Antisemitism

**Antisemitism** is the bias, prejudice or discrimination against Jews. A synonym of antisemitism is Judeophobia, preferred by those considering "antisemitism" ambiguous.

## Overview

Human history has been full of antisemitism, the worst instance of which is the Holocaust, while the most common form of antisemitism is conspiracy theories. The adjective of antisemitism is **antisemitic**. Those with antisemitic views are called **antisemites**.

## Etymology

American historian Deborah Lipstadt and several antisemitism experts said that the word _antisemitism_ was invented by anti-Jewish German nationalist Wilhelm Marr in his tract _Path to Victory of Germanism Over Judaism_ to refer to the prejudice against Jews, which he deemed necessary for the German race to stop Jews (the leading group of _Semites_ in Europe back then) from subverting the German culture. Despite _Semites_ including other Middle Eastern ethnic groups, German nationalists like Wilhelm Marr referred to Jews as _Semites_ specifically.

Semantically, _antisemitism_ cannot be assumed as the prejudice against all _Semitic_ groups, or it would constitute the etymological fallacy (using a word's ancient meaning to make a point about its current meaning). Moreover, the word covers Jews who practice Judaism, Jews who converted to Christianity and those with traceable Jewish ancestry, all of whom can be victims of antisemitism.

### Spelling

The term is spelled by some as _anti-Semitism_, but such spelling is controversial. Historians have pointed out that _anti-Semitism_ is misleading as there is no such an ideology as "Semitism" that can be opposed, while the concept _Semites_ derived from pseudoscientific 19th-century scientific racism.

## Europe

In a 2013 survey of 5,847 Jews in Europe, 76% thought that antisemitism had increased in the previous five years, while 29% had thought about moving countries as they felt unsafe.

### Background

Jews started living in the Arabian Peninsula in the 6th century BC, when Babylonian Empire's conquest of the Kingdom of Judah forced Jews out of Judea. Successive waves of Jewish exiles – caused by alternating conquests of Judea – made Jews the leading ethnoreligious group in the Arabian Peninsula, where Judaism stood in contrast to the multi-god religion of ancient Arabs, many of whom had arrived later than the Jews due to their nomadic nature.

### Middle Ages

Jews thrived in the Arabian Peninsula until Muslims conquered the Peninsula, when they, along with other conquered indigenous peoples, were required to pay _jizya_ in exchange for their existence to be tolerated. The payment of _jizya_ granted Jews the status of _dhimmi_ under which they were prohibited – under the threat of execution – from criticizing any aspects of Islam, sharing Jewish ideas to Muslims or touching a Muslim woman. Jews were also not allowed to

- drink wine in public
- ride horses or camels
- pray or mourn in loud voices
- build synagogues taller than mosques
- construct houses taller than Muslim houses

#### 2010s

Some polls indicate antisemitism may be common in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). In 2011, the Pew Research Center polled a significant number of Middle Eastern countries' citizens, where Muslims are the majority. Most of the interviewees were hostile to Jews. Only 2% of Egyptians, 3% of Lebanese Muslims and 2% of Jordanians reported feeling good about Jews.

### 2010s

A 2017 survey showed that 14% of Americans were hostile to Jews.

### 2020s

The FBI released crime statistics illustrating that antisemitic incidents constituted 68% of all religion-based hate crimes in 2023, a 63% rise compared to 2022.

## Related pages

- Khazar myth
- Antiziganism
- Historical revisionism
- Anti-Judaism and antisemitism
- Antisemitism in the Soviet Union
- Antisemitic stereotypes
- Nazism