✡️ David Ben-Gurion’s Ancestral Theory: Linking Palestinians to Ancient Jews

David Ben-Gurion, the first Prime Minister of Israel, indeed expressed the belief that many Palestinians were descendants of ancient Jews who had remained in the land after the Roman expulsions and converted to Islam over the centuries. His rationale was rooted in historical, sociological, and ideological perspectives.

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🏺 1. Historical Continuity

Ben-Gurion believed that not all Jews left the land of Israel after the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE or the Bar Kokhba revolt in 135 CE. Many remained and lived continuously in the region.

➡️ Over the centuries, due to pressures such as Byzantine persecution and later Islamic rule, many of these Jews may have converted to Christianity and then to Islam, gradually assimilating into the surrounding Arab culture.

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🌾 2. Cultural and Linguistic Clues

He and other early Zionist thinkers pointed to certain cultural practices among Palestinian peasants (fellahin) that seemed to reflect Jewish traditions:

• 🌿 Agricultural techniques resembling ancient methods.

• 🍞 Dietary habits linked to biblical customs.

• 🎉 Folk traditions around holidays with echoes of Jewish life.

These were seen as remnants of Jewish identity that had survived despite religious conversion.

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🇮🇱 3. Zionist Ideology

Ben-Gurion’s view also served a broader ideological purpose:

• ✡️ It reinforced the deep-rooted connection of Jews to the land.

• 🤝 It suggested that some Arabs were actually Jews by ancestry, implying a shared heritage.

• 📜 This strengthened Zionist claims and could be used to legitimize Jewish return in the eyes of skeptics.

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📚 4. Sources and Scholarship

Ben-Gurion studied Jewish history intensively and collaborated with historians like Yitzhak Baer.

• He drew on scholarship suggesting demographic continuity.

• In both private writings and public remarks, he referenced the idea that modern Palestinians partly descend from ancient Jews.

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⚖️ Conclusion

While Ben-Gurion’s position remains historically debated, it illustrates how leaders can use history to craft narratives of:

• 🧬 Identity

• 🌍 Legitimacy

• 🕊️ Connection to land

His theory reflects both a historical hypothesis and an ideological tool within the broader Zionist project.

— Azahari Hassim

Founder, The World of Abrahamic Theology