Greetings-
Some historians have traced the Jewish presence in China to the time
of the first Temple, when Israel was divided into 2 kingdoms. In
approximately 721 B.C.E., the Assyrians invaded the northern Kingdom,
exiled the 10 tribes and enslaved them in Assyria. In the 7th
century, there was tangible evidence of a Jewish presence from Persia
in Xi'an, a major city on the Silk Route, and the capital of China for
11 dynasties.
By the Northern Sung dynasty (960-1127 CE) there was a thriving
Jewish community in Kaifeng, which was then the capital of China, and
the final destination on the Silk Route. It survived peacefully with
its Chinese neighbors for 1200 years.
In the 13th century, Marco Polo, traveling in China spoke of meeting
Jews or hearing about them. Other sources describe Jewish communities
in Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Ningbo, and Yangzhou.
I could find no reference to a synagogue in Hangzhou. Reportedly the
first synagogue was built in Kaifeng in 1163 (Southern Sung Dynasty,
1127-1278) because the Emperor ordered the Jews to “keep and follow
the customs of your forefathers and settle at Bianliang (today
Kaifeng).
Jesuits visited Kaifeng during the 18th century wrote letters to Rome
describing the daily life and religious observances of these Chinese
Jews. Sketches of the interior and exterior of the synagogue show a
typical Chinese courtyard structure with many pavilions dedicated to
ancestors and illustrious men of Jewish history. A separate hall for
the ritual slaughter of animals included a front table with incense
sticks burned to honor the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Over the following centuries, assimilation, lack of a rabbi, and few
resources, diminished the the Jewish community in Kaifeng. Poverty
led to the sale of parts of the synagogue building and even some of
their manuscripts. Scrolls of the Law and other Hebrew manuscripts
were sold to Protestant missionaries during the 19th century. Many of
these are now in the Klau Library of the Hebrew Union College in
Cinncinnati.
Due to natural disasters, the synagogue had been rebuilt a few times,
but in 1866, the Kaifeng synagogue was destroyed for the last time,
after being flooded, and was never rebuilt again.
http://www.sen.parl.gc.ca/vpoy/english/Special_Interests/speeches/jews_in_china_021002.htm
An inscription on the back of the 1489 stone [in Kaifeng], dated 1512,
suggests the existence of established Jewish communities in other
parts of China. It records for posterity the donation of a Torah
scroll by a Mr. Gold (Jin) of Hangzhou to the Kaifeng kehilla.
http://www.kashrus.org/asian/china.html
"The first piece of tangible evidence we have of the presence of even
a single Jew in the Middle Kingdom comes from a much later
period-around 718 C.E., that is. This takes the form of a business
letter written in Hebrew characters on paper, a commodity then
manufactured only in China
"The Muslim traveler ibn Battuta also spoke of a Jewish presence in
China When he and his party arrived at the outskirts of Hangzhou in
1346, he wrote, they entered the city "through a gate called the Jews'
Gate," and that among the inhabitants of the city there were "Jews,
Christians and sun-worshiping Turks, a large number in all."
http://www.sino-judaic.org/kaifeng.html
Jews first arrived in China during the 7th century, and many settled
in Hangzhou.
http://www.miami.com/mld/jewishstartimes/news/editorial/4663585.htm
Early Israelite Immigrants (947-950 A.D.)
"The Israelites settled in China as early as the Five Dynasties
(947-950) or the third year of King Dynasty (1163 A.D.). Israelite
temples were built across China, during the King and Tang Dynasties in
Kaifeng, Yangzhou, Ningbo, Hangzhou and Ningxia. The Chinese called
Judaism the 'Religion of Muscle Picking' (may be because God touched
the socket of Jacob's hip while wrestling with him, Genesis 32:25), or
the 'Ancient Religion'. Since the Israelites wore blue hats during
ceremonies, they were also known as the 'blue hats'. The Bible or the
Pentateuch was known as the 'Heavenly Scripture' or the 'Way of
Scripture'. The Jewish temples were called the Qing Zhen* Temple. The
emperor of China awarded three monuments to the Israelites, who
eventually mixed with the Chinese, adopted Chinese customs and last
names like Li, Zhao, Ai, Zhang, Gao, Shi, and Kim. By late Qing
Dynasty, the Israelites were completely blended into the Chinese."
* Qing Zhen is a term used by Chinese for foreign religions like
Muslim and Judaism
http://www.yutopian.com/religion/history/Israelite.html
Chinese Jews trace back at least as far as the Ming dynasty
(1368-1644). A Ming emperor conferred upon the Jews seven surnames by
which they are identifiable to this day: Ai, Lao, Jin, Li, Shi, Zhang
and Zhao. Although other Chinese may have one of these surnames,
Chinese Jews and their descendants will have only one of these seven
names. Two names are of particular interest-Shi and Jin-meaning Stone
and Gold respectively, common surnames today among Western Jews.
http://www.kashrus.org/asian/china.html
A page of links on Jews in China:
http://www.joyfulnoise.net/JoyChina51.html
Books
Dehergne, Joseph, S.J. and Leslie, Donald D. Juifs de China. Rome,
1980.
Finn, James. The Jews in China. London, 1843.
The Orphan Colonies of the Jews. London, 1872.
Kublin, Hyman, ed. Jews in Old China. Some Western Views. New York,
1971.
Pollak, Michael. The Jews of Dynastic China: A Critical Bibliography.
Cincinnati/Menlo Park, 1993.
The Torah Scrolls of the Chinese Jews. Dallas, 1975. 2nd, digitalized
ed.,1997.
Mandarins, Jews, and Missionaries: The Jewish Experience in the
Chinese Empire. Philadelphia, 1980. Reprinted, 1983. 2nd ed., New
York: 1998.
Pollak, Michael, ed. The Sino-Judaic Bibliographies of Rudolf
Loewenthal. Cincinnati/Palo Alto, 1988.
White, William Charles. Chinese Jews (2nd ed,), with introduction by
Cecil Roth. New York, 1966.
Pan Guandan, "Jews in ancient China -- a historical survey", Jews in
Old China, ed. Sidney Shapiro, 81
In regard to your references to Kinsai and Chinscie:
Kinsai was the name for Hangchow, the capital of southern China,
during the Sung dynasty (960-1297)
I could find no information on a city named "Chinscie"
Search stragegy: Hangzhou china + jew +synagogue; chinscie; kinsai;
Followed links on various pages
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this answer.
Nellie Bly
Google Answers Researcher |
