AH Discussion: Jewish Vikings

So I'd heard a suggestion - and read the start of a story - about Jewish Mongols, and that got me thinking: what other pagans could it be fun to turn Jewish? The answer, of course, is Vikings.

Obviously, plausibility is going to be a little thin, but to that I say unto you: JEWISH VIKINGS!

A few possibilities for how it happens:

1. Immigration: Christian persecution leads to large-scale Jewish immigration to Scandinavia and/or Iceland. Some Jews join their neighbors in raiding Christian lands. When missionaries show up, the Jews (many of whom have become advisers to Norse kings) try to stop the spread of Christianity. The result could be the preservation of the Norse religion, with a prosperous Jewish minority.
2. Stolen Wives: Viking raiders take Jewish women captive. The women pass Judaism on to their children, and a Jewish Viking subculture emerges. If some of those Jewish Vikings are of the right bloodlines, we could get a Jewish Viking king.
3. Viking Khazars: Some of the Norse rulers adopt Judaism just as the Khazars did. Has the advantage of a historical parallel. Also, if the Norse in question are the Rus, then maybe they ally with the Khazars and form Jewish Russia. I rather like this option, mostly because a Jewish Russia would be very resilient.

Also, we get to give any neo-Nazis reading this aneurysms at the thought of Nordic Jews.
 
Wait until they meet the Jewish Mongols...;)

#3, OTL the Kievan Rus and Khazars became major trade competitors. One reason for the punitive expeditions the Rus launched that destroyed Khazaria as a strong polity.
If the Rus are Jewish at the expense of Eastern rite Christianity, Byzantium is not going to throw their hand in the favor of the one that is the Christian polity, as they did OTL.
 

TFSmith121

Banned
The Khazars are pretty much the first society that

The Khazars are pretty much the first society that comes to mind when one poses "Jewish Medieval cultural assimilation by choice"....

Kind of tough to get those pressures in Sandinavia, however.

Interesting idea, though.

It's a little later, but you could probably do something with Aaron of Lincoln, who at one point in the 12th century was probably the richest man in England; given the travails of the Jewish community in England, having him fund a company of adventure to Scandinavia or points north and west could give you a POD (as it was, when he died, the king seized his estate as that of a usurer...)

Best,
 
Wait until they meet the Jewish Mongols...;)

#3, OTL the Kievan Rus and Khazars became major trade competitors. One reason for the punitive expeditions the Rus launched that destroyed Khazaria as a strong polity.
If the Rus are Jewish at the expense of Eastern rite Christianity, Byzantium is not going to throw their hand in the favor of the one that is the Christian polity, as they did OTL.

And thus probably no Eastern Orthodox influence in Scandinavia pre-Viking age allowing Judaism to compete with Catholicism instead.
 
Maybe get some Jews to meet some Vikings via the Varangians in Constantinople. A few intrepid Jewish merchants are attracted to the stories of furs and amber, head up north to open trade routes, find a relatively open society, decide to stay. If done at the right time, we could even force Jews all the way to Vinland!

The problem, of course, is that the Jews theoretically have a problem with pagans. Now, historically, we have the Jews of Cochin as an example of a Jewish population living at peace within a pagan society for a very long time, but the problem still remains in theory.
 
The Khazars are pretty much the first society that comes to mind when one poses "Jewish Medieval cultural assimilation by choice"....

Kind of tough to get those pressures in Sandinavia, however.

Interesting idea, though.

One idea I had was to start it off with just one conversion: specifically, that of Rurik. Get him, and he could inspire/intimidate the others to follow his lead.

Maybe get some Jews to meet some Vikings via the Varangians in Constantinople. A few intrepid Jewish merchants are attracted to the stories of furs and amber, head up north to open trade routes, find a relatively open society, decide to stay. If done at the right time, we could even force Jews all the way to Vinland!

OTL, there was actually a lot of contact between the Rus and the Krymchaks (Crimean Jews), aka my ancestors. We've done some genetic testing, and it turns out that we have significant Norse ancestry, which does explain why a family living in Crimea has blue eyes.

The problem, of course, is that the Jews theoretically have a problem with pagans. Now, historically, we have the Jews of Cochin as an example of a Jewish population living at peace within a pagan society for a very long time, but the problem still remains in theory.

Historically, there are plenty of examples. The Khazars are another - the nobility were Jewish, but the populace were largely Tengri.

#3, OTL the Kievan Rus and Khazars became major trade competitors. One reason for the punitive expeditions the Rus launched that destroyed Khazaria as a strong polity.
If the Rus are Jewish at the expense of Eastern rite Christianity, Byzantium is not going to throw their hand in the favor of the one that is the Christian polity, as they did OTL.

The Khazars are definitely going to survive longer. An alliance will probably emerge, rather than a rivalry. However, the Khazars are still screwed - the Mongols will destroy them. I doubt I'll be able to resist bringing about the Novgorod Republic in some form.
 
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