IOverview
Karaite Judaism accepts only the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, as its supreme authority. It does not accept the Oral Torah recorded in the Mishnah and Talmud as binding law. The name comes from the Hebrew qara, to read, meaning readers of Scripture.
Most Jews today follow rabbinic Judaism, the tradition built on the Talmud. Karaism is a different tradition, just as old, with its own synagogues, scholars and law. Karaites read each verse and derive the law themselves, so on many points their practice differs markedly from rabbinic Jews.
IIHistory
Tradition relates that Anan ben David, who lived around 715 to 811 in Baghdad, was passed over for communal leadership and founded a group following his own reading of Scripture. Historians today see the Karaite movement as forming gradually from several groups that rejected Talmudic authority, Anan's being one of them. The name Karaite appears around the 9th century.
The 10th and 11th centuries were the Karaite golden age, with scholars in Jerusalem and Egypt writing commentaries, Hebrew grammar and philosophy. Rabbi Saadia Gaon, 882 to 942, wrote several works against them. Karaite communities later lived in Egypt, Constantinople, Crimea and Lithuania. After 1948 most Egyptian Karaites moved to Israel.
- 8th centuryAnan ben DavidHis group in Baghdad is often seen as the seed of the movement.
- 9th centuryThe name KaraiteThe name readers of Scripture appears.
- 10th and 11th centuriesGolden ageKaraite scholars in Jerusalem and Egypt write commentary, grammar and philosophy.
- after 1948To IsraelMost Egyptian Karaites emigrate to Israel.
IIIBeliefs and Distinctives
- Scripture alone: the Tanakh is God's word, and law must be drawn from the text itself.
- Personal study: every believer must read and understand Scripture, and scholars' views are respected but not binding.
- The Talmud is not law: rabbinic works may be read for reference, not followed as authority.
- Reading tools: context, Hebrew grammar and reasoning are the means to understand the law.
This approach produces many concrete differences. The Karaite calendar begins each month with the sighting of the new moon and sets the year by the ripening of barley in the Land of Israel, rather than using a calculated calendar, so Karaite festivals sometimes fall on different days from the majority. Karaites do not keep Hanukkah, since it is not in the Tanakh.
Karaites consider themselves Jews, and in Israel they are recognised as Jews under the Law of Return. The friction lies in marriage law: Karaites reckon Jewish descent through the father, rabbinic tradition through the mother, so marriage between the two remains a legal question. Separately, some Karaim of Crimea and Lithuania have since the 19th century identified as a distinct Turkic people.
IVWorship, Rites and Daily Life
In a Karaite synagogue worshippers remove their shoes and pray with full prostrations, close to the biblical descriptions. The liturgy is largely made up of biblical passages. Karaites do not wear tefillin, reading the command to bind God's words on hand and forehead figuratively, but they do wear tzitzit fringes.
On Shabbat, Karaite tradition allows no fire burning in the home, even one lit beforehand, following a verse in Exodus. Today Karaites in Israel handle electricity differently from family to family. Dietary law rests on the lists of clean animals in Leviticus.
VOrganisation and Distribution
In Israel the Karaite community has its own religious council and religious court handling Karaite marriages. The main centres are Ramla, Ashdod and Beersheba. Outside Israel there is a congregation in California and small groups in Turkey and Europe. The Karaite kenesa in Trakai, Lithuania, is a well known landmark of the Karaim community.
According to English Wikipedia, there are about 35,000 to 50,000 Karaites, of whom 30,000 to 40,000 live in Israel. The source gives no year, and the library has not found an independent count.
VIIn Vietnam
The library has found no source for Karaites or Karaite activity in Vietnam. All organised Jewish centres found in Vietnam belong to Chabad, a group within rabbinic Judaism. According to figures cited by VietNamNet in 2025, Judaism is not among the sixteen religions recognised by the state.
VIISymbol of the Branch
No symbol of its own is recorded with a source for this branch, so the library uses the common symbol of the path.
VIIIOther Branches of Judaism
Reform Judaismיהדות רפורמית Yahadut ReformitTook shape in early 19th-century Germany (Hamburg Temple, 1818) and grew in North America.Uses the common symbol of the pathHaredi Orthodox Judaism, including Hasidismחרדים Haredim, חסידות HasidutStrictly traditional Orthodoxy centred on Talmud study, with distinctive dress.Uses the common symbol of the pathModern Orthodox Judaismאורתודוקסיה מודרנית, דתי לאומי Dati LeumiTook shape in mid-19th-century Germany with Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch.Uses the common symbol of the pathConservative Judaism (Masorti)יהדות מסורתית MasortiTook shape with Zacharias Frankel in mid-19th-century Germany and in North America from 1886.Uses the common symbol of the pathReconstructionist JudaismReconstructionist JudaismGrew from the thought of Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan in early 20th-century North America.Uses the common symbol of the path
Chabad-Lubavitchחב״ד ChabadA Hasidic group founded by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (1745 to 1812).Karaite Judaismיהדות קראית Yahadut Qara'itAccepts only the written Tanakh as supreme authority, rejecting the rabbinic Oral Torah and Talmud.Uses the common symbol of the pathIXSources
The library cross-checks the sources below. Where they disagree, the page gives both.
?Quick Questions
How does Karaite Judaism differ from rabbinic Judaism?
Karaites accept only the Hebrew Bible as authority and do not treat the Talmud as binding law. So they use a calendar based on sighting the new moon, do not keep Hanukkah, do not wear tefillin and keep Shabbat in their own way.
How many Karaites are there?
According to English Wikipedia, about 35,000 to 50,000, most in Israel. The source gives no year and there is no independent count.
Are Karaites recognised as Jews in Israel?
Yes, they are recognised under the Law of Return. Marriage with rabbinic Jews remains a legal question, since the two traditions reckon descent differently.