The Torah says he led his family from Mesopotamia to the "promised land", Canaan. Some of his children became the Israelites.
Who was Abraham?
100
This series of five books are important parts of the Hebrew Bible -- they included histories of the Jewish people through the time of Moses and many of the important Hebrew laws.
What is the Torah?
100
This group conquered the Jews and finally defeated them at Masada. They are responsible for the spreading of Jewish communities throughout the Mediterranean region.
Who are the Romans?
100
This was the escape from Egyptian slavery and the return to the promised land of Canaan.
What is the Exodus?
100
This holiday celebrates the escape from Egyptian slavery. One tradition is the eating of flat bread as a symbol of the fleeing Jews who had no time to wait for their baked bread to rise.
What is Passover?
200
The book of Exodus says he asked, but when Pharaoh refused to let the Jews leave Egypt, a series of plagues finally convince Pharaoh to let them go. This person then led them out of Egypt.
Who was Moses?
200
Part of the larger Mosaic law, this list of laws was written by God on stone tablets, brought down by Moses to his people, and are highlighted by directives like "you shall have no other gods besides me" and "Honor your father and your mother".
What are the Ten Commandments
200
This groups threatened the Israelites and even had a giant named Goliath (but David defeated him(.
Who were the Philistines?
200
This event, named for the capital, happened when the Chaldeans captured Judah and brought back the Jews to their capital as slaves.
What is the Babylonian Captivity?
200
A central belief of Judaism which holds that there is only one true God. Christianity and Islam also hold this belief.
What is monotheism?
300
Under threat from the Philistines, he became the first Israelite King, but was not well liked or supported by tribal leaders.
Who was Saul?
300
This is a series of commentaries and and lessons for everyday life.
What is the Talmud?
300
This group conquered Judah, destroyed Solomon's temple, and brought the Israelites back to Babylon in slavery.
Who were the Chaldeans?
300
This event, named for the mountain fortress, happened when the Zealots retreated to this mountain fortress -- the pursuing Romans eventually broke through, but not before the Zealots committed suicide.
What is Masada?
300
Known as the festival of lights, this celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple in December. One tradition is the light the eight-candle menorah.
What is Hanukkah?
400
As a youth he defeated the Philistine giant Goliath. As an adult he became a well-respected and loved king of the Israelites. He also founded the capital at Jerusalem.
Who was David?
400
Not discovered until 1947, these 2000 year old writings explain ancient Jewish beliefs. They contain prayers, commentaries, letters, and passages from the Hebrew Bible.
What are the Dead Sea Scrolls?
400
Led by the Pharaoh, this group decided to put the Jews into slavery.
Who are the Egyptians?
400
When the Persian defeated the Chaldeans, they allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild this.
What is the Temple (more specifically, the Second Temple).
400
This group migrated to France and Germany, developed the language of Yiddish, and tended not to mix with other non-Jews.
Who are the Ashkenazim?
500
Another powerful and popular king, he used the wealth from trade relations to built the first temple.
Who was Solomon?
500
After the final destruction of the temple and the Diaspora of the Jews, smaller Jewish communities flourished under the leadership of these religious teachers, who often helped Jewish communities interpret the Torah.
Who are rabbis?
500
This group defeated the Chaldeans and allowed the Jews to leave Babylon and return home to Canaan.
Who are the Persians?
500
This event is the spreading of Jews away from Jerusalem and happens over hundreds of years, beginning with the Babylonian Captivity and then with the migration of Jews to Europe after the Roman conquest.
What is the Diaspora?
500
This group migrated to Spain and Portugal, developed the language of Ladino, and did tend to mix with other non-Jewish communities.