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According to 2 Kings 17:24 in the Bible, the five groups of foreigners brought in by the King of Assyria (identified as Sargon II or Esarhaddon) to settle in the cities of Samaria after the Israelites were deported (c. 722 BC) were:
Babylon
Cuthah (or Cutha)
Avva (or Ava/Ivah)
Hamath
Sepharvaim
The first specifically named Jew noted in ancient Greece is often considered to be Moschos Moschionos (or Moschus Ioudaios), a Jewish slave freed in the Attica region around 300–250 BCE. A manumission inscription from this period found in Oropus, Boeotia, refers to him as a "Ioudaios" (Jew or Judean), marking early evidence of a Jewish presence in the Greek mainland.
First Jews in Greece:
Earliest Evidence: The inscription of Moschos is often cited as the earliest specific, named evidence.
The Ioudaios Inscription: Found at the Amphiareion in Oropus, it is dated to around 250 BCE, with some researchers debate whether it implies a religious Jew or a Judean by origin.
Earlier Settlement: While Moschos is the first named person, historians believe Jewish settlements in Greece date back further, possibly starting with Jewish exiles after the destruction of the First Temple in 586 BCE.
Archaeological Findings: A synagogue dated to around 150 BCE was discovered on the island of Delos, serving as evidence of a long-established Jewish presence in the Aegean during antiquity
Pasion, Hellenized Names, and the Blending of Greek and Jewish Culture (c. 440 BCE–1st century CE)
Pasion, Hellenized Names, and the Blending of Greek and Jewish Culture (c. 440 BCE–1st century CE)
Pasion (c. 440–370 BCE), the famous former slave who became the leading banker of Athens, reflects the deeply interconnected world of the eastern Mediterranean during the Classical period. Likely born in Syria or the Levant and probably of Phoenician or broader Semitic background, Pasion rose from enslavement in Piraeus to become one of the wealthiest men in Athens. His life illustrates how Levantine immigrants, Phoenician traders, Greeks, and later Hellenized Jews all participated in a shared commercial and cultural sphere shaped by maritime trade and Greek influence.
One important sign of this blending was the adoption of Greek names tied to Greek gods. Pasion named his son Apollodorus (“gift of Apollo”), a Greek theophoric name honoring the god Apollo. Scholars note that foreign-born Levantine immigrants in Greek cities often adopted Greek divine names as part of assimilation into Hellenic society. This practice later became common among Hellenized Jews as Greek culture spread across the Near East after the conquests of Alexander the Great in the late 4th century BCE.
By the time of the Maccabean Revolt (c. 167–160 BCE), Judea was under Seleucid Syrian-Greek rule, and many Jews had adopted Greek language, customs, and names. Figures such as Apollonius, a Seleucid governor and military commander, appear frequently in accounts of the revolt. Interaction between Jewish elites and Greek political culture caused names associated with Apollo—such as Apollonius and Apollodorus—to spread within parts of the Jewish population, especially among urban and Hellenized communities.
This cultural blending continued into the Roman era. In the New Testament period (1st century CE), one of the most prominent early Christian intellectuals was Apollos, an eloquent Jewish scholar from Alexandria, Egypt. Alexandria was one of the largest centers of Hellenistic Judaism in the ancient world, where Jewish religious traditions coexisted with Greek philosophy, language, and education. Apollos’ Greek name reflects this mixed Alexandrian-Jewish identity that had emerged across the eastern Mediterranean after centuries of Greek influence.
At the same time, Jewish and Christian writers sometimes transformed Greek cultural imagery into theological symbolism. In the Book of Revelation (written c. 90–100 CE), the angel of the abyss is called Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek, both meaning “The Destroyer.” The Greek name closely echoes Apollo, creating possible wordplay that may intentionally invert a famous Greek divine name into an image of destruction and chaos. This reflects the complex relationship early Jewish and Christian communities had with Greek culture: they adopted Greek language and names while simultaneously redefining or challenging pagan religious symbolism.
Pasion’s story therefore sits within a much larger history of cultural fusion in the ancient Mediterranean. Phoenicians, Greeks, Levantines, and later Hellenized Jews all shared trade routes, languages, financial systems, and naming traditions, producing a world where identities were often blended rather than isolated.
Romaniote Jews are a distinct, Greek-speaking Jewish community and the oldest in Europe, with a continuous presence in Greece for over 2,300 years. Originating from early Jewish settlers who Hellenized, they are separate from Sephardic and Ashkenazi traditions and are best known for their historic community in Ioannina.
Origins and Culture
Ancient Presence: They have lived on Greek soil since antiquity, likely arriving after the destruction of the First Temple, with communities present by the 4th century BCE.
Name Origin: The name "Romaniote" comes from the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire, where these Greek-speaking Jews lived for centuries.
Language & Tradition: They used Greek and a unique Judeo-Greek dialect (Yevanic), while maintaining a unique liturgy that differs from Sephardic and Ashkenazi customs.
Identity: Unlike other Jewish populations, they were deeply integrated into local Greek society, adopting local customs while keeping their Jewish fait
Ioannina: The city of Ioannina, particularly its historic synagogue built in 1829, is considered a last bastion of this unique culture.
Demographics: Before WWII, Romaniotes lived in major cities like Salonica, Crete, and Corfu, but many were wiped out in the Holocaust.
Emigration: In the early 20th century, many Romaniotes emigrated to the US, particularly New York City, where the Kehila Kadosha Janina synagogue in Manhattan remains a testament to their culture
Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism, 2nd ed. (BAS, 2011). Map courtesy the Biblical Archaeology Society; published in Hershel Shanks, ed., https://www.bibleodyssey.org/map-gallery/jewish-diaspora/
Background and Formation of the Samaritans
Settlement: These foreign populations were brought to Samaria to replace the deported Ten Tribes of Israel, a common strategy of the Assyrian Empire to prevent rebellion.
Intermarriage: These newcomers intermarried with the remaining Israelites who were not carried away into captivity.
Identity: This mixture of foreign pagan religion with Hebrew monotheism, coupled with intermarriage, created the unique cultural and religious identity of the Samaritans, often leading to conflict with the Jewish population in the southern Kingdom of Judah.
Religious Syncretism: Initially, these groups continued to worship their own native gods (e.g., the Babylonians worshipped Succoth Benoth, while the men of Cuth worshipped Nergal). Due to a plague of lions, they adopted a syncretistic faith that included worship of the God of Israel (Yahweh) alongside their own idols, taught by a returned Israelite priest.
There are many connections and significant structural similarities between Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism) and Zoroastrianism (ancient Persian religion), particularly regarding dualistic concepts, angelology, and eschatology. While not directly identical, many elements in Kabbalah are believed to have been influenced by Persian religious ideas during the Babylonian Exile.
Key Connections and Similarities
Dualism: Both traditions possess a framework of cosmic struggle. Zoroastrianism emphasizes the battle between Ahura Mazda (good) and Angra Mainyu (evil), which closely parallels the Kabbalistic struggle between divine light (Sephirot) and the opposing forces of Sitra Achra (the "Other Side" or darkness).
Angelology and Demonology: Zoroastrianism’s extensive hierarchy of angels and demons significantly influenced Jewish post-exilic traditions, which later became foundational to Kabbalistic texts.
Theological Concepts: Similarities exist in beliefs regarding the soul, the resurrection of the body, the coming of a messiah, and the concept of an eternal covenant or primordial spirits.
Light and Emanation: The Kabbalistic concept of Ein Sof (the infinite) revealing itself through emanations (Sephirot) has been compared to Zoroastrian ideas of light, fire, and divine emanation, according to in a SACRED-TEXTS analysis.
Historical Context: Many scholars argue that the Babylonian exile brought Jews into direct contact with Persian culture, enabling a cross-pollination of mystical and theological ideas
Key Connections to Greek Culture and Myth:
Hellenistic period (post-3rd century B.C.E.) Jewish culture was heavily influenced by the surrounding Greek world. The Passover Seder shares structural similarities with the Greek symposium, and the term afikomen is likely derived from Greek, illustrating how Jewish traditions absorbed aspects of the dominant Greek culture
The Seder Structure (Symposium Influence): Some scholars argue that the Passover Seder was partly modeled after the Greek symposium (a communal meal with reclining, drinking, and intellectual discussion). The practice of reclining while eating, drinking four cups of wine, and holding a structured discussion on a specific topic (the Exodus) aligns with Hellenistic dining customs.
The Afikomen: The word afikomen—the piece of matzo hidden and eaten at the end of the Seder—comes from the Greek word epikomon, which refers to after-dinner revelry.
Hellenistic Jewish Literature: The Septuagint (the 3rd-century B.C.E. translation of the Torah into Greek) was a major bridge that influenced how Jewish traditions were framed during that time.
Not Directly Derived from Mythology: While there is cultural connection, Passover rituals are not directly derived from Greek myths (such as those of Zeus or Demeter). Instead, the connection is with Hellenistic daily customs, intellectual traditions, and vocabulary.
Geographical Overlap: Greek Jews and residents of Greece have their own distinct traditions, which include using ingredients like matzo in recipes influenced by Greek Mediterranean cuisine
Jewish tradition and historical accounts, particularly those championed by 15th-century Spanish Jewish leader Don Isaac Abarbanel, suggest that Jewish settlement in the Iberian Peninsula (Spain) began in Biblical times, specifically during the Babylonian exile following the destruction of the First Temple by Nebuchadnezzar.
This tradition posits that Jews—including members of the Davidic royal family and the priestly Kohanim class—were transported to Spain as slaves, either directly by Nebuchadnezzar or as part of a later displacement.
Key Elements of the Tradition
The Role of Nebuchadnezzar: Legend holds that Babylonian conqueror Nebuchadnezzar brought Jews to Spain as slaves to serve local conquerors after destroying the First Temple in 586 BCE.
Settlement Areas: According to Don Isaac Abarbanel, these early exiles established communities in two primary districts:
Andalusia: Specifically in a city named Lucena.
Toledo: A city known as Tulaytulah, which some traditions suggest is a Hebrew name referring to their wandering from Jerusalem (taltelah).
Refusal to Return: A tradition recorded by Moses de León (13th century) mentions that many of these first exiles refused to return to Israel during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, believing that because the Temple was destined to be destroyed again, it was better to remain in Spain.
Biblical Evidence (Obadiah): The Book of Obadiah (1:20) mentions: “...and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad, will possess the cities of the south.” Rabbinic tradition, starting with the Targum Jonathan (1st century BCE/CE) and later supported by Rashi (11th century), identifies "Sepharad" as Spain.
Historical Context and Interpretations
Origins of Sephardim: The claim that Spanish Jewry (Sephardim) descends from the aristocracy and priestly class of the First Temple exile is a central part of Spanish Jewish identity, used to boast a heritage more ancient than that of Ashkenazi (German/French) Jewry.
Archaeological and Other Early Evidence: While the Nebuchadnezzar story is considered legendary, archaeological evidence shows early Jewish presence in the Mediterranean region.
Signet Ring: A signet ring from Cádiz, dating to the 8th–7th century BCE, bears an inscription that some interpret as paleo-Hebraic.
Roman Period: More solidified documentation exists from the 1st century CE onwards, with evidence of Jewish communities in Spain during the Roman period.
Other Interpretations of Sepharad: While medieval tradition firmly linked Sepharad to Spain, many modern scholars interpret "Sepharad" in Obadiah as a reference to Sardis in Asia Minor, rather than the Iberian Peninsula.
Despite the lack of objective historical documentation for a mass deportation to Spain by Nebuchadnezzar, this tradition was profoundly significant for Spanish Jews, providing them with a sense of high status and a deep-rooted history in the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 1,500 to 2,000 years before their expulsion in 149
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