Lost tribe dreams of return to Israel after 2,700 years in exile

Very interesting. Got me googling and now here's the story of the Chinese Jews!

Archaelogical evidence suggests that Jews were in China as early as the 8th Century, having arrived from Persia along the Silk Road. In 1163 the Emperor ordered the Jews to live in Kaifeng, where they built the first Chinese synagogue. Marco Polo recorded that Kublai Khan celebrated the festivals of the Muslims, Christians and Jews, indicating that there were a significant number of Jews in China in the 13th Century.

A Ming Emperor conferred on the Jews seven surnames - Ai, Lao, Jin, Li, Shi, Zhang and Zhao. To this day Chinese Jews will only have one of these seven names. Christian missionaries also recorded meetings with Chinese Jews. At least one synagogue was constructed, and the community was active for about eight centuries. Currently, the Vatican holds letters from Jesuits in the 18th Century describing the daily life and religious practices of Jews in Kaifeng, and drawings of their synagogue...............................In the late 19th century, Russian Jewish communities were founded in Harbin, Tianjin and elsewhere. The project to construct a Russian railway to East Asia was centered in Harbin. Anxious to populate the city, the Russian government provided incentives to minorities, including Jews and Karaites, to settle there. In the early years of the 20th century, Jews fleeing pogroms in the Pale of Settlement....................................
http://chinese-school.netfirms.com/Jews.html
http://www.jcpa.org/dje/articles2/china.htm
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/chinesejews1.html

 

Isn't Jewishness of a kid conferred by its mother? In that case, any Chinese Jewish woman who married outside the clan would have Jewish kids who did not have these last names.

 

I honestly don't have a clue. But my last name belongs to one of the seven names listed. I think I'll go to genealogy.com and trace my family tree a bit.

 

Last summer I was in Japan and they have a rather large Jewish presence in some cities. There are many synagogues and this Japanese-Jewish sect believes that one of Chinese roots came from old Israel tribre and came to China before Buddha. Quiet interesting, but still much to learn

 

Maybe Einstein is just a different way to spell Aistein. I've always thought me and Einstein look alike?

 

A new barber for you would solve your problem!

 

But I like the hassle of being recognized when I walk down the streets in New York.

 

China, India, and here all along I thought they were at the Chicago Bulls game.

 

The Kaifeng Synagogue.


The Joshua family became the Zhao family.

 

The accompanying article,
http://images.google.com/imgres?img...nt=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official_s
In Kaifeng, they were given the best district (just outside the Forbidden City) as their quarters. They kept good and harmonious relations with other ethnic Chinese, like Hans and Moslems. Year after year, they began to get assimilated to the local Chinese society. They studied the Chinese culture represented by the Confucius and Mencius theories, quite a few of them took important positions as Chinese officials after serious exams, like other Chinese did. Others developed into commerce and trade and became owners of large properties. Meanwhile, they practiced their own religious rites and ceremonies, and built the first Synagogue in 1163 AD. They loved the city and its people. They preferred the life better than "wander the globe". They had been unknown by other Jewish communities in the world until 17th century.

In 1601 AD, Father Marteeo Ricci, an Italian missionary traveled to Peking (Beijing). He happened to meet with someone named Ai Tien from Kaifeng. To the great surprise of the missionary, he found that there had been a Jewish community surviving in the far Oriental China. They were living on an "Isolated Island". It created an explosion in the Western Jewish communities. It was a miracle of Jewish Diaspora; of Jewish history; of Jewish and Confucius culture. Based on these, William Charles White, a Canadian Anglican Bishop, wrote a book "Chinese Jews" during his mission of decades in Kaifeng. Driven by this book, thousands of Jewish historians, scholars, archaeologists, Rabbis poured into Kaifeng for their research and study. There had been more than 270 books about this legend.

As it's known widely, after the intrusion of Palestine by the Roman Empire in 67 AD, the local citizens were scattered in Europe, Western Asia and Northern Africa. They didn't have homes, and the vast shabby "Ghettoes" were their only choice available. Especially during the reign of Adulf Hitler, millions of European Jews were persecuted and slaughtered, which had been a miserable page of Jewish history......................

 

IM,

I remember you mentioned something about Iranians in antient China before in the linked thread. Notice these Jews came from Persia, so I'm just wondering if you were talking about these same people?

https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=181769&page=8&pp=15

 

So where does all of this leave the Rastafarians?

 

Still high?

 

You are all fools.

The 10 tribes of Israel are still alive and living within the earth.

Get in touch with your travel agent now and fork over $20,000 and you too can enter the earth and see the new throne of david.

Seriously.

http://pharyngula.org/index/pellucidar_beckons/

 

I was in Little-China yesterday and I think that ALL of China is the Lost Tribe.

My God, those people bargain and haggle down to the last penny!

 

Why should chinese have german surnames?

 

Takes two to haggle. Just give them the money dammit Dammit!

 

The Chinese emporer at that time was a German Jew..

 

See, the theory is being fleshed out. The Lost Tribe was assimilated into China.

I would expect much more prominent Chinese bankers though, if it were true. And they aren't very good at stand-up.

Maybe the lost tribe were the Jews who washed clothes?

(God, how racist can I get??)

 

You mean you don't know him?

I think you have the potential to make a name for yourself one day.

 

Please enlighten me. I wasnt sure if it was a joke, since you missed to put a smilie. But alright.