Where did the Jews live during the Jewish Diaspora?

Answer 1

You need to give a timeframe.

Answer 2

The Diaspora (scattering of the Jewish people) began because we were unable to live in the Holy Land. The prophets had constantly warned the Israelites that ignoring the Torah would result in exile.
In 68 CE, the Romans destroyed the Second Temple. The Romans did not force the Jews out of Judea in a single expulsion. Rather, the Romans expelled them from Jerusalem only; and the rest of Judea lost its Jews slowly, over a period of centuries, as living there became too harsh.
Those Jews who left Judea went to southern Europe, North Africa, Arabia, the Near East, and (slowly) further afield (especially throughout Europe).

Answer 2

According to The Bible, God called Abram out of the land called Ur and he re-settled into what is now Israel. His family and descendants grew and they formed into 12 tribes of Israel, who are referred to as "Jews". Due to a famine, they had to escape to Egypt where they were put into slavery for 400 years. But Moses led them out of Egypt and they returned to the land of Israel. They lived there until after the Roman occupation and they were scattered in the 1st Century to all the world. Then after WW2 and the Holacaust, they began to return to Israel in larger numbers.

Answer 3

The way this question is phrased is extremely vague. There have been Jews in nearly every major region of the world with the exception of Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. Outside of Europe, the Arab World, Canada, USA, and Argentina, however, the numbers are relatively small.

However, since you classified your question under Holocaust, I refer you to the following site which gives you a general break down of how many Jews were in what countries / regions prior to the Holocaust.

http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005687

Answer 4

As of 2013:

Israel.......... 6,042,000 America....... 5,425,000 France......... 480,000 Canada........ 375,000 United Kingdom 291,000 Russia........ 194,000 Argentina.... 182,300 Germany......119,000 Australia...... 107,500 Brazil........... 95,300 South Africa.. 70,800 Ukraine......... 67,000 Hungary........ 48,600 Mexico.......... 39,400 Belgium........ 30,300 Holland......... 30,000 Italy.............. 28,400 Chile............. 20,500 Other countries, combined: 250,200

Answer 5

The answer is Israel.
The Patriarchs and their family lived in the land of Israel (Canaan) for 220 years. The era from Joshua until the First Destruction (including the Judges and Kings) was 850 years. The Second Temple era was, according to traditional chronology, another 420 years (not 586), which included the Hasmonean dynasty. That's a total of 1490 years.
After the Second Destruction, there were thousands of Jews who remained in Israel (Judea; Palestine) throughout the Talmudic era and beyond (see for example the Talmud, Sanhedrin 17b). They were the majority of Palestine's population well into the fourth century, with records attesting to at least 43 Jewish communities, most of them in the Galilee and Jordan valley. After that, there were still Yeshivas in Israel with at least some thousands of community-members.

Answer 6

The Diaspora (scattering of the Jewish people) began because we were unable to live in the Holy Land. The prophets had constantly warned the Israelites that ignoring the Torah would result in exile.
1) Around 2600 years ago, the Assyrians forcibly exiled the Ten Israelite tribes to points unknown. A small percentage of each of these tribes is still among us, but most of them were exiled and didn't return.

• Link: Where are the Ten Tribes
  

2) Around 2500 years ago, the Babylonians destroyed the First Temple and forcibly exiled the remainder of Israel's population to Babylonia.

• Link: The Destruction
  

While the Jews were permitted to return to Israel (Judea) seventy years later, and tens of thousands did so (and rebuilt the Temple), most of them remained in Babylonia, while others began to settle in North Africa, southern Europe, the Crimea, throughout the Near East and elsewhere.

3) In 68 CE, the Romans destroyed the Second Temple. The Romans did not force the Jews out of Judea in a single expulsion. Rather, the Romans expelled them from Jerusalem only; and the rest of Judea lost its Jews slowly, over a period of centuries, as living there became too harsh. Even then, we have records of Jewish communities who lived in Judea (Palestine) during the entire period of the last two millenia.

• Link: History of the Jews in Israel
  

Those Jews who left Judea went to southern Europe, North Africa, Arabia, the Near East, and (slowly) further afield (especially throughout Europe).

• Link: Jewish history timeline
  

Related topic:

The diaspora (scattering) was difficult for us:

1) Because certain mitzvot (such as those related to agriculture in the Holy Land) now became suspended for the duration of the exile.

2) Because of the impediment to communication between the various communities. This could lead to the development of rivaling groups, each claiming to be authentic.

3) Because the Jews were now a minority among other nations, who were sometimes quite hostile.

4) Along with the Torah, the Land of Israel (Judea) and the Holy Temple had been central to Judaism. It now was to be seen whether Torah-observance could be maintained on the high level that those ideal factors had been conducive to.

Related topic:
How did the diaspora affect the Jews?
To a certain extent, the diaspora caused the various Jewish communities to take on minor aspects of their host countries.
The religion itself was affected little, if at all, since all Jews share the same Torah and Talmud, and differences within halakhah (Jewish laws) are relatively small. In addition, the Jews were dissuaded from assimilating because the Romans were the polar opposite of Judaism; plus the fact that some of their greatest historians spewed diatribes of hate against the Jews.

• Link: Contrasting Romans and Jews

However, in secondary matters of culture such as pronunciation, mannerisms, and introduction of new vocabulary, every community is influenced somewhat by the others among whom they dwell; so some traits of our regions of residence have rubbed off on us. Examples are the differences in pronunciation and accent (for the Hebrew alphabet), differences in dress, and minor differences in customs.

See also the other Related Links.

Link: Maintaining Judaism during the exile
Link: Where do Jews live today?

Answer 7

The answer is Israel.
The Patriarchs and their family lived in the land of Israel (Canaan) for 220 years. The era from Joshua until the First Destruction (including the Judges and Kings) was 850 years. The Second Temple era was, according to traditional chronology, another 420 years (not 586), which included the Hasmonean dynasty. That's a total of 1490 years.

• Link: Jewish history timeline
  

After the Second Destruction, there were thousands of Jews who remained in Israel (Judea; Palestine) throughout the Talmudic era and beyond (see for example the Talmud, Sanhedrin 17b). They were the majority of Palestine's population well into the fourth century, with records attesting to at least 43 Jewish communities, most of them in the Galilee and Jordan valley. After that, there were still Yeshivas in Israel with at least some thousands of community-members.

In the fifth century, the Jerusalem Talmud was collated in the yeshiva of Tiberias, by the disciples of Rabbi Johanan; and the Christians of Palestine declared the Jews to be a tolerated minority.
In the sixth century CE, Mar Zutra and his descendants served as head of the community and the Rabbinical academies.
In the seventh century, the Palestinian Jews joined the Persians in a battle to take Jerusalem from the local Byzantines, and enjoyed a brief autonomy, which the Byzantines under Heraclius officially recognized in 628.

At the time of the Moslem conquest of Palestine in 638, the Jewish population in the land has been put at no less than 300,000; and a period of flourishing began. Caliph Umar encouraged Jews to resettle Jerusalem.
In the eighth century, there were 30 synagogues in Tiberias. A Jew named Abu Issa brought his forces in battle against the Caliph.
In the ninth century, the Jews of Palestine instituted their own Gaon (leading sage) in Tiberias and in Jerusalem.
In the tenth century, we have the greatest of the Massoretes, Rabbis Aharon ben Asher and Ben Naphtali, flourishing in Tiberias.

Contemporary with Rashi (11th century), we have a Rabbi Abiathar and others, who lived in Israel (see for example Rashi commentary, Talmud Berakhot 62a), and large Jewish communities in Rafah and Ramle, Hebron, Acre, Caesaria, Jaffa, Ashkelon and Gaza.
In the 12th-13th centuries, the Palestinian Jews were harshly persecuted under the Christian Crusaders, yet many Jews continued to live in all the above-mentioned towns as well as Haifa, with Judah Halevi journeying to the Jewish communities of Palestine in 1141, Maimonides in 1165, and Nachmanides in 1286.

In 1187, Saladdin invited more Jews to settle Palestine. In 1204, a group of Maghreb Jews arrived; and in 1211, 300 Rabbis arrived from France and England. In 1260, Rabbi Yechiel of Paris established a Talmud academy in Acre.

Since that time, the continuous presence of Jewish communities in Palestine (Israel) is well-known and needs no reiteration.

A brief timeline of Israel and the Jews:
1) c.1950 BCE: Noah delegated what is now called Israel to the Semites (children of Shem) (Rashi commentary to Genesis 12:6).
2) c. 1750 BCE: The neighboring Canaanites gradually take control of the land (ibid) which therefore becomes called Canaan.
3) 1737-1522 BCE: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob spread their teachings in the land. God promises this land to them and their descendants (Genesis ch.28).
4) 1272 BCE: The Israelites under Joshua, at God's command, enter the land (Joshua ch.3-4) which now becomes called the Land of Israel. They remain for 850 years.
5) 422 BCE: The Babylonians destroy the First Temple, exiling the Jews.
6) 352 BCE: The Persians permit the Jews to rebuild the Temple. Tens of thousands of Jews resettle in Israel, now called Judea, while others remain in Babylonia.
7) 68 CE: The Romans destroy the Second Temple. Most of the Jews in Judea slowly scatter afield, but some thousands remain. Judea is renamed Syria-Palaestina by the Romans. The Galilee region remains heavily populated by Jews
8) 1096-1270: the Crusades.
9) from 1492: after the Spaniards expel all Jews from Spain, many thousands relocate to the Jewish communities in Palestine.
10) c.1780-1880: The first wave of modern Aliyah, mostly religious Jews, who move from Europe to Israel (Palestine) in the thousands.
11) c.1880 onward: the large-scale Jewish return to Israel gets underway.

See also the other Related Links.

Link: Is Israel still protected by God?

Link: Does Israel belong to the Jews?

Link: What a Muslim has to say

Answer 8

1) Around 2600 years ago, the Assyrians forcibly exiled the Ten Israelite tribes to points unknown. A small percentage of each of these tribes is still among us, but most of them were exiled and didn't return.

• Link: Where are the Ten Tribes
  

2) Around 2500 years ago, the Babylonians destroyed the First Temple and forcibly exiled the remainder of Israel's population to Babylonia.

• Link: The Destruction
  

While the Jews were permitted to return to Israel (Judea) seventy years later, and tens of thousands did so (and rebuilt the Temple), most of them remained in Babylonia, while others began to settle in North Africa, southern Europe, the Crimea, throughout the Near East and elsewhere.

3) In 68 CE, the Romans destroyed the Second Temple. The Romans did not force the Jews out of Judea in a single expulsion. Rather, the Romans expelled them from Jerusalem only; and the rest of Judea lost its Jews slowly, over a period of centuries, as living there became too harsh. Even then, we have records of Jewish communities who lived in Judea (Palestine) during the entire period of the last two millenia.

• Link: History of the Jews in Israel
  

Those Jews who left Judea went to southern Europe, North Africa, Arabia, the Near East, and (slowly) further afield (especially throughout Europe).

• Link: Jewish history timeline

Answer 9

There are Jewish people across the world. Most Jews live in the United States and Israel, though.

Answer 10

The Jewish people lived and some still do live in the Middle East in Israel. Israel borders Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.