[Sally Le Page (OP)]

Chris asked us:

"A while ago you did a fascinating programme on Moses, the person. It prompted me to wonder, what is the age of the group we call Jewish?
At the time of the pharoahs, there was a cohesive social group that Moses called upon, the assumption being they predated the pharoahs. If so, by how much? Language? Origin?"

Do you know the answer?

[alancalverd]

The pharaohs reigned from about 3000 BC. The history of the Jews gets a bit misty before Moses but there is ample evidence of a flood, placing Noah around 2200 BC, with a list of tribal antecedents that arguably predates the pharaohs by about 1000 years. However what would be recognised as formalised judaism (and islam) is considered to begin with Abraham, born around 1800 BC.

[evan_au]

Middle English: from Old French juiu, via Latin from Greek Ioudaios, via Aramaic from Hebrew yĕhūḏī, from yĕhūḏāh ‘Judah’ (see Judah).

I understand that there were originally 12 "tribes" in Israel. The Assyrians conquered and deported most of them, starting around 730BC, leaving mostly one tribe, Judah. Today's Jews are named after this remaining tribe.

See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jews