AHC Challenge: Judaism is Sephardic, not Ashkenazic:

[Snake Featherston]

The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to alter Jewish history so that the Sephardi strand of Jewish culture/traditions is more prevalent and influential than the Ashkenazic. What kind of changes would be necessary to bring this about? What would a greater in size and influence Sephardic culture look like in terms of its more modern infrastructure and impact on Judaism and Jewish culture as a whole? In pre-1900 to avert any "No Holocaust" PODs as by then Jewish culture was already predominantly Ashkenazic in the first place.

 

[Plumber]

In the Middle Ages, it's decided that Christians can after all do better at banking than the Jews. The Jews of Europe are later expelled from not only Spain, but from many more countries, and settle in the Middle East and the New World.

A greater Sephardic culture would probably incorporate some Ashkenazim traits, but on the whole I see Jews being seen as more of a Middle Eastern people than today, to the extent that they still aren't considered "white" in the *West. A Holocaust is probably avoided, so antisemitism is probably commonplace. Are you lumping in Mizrahim as Sephardim?

 

[Herzen's love-child]

No Reconquista would be a start.

 

[LSCatilina]

No Reconquista would be a start.

And therefore, Jews would be pogromed and expelled by Andalusian or Berbers dynasties.

Again, you didn't had that of a difference on how Jews were treated in Spain (or outside Spain, like in Langudoc) in Christian or Muslim lands : each time one of the societies were under a crisis, the Jews were the first to suffer as less "assimilable" than Muslims or Christians.

 

[Ziomatrix]

In the Middle Ages, it's decided that Christians can after all do better at banking than the Jews. The Jews of Europe are later expelled from not only Spain, but from many more countries, and settle in the Middle East and the New World.

Now thats racialist. To be more specific it was about religious based usury laws on the books preventing one Christian from collecting interest from another, very critical if the whole business revolves around loaning. That is not saying certain people got around this through clever contracts but it seemed all the rage among Abrahamic religious to retain an equivalent of this. So it was just easier for the governments of the time to put someone of a different faith then most of their clients to collect taxes and interests.

What was going on among Jewish communities within the Ottoman empire during certain times was not peaches and cream either but it is easier to address imo. Also what if Czarist Russia decided to push their Jewish communities closer to the Crimean and Caucuses rather then Eastern Europe?

 

[LSCatilina]

In the Middle Ages, it's decided that Christians can after all do better at banking than the Jews. The Jews of Europe are later expelled from not only Spain, but from many more countries, and settle in the Middle East and the New World.

I don't understand well, Jews were expelled out of another countries in Middle-Ages : France, England, part of Germany, part of Italy.

For the OP, probably the better is to have Mongols continuing their road in Europe and conquering (Russia-like) Poland, part of Hungary. This would make the region a more or less continuous war zone (or more accuratly, balancing between raids and real war) and make it less sure for emigrating Jews that would prefer mediterranean shores.

I'm not sure if butterflying the Azkhenazic judaism wouldn't have effect on the devellopment of sefardic one, changing it deeply.

 

[Herzen's love-child]

And therefore, Jews would be pogromed and expelled by Andalusian or Berbers dynasties.

Arguably, the worst treatment of the Jews by Muslims in Iberia were by dynasties from N. Africa either invited by the Iberian Muslim states or filling a power vacuum---both consequences of the Reconquista.

Not saying Jews were not mistreated in Al-Andulus at best of times--they were always 2nd class citizens---but were allowed a breathing space that largely did not exist in most of Europe in the long term until Enlightenment times.

 

[Clandango]

In the Middle Ages, it's decided that Christians can after all do better at banking than the Jews. The Jews of Europe are later expelled from not only Spain, but from many more countries, and settle in the Middle East and the New World.

A greater Sephardic culture would probably incorporate some Ashkenazim traits, but on the whole I see Jews being seen as more of a Middle Eastern people than today, to the extent that they still aren't considered "white" in the *West. A Holocaust is probably avoided, so antisemitism is probably commonplace. Are you lumping in Mizrahim as Sephardim?

The Castilians wouldn't even let people from Aragon settle in the New World and kept their own population in cities to prevent a landed gentry forming. I have some doubts as to whether or not they would allow Jews there. Though they might differentiate between those openly Jews or those who converted several generations back. Not by much, though. Seriously though, they are unlikely to let Jews anywhere near gold and silver.

 

[Plumber]

The Castilians wouldn't even let people from Aragon settle in the New World and kept their own population in cities to prevent a landed gentry forming. I have some doubts as to whether or not they would allow Jews there. Though they might differentiate between those openly Jews or those who converted several generations back. Not by much, though. Seriously though, they are unlikely to let Jews anywhere near gold and silver.

Behold my ancestors.

Now thats racialist. To be more specific it was about religious based usury laws on the books preventing one Christian from collecting interest from another, very critical if the whole business revolves around loaning. That is not saying certain people got around this through clever contracts but it seemed all the rage among Abrahamic religious to retain an equivalent of this. So it was just easier for the governments of the time to put someone of a different faith then most of their clients to collect taxes and interests.

Yeah, I simplified things a bit. I'm rather tired. But it's not racialist, since the modern concept of race wasn't really around in the Middle Ages, and Christians and Jews certainly weren't of different races .

 

[LSCatilina]

Arguably, the worst treatment of the Jews by Muslims in Iberia were by dynasties from N. Africa either invited by the Iberian Muslim states or filling a power vacuum---both consequences of the Reconquista.

No. You had pogroms before the arrival of Berbers, and even before the Fitna. What caused them was the bad situation of Al-Andalus. Not the reconquista that is, eventually, another side effect of the unability of a Muslim Spain to keep its unity with the traditional clanic institutions.

but were allowed a breathing space that largely did not exist in most of Europe in the long term until Enlightenment times.

Up to the late XIII, it was comparable. I'm not talking of the half of Europe were it was almost exactly like that (one of biggest criticism of southern lords during the Albigensian Crusade was they allowed the Jews to left their gettho and to became influent enough to give order to Christians), I'm talking on all Europe were, if progroms existed (spontaneously, or not so spontaneously) as in Al-Andalus, they were treated like second-class "citizens" (if this word have a meaning in both medieval Islamic and medieval Christian world for not-dominant populations).

Admittedly, in Northern and Eastern Europe, their situation was more precarious (due to less stabilized infrastructures, mainly). But for the region that interest us (Spain), the difference is minor.

 

[Dan1988]

It's actually easy. Heavier Sephardi immigration to the New World, to the point where Spanish, not Yiddish, is seen as the language of the Jews. So imagine all the words that are of Yiddish origin replaced by words of (Judeo-)Spanish origin.

 

[Herzen's love-child]

Ladino (judeo-spanish) loan words to English would be so cool!

 

[LSCatilina]

It's actually easy. Heavier Sephardi immigration to the New World, to the point where Spanish, not Yiddish, is seen as the language of the Jews. So imagine all the words that are of Yiddish origin replaced by words of (Judeo-)Spanish origin.

I see a problem there : why would the Spanish crown would have allowed the departure and the settlement of a rather distinct group (when they searched to homogenise Spain to increase their rule) in a far and therefore less controllable land?

Sure, you had crypto-Jews as far than Peru and Mexico OTL, but I doubt it would be enough and I'm not sure you'll have better than that (at least, in the OTL condition of New World colonisation).

 

[birdboy2000]

Maybe if Poland-Lithuania was less friendly to Jews? OTL its tolerance led to mass migration and it had the largest Jewish community in the world for a long time, and that community was an Ashkenazi one. Without it as an option, more Jews might stream into the middle east and be assimilated into Sephardic communities.

 

[anon_user]

Vague thoughts:
1) Would a Judaism that develops in an Italy that's more Muslim-dominated (at least through the High Middle Ages, late enough to pick up Jewish refugees from crusaders' pogroms along the Rhine) be counted as Sephardic?
2) I'm not totally sure whether it's more important to weaken Ashkenazim in Germany or in Poland. How would a much less tolerant medieval Poland affect the development of Ashkenazic culture?
3) A late idea that's probably not sufficient, but at least interesting: large-scale cattle plagues along the Rhine in the 17th century that get blamed on Jewish cattle traders, leading to pogroms and expulsions of German Jews?
4) An even later idea that's even less likely to work - prevent the German Jewish enlightenment in the 18th century? Without people like Mendelssohn, would Ashkenazim be as powerful in defining Judaic culture?
5) Getting later still: some sort of collapse of the Ottoman Empire in the mid-19th century leading to large-scale immigration of Sephardic Jews, particularly to the Americas? Essentially, give Sephardim more freedom to develop under the more tolerant American political climates, and it might have a larger claim to the center of Jewish life.

 

[Dan1988]

I see a problem there : why would the Spanish crown would have allowed the departure and the settlement of a rather distinct group (when they searched to homogenise Spain to increase their rule) in a far and therefore less controllable land?

I guess I should have been more specific and mentioned North America, because in North America Judaism is largely seen as Ashkenazi - even though around the 17th and 18th centuries - even into the early 19th century - the vast majority of Jews were Sephardi. All I'm just suggesting is to make it even more so with heavier immigration towards those areas. The end results would be interesting, for sure.

 

[MarshalBraginsky]

One thing that could come in mind: prevent the Khazars from converting to Judaism. I'm not sure if Ashkenazic culture is Khazarian or not.

 

[Herzen's love-child]

No credible sources give any credence to the Ashkenazi originating from the Khazars. Modern genetic studies say no or a minor contribution at best. There also isn't a whole lot of evidence showing Khazar conversion to Judaism incorporating much more than the ruling elite. But it could make for some interesting alt-history to have a longer lasting Judaized Khazar Empire successfully repelling Kiev. What interesting wrinkles that could make...

 

[MarshalBraginsky]

No credible sources give any credence to the Ashkenazi originating from the Khazars. Modern genetic studies say no or a minor contribution at best. There also isn't a whole lot of evidence showing Khazar conversion to Judaism incorporating much more than the ruling elite. But it could make for some interesting alt-history to have a longer lasting Judaized Khazar Empire successfully repelling Kiev. What interesting wrinkles that could make...

All it would take for the Judaic Khazar Empire to last would be Svyatoslav's death at the Battle of Sarkel or Atil.

 

[Herzen's love-child]

Of course, The Khazars were under a lot of pressure from multiple sources--not just from Svyatoslav & Kiev. If not him, somebody else.