Beta Israel

Beta Israel:
ביתא ישראל‎
ቤተ እስራኤል
Ethiopian Jews:
יְהוּדֵי אֶתְיוֹפְּיָה‎:
የኢትዮጵያ ይሁዲዎች

Ethiopian Jews holding a Religious Ceremony, Gondar 1932
Total population
173,500
Regions with significant populations
Israel 160,500 (end of 2021)[1] 1.75% of the Israeli population, 2.3% of Israeli Jews
Ethiopia	12,000 (2021)[2]
United States	1,000 (2008)[3]
Languages
Historical Jewish languages Kayla Qwara Liturgical languages Ge'ez Hebrew Lingua franca Amharic Tigrinya Hebrew
Religion
Judaism (Haymanot · Rabbinism) · Christianity (Ethiopian Orthodox – see Falash Mura and Beta Abraham)
Related ethnic groups
Jews and other South Semitic speakers[4]  · Qemant

Part of a series on the
History of Ethiopia
Early history Prehistory   Dʿmt 980 – 400 BC
Middle Ages Aksum 100 – 940 AD Zagwe dynasty 900–1270 Early Solomonic period 1270–1529 Amda Seyon's Expansions 1314–1344
Early modern history Ethiopian–Adal War 1527–1543 Oromo migrations 1543 – 17th cent. Habesh Eyalet 1557 – 17th cent. Gondarine period 1632–1769 Zemene Mesafint 1769–1855 Ottoman border conflict 1832–1848
Modern history Unification 1855–1913 Menelik's Invasions 1878–1904 First Italo–Ethiopian War 1895–1896 Modernization 1913–1974 World War I 1914–1918 Second Italo–Ethiopian War 1935–1936 Italian East Africa 1936–1941 World War II 1941 Italian guerrilla war 1941–1943 Federation with Eritrea 1952–1962 Eritrean Independence War 1961–1991 Ethiopian Civil War 1974–1991 Ogaden War 1977–1978
Recent history Eritrean–Ethiopian War 1998–2000 Eritrean border conflict 1998–2018 Police massacre 2005 War in Somalia 2006–2009 East Africa drought 2011–2012 Oromo protests 2014–2016 Ethiopian civil conflict 2018–present Tigray War 2020–2022
Topics Economic history Emperor Aristocracy Military Army of the Empire Expansion Currency Aksumite Famines
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History of Eritrea
Pre-colonial Prehistory Land of Punt (c. 2500–980 BC) Kingdom of Dəmot (c. 980–400 BC) Aksumite Empire (c. 150 BC–AD 960) Sultanate of Dahlak (960–1557) Zagwe Dynasty (c. 1137–1270) Ethiopian Empire (1270–1974) Dankali Sultanate (c. Late 13th century–18th century) Sultanate of Aussa (1734–1936)
Colonial Eyalet-i Habeş (1554–1872) Italian Eritrea (1882–1936) Eritrea Governorate of Italian East Africa (1936–1941) East African Campaign of World War II (1940–1941) British Military Administration (1941–1952)
Post-Colonial Autonomy within Ethiopia (1952–1962) Eritrean War of Independence (1961–1991) Annexation as the Eritrea Province (1962–1993) Ethiopian Civil War (1974–1991)
State of Eritrea 1990s in Eritrea Eritrean–Ethiopian War (1998–2000) 2000s in Eritrea 2010s in Eritrea
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The Beta Israel (Hebrew: בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl; Ge'ez: ቤተ እስራኤል, Beta ʾƏsrāʾel, modern Bēte 'Isrā'ēl, EAe: Betä Ǝsraʾel, "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"^[5]), also known as Ethiopian Jews (Hebrew: יְהוּדֵי אֶתְיוֹפְּיָה: Yehudey Etyopyah; Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ይሁዲዎች, yä-Itəyop'əya Yəhudiwoč), are a Jewish community that lived for many centuries in the area of the Kingdom of Aksum and the Ethiopian Empire, which is currently divided between the modern-day Amhara and Tigray regions of Ethiopia. Most of the Beta Israel community immigrated to Israel in the late 20th century.^[6]

The Beta Israel lived in northern and northwestern Ethiopia, in more than 500 small villages spread over a wide territory, alongside predominantly Christian and Muslim populations.^[7] Most of them were concentrated mainly on what are today North Gondar Zone, Shire Inda Selassie, Wolqayit, Tselemti, Dembia, Segelt, Quara, and Belesa.

The Beta Israel appear to have been isolated from mainstream Jewish communities for at least a millennium, and practice a non-Talmudic form of Judaism that is similar in some respects to Karaite Judaism. In Israel, the form of Judaism practiced by the Beta Israel is referred to as Haymanot.

Having suffered religious persecution in Ethiopia, a significant portion of the community was forced into Christianity during the 19th and 20th centuries; those converted to Christianity came to be known as the Falash Mura. The larger Beta Abraham Christian community is also considered to have historical links to the Beta Israel.

The Beta Israel made contact with other Jewish communities in the late 20th century. Following this, a rabbinic debate ensued over whether or not the Beta Israel were Jews. After halakhic (Jewish law) and constitutional discussions, Israeli officials decided in 1977 that the Israeli Law of Return was to be applied to the Beta Israel.^[8][9] The Israeli and American governments mounted aliyah (immigration to Israel) transport operations.^[10][11] These activities included Operation Brothers in Sudan between 1979 and 1990 (this includes the major Operation Moses and Operation Joshua), and in the 1990s from Addis Ababa (which includes Operation Solomon).^[12][13]

By the end of 2008, there were 119,300 people of Ethiopian descent in Israel, including nearly 81,000 people born in Ethiopia and about 38,500 native-born Israelis (about 32 percent of the community) with at least one parent born in Ethiopia or Eritrea (formerly part of Ethiopia).^[14] At the end of 2019, there were 155,300 people of Ethiopian descent in Israel. Approximately 87,500 were born in Ethiopia, and 67,800 were Israeli-born with fathers born in Ethiopia.^[1] The Ethiopian Jewish community in Israel is mostly composed of Beta Israel (practicing both Haymanot and Rabbinic Judaism) and to a smaller extent of Falash Mura who converted from Christianity to Rabbinic Judaism upon their arrival to Israel.