Ha! This is a decent bit.
The Khazars were a semi-nomadic people who, in the late 6th century CE, established an empire covering the southeastern section of modern European Russia, southern Ukraine, Crimea and Kazakhstan. Sometime around the year 740 CE, the king and the ruling class, followed by members of the general population, decided to convert to Judaism. The kingdom of Khazaria long served as a buffer between the Christian Byzantine Empire and the Islamic Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates. Not much is known about their early origins, and much of their history, including their decline, is shrouded in mystery.
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/5804883/jewish/Who-Were-the-Khazars.htm
The story of the Khazars would perhaps have been a footnote in Jewish history if not for Rabbi Judah Halevi (c. 1080–1141), who wrote a classic Jewish philosophical work commonly known as The Kuzari (or Al Khazari). The work's full title is “Book of Refutation and Proof on Behalf of the Despised Religion.”
Oh, ‘dasting.
As mentioned, the final fate of the Khazars after their decline remains unknown. Nevertheless, this has not stopped some scholars from postulating that Ashkenazic Jewry is largely descended from Khazars, a theory that has been exploited for political and anti-Semitic purposes. However, this theory has no basis and has been debunked by historians, linguists and geneticists.
Ha! This is a decent bit.
The Khazars were a semi-nomadic people who, in the late 6th century CE, established an empire covering the southeastern section of modern European Russia, southern Ukraine, Crimea and Kazakhstan. Sometime around the year 740 CE, the king and the ruling class, followed by members of the general population, decided to convert to Judaism. The kingdom of Khazaria long served as a buffer between the Christian Byzantine Empire and the Islamic Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates. Not much is known about their early origins, and much of their history, including their decline, is shrouded in mystery.
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/5804883/jewish/Who-Were-the-Khazars.htm
The story of the Khazars would perhaps have been a footnote in Jewish history if not for Rabbi Judah Halevi (c. 1080–1141), who wrote a classic Jewish philosophical work commonly known as The Kuzari (or Al Khazari). The work's full title is “Book of Refutation and Proof on Behalf of the Despised Religion.”
Ha! This is a decent bit.
The Khazars were a semi-nomadic people who, in the late 6th century CE, established an empire covering the southeastern section of modern European Russia, southern Ukraine, Crimea and Kazakhstan. Sometime around the year 740 CE, the king and the ruling class, followed by members of the general population, decided to convert to Judaism. The kingdom of Khazaria long served as a buffer between the Christian Byzantine Empire and the Islamic Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates. Not much is known about their early origins, and much of their history, including their decline, is shrouded in mystery.
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/5804883/jewish/Who-Were-the-Khazars.htm