John R. "Material Culture of the Ancient Canaanites, Israelites and
Related Peoples: An Information DataBase from Excavations". Boston University.
http://www.bu.edu/anep/. Retrieved on 2009-01-16.
15. ^ As of 2006
16. ^ Tacitus: History: Book 5 [1]
17. ^ Article Twelve Tribes on website Words of Wisdom [2]
18. ^ Guide to LDS scriptural references on Israel
19. ^ ibid
20. ^ Isaiah 2:2-4, 11:10-13
21. ^ ibid
22. ^ Yahud, Encyclopedia of Islam
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Major articles in Jewish history