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151-580: The authenticity of the correspondence has been challenged, on the grounds that it has little in common with the otherwise attested chronology, language, borders and economy of the Khazars at the time. Ostensibly it gives both account of the Khazar conversion to Judaism and of its progress in subsequent generations, as well as potentially showing that within a generation of the fall of the Khazar empire in 969,

302-404: A Berakah is said also at evil tidings. Hence, although the experience of God is like none other, the occasions for experiencing Him, for having a consciousness of Him, are manifold, even if we consider only those that call for Berakot. Whereas Jewish philosophers often debate whether God is immanent or transcendent , and whether people have free will or their lives are determined, halakha

453-433: A Para-Mongolic language (Serbi-Avar), which is a sister lineage to contemporary Mongolic languages . In 2003, Walter Pohl summarized the formation of nomadic empires : 1. Many steppe empires were founded by groups who had been defeated in previous power struggles but had fled from the dominion of the stronger group. The Avars were likely a losing faction previously subordinate to the (legitimate) Ashina clan in

604-567: A single linear fashion due to their great and constant mobility", with no ethnogenetic "point zero", theoretical "proto-people" or proto-language. Moreover, Avar identity was strongly linked to Avar political institutions. Groups who rebelled or fled from the Avar realm could never be called "Avars", but were rather termed " Bulgars ". Similarly, with the final demise of Avar power in the early 9th century, Avar identity disappeared almost instantaneously. Savelyev and Jeong (2020) in " Early nomads of

755-615: A centralized authority that would dictate an exact religious dogma. Because of this, many different variations on the basic beliefs are considered within the scope of Judaism. Even so, all Jewish religious movements are, to a greater or lesser extent, based on the principles of the Hebrew Bible or various commentaries such as the Talmud and Midrash . Judaism also universally recognizes the Biblical Covenant between God and

906-569: A certain King arose whose name was Bulan . He was a wise and God-fearing man, trusting in his Creator with all his heart. He expelled the wizards and idolaters from the land and took refuge in the shadow of his wings ... After this his fame was spread broadcast. The king of the Byzantines and the Arabs who had heard of him sent their envoys and ambassadors with great riches and many great presents to

1057-410: A flourishing of pseudo-historiographic texts and forgeries in medieval Spain. The text, written in literary Hebrew with many Arabic touches, offers a chronology hundreds of years off the actual dates of the Khazar kingdom; borders very different from that which it held at the time; and an economic and agricultural situation far removed from the realities at the time. Authenticity of the conversion story in

1208-907: A link between the Avars of European history with the Rouran Khaganate of Inner Asia based on a coincidence between Tardan Khan's letter to Constantinople and events recorded in Chinese sources, notably the Wei Shu and Bei Shi . Chinese sources state that Bumin Qaghan , founder of the First Turkic Khaganate , defeated the Rouran, some of whom fled and joined the Western Wei . Later, Bumin's successor Muqan Qaghan defeated

1359-464: A means of experiencing God". Reflecting on the contribution of the Amoraim and Tanaim to contemporary Judaism, Professor Jacob Neusner observed: The rabbi's logical and rational inquiry is not mere logic-chopping. It is a most serious and substantive effort to locate in trivialities the fundamental principles of the revealed will of God to guide and sanctify the most specific and concrete actions in

1510-580: A means to learn the contents of God's revelation, but an end in itself. According to the Talmud: These are the things for which a person enjoys the dividends in this world while the principal remains for the person to enjoy in the world to come; they are: honoring parents, loving deeds of kindness, and making peace between one person and another. But the study of the Torah is equal to them all. (Talmud Shabbat 127a). In Judaism, "the study of Torah can be

1661-500: A new group of steppe riders was often taken from a repertoire of prestigious names which did not necessarily denote any direct affiliation to or descent from groups of the same name; in the Early Middle Ages , Huns , Avars, Bulgars , and Ogurs, or names connected with -(o)gur ( Kutrigurs , Utigurs , Onogurs , etc.), were most important. In the process of name-giving, both perceptions by outsiders and self-designation played

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1812-644: A noted "Asian" tactic, which may depict the Avars. According to mid-20th century physical anthropologists such as Pál Lipták , human remains from the early Avar (7th century) period had mostly " Europoid " features, while grave goods indicated cultural links to the Eurasian Steppe . Cemeteries dated to the late Avar period (8th century) included many human remains with physical features typical of East Asian people or Eurasians (i.e., people with both East Asian and European ancestry). Remains with East Asian or Eurasian features were found in about one third of

1963-523: A parallel oral tradition, illustrating the assumption that the reader is already familiar with the details from other, i.e., oral, sources. Halakha , the rabbinic Jewish way of life, then, is based on a combined reading of the Torah, and the oral tradition—the Mishnah, the halakhic Midrash, the Talmud and its commentaries. The halakha has developed slowly, through a precedent-based system. The literature of questions to rabbis, and their considered answers,

2114-523: A permanent king, and Samuel appointed Saul the king. When the people pressured Saul into going against a command conveyed to him by Samuel, God told Samuel to appoint David in his stead. Rabbinic tradition holds that the details and interpretation of the Law, called the Oral Torah or "Oral Law," were originally unwritten traditions based on the Law given to Moses at Sinai. However, as the persecutions of

2265-555: A positive commandment is to be fulfilled: The ordinary, familiar, everyday things and occurrences we have, constitute occasions for the experience of God. Such things as one's daily sustenance, the very day itself, are felt as manifestations of God's loving-kindness, calling for the Berakhot . Kedushah , holiness, which is nothing else than the imitation of God, is concerned with daily conduct, with being gracious and merciful, with keeping oneself from defilement by idolatry, adultery, and

2416-701: A reward for his act of faith in one God, he was promised that Isaac , his second son, would inherit the Land of Israel (then called Canaan ). Later, the descendants of Isaac's son Jacob were enslaved in Egypt , and God commanded Moses to lead the Exodus from Egypt. The Law was given at Sinai —the Torah , or five books of Moses. These books, together with the Nevi'im and Ketuvim , are known as Torah Shebikhtav , as opposed to

2567-571: A role. These names were also connected with prestigious traditions that directly expressed political pretensions and programmes, and had to be endorsed by success. In the world of the steppe, where agglomerations of groups were rather fluid, it was vital to know how to deal with a newly-emergent power. The symbolical hierarchy of prestige expressed through names provided some orientation for friend and foe alike. Such views are mirrored by Csanád Bálint  [ hu ] . "The ethnogenesis of early medieval peoples of steppe origin cannot be conceived in

2718-530: A seminal role in the formation of Western civilization through its impact as a core background element of Early Christianity . Within Judaism, there are a variety of religious movements , most of which emerged from Rabbinic Judaism , which holds that God revealed his laws and commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai in the form of both the Written and Oral Torah. Historically, all or part of this assertion

2869-639: A wide body of texts, practices, theological positions, and forms of organization. Among Judaism's core texts is the Torah , the first five books of the Hebrew Bible , a collection of ancient Hebrew scriptures. The Tanakh, known in English as the Hebrew Bible, has the same contents as the Old Testament in Christianity . In addition to the original written scripture, the supplemental Oral Torah

3020-483: Is Maimonides ' thirteen principles of faith , developed in the 12th century. According to Maimonides, any Jew who rejects even one of these principles would be considered an apostate and a heretic. Jewish scholars have held points of view diverging in various ways from Maimonides' principles. Thus, within Reform Judaism only the first five principles are endorsed. In Maimonides' time, his list of tenets

3171-452: Is a common name for God], gave them strength, power, and might so that they were able to carry on war after war with many nations who were more powerful and numerous than they. By the help of God they drove them out and took possession of their country. Upon some of them they have imposed forced labor even to this very day. The land [along the Volga ] in which I now live was formerly occupied by

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3322-487: Is a system through which any Jew acts to bring God into the world. Ethical monotheism is central in all sacred or normative texts of Judaism. However, monotheism has not always been followed in practice. The Hebrew Bible (or Tanakh ) records and repeatedly condemns the widespread worship of other gods in ancient Israel . In the Greco-Roman era, many different interpretations of monotheism existed in Judaism, including

3473-597: Is also the source of the Hebrew term for Judaism, יַהֲדוּת Yahaḏuṯ . The term Ἰουδαϊσμός first appears in the Koine Greek book of 2 Maccabees in the 2nd century BCE (i.e. 2 Maccabees 2:21, 8:1 and 14:38) . In the context of the age and period it meant "seeking or forming part of a cultural entity". It resembled its antonym hellenismos , a word signifying people's submission to Hellenistic cultural norms. The conflict between iudaismos and hellenismos lay behind

3624-592: Is an Abrahamic monotheistic ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jewish people . Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of observing the Mosaic covenant , which was established between God and the Israelites , their ancestors. The religion is considered one of the earliest monotheistic religions in the world. Jewish religious doctrine encompasses

3775-550: Is an esoteric tradition in Judaism in Kabbalah , Rabbinic scholar Max Kadushin has characterized normative Judaism as "normal mysticism", because it involves everyday personal experiences of God through ways or modes that are common to all Jews. This is played out through the observance of the halakha , or Jewish law, and given verbal expression in the Birkat Ha-Mizvot , the short blessings that are spoken every time

3926-464: Is by a misnomer that the barbarians on the Ister have assumed the appellation of Avars; the origin of their race will shortly be revealed. So, when the Avars had been defeated (for we are returning to the account) some of them made their escape to those who inhabit Taugast . Taugast is a famous city, which is a total of one thousand five hundred miles distant from those who are called Turks, ... Others of

4077-684: Is called the Jerusalem Talmud . It was compiled sometime during the 4th century in Palestine. According to critical scholars , the Torah consists of inconsistent texts edited together in a way that calls attention to divergent accounts. Several of these scholars, such as Professor Martin Rose and John Bright , suggest that during the First Temple period the people of Israel believed that each nation had its own god, but that their god

4228-463: Is heavily associated with and most often thought of as Orthodox Judaism . 13 Principles of Faith: — Maimonides In the strict sense, in Judaism, unlike Christianity and Islam, there are no fixed universally binding articles of faith, due to their incorporation into the liturgy. Scholars throughout Jewish history have proposed numerous formulations of Judaism's core tenets, all of which have met with criticism. The most popular formulation

4379-522: Is more correct to refer to them thus) are divided in their ancestry, some bearing the time-honoured name of Var while others are called Chunni. According to the interpretation of Dobrovits and Nechaeva, the Turks insisted that the Avars were only "pseudo-Avars", so as to boast that they were the only formidable power in the Eurasian steppe. The Göktürks claimed that the "real Avars" remained loyal subjects of

4530-903: Is my residence during the winter. From the month of Nisan [March–April] on we leave the city and each one goes forth to his vineyards, fields and to his work... You mention in your letter that you yearn to see my face. I also would very much like to see your pleasant countenance and the rare beauty of your wisdom and greatness. Would that it were according to your word. If it were granted me to be associated with you and to behold your honored, charming, and pleasant countenance then you would be as my father and I as your son. According to your command would all my people be ruled, and according to your order and discreet counsel would I conduct all my affairs. Farewell. At least some Khazar rabbinical students appear to have studied in Spain. Abraham ibn Daud of Toledo, in his Book of Tradition (1161), writes: "You will find

4681-526: Is preferable." Upon this the King said: "If this is so, you both have admitted with your own mouths that the religion of the Israelites is better Wherefore, trusting in the mercies of God and the power of the Almighty, I choose the religion of Israel, that is, the religion of Abraham . If that God in whom I trust, and in the shadow of whose wings I find refuge, will aid me, He can give me without labor

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4832-726: Is premundane and has no peer or associate; (3) the whole universe is created; (4) God called Moses and the other Prophets of the Biblical canon; (5) the Law of Moses alone is true; (6) to know the language of the Bible is a religious duty; (7) the Temple at Jerusalem is the palace of the world's Ruler; (8) belief in Resurrection contemporaneous with the advent of the Messiah; (9) final judgment; (10) retribution. In modern times, Judaism lacks

4983-606: Is referred to as responsa (Hebrew Sheelot U-Teshuvot ). Over time, as practices develop, codes of halakha are written that are based on the responsa; the most important code, the Shulchan Aruch , largely determines Orthodox religious practice today. Jewish philosophy refers to the conjunction between serious study of philosophy and Jewish theology. Major Jewish philosophers include Philo of Alexandria , Solomon ibn Gabirol , Saadia Gaon , Judah Halevi , Maimonides , and Gersonides . Major changes occurred in response to

5134-600: Is regarded as the first Jewish diaspora . Later, many of them returned to their homeland after the subsequent conquest of Babylon by the Persian Achaemenid Empire seventy years later, an event known as the Return to Zion . A Second Temple was constructed and old religious practices were resumed. During the early years of the Second Temple, the highest religious authority was a council known as

5285-861: Is represented by later texts, such as the Midrash and the Talmud . The Hebrew-language word torah can mean "teaching", "law", or "instruction", although "Torah" can also be used as a general term that refers to any Jewish text that expands or elaborates on the original Five Books of Moses . Representing the core of the Jewish spiritual and religious tradition, the Torah is a term and a set of teachings that are explicitly self-positioned as encompassing at least seventy, and potentially infinite, facets and interpretations. Judaism's texts, traditions, and values strongly influenced later Abrahamic religions, including Christianity and Islam . Hebraism , like Hellenism , played

5436-418: Is that halakha should be viewed as a set of general guidelines rather than as a set of restrictions and obligations whose observance is required of all Jews. Historically, special courts enforced halakha ; today, these courts still exist but the practice of Judaism is mostly voluntary. Authority on theological and legal matters is not vested in any one person or organization, but in the sacred texts and

5587-622: Is unknown but stated that it is likely that the Avars were originally mainly composed of Turkic (Oghuric) tribes. Increasing evidence supports a relationship between the elite of the Pannonian Avars and the Inner Asian Rouran Khaganate ; however it remains unclear to what extent the European Avars descent from the Rouran population. It is argued that the initial elite core of the Pannonian Avars spoke

5738-561: The American Journal of Physical Anthropology in 2018 examined 62 individuals buried in the 8th and 9th centuries at an Avar-Slavic burial in Cífer‐Pác, Slovakia . Of the 46 samples of mtDNA extracted, 93% belonged to west Eurasian lineages, while 6% belonged to east Eurasian lineages. The amount of east Eurasian lineages was higher than among modern European populations, but lower than what has been found in other genetic studies on

5889-573: The Miracles of Saint Demetrius , a certain Avar Chagan seized his opportunity to coalesce in the regions further north in response to the secession of the Diocese of Sirmium in the 670s by a " Kuber " Chagan. About this time, Mark of Kalt records that in 677, the principality of Ungvar (Ung fortress) was established in the regions further north where Kotrag 's group also fled following

6040-520: The Abdali (I mean indeed, of the Hephthalites , as they are called), conquered him, and assumed the rule of the nation. Then he […] enslaved the Avar nation. But let no one think that we are distorting the history of these times because he supposes that the Avars are those barbarians neighbouring on Europe and Pannonia , and that their arrival was prior to the times of the emperor Maurice . For it

6191-905: The Ancient Northeast Asian (ANA) paternal and maternal origin for the Avar elite, with N1a-F4205 being their predominant and characteristic paternal lineage, alongside incorporated Q1a2a1 and R1a-Z94 Hunnic-Iranian remnants, and the rest belonging to local haplogroups found among surrounding populations. Autosomally, the Elite Avar samples " preserved very ancient Mongolian pre-Bronze Age genomes, with ca 90% [Ancient North-East Asian] ancestry ", shared deep ancestry with European Huns, but although since Early Avar period started mixing with local and immigrant Hunnic-Iranian related populations, " people with different genetic ancestries were seemingly distinguished, as samples with Hun-related genomes were buried in separate cemeteries ". The majority of

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6342-635: The Avar–Byzantine wars from 568 to 626 and influence on the Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe . Recent archaeogenetic studies indicate that the Pannonian Avars were of primarily Ancient Northeast Asian ancestry similar to those of modern-day people from Mongolia and the Amur River region in Manchuria , pointing to an initial rapid migration of nomadic tribes into the centre of Europe from

6493-628: The Bible , Mishnah , Talmud and the order of divine services. The King was a man who revered and loved the Torah. He was one of the true servants of God. May the Divine Spirit give him rest! He was succeeded by Hezekiah, his son; next to him was Manasseh, his son; next to him was Hanukkah, the brother of Obadiah; next Isaac, his son; afterwards, his son Zebulun; then his son Moses; then his son Nissi; then his son Aaron; then his son Menahem; then his son Benjamin; then his son Aaron II; and I, Joseph,

6644-785: The Bulgars . Our ancestors, the Khazars, came and fought with them, and, although these Bulgars were as numerous as the sand on the shores of the sea [a reference to the Book of Joshua ], they could not withstand the Khazars. So they left their country and fled while the Khazars pursued them as far as the Danube River. Up to this very day the Bulgars camp along the Danube and are close to Constantinople . The Khazars have occupied their land up till now. After this, several generations passed until

6795-544: The Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodoxy ), 2 Macc. ii. 21: "Those that behaved themselves manfully to their honour for Iudaisme." At its core, the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh is an account of the Israelites ' relationship with God from their earliest history until the building of the Second Temple ( c.  535 BCE ). Abraham is hailed as the first Hebrew and the father of the Jewish people. As

6946-716: The Enlightenment (late 18th to early 19th century) leading to the post-Enlightenment Jewish philosophers. Modern Jewish philosophy consists of both Orthodox and non-Orthodox oriented philosophy. Notable among Orthodox Jewish philosophers are Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler , Joseph B. Soloveitchik , and Yitzchok Hutner . Well-known non-Orthodox Jewish philosophers include Martin Buber , Franz Rosenzweig , Mordecai Kaplan , Abraham Joshua Heschel , Will Herberg , and Emmanuel Lévinas . 13 Principles of Hermeneutics: — R. Ishmael Orthodox and many other Jews do not believe that

7097-552: The First Bulgarian Empire , stabilized by the victory at the battle of Ongal south of the eastern Carpathians. The Bulgarians turned on Byzantium who had established an alliance with Ziebel's Khazars. Although the Avar empire had diminished to half its original size, the Avar-Slav alliance consolidated their rule west from the central parts of the mid-Danubian basin and extended their sphere of influence west to

7248-790: The Great Jewish Revolt (66–73 CE), the Romans sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Second Temple. Later, Roman emperor Hadrian built a pagan idol on the Temple Mount and prohibited circumcision; these acts of ethnocide provoked the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132–136 CE), after which the Romans banned the study of the Torah and the celebration of Jewish holidays, and forcibly removed virtually all Jews from Judea. In 200 CE, however, Jews were granted Roman citizenship and Judaism

7399-413: The Kohanim and Leviyim (members of the tribe of Levi ), some only to farmers within the Land of Israel. Many laws were only applicable when the Temple in Jerusalem existed, and only 369 of these commandments are still applicable today. While there have been Jewish groups whose beliefs were based on the written text of the Torah alone (e.g., the Sadducees , and the Karaites ), most Jews believe in

7550-622: The Maccabean Revolt and hence the invention of the term iudaismos . Shaye J. D. Cohen writes in his book The Beginnings of Jewishness : We are tempted, of course, to translate [ Ioudaïsmós ] as "Judaism," but this translation is too narrow, because in this first occurrence of the term, Ioudaïsmós has not yet been reduced to the designation of a religion. It means rather "the aggregate of all those characteristics that makes Judaeans Judaean (or Jews Jewish)." Among these characteristics, to be sure, are practices and beliefs that we would today call "religious," but these practices and beliefs are not

7701-440: The Obri in chronicles of Rus, the Abaroi or Varchonitai ( Greek : Βαρχονῖται , romanized :  Varchonitai ), or Pseudo-Avars in Byzantine sources, and the Apar ( Old Turkic : 𐰯𐰺 ) to the Göktürks . They established the Avar Khaganate , which spanned the Pannonian Basin and considerable areas of Central and Eastern Europe from the late 6th to the early 9th century. The name Pannonian Avars (after

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7852-433: The Oxford English Dictionary the earliest citation in English where the term was used to mean "the profession or practice of the Jewish religion; the religious system or polity of the Jews" is Robert Fabyan's The newe cronycles of Englande and of Fraunce (1516). "Judaism" as a direct translation of the Latin Iudaismus first occurred in a 1611 English translation of the Biblical apocrypha (the Deuterocanonical books in

8003-417: The Patriarch Abraham as well as the additional aspects of the Covenant revealed to Moses , who is considered Judaism's greatest prophet . In the Mishnah , a core text of Rabbinic Judaism , acceptance of the Divine origins of this covenant is considered an essential aspect of Judaism and those who reject the Covenant forfeit their share in the World to Come . Establishing the core tenets of Judaism in

8154-404: The Sassanid force in the failed siege of 626 . Following this defeat, the political and military power of the Avars declined. Byzantine and Frankish sources documented a war between the Avars and their western Slav clients, the Wends . Each year, the Huns [Avars] came to the Slavs, to spend the winter with them; then they took the wives and daughters of the Slavs and slept with them, and among

8305-404: The Spanish Arabs .] You ask us also in your epistle: "Of what people, of what family, and of what tribe are you?" Know that we are descended from Japheth , through his son Togarmah . [In Jewish literature Togarmah is the father of all the Turks .] I have found in the genealogical books of my ancestors that Togarmah had ten sons. These are their names: the eldest was Ujur , the second Tauris,

8456-526: The Torah for him and arranged the precepts in order, and up to this very day we have been subject to this religion. May God's name be blessed and may His remembrance be exalted for ever! Since that day, when my fathers entered into this religion, the God of Israel has humbled all of their enemies, subjecting every folk and tongue round about them, whether Christian, Muslim, or pagan . No one has been able to stand before them to this day [about 960]. All of them are tributary. [But only about ten years later Joseph

8607-466: The Vienna Basin . The new ethnic element marked by hair clips for pigtails; curved, single-edged sabres; and broad, symmetrical bows marks the middle Avar-Bulgar period (670–720). New regional centers, such as those near Ozora and Igar appeared. This strengthened the Avars' power base, although most of the Balkans lay in the hands of Slavic tribes since neither the Avars nor Byzantines were able to reassert control. There are very few sources that cover

8758-427: The Western Turkic Khaganate , and they fled west of the Dnieper . 2. These groups usually were of mixed origin, and each of its components was part of a previous group. 3. Crucial in the process was the elevation of a khagan, which signified a claim to independent power and an expansionist strategy. This group also needed a new name that would give all of its initial followers a sense of identity. 4. The name for

8909-426: The halakha whereas its ultimate goal is to bring the holiness down to the world. Mordecai Kaplan , the founder of the Reconstructionist Judaism , abandons the idea of religion for the sake of identifying Judaism with civilization and by means of the latter term and secular translation of the core ideas, he tries to embrace as many Jewish denominations as possible. In turn, Solomon Schechter 's Conservative Judaism

9060-420: The oral law . These oral traditions were transmitted by the Pharisee school of thought of ancient Judaism and were later recorded in written form and expanded upon by the rabbis. According to Rabbinical Jewish tradition, God gave both the Written Law (the Torah ) and the Oral Torah to Moses on Mount Sinai . The Oral law is the oral tradition as relayed by God to Moses and from him, transmitted and taught to

9211-412: The rabbis and scholars who interpret them. Jews are an ethnoreligious group including those born Jewish, in addition to converts to Judaism . In 2021, the world Jewish population was estimated at 15.2 million, or roughly 0.195% of the total world population, although religious observance varies from strict to none. In 2021, about 45.6% of all Jews resided in Israel and another 42.1% resided in

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9362-539: The "Tungid type" (common among Tungusic speaking peoples). A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in September 2016 examined the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of 31 people buried in the Carpathian Basin between the 7th and 9th centuries. They were found to be mostly carrying European haplogroups such as H , K , T and U , while about 15% carried Asian haplogroups such as C , M6 , D4c1 and F1a . Their mtDNA were found to be primarily characteristic of Eastern and Southern Europe. A genetic study published in

9513-417: The Avar Khaganate general population consisted of local European peoples (EU_core) but did not display Northeast Asian admixture, supporting a model of elite dominance of arriving horse nomads over a large sedentary population, with at least some subsequent admixture events. Genetic data on later Avar elite samples showed continuity with earlier Avars and the long-term presence of Northeast Asian ancestry among

9664-628: The Avar elite were largely patrilineal and endogamous for a period of around one century, and entered the Pannonian Basin through migrations from East Asia involving both men and women. Another 2020 study, but of Xiongnu remains in East Asia, found that the Xiongnu shared certain paternal (N1a, Q1a, R1a-Z94 and R1a-Z2124) and maternal haplotypes with the Huns and Avars, and suggested on this basis that they were descended from Xiongnu, who they in turn suggested were descended from Scytho-Siberians . A genetic study published in scientific journal Cell in April 2022 analyzed 48 Pannonian Avar samples from

9815-419: The Avar elite, suggesting a possible endogamous social system. There was however an increase of Northeast Asian and Saka associated ancestry among the total population, suggesting either further migration from the Eurasian Steppe and admixture between local and Avar groups, or substructure among the overall population not observed before. In 557, the Avars sent an embassy to Constantinople , presumably from

9966-444: The Avar graves from the 8th century. According to Lipták, 79% of the population of the Danube-Tisza region during the Avar period showed Europoid characteristics. However, Lipták used racial terms later deprecated or regarded as obsolete, such as " Mongoloid " for northeast Asian and " Turanid " for individuals of mixed ancestry. Several theories suggest that the ruling class of the Avars were of Northern East Asian origin resembling

10117-402: The Avars "Varchonites" and "escaped slaves of the Turks", who numbered "about 20 thousand" ( Menander Fr 43 ). Many more, but somewhat confusing, details come from Theophylact Simocatta , who in c. 629, describes the final two decades of the 6th century. In particular, he claims to quote a triumph letter from Turxanthos: For this very Chagan had in fact outfought the leader of the nation of

10268-422: The Avars are of Turkic origin, likely from the Oghur branch. Another theory suggests that some of the Avars were of Tungusic origin. A study by Emil Heršak and Ana Silić (2002) suggests that the Avars were of heterogeneous origin, including mostly Turkic (Oghuric) and Mongolic groups. Later in Europe some Germanic and Slavic groups were assimilated into the Avars. Heršak and Silić concluded that their exact origin

10419-406: The Avars controlled the lower Danube basin and the steppes north of the Black Sea. By the time they arrived in the Balkans , the Avars formed a heterogeneous group of about 20,000 horsemen. After the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I bought them off, they pushed northwestwards into Germania . However, Frankish opposition halted the Avars' expansion in that direction. Seeking rich pastoral lands,

10570-411: The Avars during a time of strained political relations between the Byzantines and Avars (coinciding with Emperor Maurice's northern Balkan campaigns). Paul the Deacon in his History of the Lombards insisted that Avars were known previously as Huns and he conflated the two groups. According to some scholars, the Pannonian Avars originated from a confederation formed in the Aral Sea region, by

10721-419: The Avars enjoyed a free hand in the undefended Balkans. While negotiating with Emperor Heraclius beneath the walls of Constantinople in 617, the Avars launched a surprise attack. While they were unable to capture the city centre, they pillaged the suburbs and took 270,000 captives. Payments in gold and goods to the Avars reached a sum of 200,000 solidi shortly before 626. In 626, the Avars cooperated with

10872-508: The Avars had been driven off by people fleeing "man-eating griffins " coming from "the ocean" ( Priscus Fr 40 ). Whilst Priscus' accounts provide some information about the ethno-political situation in the Don - Kuban - Volga region after the demise of the Huns , no unequivocal conclusions can be reached. Denis Sinor has argued that whoever the "Avars" referred to by Priscus were, they differed from

11023-691: The Avars initially demanded land south of the Danube in present-day Bulgaria , but the Byzantines refused, using their contacts with the Göktürks as a threat against Avar aggression. The Avars turned their attention to the Carpathian Basin and to the natural defenses it afforded. The Carpathian Basin was occupied by the Gepids . In 567 the Avars formed an alliance with the Lombards —enemies of

11174-537: The Avars proceeded to capture Singidunum (Belgrade) and Viminacium . They suffered setbacks, however, during Maurice's Balkan campaigns in the 590s. By 600 the Avars had established a nomadic empire ruling over a multitude of peoples and stretching from modern Austria in the west to the Pontic–Caspian steppe in the east. After being defeated at the Battles of Viminacium in their homeland, some Avars defected to

11325-419: The Avars who appear a century later, during the time of Justinian (r. 527–565). The next author to discuss the Avars, Menander Protector , appeared during the 6th century and wrote of Göktürk embassies to Constantinople in 565 and 568. The Turks appeared angry at the Byzantines for having made an alliance with the Avars, whom the Turks saw as their subjects and slaves. Turxanthos , a Turk prince, calls

11476-510: The Avars, who declined to humbler fortune because of their defeat, came to those who are called Moukri ( Goguryeo ); this nation is the closest neighbour to the men of Taugast; Then the Chagan embarked on yet another enterprise, and subdued all the Ogur, which is one of the strongest tribes on account of its large population and its armed training for war. These make their habitations in the east, by

11627-555: The Avars. The mtDNA of the examined individuals was found to be quite similar to medieval and modern Slavs , and it was suggested that the mixed population examined had emerged through intermarriage between Avar males and Slavic females. A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in November 2019 examined the remains of fourteen Avar males. Eleven of them were dated to the early Avar period, and three were dated to

11778-635: The Byzantine terrestrial link with northern Italy and western Europe. In the 580s and 590s, many of the imperial armies were busy fighting the Persians, and the remaining troops in the Balkans were no match for the Avars. By 582, the Avars had captured Sirmium , an important fort in Pannonia. When the Byzantines refused to increase the stipend amount as requested by Bayan's son and successor Bayan II ,

11929-469: The Byzantines in 602, but Emperor Maurice decided not to return home as was customary. He maintained his army camp beyond the Danube throughout the winter, but the hardship caused the army to revolt, giving the Avars a desperately needed respite and they attempted an invasion of northern Italy in 610. The Byzantine civil war prompted a Persian invasion in the Byzantine–Sasanian War , and after 615

12080-525: The Carpathian Basin became more stable in the Late Avar period. The most popular Late Avar motifs— griffins and tendrils decorating belts, mounts and a number of other artifacts connected to warriors—may either represent nostalgia for the lost nomadic past or evidence a new wave of nomads arriving from the Pontic steppes at the end of the 7th century. According to historians who accept the latter theory,

12231-667: The Caucasus, the Southern Russian steppes and the local Central European cultures can be traced alongside each other". Subsequent analyses from 2022 on Avar remains however confirmed their Ancient Northeast Asian origin, and support a possible ethnogenesis of the Avar Elite from the former Rouran Khaganate . In the Stuttgart Psalter there is an image of mounted archers riding backwards on their horses,

12382-593: The Conservative movement. The following is a basic, structured list of the central works of Jewish practice and thought: The basis of halakha and tradition is the Torah (also known as the Pentateuch or the Five Books of Moses). According to rabbinic tradition, there are 613 commandments in the Torah. Some of these laws are directed only to men or to women, some only to the ancient priestly groups,

12533-593: The Eastern Eurasian Steppe. The Pannonian Avars' core may have been descended from the remnants of the Rouran Khaganate , which were accompanied by other Steppe groups. The earliest clear reference to the Avar ethnonym comes from Priscus the Rhetor (420s–after 472), who recounts that in c. 463 the Šaragurs and Onogurs were attacked by the Sabirs , who had been attacked by the Avars. In turn,

12684-621: The Eastern Steppe and their tentative connections in the West " concluded that the initial Pannonian Avars formed in Central Asia from various ethno-linguistic groups, including Iranian peoples , Ugrians , Oghur-Turks , and Rouran tribes. They further note that "the broadly East Asian component in the archaeological record of the European Avars is limited even in the earlier period of their history; elements originating from West Asia,

12835-787: The Gepids—and together they destroyed much of the Gepid kingdom. The Avars then persuaded the Lombards to move into northern Italy , an invasion that marked the last Germanic mass-movement in the Migration Period . Continuing their successful policy of turning the various barbarians against each other, the Byzantines persuaded the Avars to attack the Sclavenes in Scythia Minor , a land rich with goods. After devastating much of

12986-550: The Great Assembly, led by Ezra the Scribe . Among other accomplishments of the Great Assembly, the last books of the Bible were written at this time and the canon sealed . Hellenistic Judaism spread to Ptolemaic Egypt from the 3rd century BCE, and its creation sparked widespread controversy in Jewish communities, starting "conflicts within Jewish communities about accommodating the cultures of occupying powers." During

13137-691: The Hephthalites as well as the Turkic Tiele . Superficially these victories over the Tiele, Rouran and Hephthalites echo a narrative in the Theophylact , boasting of Tardan's victories over the Hephthalites, Avars and Oghurs. However, the two series of events are not synonymous: the events of the latter took place during Tardan's rule, c. 580–599, whilst Chinese sources referring to the Turk defeat of

13288-719: The Itil and, by God's help, I guard the mouth of the river and do not permit the Rus who come in ships to enter into the Caspian so as to get at the Muslims. Nor do I allow any of their [the Muslims'] enemies who come by land to penetrate as far as Derbend [Derbend, an Arab city, was the gate through which the nomads of eastern and southern Europe hoped to rush through and raid the rich towns of Asia Minor.] I have to wage war with them, for if I would give them any chance at all they would lay waste

13439-622: The Jews increased and the details were in danger of being forgotten, these oral laws were recorded by Judah ha-Nasi in the Mishnah , redacted c.  200 CE . The Talmud was a compilation of the Mishnah and Gemara , rabbinic commentaries redacted over the next three centuries. The Gemara originated in two major centers of Jewish scholarship, Palestine and Babylonia ( Lower Mesopotamia ). Correspondingly, two bodies of analysis developed, and two works of Talmud were created. The older compilation

13590-410: The Khazar state is odd, and may even have been disingenuous, either on the part of a potential forger, or Joseph's statements to the effect that there had been communications between the two communities in the past. Hasdai's first messenger is said to have found his way to Constantinople , where Byzantine authorities refused to permit him to proceed further. He is said to have returned, possibly taking

13741-485: The Khazar state was still militarily powerful and received tribute from several polities. The alleged correspondence originated with Hasdai ibn Shaprut, foreign secretary to Abd ar-Rahman III , the Umayyad Caliph of Cordoba and al-Andalus . A man of extensive contacts and virtually unlimited resources, Hasdai is said to have learned of the existence of the Khazars from Khorasani merchants. His ignorance of

13892-570: The King as well as some of their wise men with the object of converting him to their own religion. [The Byzantines and Arabs hoped to stop the raids of the Khazars by converting them and later make them allies through shared faith.] But the King-may his soul be bound up in the bundle of life [a standard burial phrase for Jews] With the Lord his God-being wise, sent for a learned Israelite. the King searched, inquired, and investigated carefully and brought

14043-569: The King said to the Christian priest "What do you think? Of the religion of the Jews and the Muslims , which is to be preferred?" The priest answered: "The religion of the Israelites is better than that of the Muslims." The King then asked the qadi : "What do you say? Is the religion of the Israelites, or that of the Christians preferable?" The qadi answered: "The religion of the Israelites

14194-557: The Oral Torah, which refers to the Mishnah and the Talmud . Eventually, God led them to the land of Israel where the tabernacle was planted in the city of Shiloh for over 300 years to rally the nation against attacking enemies. As time passed, the nation's spiritual level declined to the point that God allowed the Philistines to capture the tabernacle. The people of Israel then told Samuel that they needed to be governed by

14345-562: The Rouran and other Central Asian peoples occurred 50 years earlier, at the founding of the First Turkic Khaganate. It is for this reason that the linguist János Harmatta rejected the identification of the Avars with the Rouran on this basis. According to Edwin G. Pulleyblank , the name Avar is the same as the prestigious name Wuhuan in the Chinese sources. Several historians, including Peter Benjamin Golden, suggest that

14496-735: The Sclavenes' land, the Avars returned to Pannonia after many of the khagan's subjects deserted to the Byzantine emperor. By about 580, the Avar Khagan Bayan I had established supremacy over most of the Slavic , Germanic and Bulgar tribes living in Pannonia and the Carpathian Basin. When the Byzantine Empire was unable to pay subsidies or hire Avar mercenaries, the Avars raided their Balkan territories. According to Menander, Bayan I commanded an army of 10,000 Kutrigur Bulgars and sacked Dalmatia in 568, effectively cutting

14647-507: The Turks, farther east. A political name * (A)Par 𐰯𐰻 was indeed mentioned in inscriptions honoring Kul Tigin and Bilge Qaghan , yet in Armenian sources ( Egishe Vardapet , Ghazar Parpetsi , and Sebeos ) Apar seemingly indicated "a geographical area ( Khorasan ), which might also intimate a political formation once there"; additionally, "'Apar-shar', that is, the country of the Apar "

14798-704: The Uar (also known as the Ouar , Warr or Var ) and the Xionites . The Xionites had likely been speakers of Iranian and/or Turkic languages. The Hephthalites, affiliated previously to the Uar and Xionites, had remained in Central and northern South Asia . The Pannonian Avars were also known by names including Uarkhon or Varchonites  – which may have been a portmanteau combining Var and Chunni . The 18th-century historian Joseph de Guignes postulates

14949-700: The United States and Canada, with most of the remainder living in Europe, and other groups spread throughout Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Australia. The term Judaism derives from Iudaismus , a Latinized form of the Ancient Greek Ioudaismos ( Koinē Greek : Ἰουδαϊσμός , from the verb ἰουδαΐζειν , "to side with or imitate the [Judeans]"). Its ultimate source was Hebrew : יהודה , romanized :  Yehudah Judah ", which

15100-483: The Volga; there were also towns on both banks.] Jews, Christians, and Moslems live in the second city. Besides these there are many slaves of all nations in it. It is of medium size, eight square parasangs in length and breadth. In the third I reside with my princes, officers, servants, cupbearers and those who are close to me. It is round in shape and its diameter is three parasangs. The river flows within its walls. This

15251-721: The Wends. At about the time of Samo's realm, Bulgar leader Kubrat of the Dulo clan led a successful uprising to end Avar authority over the Pannonian Plain, establishing Old Great Bulgaria , or Patria Onoguria, "the homeland of Onogurs". The civil war, possibly a succession struggle in Onoguria between the Kutrigurs under Alciocus on one side and Utigur forces on the other, raged from 631 to 632. After Alciocus fled to Bavaria,

15402-471: The affairs of my country and the extent of my empire. I wish to inform you that I dwell by the banks of the river known as the Itil [Volga]. At the mouth of the river lies the Caspian Sea. The headwaters of the river turn eastward, a journey of four months distance. Alongside the river dwell many tribes in cities and towns, in open as well as fortified places.... Bear in mind that I dwell at the delta of

15553-489: The appellation of Chagan. Let us declare, without departing in the least from the truth, how the means of changing their name came to them. […] When the Barsils , Onogurs , Sabirs , and other Hun nations in addition to these, saw that a section of those who were still Var and Chunni had fled to their regions, they plunged into extreme panic, since they suspected that the settlers were Avars. For this reason they honoured

15704-576: The area in which they settled) is used to distinguish them from the Avars of the Caucasus , a separate people with whom the Pannonian Avars may or may not have had links. Although the name Avar first appeared in the mid-5th century, the Pannonian Avars entered the historical scene in the mid-6th century, on the Pontic–Caspian steppe as a people who wished to escape the rule of the Göktürks. They are probably best known for their invasions and destruction in

15855-504: The authority of the rabbinic tradition , and the significance of the State of Israel . Orthodox Judaism maintains that the Torah and halakha are divine in origin, eternal and unalterable, and that they should be strictly followed. Conservative and Reform Judaism are more liberal, with Conservative Judaism generally promoting a more traditionalist interpretation of Judaism's requirements than Reform Judaism. A typical Reform position

16006-536: The basis of the Talmud. According to Abraham ben David , the Mishnah was compiled by Rabbi Judah haNasi after the destruction of Jerusalem, in anno mundi 3949, which corresponds to 189 CE. Over the next four centuries, the Mishnah underwent discussion and debate in both of the world's major Jewish communities (in Israel and Babylonia ). The commentaries from each of these communities were eventually compiled into

16157-471: The belief that God is one and is concerned with the actions of mankind. According to the Hebrew Bible, God promised Abraham to make of his offspring a great nation. Many generations later, he commanded the nation of Israel to love and worship only one God; that is, the Jewish nation is to reciprocate God's concern for the world. He also commanded the Jewish people to love one another; that is, Jews are to imitate God's love for people. Thus, although there

16308-419: The centuries. Historian Peter Benjamin Golden wrote that " Dunlop and most recently Golb have demonstrated that Hasdai's letter, Joseph's response (dating perhaps from the 950s) and the 'Cambridge Document' are, indeed, authentic." Historian Shaul Stampfer has questioned the authenticity of the letter said to have been received from the Khazar king, citing numerous linguistic and geographic oddities amid

16459-422: The chaos, and a third group of Onogur-Bulgarians led by Batayan was subdued by Ziebel 's emerging Khazar Empire according to Nikephoros I of Constantinople . Under Mauros , a fourth group of folk eventually settled in the present-day region of North Macedonia . The fifth group from Onogur, Bulgaria , led by Khan Asparukh —the father of Khan Tervel —settled permanently along the Danube (c. 679–681), establishing

16610-568: The communities of Israel spread abroad... as far as Dailam and the river Itil where live Khazar peoples who became proselytes. The Khazar king Joseph sent a letter to Hasdai ibn-Shaprut and informed him that he and all his people followed the rabbinical faith. We have seen descendants of the Khazars in Toledo, students of the wise, and they have told us that the remnant of them is of the rabbinical belief." Judaism Judaism ( Hebrew : יַהֲדוּת ‎ , romanized :  Yahăḏūṯ )

16761-515: The course of the Til, which Turks are accustomed to call Melas. The earliest leaders of this nation were named Var and Chunni ; from them some parts of those nations were also accorded their nomenclature, being called Var and Chunni. Then, while the emperor Justinian was in possession of the royal power, a small section of these Var and Chunni fled from that ancestral tribe and settled in Europe. These named themselves Avars and glorified their leader with

16912-490: The death of Samo in 658 and Kubrat in 665, some Slavic tribes again came under Avar rule. Despite their father's advice, Kubrat's sons failed to maintain cohesion in Old Great Bulgaria which began to disintegrate. A few years later in the time of Batbayan , Old Great Bulgaria dissolved into five branches. From western Onoguria the first group of folk moved to Ravenna under Alzeco in the 650s. According to Book II of

17063-469: The early, middle and late period, and found nearly all of them to have a high level of Ancient Northeast Asian (ANA) ancestry. The paternal lineage N1a1a1a1a3a-F4205 was most common (today highest percent of haplogroup N-F4205 was found in Dukha people of Mongolia with 52.2% ), with Q1a, Q1b, R1a, R1b and E1b subclades present in smaller numbers. The samples had a strong affinity with modern peoples inhabiting

17214-660: The end of the 7th century in the region between the Middle Danube and the Carpathians. These vessels were similar to the hand-made pottery of the previous period, but wheel-made items were also found in Devínska Nová Ves sites. Large inhumation cemeteries found at Holiare , Nové Zámky and other places in Slovakia, Hungary and Serbia from the period beginning around 690 show that the settlement network of

17365-462: The establishment of the authority of rabbis who acted as teachers and leaders of individual communities. Unlike other ancient Near Eastern gods, the Hebrew God is portrayed as unitary and solitary; consequently, the Hebrew God's principal relationships are not with other gods, but with the world, and more specifically, with the people he created. Judaism thus begins with ethical monotheism :

17516-569: The fugitives with splendid gifts and supposed that they received from them security in exchange. Then, after the Var and Chunni saw the well-omened beginning to their flight, they appropriated the ambassadors' error and named themselves Avars: for among the Scythian nations that of the Avars is said to be the most adept tribe. In point of fact even up to our present times the Pseudo-Avars (for it

17667-427: The interpretations that gave rise to Christianity. Moreover, some have argued that Judaism is a non-creedal religion that does not require one to believe in God. For some, observance of halakha is more important than belief in God per se . The debate about whether one can speak of authentic or normative Judaism is not only a debate among religious Jews but also among historians. In continental Europe , Judaism

17818-484: The last century of Avar history. They only talk about the relations between the Avars and Lombards but little about the internals of the khaganate, so information about the Carpathian Basin is mostly from archaeology. Even here, elites are almost invisible, and there is little evidence of nomadic behavior. This transformation is little understood, but may have something to do with population growth. A new type of ceramics—the so-called " Devínska Nová Ves " pottery—emerged at

17969-495: The letter was dismissed by the early 12th century Talmudic scholar Rabbi Judah of Barcelona. Stampfer writes that a "similar pseudo-historiographic Muslim text from the time of Hasdai ibn Shaprut is quite similar to the correspondence attributed to him in its concern with buttressing identity." Such a legend would have been of use to the emerging Jewish aristocracy to show that biblical promises of Jewish kingship were extant. ....I wish to inform you that your beautifully phrased letter

18120-495: The majority of them were found to be primarily of East Asian origin. A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in January 2020 examined the remains of 26 individuals buried at various elite Avar cemeteries in the Pannonian Basin dated to the 7th century. The mtDNA of these Avars belonged mostly to East Asian haplogroups, while the Y-DNA was exclusively of East Asian origin and "strikingly homogenous", belonging to haplogroups N-M231 and Q-M242 . The evidence suggests that

18271-540: The middle and late Avar period. The eleven early Avar males were found to be carrying the paternal haplogroups N1a1a1a1a3 (four samples), N1a1a (two samples), R1a1a1b2a (two samples), C2 , G2a , and I1 . The three males dated to the middle and late Avar period carried the paternal haplogroups C2, N1a1a1a1a3 and E1b1b1a1b1a . In short, most carried "East Eurasian Y haplogroups typical for modern north-eastern Siberian and Buryat populations". The Avars studied were all determined to have had dark eyes and dark hair, and

18422-440: The modern era is even more difficult, given the number and diversity of the contemporary Jewish denominations . Even if to restrict the problem to the most influential intellectual trends of the nineteenth and twentieth century, the matter remains complicated. Thus, for instance, Joseph Soloveitchik's (associated with the Modern Orthodox movement ) answer to modernity is constituted upon the identification of Judaism with following

18573-449: The money, the gold, and the silver which you have promised me. As for you all, go now in peace to your land." From that time on the Almighty helped Bulan, fortified him, and strengthened him. He circumcised himself, his servants, attendants, and all his people. [Arabic sources say the royal family and nobility became Jews, but most of the commoners did not.][?] Then Bulan sent for and brought from all places wise men of Israel who interpreted

18724-434: The next few centuries. Later, two poetic restatements of these principles (" Ani Ma'amin " and " Yigdal ") became integrated into many Jewish liturgies, leading to their eventual near-universal acceptance. The oldest non-Rabbinic instance of articles of faith were formulated, under Islamic influence, by the 12th century Karaite figure Judah ben Elijah Hadassi : (1) God is the Creator of all created beings; (2) He

18875-432: The northern Caucasus . This marked their first contact with the Byzantine Empire . In exchange for gold, they agreed to subjugate the "unruly gentes " on behalf of the Byzantines: subsequently they conquered and incorporated various nomadic tribes— Kutrigurs and Sabirs —and defeated the Antes . Pohl 1998 , p. 18: [...] the first thing the Avars did when they came near the Caucasus on their flight from Central Asia

19026-415: The other mistreatments [already mentioned] the Slavs were also forced to pay levies to the Huns. But the sons of the Huns, who were [then] raised with the wives and daughters of these Wends could not finally endure this oppression anymore and refused obedience to the Huns and began, as already mentioned, a rebellion. When now the Wendish army went against the Huns, the [aforementioned] merchant Samo accompanied

19177-461: The power of the Avars' Kutrigur forces was shattered, and Kubrat established peace between the Avars and Byzantium in 632. According to Constantine VII 's 10th century work De Administrando Imperio , a group of Croats who had separated from the White Croats in White Croatia had also fought against the Avars, after which they organized the Duchy of Croatia . The Unknown Archon 's people from Samo's realm were also resettled at this time. With

19328-477: The region from Mongolia to the Amur , with a historical Rouran Khaganate sample, and with samples from Xiongnu-Xianbei periods in the eastern Asian steppe. The Avar individuals showed their highest genetic affinity with present-day Mongolic and Tungusic peoples, as well as Nivkhs . A genetic study published in scientific journal Current Biology in May 2022 examined 143 Avar samples from various periods, including Avar elites and local commoners. It confirmed

19479-402: The revealed Torah consists solely of its written contents, but of its interpretations as well. The study of Torah (in its widest sense, to include both poetry, narrative, and law, and both the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud) is in Judaism itself a sacred act of central importance. For the sages of the Mishnah and Talmud, and for their successors today, the study of Torah was therefore not merely

19630-431: The sages ( rabbinic leaders) of each subsequent generation. For centuries, the Torah appeared only as a written text transmitted in parallel with the oral tradition. Fearing that the oral teachings might be forgotten, Rabbi Judah haNasi undertook the mission of consolidating the various opinions into one body of law which became known as the Mishnah . The Mishnah consists of 63 tractates codifying halakha , which are

19781-482: The sages together that they might argue about their respective religions. Each of them refuted, however, the arguments of his opponent so that they could not agree. When the King saw this he said to them: "Go home, but return to me on the third day…" On the third day he called all the sages together and said to them. "Speak and argue with one another and make clear to me which is the best religion." They began to dispute with one another without arriving at any results until

19932-575: The same. And so Samo's bravery proved itself in wonderful ways and a huge mass of Huns fell to the sword of the Wends. In the 630s, Samo , the ruler of the first Slavic polity known as Samo's Tribal Union or Samo's realm , increased his authority over lands to the north and west of the Khaganate at the expense of the Avars, ruling until his death in 658. The Chronicle of Fredegar records that during Samo's rebellion in 631, 9,000 Bulgars led by Alciocus left Pannonia to modern-day Bavaria where Dagobert I massacred most of them. The remaining 700 joined

20083-419: The shedding of blood. The Birkat Ha-Mitzwot evokes the consciousness of holiness at a rabbinic rite, but the objects employed in the majority of these rites are non-holy and of general character, while the several holy objects are non-theurgic. And not only do ordinary things and occurrences bring with them the experience of God. Everything that happens to a man evokes that experience, evil as well as good, for

20234-583: The so-called Schechter Letter (penned by a Khazar and possibly intended for Hasdai) back with him. Eventually Hasdai's letter is said to have been given to Jews attached to a Croat embassy, and reached Khazaria via yet another messenger, Isaac ben Eliezer of Nemetz ( Germany ). Joseph's alleged reply gives an account of Khazar history and of its current ( c. 960) sociopolitical and economic status. He further invites Hasdai to come to Khazaria, an invitation that Hasdai probably never accepted. The correspondence has survived in three slightly variant versions over

20385-477: The sole content of the term. Thus Ioudaïsmós should be translated not as "Judaism" but as Judaeanness. Daniel R. Schwartz, however, argues that "Judaism", especially in the context of the Book of Maccabees, refers to the religion, as opposed to the culture and politics of the Judean state. He believes it reflected the ideological divide between the Pharisees and Sadducees and, implicitly, anti-Hasmonean and pro-Hasmonean factions in Judean society. According to

20536-408: The son of Aaron the King, am King, the son of a King, and the descendant of kings. No stranger can occupy the throne of my ancestors: the son succeeds the father. This has been our custom and the custom of our forefathers since they have come into existence. May it be the gracious will of Him who appoints all kings that the throne of my kingdom shall endure to all eternity. You have also asked me about

20687-406: The third Avar , the fourth Uauz , the fifth Bizal, the sixth Tarna, the seventh Kozar , the eighth Janur, the ninth Bulgar , the tenth Sawir . [These are the mythical founders of tribes that once lived in the neighborhood of the Black and Caspian Seas .] I am a descendant of Khazar, the seventh son. I have a record that although our fathers were few in number, the Holy One blessed be He [this

20838-443: The two Talmuds, the Jerusalem Talmud ( Talmud Yerushalmi ) and the Babylonian Talmud ( Talmud Bavli ). These have been further expounded by commentaries of various Torah scholars during the ages. In the text of the Torah, many words are left undefined, and many procedures are mentioned without explanation or instructions. Such phenomena are sometimes offered to validate the viewpoint that the Written Law has always been transmitted with

20989-410: The whole land of the Muslims as far as Baghdad... You have also asked me about the place where I live . I wish to inform you that, by the grace of God, I dwell alongside this river on which there are situated three capital cities. The queen dwells in one of them; it is my birthplace. It is quite large, built round like a circle, the diameter of which is fifty parasangs . [The King lived in an island in

21140-520: The workaday world. ... Here is the mystery of Talmudic Judaism: the alien and remote conviction that the intellect is an instrument not of unbelief and desacralization but of sanctification. To study the Written Torah and the Oral Torah in light of each other is thus also to study how to study the word of God. Pannonian Avars The Pannonian Avars ( / ˈ æ v ɑːr z / AV -arz ) were an alliance of several groups of Eurasian nomads of various origins. The peoples were also known as

21291-432: Was centered on a pantheon of gods much like in Greek mythology . According to the Hebrew Bible , a United Monarchy was established under Saul and continued under King David and Solomon with its capital in Jerusalem . After Solomon's reign, the nation split into two kingdoms, the Kingdom of Israel (in the north) and the Kingdom of Judah (in the south). The Kingdom of Israel was destroyed around 720 BCE, when it

21442-602: Was challenged by various groups such as the Sadducees and Hellenistic Judaism during the Second Temple period ; the Karaites during the early and later medieval period; and among segments of the modern non-Orthodox denominations. Some modern branches of Judaism such as Humanistic Judaism may be considered secular or nontheistic . Today, the largest Jewish religious movements are Orthodox Judaism ( Haredi and Modern Orthodox ), Conservative Judaism , and Reform Judaism . Major sources of difference between these groups are their approaches to halakha (Jewish law),

21593-454: Was conquered by the Neo-Assyrian Empire ; many people were taken captive from the capital Samaria to Media and the Khabur River valley. The Kingdom of Judah continued as an independent state until it was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar II of the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 586 BCE. The Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the First Temple , which was at the center of ancient Jewish worship. The Judeans were exiled to Babylon , in what

21744-546: Was criticized by Hasdai Crescas and Joseph Albo . Albo and the Raavad argued that Maimonides' principles contained too many items that, while true, were not fundamentals of the faith Along these lines, the ancient historian Josephus emphasized practices and observances rather than religious beliefs, associating apostasy with a failure to observe halakha and maintaining that the requirements for conversion to Judaism included circumcision and adherence to traditional customs. Maimonides' principles were largely ignored over

21895-455: Was defeated by Sviatoslav I of Kiev , 969.] After the days of Bulan there arose one of his descendants, a king Obadiah by name [the name means "God's servant"], who reorganized the kingdom and established the Jewish religion properly and correctly. He built synagogues and yeshivot , brought in Jewish scholars, and rewarded them with gold and silver. [The Jewish scholars could have come from Baghdad and Constantinople.] They explained to him

22046-437: Was given us by Isaac, son of Eliezer, a Jew of the land of Germany [Isaac carried it through Germany, Hungary , and Kievan Rus to Khazaria .] You made us happy and we are delighted with your understanding and wisdom.... Let us, therefore, renew the diplomatic relations that once obtained between our fathers, and let us transmit this heritage to our children. [Joseph believed the Khazars had once had diplomatic relations with

22197-402: Was identical with the tradition understood as the interpretation of Torah, in itself being the history of the constant updates and adjustment of the Law performed by means of the creative interpretation. Finally, David Philipson draws the outlines of the Reform movement in Judaism by opposing it to the strict and traditional rabbinical approach and thus comes to the conclusions similar to that of

22348-519: Was named after possibly Hephthalites , who were known as 滑 MC * ɦˠuɛt̚ > Ch. Huá in Chinese sources. Even so, * Apar could not be linked to the European Avars, notwithstanding any link, if there were, between the Hephthalites and Rourans . Furthermore, Dobrovits has questioned the authenticity of Theophylact's account. As such, he has argued that Theophylact borrowed information from Menander's accounts of Byzantine–Turk negotiations to meet political needs of his time – i.e. to castigate and deride

22499-410: Was recognized as a religio licita ("legitimate religion") until the rise of Gnosticism and Early Christianity in the fourth century. Following the destruction of Jerusalem and the expulsion of the Jews, Jewish worship stopped being centrally organized around the Temple, prayer took the place of sacrifice, and worship was rebuilt around the community (represented by a minimum of ten adult men) and

22650-501: Was superior to other gods. Some suggest that strict monotheism developed during the Babylonian Exile, perhaps in reaction to Zoroastrian dualism. In this view, it was only by the Hellenistic period that most Jews came to believe that their god was the only god and that the notion of a bounded Jewish nation identical with the Jewish religion formed. John Day argues that the origins of biblical Yahweh , El , Asherah , and Ba'al , may be rooted in earlier Canaanite religion , which

22801-454: Was to send an embassy to the aging emperor Justinian. That took place sometime in winter 558/59, and they struck the usual deal: the Avars were to fight for the Empire against unruly gentes and in turn would receive annual payments and other benefits. Indeed, for 20 years to come the Avars, under their Khagan Baian, fought Utigurs and Antes, Gepids and Slavs, whereas their policy towards the Empire relied more on negotiation than on war." By 562

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