Ashkenazim, << ash kuh NAZ ihm, >> are a Jewish people who trace their cultural and ethnic ancestry through northern and central Europe. The term Ashkenazim comes from Ashkenaz, a Biblical name later used to refer to what is now Germany. Scholars think the ancestors of the Ashkenazim originated in the Middle East and migrated to Italy, moving to the Rhine Valley region around the 900’s. Over time, the Ashkenazim developed distinct religious customs and their own language, called Yiddish.
In the 1200’s, large numbers of Ashkenazim migrated to what is now Poland, Ukraine, and surrounding areas. There, many worked as legal scholars, teachers, moneylenders, and merchants. For centuries, these eastern European Ashkenazim dominated Jewish religious and intellectual life. At times, however, they faced terrible persecution.
Beginning in the late 1700’s, many Ashkenazim in western Europe adopted the language, customs, and occupations of their host countries. In the 1800’s, Ashkenazim in Germany founded the Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox branches of Judaism. In the late 1800’s, millions of Ashkenazim from eastern Europe began to migrate to Argentina, Australia, Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In the early 1900’s, many migrated to Palestine, helping to establish the state of Israel. In the 1940’s, millions of European Ashkenazim were killed as part of the Holocaust, the Nazi campaign to exterminate the Jews. See Holocaust .
Today, Ashkenazim make up about 80 percent of all Jews in the world. They live in many parts of the world, in particular the United States and Israel.
See also Israel (Jews) ; Jews ; Yiddish language .
