Why are we called 'Jews'?

Question

The term established itself in one way or the other in many different languages as early as the dark age. The question: why is that?

I thought it to be somewhat of a misnomer. After all, Yaakov had 12 children that formed the 12 tribes of Israel. Why is it that we are (pretty much) globally known after the fourth son?

Disclaimer: I've read an explanation on chabad.org which dwelled on the linguistic aspect of it, what the root meant in Hebrew and the like. But it didn't really answer this question.

I always assumed the reason is because most of the Jewish nation lived in the kingdom of Judah, and because Judah was the more righteous kingdom between it and Israel. But I don't actually know that that's the reason. — Daniel, Dec 16 '19 at 19:34
Also because we're mostly assumed to be from the tribe of Judah (except for those who are from Levi). — Daniel, Dec 16 '19 at 19:36
@Ilja I really don’t like the new canned responses for VTC as duplicate. Let me ask you this: Does that question fundamentally ask the same thing you’re asking, ignoring whatever answers that question may have? If yes, it’s better to put a bounty on that question than to ask the same thing again. (I see you don’t have enough rep for that right now, but I can put a bounty on for you if you’d like.) — DonielF, Dec 16 '19 at 20:40
@DonielF : Although the title of both of our questions is (fundamentally) different, the first line of the other question asks the same. Insofar, yes. The answers don't make me feel satisfied, though. — Ilja, Dec 16 '19 at 20:44
@Ilja Right, so if you agree that you’re asking the same question and just aren’t satisfied with the answers, probably the best course of action is for you to [edit] this question such that it’s asking on those answers rather than simply asking the same question over again. — DonielF, Dec 16 '19 at 20:48
The first use of the word "Jew" in the English translation is 2 Kings 16:6 (KJV) - At that time Rezin king. Interestingly, at that time the Jews were at war against Israel. — Ray Butterworth, Dec 17 '19 at 00:46
We see that the first usage of the word translated as Jew is in Esther 2:5 as I explain by citing Rashi in my answer. — sabbahillel, Dec 17 '19 at 01:50
Why is it that we are (pretty much) globally known after the fourth son ? - ... as opposed to the firstborn, Reuben ? Because of the latter's sin against his own father, Jacob or Israel. — , Dec 17 '19 at 14:55

score 9 · Accepted Answer · answered Dec 17 '19 at 01:48

The earliest reference to the term Jew (יהודי in Hebrew is found in Esther 2:5 where it has Mordechai

האִ֣ישׁ יְהוּדִ֔י הָיָ֖ה בְּשׁוּשַׁ֣ן הַבִּירָ֑ה וּשְׁמ֣וֹ מָרְדֳּכַ֗י בֶּ֣ן יָאִ֧יר בֶּן־שִׁמְעִ֛י בֶּן־קִ֖ישׁ אִ֥ישׁ יְמִינִֽי:

5 There was a Judean man in Shushan the capital, whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair the son of Shimei the son of Kish, a Benjamite,

Rashi explains:

a Judean man: because he was exiled with the exile of Judah; all those who were exiled with the kings of Judah were called יְהוּדִים [Judeans, Jews] among the nations, even if they were from another tribe.

Thus we see that all members of our religion, from that time on were called by the term that is currently translated as Jews because of the exile from the Kingdom of Judah.

Not meaning to nitpick, but the Jews are called יהודאין in Daniel 3:8, which was 40+ years before the story of Esther... — fartgeek, Nov 10 '23 at 20:48

score 4 · Answer 2 · answered Dec 16 '19 at 19:45

In the Hebrew Bible, the Jews are called B’nei Yisrael, Israelites. After the reign of Solomon, the unified twelve tribes split in two, the northern kingdom was called Israel, and the southern kingdom was called Judea, since this southern kingdom was mostly comprised of people from the tribe of Judah. These people were called Judeans. The name Judeans is shorted for Jews. In 722 BCE, the people of Israel were defeated by the Assyrians and were sent into exile, becoming the famous “Lost Ten Tribes,” Judea itself became exiled by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. But in 536 BCE, the exiles reestablished their country rebuilt its temple and thrived until the Roman destruction. And again, after 2000 years of exile, they reestablished the modern State of Israel.

In short, Jews are called Jews because it is short for the name Judeans.

score 1 · Answer 3 · answered Dec 16 '19 at 19:41

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After the reign of David and Shlomo/Solomon, the Israelite kingdom split into two parts, as detailed in Melachim I Chapter 12 https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/15896/jewish/Chapter-12.htm

The northern half contained most of the tribes, and was known as "Yisrael/Israel". The southern part remained loyal to David's line, and was dominated by the tribe of Yehuda.

The northern kingdom was destroyed and exiled by the Assyrian Empire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian_captivity, and for the most part was lost forever. Jews today are descended from the the inhabitants of the south, and are thus called "Yehudim", or derivatives thereof.

answered Dec 16 '19 at 19:41

AKA

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So the scattered northlings of Israel are basically us? – Ilja Dec 16 '19 at 19:44
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@Ilja Other way round - the scattered northlings are lost. We're from the south. Exiled to Babylon, returned 70 years later, exiled again by the Romans around 2000 years ago. – AKA Dec 16 '19 at 20:00
You might want to mention https://www.sefaria.org/Esther.2.5?lang=bi , in which Mordechai is identified as being of the tribe of Benjamin, but still, a "Yehudi". Perhaps the first recorded use of "Yehudi" where it had to be meant as as a nationality rather than tribal affiliation. – Micha Berger Dec 16 '19 at 20:12
@AKA But the scattered descent from Avraham Avinu, Yitzchak and Yaakov just like us. – Ilja Dec 16 '19 at 20:13
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There are other cases, like in Melakhim, where "Yehudi" is a tribal affiliation, and in Ezra (e.g. 4:12) it may mean "Jew", or it may be referring to those Israelites then in Judea. But Mordechai is neither of the tribe of Judah nor residing in the land of Judea. – Micha Berger Dec 16 '19 at 20:18
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@Ilja Correct - if any still exist! – AKA Dec 16 '19 at 22:04
@Ilja, the Jews are the tribe of Judah and the remnant of Benjamin and some Levis. The Kingdom of Israel (separate from the Kingdom of Judea) was taken into exile by the Assyrians and never returned. There are many theories about what happened to them (e.g. Nordic Israelism - Wikipedia say that Denmark is the tribe of Dan; others say that Joseph became the British people, Reuben the French, etc.). – Ray Butterworth Dec 17 '19 at 00:44
@Ray Butterworth I doubt that any son of Europe or son of Africa has any connection to the lost tribes of Israel. Iaphreth and Ham can't claim lineage to Avraham Avinu, not to mention Yaakov. But then again, my doubt is just my doubt. In the messianic era (shall it come in our lifetimes) I'm all up for surprises! =) – Ilja Dec 17 '19 at 00:52
@RayButterworth You are aware that the British and French people (although at the time they were not named British, etc) existed in the times of the Bible. They couldn’t be Jews in the “lost ten tribes.” The theory reminds me of the Hungarian nationalistic claim that Hungarians are Jews from ancient Persia. – Jonathan Dec 17 '19 at 07:10
There are a whole bunch of theories. The truth is, we may never know what happened to the “lost ten tribe.” All we can do is hope that the messianic age comes and restores the “lost ten tribes” of Israel. G-d willing. – Jonathan Dec 17 '19 at 07:13
@Jonathan, England is largely populated by Angles, Saxons, and Jutes that arrived from Europe in the 5th century CE. Note the similarity between "Saxons" and "Isaac's Sons", "Jutes" and "Jews", and "Brit-ish" and Hebrew for "covenant man". The British coronation stone is believed to be Jacob's Pillow, and British royal males are circumcised on the 8th day by a Jewish Mohel. These and many other facts are perhaps coincidence, but many people do believe it. – Ray Butterworth Dec 17 '19 at 14:15
@RayButterworth While these are interesting theories, they are a kind of science fiction. Angles, Saxons, as well as the Jutes were Germanic, all of these groups settled in southern Britain at one point or another. Actually, "Brit-ish" is Latin for Britannia, not the same as Brit in Old Hebrew or in Old English. Regarding circumcision, many Christians practiced this rite, and still do. – Jonathan Dec 17 '19 at 20:12
Although the initiators of British Israelism were philo-semites, I think they have little evidence (Mormon claim they are the "lost ten tribes.”) On the other hand, the world is filled with Jews. Many Jews who were persecuted abandoned Judaism for Christianity. Many others converted into Judaism. Ivanka Trump converted. President Lyndon B. Johnson and President Abraham Lincoln also descended from Jews. Of course, many of them are no longer halachically Jewish, but like it or not, if the father is Jewish and not the mother, their children or even grandchildren contain "Jewish blood.” – Jonathan Dec 17 '19 at 20:12
@Jonathan, I'm not trying to convince anyone of the truth of this, only to let people know that the theories do exist, and they are plausible in many ways. The German city of Trier for instance claims to have been founded by Trebeta, the son of Assyrian King Ninus, long before Rome was founded. It's not unreasonable to follow the Assyrians taking the captive 10 tribes to Germany with them, and then centuries later, those Israelites (now identified as Germanic) moving further westward into Britain etc. – Ray Butterworth Dec 17 '19 at 21:53
@Jonathan says "many Christians practiced this rite, and still do". True, but most don't do it specifically on the 8th day, and even fewer by a Jewish mohel. Queen Victoria is known to have believed (correctly or not) that she was a descendant of Israel's King David. Again, I'm not trying to convince anyone that it's true, only that many people believe it, and have done so for a long time, so it's not a recent pop-conspiracy theory. – Ray Butterworth Dec 17 '19 at 22:02
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@RayButterworth It is possible that the Assyrians settled in Germany and brought their captives with them. There is, for example, some evidence that the Romans entered China. Perhaps it is true. We would need more DNA samples though to form an official opinion. As for Queen Victoria, it is rumored that she courted a Jewish man. Some think that Prince Harry looks like Seth Rogan. Jokes aside, it is possible that this explains why they did the rite on the 8th day. I guess we shall never know for certain, but it is thought-provoking and it makes us think. Thank you for telling me about this. – Jonathan Dec 17 '19 at 22:28

score 0 · Answer 4 · edited Dec 17 '19 at 15:44

The gemara in Megilah 12 asks why is Mordechai called an Ish Yimeni (from shevet Binyamin), and an Ish Yehudi (from shevet Yehuda)? The gemara gives multiple answers, but Rav Yochanan answers that really Mordechai was from shevet Binyamin, but was called a Yehudi since he refused to bow down to Haman (his avodah zarah). The gemara explains that anyone who denies avodah zara is called a Yehudi.

score 0 · Answer 5 · answered Dec 17 '19 at 13:55

The targum yonasan be auziel says that part of yehudas blessing was that we would be called after him יְהוּדָה אַנְתְּ אוֹדֵיתָא עַל עוּבְדָא דְתָמָר בְּגִין כֵּן לָךְ יְהוֹדוּן אֲחָךְ וְיִתְקְרוּן יְהוּדָאִין עַל שְׁמָךְ יְדָךְ יִתְפַּרְעוּן לָךְ מִבַּעֲלֵי דְבָבָךְ לְמִפְתַק גִירִין לְהוֹן כַּד יְחַזְרוּן קְדַל קֳדָמָךְ וִיהוֹן מַקְדִימִין לְמִישְׁאַל בִּשְׁלָמָךְ בְּנַי אֲבוּךְ This is found in בראשית מט ח

https://judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/60986/targum-pseudo-jonathan-in-rabbinic-literature/60989#60989 — Joel K, Dec 17 '19 at 15:02

Why are we called 'Jews'?

5 Answers5