Ashkenazi Jews
אַשְׁכְּנַזִּים (Ashkenazim) | |
|---|---|
A painting from 1878 of Ashkenazi Jews praying in synagogue on Yom Kippur. | |
| Total population | |
| 10–11.2 million | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| United States | 5–6 million |
| Israel | 2.8 million |
| Russia | 194,000–500,000; according to the FJCR, up to 1 million of Jewish descent |
| Argentina | 300,000 |
| United Kingdom | 260,000 |
| Canada | 240,000 |
| France | 200,000 |
| Germany | 200,000 |
| Ukraine | 150,000 |
| Australia | 120,000 |
| South Africa | 80,000 |
| Belarus | 80,000 |
| Brazil | 80,000 |
| Hungary | 75,000 |
| Chile | 70,000 |
| Belgium | 30,000 |
| Netherlands | 30,000 |
| Moldova | 30,000 |
| Italy | 28,000 |
| Poland | 25,000 |
| Mexico | 18,500 |
| Sweden | 18,000 |
| Uruguay | 12,000–17,000 |
| Latvia | 10,000 |
| Romania | 10,000 |
| Austria | 9,000 |
| New Zealand | 5,000 |
| Colombia | 4,900 |
| Azerbaijan | 4,300 |
| Lithuania | 4,000 |
| Czech Republic | 3,000 |
| Slovakia | 3,000 |
| Ireland | 2,500 |
| Estonia | 1,000 |
| Languages | |
| Religion | |
| Judaism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, other Jewish ethnic divisions and Samaritans; various Middle Eastern and European ethnic groups | |
| Part of a series on |
| Jews and Judaism |
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Ashkenazi Jews (/ˌɑːʃkəˈnɑːzi, ˌæʃ-/ A(H)SH-kə-NAH-zee; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium CE. They traditionally speak Yiddish, a language that originated in the 9th century, and largely migrated towards northern and eastern Europe during the late Middle Ages due to persecution. Hebrew was primarily used as a literary and sacred language until its 20th-century revival as a common language in Israel.
Ashkenazim adapted their traditions to Europe and underwent a transformation in their interpretation of Judaism. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, Jews who remained in or returned to historical German lands experienced a cultural reorientation. Under the influence of the Haskalah and the struggle for emancipation, as well as the intellectual and cultural ferment in urban centres, some gradually abandoned Yiddish in favor of German and developed new forms of Jewish religious life and cultural identity.
Throughout the centuries, Ashkenazim made significant contributions to Europe's philosophy, scholarship, literature, art, music, and science.
As a proportion of the world Jewish population, Ashkenazim were estimated to be 3% in the 11th century, rising to 92% in 1930 near the population's peak. The Ashkenazi population was significantly diminished by the Holocaust carried out by Nazi Germany during World War II, which killed some six million Jews, affecting practically every European Jewish family. In 1933, prior to World War II, the estimated worldwide Jewish population was 15.3 million. Israeli demographer and statistician Sergio D. Pergola implied that Ashkenazim comprised 65–70% of Jews worldwide in 2000, while other estimates suggest more than 75%. As of 2013, the population was estimated to be between 10 million and 11.2 million.
Genetic studies indicate that Ashkenazim have both Levantine and European (mainly southern and eastern European) ancestry. These studies draw diverging conclusions about the degree and sources of European admixture, with some focusing on the European genetic origin in Ashkenazi maternal lineages, contrasting with the predominantly Middle Eastern genetic origin in paternal lineages.