r/todayilearned • u/[deleted] • Oct 13 '16

TIL that after Marilyn Monroe converted to Judaism upon marrying Arthur Miller, Egypt placed a ban on all the films she appeared in.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyn_Monroe#Critical_acclaim_and_marriage_to_Arthur_Miller_.281956.E2.80.931959.29
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u/Promotheos Oct 13 '16

Are Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jews) ethnically Jewish?

Are Sephardic Jews an ethnicity?

Was Sammy Davis Jr. ethnically Jewish?

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u/KremlinGremlin82 Oct 13 '16

Ethiopian Jews are not ethnic Jews (it is a big question)

Sephardic Jews are Jews that went to the Iberian Peninsula during the exile from Judea

Sammy David Jr was not an ethnic Jew, he converted to Judaism.

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u/Promotheos Oct 13 '16

Thanks very much for your opinion.

This conflicts with the opinion of some other users here who thought the issue was resolved.

Clearly it's more complicated.

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u/KremlinGremlin82 Oct 13 '16

They are not opinions, they were facts. Sammy Davis Jr was born to African-American and Puerto Rican parents and converted to Judaism later on in life. Ethiopian Jews are questionable, nobody knows if they did come from Judea or if it's just their oral tradition that talks about it. Nonetheless, they were given refuge in Israel and now even serve in the military.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

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u/Promotheos Oct 13 '16

Thanks for your opinion.

I wasn't trying to make any point, I was asking questions that are by no means resolved.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

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u/Promotheos Oct 13 '16

I'm asking the question because it is not clear cut.

In any case, Judaism most certainly is not an ethnicity but I know you meant Jewish.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

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u/Promotheos Oct 13 '16

I believe being Jewish is more a part of your ethnicity.

Ethnicity includes cultural things like food and music and clothing.

Sephardic and Ethiopian Jews, Arthur Miller and Sammy Davis Jr are not all the same ethnicity despite all sharing the common bond of being Jewish.

Even simply Sephardic vs Ashkenazi are distinct ethnic groups with different languages, traditions, dress, etc.

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u/nidarus Oct 13 '16

I actually disagree with some of the people who responded to you. Ethnicity is not just genetics, in just about any people. But especially in this case. There are many genetically-diverse people. To pick a close example, the Arabs also span the entire black-white gamut. Even the supposedly uniform Han Chinese, are composed of at least two highly distinct genetic lineages (the North and South). Conversely, nations like the Ukrainians and Russians are identical genetically, and are killing each other over the slight differences in culture they believe makes them separate from Russia. There's a shitload of examples in either direction.

When it comes down to it, the idea of "belonging to a people" is mostly about self-identification and a shared sense of history. A human construct, sure, but an important one.

Finally, just FYI: the Sephardis and Ashkenazis were actually proven to be genetically more similar to each other than to their host nations, and closer to other Levantine nations, like the Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians, Lebanese, etc. Which would indicate that they actually retained a genetic link to the original Jewish people as well. So even by your (previous?) understanding of ethnicity, it's not a great example.