The Thirteenth Tribe by Arthur Koestler
The Khazar Empire and Its Heritage
A provocative historical argument that many Eastern European Jews trace their origins not primarily to the ancient Israelites but to the medieval Khazar kingdom, a Turkic people in the Caucasus who converted to Judaism; the author marshals medieval chronicles, linguistic clues, and archaeological hints to reconstruct the rise, conversion and diaspora of the Khazars and to suggest that this thirteenth tribe profoundly shaped Ashkenazi demography. The book examines the political and cultural consequences of this thesis for modern Jewish identity and Zionist claims while acknowledging gaps in the evidence. Its conclusions have been influential yet hotly debated and criticized by later historians and geneticists.
- Published
- 1976
- Nationality
- British
- Length
- Short
- Pages
- 200-300
- Original Language
- English
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- Alternate Titles
- None
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