The English word Jew is derived from the Hebrew word y’hudi (y’-hoo-dee), which is derived from y’hudah (y’-hoo-dah), or Judah.
Judah was the name of the fourth son of Jacob (see Genesis 29:35), and subsequently his descendants were called the tribe of Judah. After that, Judah became the name of the southern kingdom (the northern kingdom was called Israel), before becoming the name of the province of Judah after the Babylonian exile. A native of the territory of Judah (or, later, the province of Judah) was called a Judean, which in Greek was transliterated Ioudaios, which came into Latin as Iudaeus, and ultimately into Middle English as Iewe, from which we get the word Jew.
This means that, technically speaking, Abraham was not a Jew (or, for that matter, an Israelite), Moses was not a Jew (although he was an Israelite), and famous biblical leaders from northern Israel like Elijah, Elisha, Amos and Hosea—to name just a few—were not Jews (although again, all of them were Israelites). Yet historically, since Jew became the name of the people as a whole, all of these figures are viewed as part of Jewish history, and for a Jew, Abraham is “our father” (avinu) and Moses is “our teacher” (rabbenu).
Can all of today’s Jews be traced back to the province of Judah? To a great extent, yes, but it is important to remember that: (1) even in the province of Judah, there were Israelites from the other tribes who had previously joined with the “Judeans”; (2) even the earlier, southern kingdom of Judah consisted primarily of the tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Levi; (3) there were Israelites who had been exiled in previous generations who ultimately integrated with other Judean exiles; and (4) throughout Jewish history, until this very day, Gentiles have converted to Judaism and have become fully integrated into the Jewish community. In fact, one of the most famous Talmudic leaders, Rabbi Akiva, was the son of a convert to Judaism. (For further discussion on Jewish origins, see #27.)
There is a myth that today’s Jews (especially Ashkenazi Jews) are not really Jews but instead are descended from the Khazars, who converted en masse to Judaism more than one thousand years ago. There was even a Jewish author, Arthur Koestler, who advocated this view in his book The Thirteenth Tribe, and when he was found dead of an apparent suicide, there were claims that he had been killed by other Jews because of his views![92] But lack of evidence has never stopped wild theories from spreading, and as of January 2007, a Google search of “thirteenth tribe” yielded 41,000 hits—including anti-Semitic websites such as RadioIslam.org, which states:
Khazar Jews. The revelation of another Jewish hoax. Finally Available To ALL—Absolute Historical Proof: Jews are not originate from Palestine! They are not “descendants” of the mythic Jews of the Bible! The information that the Zionists wants to put the lid on! The fact that over 90 percent of those today calling themselves “Jews,” are actually descendants of the Khazar people, originating from southern Russia.[93]
Some years ago, I was confronted with a similar myth when I encountered a group of Black Hebrews on the streets of New York City. This cult, which is to be distinguished from Ethiopian Jews or blacks who have converted to Judaism, believes that the white man is the manifestation of Satan and that they, the black Hebrews, are the real Jews.
These men were preaching on a street corner in Manhattan with a loud sound system, wearing striking apparel, best described as a mix between biblical outfits and Star Trek costumes. After listening to them preach for a while—they quoted everything from the Bible to the Apocrypha and beyond—I asked, “If we are really not Jews, then why did Hitler try to wipe us out?”
The main speaker looked at me with scorn and then cited an alleged Hitler quote to the effect that Hitler also knew that we were not really Jews! The scene was absurd beyond words. He then proceeded to make reference to a Hebrew verb that spoke of the Jews being “darkened” or “blackened” according to the Scriptures (to his credit, he rightly pronounced the Hebrew and even knew the term Tanakh). Somehow, he overlooked the verse that said that Judah’s princes were “brighter than snow and whiter than milk”—see Lamentations 4:7—and he failed to understand that the verb he cited, qadar, refers to being ashen, usually because of mourning and sadness. In any case, the ancient Judeans would have looked more like today’s Middle Eastern peoples—that is to say, darker than most whites and lighter than most blacks.[94]
Interestingly, DNA studies of those claiming to be descendants of Aaron have indicated a common genetic history for many of them (they often have the last name “Cohen,” which means “priest” in Hebrew), while DNA evidence for those tracing their ancestry more broadly to the tribe of Levi (often having Levi as their last name as well) is substantial but not nearly as strong.[95] Other Jews claim that they can trace their descent back to David, also citing genetic evidence.[96] (For the alleged connection between Native Americans and Israel, see #27.)
As for the meaning of the Hebrew word for Jew (y’hudah), some have cited Genesis 49:8, “Judah [y’hudah], your brothers will praise you [yoduka],” where the name Judah is connected to the verb praise. Based on this connection, it is often stated that Jew is derived from the root “to praise” (y-d-h), or, more directly, “Judah means someone who praises God.” This, however, is somewhat exaggerated, and there is no reason to think that the Jewish people in biblical days thought of themselves as “praisers.” Rather, Genesis 49:8 simply reflects a play on words, very common in the Hebrew Bible, and similar to saying, “His name is Frank because he is very frank,” although the name Frank is unrelated to the adjective frank. It is possible that y’hudah does, in fact, come from the root y-d-h, “to confess” or “to praise,” but again, that does not mean that this identification would be prominent in the minds of the people.