Debunking the Khazar Theory

The Khazar Theory suggests that Ashkenazic Jews are descendants of converts to Judaism. This theory doesn’ take into consideration many significant facts about Judaism and world history.

 If Sephardim speak Ladino and Ashkenazim speak Yiddish, then claims like the “Khazar theory” of assuming that Azhkenazim are Turkic peoples (of Khazaria/Kuzari) aren’t true. First of all, when Secular people try to promote this theory, it’s done out of ignorance of the concept of Jewish conversion because they would have converted. Ashkenazim can even trace some of their genetic lineages to some Italians.

Also, take into consideration the language that both groups use. Sephardim use Ladino – an older dialect of Spanish that includes many Portuguese words (Portugal didn’t exist at the time). The Ladino-speaking communities in the present-day are direct descendants of the European Sephardim. The Farsi-speaking Iranian Jews may have some ancestors that are Inquisition survivors, but it is important to note that the Farsi-speaking Jewish community already existed in Iran going back to the time of Ancient Persia.

Ashkenazim used Yiddish even in 20th Century Russia. As we know, Yiddish is an old dialect of German-based languages, so it would make sense that Ashkenazim lived in the Holy Roman Empire before moving Eastward towards the Baltic and Slavic regions of Europe. The Rashi, a famous Ashkenazic Rabbi, spoke Medieval French. If the majority of Ashkenazic Jews came from the East and moved Westward, then wouldn’t these communities have been speaking languages that more eastern? If we were in Eastern Europe first, then Yiddish would have been a Slavic-sounding language with Germanic loan-words. In reality, it is the opposite. It’s a language with Germanic roots yet has Slavic loan-words. 

In the region Crimea, there’s the Krym-tshhak community (Krym – Crimea) who are Jewish and do in fact speak a Turkic-based language, and the Krym-karaylar are Karites – Jewish people who adhere to the written scriptures only and recognize people via a Jewish father (as opposed to via the mother). Both of these groups speak Turkic dialects that are distinct from each other. In theory, either of these communities could be Turkic-Siberian people who were moving away from Siberia and came across Jewish people moving northward (from the regions that are now Muslim-majority). Turkic peoples in other regions eventually took on Christianity and Islam when those religions became more popular, so the idea that some converted to Judaism sounds more possible…Kohanim within any Jewish community share a genetic similarity in the Y-Chromosome regardless of region, so even if one did believe that Ashkenazic Jews were converted, that wouldn’t take away from the fact that they met Jewish people [who were practicing Judaism] upon converting. They didn’t just take a book in a language they never read or converted to Judaism.

The wicked nature for people to downplay Antisemitism by claiming that most Jews aren’t Semites takes away from what makes someone a Yid. A Yid is not a racial credo in the typical understanding of “race”. If someone has a Jewish mother, they are a Yid. If a person converts, then they are one too. A Yid keeps his identity because of his awareness and observance. Nazis didn’t scare people on the assumption that they were converts, and the Jews who converted to Christianity were still killed by the Nazis. The hatred towards the Jewish religion is a danger to the Jewish people as well. The Nazis didn’t just kill people over a Y-Chromosome. They burned Hebrew books and scrolls including the Talmud. The Nazis [obviously] didn’t spare the lives of Jewish people who spoke non-Semitic languages…It should also be noted that in Czarist Russia, they didn’t acknowledge Karites as actual Jewish people and didn’t have a Jewish status. Nazis didn’t kill them during the world war.

It’s interesting that Christians recognize Chinese converts to Christianity as Christian. Muslims also understand this concept and apply it to Islam. Somehow, it’s strange when people realize that this is the same with Judaism. In fact, there was a time where the Romans who were at war with us would convert even during a war. Onkelos was a Jewish convert of Roman descent who contributed a lot to our culture. In no way is he considered not a Yid. Any Turkic person who did convert to Judaism became a Yid. The same goes for the Romans, Germans, and Native Americans that have converted.

It should also be noted that some Ashkenazi Jews can trace their lineage to the Hebrew royal family. On top of that, some Ashkenazic Jews were immigrants from Spain (as a result of the Inquisitions). Many of these people moved to Christian countries that did not have Inquisition laws. The rabbinic leaders in these countries were Ashkenazi, so they became part of that community.

It should also be noted that Turkic peoples left their indigenous faith and converted to the faiths that dominated the regions they conquered with many [of them] converting to Christianity. Islam, and Buddhism. The Ottaman Empire is a product of the Turkic takeover of the Muslim world. The ethnic Mongols (who are Turkic) converted to Tibetan Buddhism and installed the first Dalai Lama into power. Some Mongols even converted to Orthodox Christianity in the time period of Genghis Khan. The idea that some Turkic people converted to the Jewish nation is plausible. It’d even be plausible if some became Karities. The incentive to promote the Khazar theory is due to the interest in delegitimizing various Jewish causes including secular nationalism, religious nationalism, and the opposition to anti-semitism.