Second Temple period

Persian period (538–332 BCE) According to the Book of Ezra, the Persian Cyrus the Great ended the Babylonian exile in 538 BCE, the year after he captured Babylon. The exile ended with the return under Zerubbabel the Prince (so-called because he was a descendant of the royal line of David) and Joshua the Priest (a descendant of the line of the former High Priests of the Temple) and their construction of the Second Temple in the period 521–516 BCE. but other scholars point out that the cylinder's text is specific to Babylon and Mesopotamia and makes no mention of Judah or Jerusalem. The Persians may have experimented initially with ruling Judah as a Davidic client-kingdom under descendants of Jehoiachin, but by the mid–5th century BCE Judah had become in practice a theocracy, ruled by hereditary High Priests and a Persian-appointed governor, frequently Jewish, charged with keeping order and seeing that tribute was paid. A second group of 5,000, led by Ezra and Nehemiah, returned to Judah in 456 BCE. The first was empowered by the Persian king to enforce the Torah, the second had the status of governor and a royal mission to restore the walls of the city. The Bible mentions tension between the returnees and those who had remained in Judah, the former rebuffing the attempt of the "peoples of the land" to participate in the rebuilding of the Temple; this attitude was based partly on the exclusivism which the exiles had developed while in Babylon and, probably, partly on disputes over property. The careers of Ezra and Nehemiah in the 5th century BCE were thus a kind of religious colonisation in reverse, an attempt by one of the many Jewish factions in Babylon to create a self-segregated, ritually pure society inspired by the prophesies of Ezekiel and his followers. ) minted in the Persian province of Yehud, dated c. 375-332 BCE. Obv: Bearded head wearing crown, possibly representing the Persian Great King. Rev: Falcon facing, head right, with wings spread; Paleo-Hebrew YHD'' to right. The Persian era, and especially the period between 538 and 400 BCE, laid the foundations for the unified Judaic religion and the beginning of a scriptural canon. The final Torah is widely seen as a product of the Persian period (probably 450–350 BCE). This consensus echoes a traditional Jewish view which gives Ezra a pivotal role in its promulgation. It has been suggested that Darius' reform of the empire's administrative structures, which included the collection, codification, and administration of local law codes, was the driving force behind the Jewish Torah's redaction. Yehud's population significantly decreased during the Persian era; it is likely that it never exceeded 30,000. This represents a 70% decrease when compared to the late First Temple period. Jerusalem's area was also smaller compared with the late First Temple period. The city shrank to its pre-eighth century BCE size, and its inhabited areas—the City of David and the Temple Mount—had a population of around 1500. Together with the surrounding farms and unwalled settled areas, Jerusalem's population was around 3000 people. The rest of the population lived in small, unwalled towns and villages. The Israel of the Persian period consisted of descendants of the inhabitants of the former Kingdom of Judah, returnees from the Babylonian exile community, Mesopotamians who had joined them or had been exiled themselves to Samaria at a far earlier period, Samaritans, and others. Hellenistic period (333–110 BCE) , discovered in Beit She'an (2nd or 1st century BCE) In 332 BCE, the region was conquered by Alexander the Great of Macedon, ushering in the Hellenistic period. After his death in 322 BCE, his generals divided the empire and Judea became a frontier region between the Seleucid Empire and Ptolemaic Egypt. Under the Hellenistic kingdoms, Judea was ruled by the hereditary office of the High Priest of Israel as a Hellenistic vassal. At the same time, Hellenism gradually spread to varied degrees on all sides in the region through a variety of contacts, but especially as a result of the development of commerce and the arrival of Greek settlers. Between 301 and 219 BCE the Ptolemies ruled Judea in relative peace. Jews often found themselves working in the Ptolemaic administration and army, which led to the rise of a Hellenized Jewish elite class (e.g. the Tobiads). This period also saw the rise of a Hellenistic Judaism, which first developed in the Jewish diaspora of Alexandria and Antioch, and then spread to Judea. The major literary product of this cultural syncretism is the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible from Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic to Koiné Greek. The reason for the production of this translation seems to be that many of the Alexandrian Jews had lost the ability to speak Hebrew and Aramaic. This policy was drastically reversed by Antiochus IV, possibly due to a dispute over leadership of the Temple in Jerusalem and the office of High Priest or a revolt whose nature was lost to time. Antiochus IV issued decrees forbidding many traditional Jewish practices and began a campaign of persecution against devout Jews. This triggered a revolt against his rule, the Maccabean Revolt. Scholars of Second Temple Judaism sometimes refer to Antiochus' reign as the 'Antiochene crises' for the Jews, and as a period of civil war between Hellenized and orthodox forms of Judaism. Maccabean Revolt (167–140 BCE) According to 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, and Josephus, the Seleucid Emperor Antiochus IV () moved to assert strict control over the Seleucid satrapy of Coele Syria and Phoenicia after his successful invasion of Ptolemaic Egypt (170 to 168 BCE) was turned back by the intervention of the Roman Republic. He sacked Jerusalem and the Temple, suppressing Jewish and Samaritan religious and cultural observances, and imposed Hellenistic practices ( 168-167 BCE). and fled with his sons and followers to the wilderness of Judea. These events signaled the start of the Maccabean Revolt. When Mattathias died, his son Judas Maccabeus took over as leader of the revolt. He used guerrilla tactics to defeat several small Seleucid armies while Antiochus IV was fighting a war in the east. The conflict was heavily religiously charged because, in order to distinguish themselves from their Jewish opponents, the Maccabees presented themselves as radical Jews and carried out large-scale forced circumcisions. Judas eventually succeeded in capturing Jerusalem and purifying the allegedly desecrated temple. This event is commemorated by the Jewish festival of Hannukkah. The Maccabean cause was aided further in 164 BCE when Antiochus IV died and his generals fought over guardianship of his young son Antiochus V; this turmoil ended when Antiochus IV's nephew, Demetrios I, returned from exile in Rome, deposed Antiochus V, and ascended to the Seleucid throne. Demetrios continued the war against the Maccabees and backed their Jewish opponents. Around this time Judas was able to make a treaty with the Romans. Around 161 BCE, a Roman–Jewish Treaty was signed. In 160 BCE, the Seleucid general Bacchides defeated the Maccabees at the Battle of Elasa in 160 BCE; Judas' death during the battle dealt a blow to the rebels. After Judas died, his brother Jonathan Apphus took over as the leader of the revolt. He benefited from another internal Seleucid struggle between King Demetrius I Soter and an usurper, Alexander Balas. Both turned to Jonathan, attempting to win him over with concessions, and Alexander Balas even elevated him to the position of high priest. Alexander Balas was eventually able to assert himself, but he was quickly defeated by Demetrios' son Demetrios II. The battle for the throne was now between him and the general Diodotos Tryphon, which strengthened Jonathan's position even more. This did not change when Tryphon was able to capture and murder Jonathan in Acre through treachery. In 142 BCE, Simon Thassi, the last of Mattathias' sons, took over as rebellion leader and high priest. He was eventually successful in destroying the Acra, a fortified complex in Jerusalem that was the last symbol of Seleucid rule in Judea. Hasmonean period (140–63 BCE) After Simon was assassinated and replaced by his son John Hyrcanus I (), Antiochus VII led a large army into Judea, forcing Hyrcanus to surrender as a vassal ruler in Jerusalem after a two-year siege. However, following Antiochus' death in the Seleucid-Parthian Wars in 129 BCE, the Seleucids were soon too weak to pursue an active policy outside of Syria; Hyrcanus was relieved of his burden, His army laid siege to the city of Medeba and took it after a six-month siege. After this victory, he turned north and invaded Samaria, which had long separated Judea from Jewish settlements in Galilee. Archaeological evidence places these events between 111 and 110 BCE. Hyrcanus also launched a military campaign in Idumea, capturing Marisa and Adora. The Idumeans were forced to convert to Judaism, by threat of exile or death, depending on the source. Following the death of Hyrcanus, his son Aristobulus I () assumed the title of king for the first time and combined it with the office of high priest. People were now more open to Hellenistic influences that had been demonized as un-Jewish during the war; the Hasmonean kingship bore clear Hellenistic monarchy traits, but combined these with theocratic elements. Aristobulus conquered and annexed Galilee. Josephus writes that he had also subjugated and Judaized Iturea, but this claim is not supported by archeological evidence. Alexander Jannaeus () waged a series of expansionist wars, primarily against the Hellenistic cities surrounding Judea. Unlike his predecessors, who were focused on the concentration of the Jewish population in one country, his military efforts were motivated by a desire to control key economic points such as ports and trade routes. On the same time, he carried on his predecessors' conversion policy, and destroyed Pella because its inhabitants refused to convert. During his reign, the Hasmonean kingdom expanded to its greatest extent, now including the coastal plain, the northern Negev, and western parts of Transjordan. Some scholars argue that the Hasmonean dynasty institutionalized the final Jewish biblical canon. Hasmonean civil war After Salome Alexander died in 67 BCE, Hyrcanus II, her older son, was entitled to assume the throne and was already acting as high priest. However, Aristobulus II, her younger son, was more energetic and determined to become king. Aristobulus gathered an army to attack Jerusalem, forcing Hyrcanus to abdicate the crown. The abdication was formally carried out in the temple, and Aristobulus' son, Alexander, married Hyrcanus' daughter, Alexandra. However, Antipater, an Edomite noble who served as Hyrcanus' advisor, convinced him that giving up the throne was a mistake that needed to be undone. Along with Aretas III, king of the Nabateans, these two formed an alliance and together they attacked and besieged Jerusalem. During the same period, Roman general Pompey was in the midst of a campaign in the Eastern Mediterranean. After defeating Mithridates VI of Pontus, Pompey conquered the Seleucid Kingdom, which became a Roman province called Syria. The warrying brothers, who saw a mighty army camped near them, appealed to Pompey to decide between them. Three delegations then appeared before Pompey: one sent by Aristobulus, one sent by Hyrcanus, and another from "the people" who demanded to abolish the Hasmonean dynasty, which had transformed the rule of the priests into the rule of kings. Pompey heard the delegations but refrained from deciding. Eventually, in 63 BCE, Pompey invaded Judea, conquered Jerusalem, desecrated the Holy of Holies, imprisoned Aristobulus, and declared Hyrcanus an "ethnarch", a title inferior to the title "king". Judea then became a vassal kingdom of the Roman Republic. Early Roman period (63 BCE–70 CE) After Pompey's conquest of Judea in 63 BCE, Hyrcanus II assumed the role of ethnarch; however, his advisor Antipater was ruler in practice and managed the kingdom's affairs. Some cities which were conquered by the Hasmoneans were removed from Judaean rule, including Azotus, Jaffa and Samaria, as well as Scythopolis and several cities in Transjordan, which formed the semi-autonomous Decapolis. Hyrcanus II's rule was unstable. Alexander II, Aristobulus II's son, raised a large army and seized Jerusalem, forcing Hyrcanus to leave the city. The Roman general Aulus Gabinius invaded Judea in retaliation, sent Hyrcanus back to Jerusalem, and reinstated him as high priest. When Caesar's civil war broke out, Julius Caesar attempted to install Aristobulus on the throne; however, Aristobulus was poisoned, and his son Alexander, who was preparing to support him, was beheaded at Antioch at the command of Pompey. Antipater and his sons Phasael and Herod gained status and power at the expense of the Hasmonean dynasty's waning power. of Antigonus II Mattathias, depicting the Temple menorah When the Parthians invaded the area in 40 BCE, they installed Antigonus II Mattathias, Aristobulus II's youngest son, as king. Phasael committed suicide, and Hyrcanus II was taken as a prisoner to Babylon after having his ear severed in order to prevent him from ever acting as high priest again. Herod, who fled the Parthians, found his way to Mark Antony, who then controlled the eastern part of the Roman Republic. In agreement with his co-ruler Augustus, who controlled the western part, the two decided to appoint Herod as king of Judaea, and sent him with an army to seize the throne. In 37 BCE, Jerusalem was taken after a siege, and Antigonus was captured and executed. Herodian dynasty In 37-36 BCE, Herod the Great was appointed king of the Jews by the Roman Senate. The kingdom of Judea during his period is also referred to as the Herodian kingdom. As a close and loyal ally to the Romans, Herod extended his rule as far as Arabia and the Hauran. Herod undertook many colossal building projects, including fully rebuilding the Second Temple and expanding the Temple Mount, and founding Caesarea Maritima as a major port city. Herod also constructed the enclosure around the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, the fortress at Masada, and Herodium. The Herodian kingdom under Herod experienced a period of growth and expansion. After Herod's death in 4 BCE, the kingdom was partitioned to several parts to each of his three sons (initially four parts), forming the Tetrarchy. The central part of the Tetrarchy was given to Herod Archelaus, including Judea proper, Idumea and Samaria. Herod's death in 4 BCE caused the release of built up frustrations of the people who were suppressed by his brutality. Many people were impoverished because of Herod's high taxes and spending. When he died, his building projects that once allowed for job opportunities were stopped, and many people lost their jobs. This built up frustrations that ultimately contributed to the causes of the First Jewish–Roman War. Roman Judaea In 6 CE, the country fell into unrest, and the Herodian ruler of Judea was deposed in favor of forming the new Iudaea Province under direct Roman rule. The Roman province of Judaea extended over parts of the former regions of the Hasmonean and Herodian kingdoms. It was created in 6 CE with the Census of Quirinius and merged into Syria Palaestina after 135 CE. Jerusalem reached a peak in size and population during the late Second Temple period. The majority of scholars estimate that city's population at that time to have been between 70,000 and 100,000. Herod II ruled Ituraea and Trachonitis until his death in 34 CE when he was succeeded as tetrarch by Herod Agrippa I, who had previously been ruler of Chalcis. Agrippa surrendered Chalcis to his brother Herod and ruled in Philip's stead. On the death of Herod Antipas in 39 CE Herod Agrippa became ruler of Galilee also, and in 41 CE, as a mark of favour by the Emperor Claudius, succeeded the Roman prefect Marullus as ruler of Judea. The era from roughly 4 BCE to 33 CE is also notable as being the time period when Jesus of Nazareth should have lived, primarily in Galilee, under the reign of Herod Antipas. It is therefore considered in specifically Jewish history as being when Christianity arose as a messianic sect from within Second Temple Judaism. First Jewish–Roman War In 66 CE, the Jews of Judea rose in revolt against Rome, sparking the First Jewish–Roman War (66-73 CE), also known as the Great Jewish Revolt. Flavius Josephus, a contemporary Jewish historian who fought as the commander of Jewish forces in Galilee but later defected to the Roman side, chronicled the events of the war in his book The Jewish War. Vespasian, an experienced Roman general, was sent by emperor Nero to crush the rebellion. He arrived at Ptolemais along with legions X Fretensis and V Macedonica. There he was joined by his son Titus, who arrived from Alexandria at the head of Legio XV Apollinaris, as well as by the armies of various local allies including that of king Agrippa II. During the Galilee campaign, many towns surrendered without a fight, and others were taken by force. Yodfat, a fortified town in the Lower Galilee, was besieged for 47 days before it fell to treachery; the city was razed, many people were killed, and the rest were enslaved. Gamla, the major Jewish stronghold in the Golan Heights, fell after a one-month siege. Following a lull in military operations caused by civil war and political turmoil in Rome, Vespasian was summoned to Rome and appointed Emperor. in Rome depicts the Roman triumph celebrating the fall of Jerusalem. The procession includes the Menorah and other Second Temple vessels. In early 70 CE, Titus moved to besiege Jerusalem, the center of rebel resistance in Judaea. The city had been taken over by several rebel factions following a period of massive unrest and the collapse of a short-lived provisional government. The first two walls of Jerusalem were breached in three weeks, but the Roman Army was unable to breach the third and thickest wall due to a stubborn rebel standoff. According to Josephus, a contemporary historian whose work is the main surviving source for information about the war, the city was ravaged by murder, famine, and cannibalism. On Tisha B'Av, 70 CE (August 30), Roman forces finally overwhelmed the defenders and set fire to the Temple. Resistance continued for another month, but eventually the upper and lower parts of the city were taken as well, and the city was burned to the ground. Titus spared only the three towers of the Herodian citadel as a testimony to the city's former might. Josephus wrote that over a million people perished in the siege and the subsequent fighting. While contemporary studies dispute this figure, all agree that the siege had a major toll on human life, with many people being killed and enslaved, and large parts of the city destroyed. After the fall of Jerusalem, Titus returned to Rome, leaving the remaining Jewish strongholds, including Herodium and Machaerus, to the Roman Legions. The war ended in 73-74 CE with the siege of Masada. According to Josephus, the siege resulted in the mass suicide of the Sicarii rebels and resident Jewish families, though the historicity of the mass suicide is debated. , the last stronghold of the First Jewish-Roman War. The Roman siege ramp appears to the right. Aftermath The failure of the First Jewish Revolt eventually led to two subsequent Jewish uprisings against Rome: the Diaspora Revolt and the Bar Kokhba Revolt in Judaea, both of which ended in catastrophic failure. The Diaspora Revolt, which erupted between 115 and 117 CE, was driven by messianic expectations and the local tensions and violence experienced by Jews in the diaspora. This revolt saw Jewish communities in the Roman provinces of Egypt, Cyrenaica, and Cyprus rise in rebellion, characterized by attacks on local populations, temples, public structures, and roads. Two generations after the First Jewish-Roman War, the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-136 CE) erupted. One reason seems to be the re-establishment of Jerusalem as a Roman colony under the name of Aelia Capitolina. The revolt was brutally suppressed by the Romans and resulted in the extensive depopulation of Judea proper, more so than during the First Jewish–Roman War of 70 CE. Some scholars have described these events as genocide. Some modern historians assert that Dio's numbers were somewhat exaggerated, but based on the archeological evidence, virtually all scholars support Dio's claim of massive depopulation. The province of Judaea was renamed Syria Palaestina. Jewish presence in Judaea significantly dwindled after the failure of the Bar Kokhba revolt. Nevertheless, there was a continuous small Jewish presence and Galilee became its religious center. Jewish communities also continued to reside in the southern Hebron Hills and on the coastal plain. Over the next centuries, more Jews emigrated to flourishing communities in the Diaspora. Others remained in the Land of Israel, and some converted to Christianity. Jewish historians occasionally refers to this time period, which corresponds with the world's late antiquity, as the Rabbinic or Talmudic period. After the destruction of the Second Temple, Judaism separated into a linguistically Greek and a Hebrew / Aramaic sphere. The theology and religious texts of each community were distinctively different. population of an estimated one million Jews, which increased to an estimated two million between the years 200 CE and 500 CE, both by natural growth and by immigration of more Jews from the Land of Israel, making up about one-sixth of the world Jewish population at that era. == Religion ==

During the 600 years of the Second Temple period, multiple religious currents emerged and extensive religious developments occurred. The development of the Hebrew Bible canon, the synagogue, Jewish eschatology can all be traced back to the Second Temple period. According to Jewish tradition, prophecy ceased during the early Second Temple period; this left the Jews without their version of divine guidance at a time when they felt most in need of support and direction. From 170 BCE to 30 CE, five successive generations of zugot ("pairs of") leaders headed the Jews' spiritual affairs. A number of messianic ideas developed during the later Second Temple period. Christianity first emerged as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the 1st century Hellenistic Judaism in Roman Judea. Jesus of Nazareth was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. After his death, his apostles and their followers spread around the Levant, Europe, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, the South Caucasus, Egypt, and Ethiopia, despite initial persecution. It soon attracted gentile God-fearers, which led to a departure from Jewish customs, and, after the fall of Jerusalem ended Temple-based Judaism, Christianity slowly separated from Judaism. Literature The religious literature of the Second Temple period can be split into three categories: the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha; the literature of the Greek-speaking diaspora; and the Dead Sea Scrolls. The first two categories were preserved by Christians, while the third one was discovered in the 20th century in the Qumran caves. The Apocrypha ('hidden books') were accepted as canonical scripture by various Christian denominations, and includes books like 1–4 Maccabees, Sirach, Wisdom of Solomon, Baruch (inc. the Letter of Jeremiah), Tobit and Judith, along with 1–2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh which are not considered as canonical by any church. The Pseudepigrapha ('false superscription') include books attributed to well-known biblical figures, including Enoch, Abraham, Moses and others. The Dead Sea Scrolls are generally believed to be the library of a mystic sectarian community that lived at Qumran, most likely the Essenes. Together with the works from the first two categories, it also contains other writings including the Community Rule, the Damascus Document, the Temple Scroll, the War Scroll, the Thanksgiving Hymns, the pesharim, and others. A fourth category would be some parts of the Hebrew Bible that were composed during the Second Temple period, including the prophetic books of Zechariah, Haggai, Malachi, Joel, and parts of Isaiah (24–7, 56–66), all dating from the Persian period, along extensive portions of the Ketuvim. However, these books are not typically included in scholarship as part of the Second Temple period literature. ==Economy==

Agriculture Almost all of the national Jewish economy's needs during the Second Temple period were met domestically; there was very little exporting or importing. Agriculture played a significant role in economic life. Josephus explains why earlier texts did not mention Jews by stating that: As for ourselves, therefore, we neither inhabit a maritime country, nor do we delight in merchandise, nor in such a mixture with other men as arises from it; but the cities we dwell in are remote from the sea, and having a fruitful country for our habitation, we take pains in cultivating that only. Sources from the late first and early second centuries CE indicate that rice was introduced to Palestine by Jewish farmers during the early Roman period. The local crop was fine, large-kernel rice. The main products of livestock were milk, butter, and cheese (albeit these foods made up a small portion of the diet), wool, and food for the Roman army, whose diet, unusually for the time period, included a daily ration of meat. There was also fish, probably generally pickled, though not in great quantities. The Galilean city of Tarichaeae, located along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, got its name from Greek: ταρίχη, "pickled fish". and Helena. trading at this time was often a characteristic of the coastal cities. Doves were raised in the Judean Lowlands and sent to the Temple. Overview Judea's linguistic situation during the Second Temple period is defined by the co-existence of two spoken languages: Aramaic and Hebrew. The meaning of the population's bilingualism is debated; opinions differ on whether speakers express themselves equally in Hebrew or Aramaic, or whether one language is preferred over the other depending on region. Aramaic became widely spoken in Samaria and Galilee, while Judea continued to use Hebrew. This Greek inscription served as a warning to pagan visitors to the Second Temple not to go any further. Greek was the primary language of the Jews of Hellenistic and Roman Egypt, particularly those of Alexandria. Although the Jews of Egypt used Aramaic in the early Ptolemaic period, it was quickly abandoned in favor of Greek. It is only in the early Byzantine period that Egyptian Jewish communities communicated with one another in Hebrew, which again served as the official language. The use of Greek was not limited to the Jewish Diaspora. From the third century BCE onward, almost all inscriptions in the Southern Levant were written in Greek, with the exception of tombs and ossuaries, as well as those in synagogues. The Jews of Alexandria celebrated the translation of the Scriptures into Greek with an annual festival on the island of Pharos, known for its famed lighthouse, featuring a grand beach picnic. The festival honored the translation as a divine gift and commemorated the site where, according to tradition, the translation was completed. This celebration reflected the profound importance of the Greek version for Diaspora Jews who could not access the original Hebrew texts. Greek was widely used in Judaea, at least in a certain social stratum. Greek was also used in legal documents such as the Babatha Archives and the Bar Kokhba letters. The Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, was not limited to Jews in the Diaspora - it was also used in Judea, as evidenced by the discovery of fragments at Qumran and Nahal Hever. Greek names like Jason, Menelaus, and Alexander were popular among Jews throughout most of the Second Temple period. Some Pharisees, too, had Greek names like Antigonus of Sokho or Abtalion|P[t]ollion. == Identity ==

During the Second Temple period, Jewish identity was ethnic, with ancient sources consistently portraying it as based on descent and membership in the ethnic group. Religious observance was integrated into this ethnic framework and perceived by outsiders as a core characteristic of Jewish ethnic identity. Ancient Greek, Roman, and Jewish authors constantly define the Jewish people as an ethnos, one of the many ethne living in the Greco-Roman world. Van Maaren demonstrates why Jews of the late Second Temple period may be regarded as an ethnic group in modern terms by using the six characteristics that co-ethnics share as outlined by Hutchinson and Smith. Those include: • An ethnonym, a common proper name, that identifies and conveys the "essence" of its community. In antiquity, three proper names were used to refer to the Jewish ethnos, namely: "Hebrew", "Israel", and "Jews". In Second Temple period texts, the term "Hebrew" was used to describe an individual from the pre-monarchic period of Jewish history. The term "Israel" was used as a timeless designation of the ethnos or to refer to members who were a part of the united monarchy, the earlier northern kingdom, or eschatological Israel. Members of the contemporary ethnos were usually referred to as "Jews," and the name can also apply to a geographically confined subgroup or to the descendants of the earlier kingdom of Judah. In the centuries following the First Jewish–Roman War and the destruction of the Second Temple, Jewish identity gradually transformed from an ethnos with a distinct religious identity to a religious community that also considered itself a nation. Nationalism Anthony D. Smith, an historical sociologist considered one of the founders of the interdisciplinary field of nationalism studies, wrote that the Jews of the late Second Temple period provide "a closer approximation to the ideal type of the nation [...] than perhaps anywhere else in the ancient world." He adds that this observation "must make us wary of pronouncing too readily against the possibility of the nation, and even a form of religious nationalism, before the onset of modernity." Historian David Goodblatt also supports the view that premodern groups can meet the criteria for a nation, with the Jews being a prime example. Agreeing with Smith, Goodblatt proposes dropping the qualifier "religious" in the definition of Jewish nationalism during this period, noting that according to Smith, a religious component in national memories and culture is common even in the modern era. This perspective is echoed by political scientist Tom Garvin, who writes that "something strangely like modern nationalism is documented for many peoples in medieval times and in classical times as well," citing the ancient Jews as one of several "obvious examples", alongside the classical Greeks, the Gauls and the British Celts. Historian Salo W. Baron applied the term "ethnic-religious nationalism" to both ancient Jews and ancient Greeks. According to Israel Levine, early Hellenistic Greek observers described the Jews as eastern philosophers living in a utopian ethno-national context, apart from the political unrest of the time. Jewish texts from the Persian period show no political aspirations for independence, and in the early Hellenistic period, Jews viewed the Hellenistic rulers favorably. However, the circumstances leading up to the Maccabean revolt in the 170s and 160s BCE fostered a militaristic-zealot tradition that continued to play a key role in national life until the Bar Kokhba revolt in the 130s CE. It is possible that the Jews of Smyrna, Asia Minor, donated money to support city projects. Trebilco refers to them as "former Judeans" rather than "former Jews," implying that they were being referred to as a group whose origins were in Judea but who were now devoted to their current city of residency and even made contributions to public enterprises. Jews in Acmonia, Phrygia made donations to their city and referred to it as their patris, "home city" or "native town". Philo of Alexandria considered the ethnic distinctions between Egyptians and Jews to be more significant than those between Greeks and Jews, viewing native Egyptians as the lowest-class residents who practiced ridiculous habits. Around the same time, Apion, an Alexandrian possibly of Egyptian descent, spoke of the closeness between Jews and Egyptians and the inherent enmity between Jews and Greeks. Apion believed that Jews were descended from Egyptians, a claim Josephus denied. Philo noted that both Jews and Egyptians practiced circumcision and were passionate about their nationalistic and religious beliefs, though the majority of each population did not hold Roman citizenship. == Demography ==

This section refers to the late Second Temple period, unless specified. By area During the late Second Temple period and up until the Bar Kokhba revolt, Judea proper, Galilee, Peraea, Sharon, and western Samaria constituted a band of nearly continuous Jewish settlement. Central and northern Samaria was inhabited by Samaritans. Judea During the late Second Temple period, the regions of Judea and Benjamin had a dense Jewish population that resided in various types of rural settlements, including towns, villages, agricultural homesteads and fortified estates. Galilee The Galilee was sparsely populated up to the Hasmonean conquest, with the majority of its inhabitants concentrated in fortified centers on the margins of the western and central valleys. During that time, the Upper Galilee was home to a predominantly pagan populace with ties to the Phoenician coast. The little excavations that have been done there show that Jewish habitation there continued after the First Jewish Revolt, was abandoned or destroyed during the Bar Kokhba Revolt, and then there was a settlement gap throughout the Late Roman period. Ostraca dating from the 4th century BCE from sites in Idumaea including Arad, Beer-sheba, Tell Jemmeh, Maresha, and others, indicate a very diverse population that inhabited the district during the late Persian period, with about 32% Arab names, 27% Idumean names, 25% general West Semitic names, 10% Judahite names, and 5% Phoenician names. Around the mid-third century BCE, a Hellenized Phoenician community from Sidon settled in Maresha. During the reign of Hasmonean leader John Hyrcanus in the late second century BCE, the Edomites converted to Judaism and were assimilated into the Jewish people. Samaria The majority of Samaria's people in the first century CE are thought to have been Samaritans. Samaritans and Jews had a hostile relationship; Josephus describes one instance in which Jews from the Galilee were attacked by Samaritans in Ginae while traveling to a festival in Jerusalem, resulting in the death of one of them. Total numbers The number of Jews residing in the world and in Judea in ancient times is almost impossible to determine, as it is with other ancient populations, and research in that area has fallen out of scholarly favor in recent years. Nonetheless, a few academics have offered estimates over the years using different approaches. In Judaea Broshi estimated that there were not much more than 1 million people living in Palestine during Roman and Byzantine times, by multiplying the estimated population of the 26 towns that were known during the Roman-Byzantine period (based on projected population density) by three, using the assumption that the urban population made up around a third of the total population. According to Ze'ev Safrai, "at this point we do not have exact information regarding the population of Provincia Judaea during the Roman period". He asserts that there were more people living in Palestine than the one million people suggested by Broshi. Although McGinn cautions that it is nearly impossible to estimate Judaea's carrying capacity, he estimates that Palestine's agricultural population at the same time period may have reached up to one million people, not all of whom were Jews. Also, he suggested a maximum population range for Jerusalem and Caesarea, of 70,000 to 100,000 and 38,000 to 47,500 respectively. Worldwide In the 13th century, Christian writer Bar Hebraeus claimed that 6,944,000 Jews were counted in the Claudius census, which was conducted in the middle of the 1st century CE. Salo Wittmayer Baron asserted that there were 8 million Jews in the first century, based on Bar Hebraeus' estimate of 7 million Jews living inside the Roman Empire and adding an estimated million people living outside the empire. However, these figures are much disputed by contemporary scholars. == Material culture ==

As archeological evidence reveals, Jewish communities in Judea, Galilee, and Gaulanitis were quite divided by cultural attitudes but were interconnected by religious customs and, likely, beliefs. Workshops for kitchen pottery, standardized oil jars, and household or community ritual baths (mikvaot) show that Jews began to incorporate explicitly religious practices and attitudes into their homes and everyday lives as early as the first century BCE. They started using stone vessels and a particular new type of oil lamps in the latter first century BCE and early first century CE to further distinguish and identify themselves. However, in the affluent neighborhoods of Jerusalem, the wealthy adopted the use of decorated tableware, Italian cooking utensils, foreign eating customs, and the construction of lavish display tombs, all of which reflect foreign, classicizing practices and attitudes. These findings are rare in Judea, the Jewish Galilee, and Gaulantis. == Burial ==

In contrast to earlier and later Jewish burial practices, the two acceptable types of burial during the late Second Temple period (1st–2nd centuries BCE and CE) were primary burial in coffins and secondary burial in ossuaries. For primary burial, coffins were placed in kokhim. After a while, bones were collected for secondary burial in kokhim and placed in ossuaries. Ossuaries, which were cut from local limestone, were either kept on the floor or on shelves in specially carved niches in the walls of the tomb. It was common for the ossuaries to be decorated with ornaments that included typical motifs of the period. Monumental burial The earliest known Jewish burial monument was built by Simon Thassi, a Hasmonean leader who ruled Judea from 143 to 134 BCE. Simon constructed an now-lost elaborate tomb complex for his family in Modi'in. This tomb, described in 1 Maccabees and by Josephus, featured seven pyramids for his family members, surrounded by great columns adorned with suits of armor and carved ships, intended to be visible to all who sailed the sea. In Jerusalem , photographed in 1862 by Francis Bedford A number of especially lavish tombs were built around Jerusalem during the early Roman period. Examples are the so-called "Tombs of the Sanhedrin", Umm al-Amad, and the monumental tombs of the Kidron Valley, including the Tomb of Absalom, Tomb of Zechariah, and the Tomb of Benei Hezir. As a common practice in the Greco-Roman world, these tombs were built along ancient roads that have since disappeared. Scholars believe these tombs were built by individuals seeking to elevate themselves and their families in the eyes of Jews in both the Land of Israel and the Diaspora by employing temple-like architectural designs. One of the most well known sites of the period, also built near Jerusalem, is the rock-cut funerary complex known as the "Tombs of the Kings", which may be associated with Helena of Adiabene. According to Jewish Law (Mishnah, Bava Batra tractate), due to the sanctity of Jerusalem and the impurity of the dead, burial was only allowed beyond the city's walls and fifty cubits away. When the city expanded, the cemeteries were removed (except for the graves of the House of David and Huldah). It has been suggested that the Uzziah tablet, which says "Hither were brought the bones of Uzziah, king of Judah. Not to be opened", might indicate that king Uzziah's tomb was relocated beyond the city's walls during this period. Jericho's cemetery was also located outside the town's limits. While most scholars agree that the tombs of the elaborate tombs of western Samaria and the western Hebron Hills date to the same period as their Jerusalem counterparts, Yuval Magen offers a contrasting view, proposing that differences in design quality and craftsmanship indicate a chronological gap between them. Magen suggests dating the tombs of Western Samaria and the Western Hebron Hills to a later period—possibly the end of the first century or the beginning of the second century CE. Magen also posits a connection between the construction of these tombs and the influx of Jewish artisans who fled Jerusalem during or shortly before its siege in 70 CE, when job opportunities in the city diminished, leaving many quarrymen unemployed. Peleg-Barkat suggests distinguishing between the rock-cut tombs of western Samaria and those of the western Hebron Hills. According to her analysis, the tombs in western Samaria closely emulate the style seen in Jerusalem, mimicking its architectural features. Conversely, the tombs in the Hebron Hills show less direct imitation of the facade decorations of the Jerusalem tombs, but are influenced by them to a certain degree, and display Judean and Nabatean influences at the same time. She suggests dating these tombs to a period preceding the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, although she acknowledges the possibility that the Jerusalem style of decoration persisted beyond this time. This phenomenon indicates that the ornate tombs of the Jewish elite in Jerusalem influenced the burial practices of local elites across towns and rural areas in Judaea. ==See also==