Karaite

[ kar-uh-ahyt ]

noun

, Judaism.

1. a member of a sect, founded in Persia in the 8th century a.d. by the religious leader Anan ben David, that rejected the Talmud and the teachings of the rabbis in favor of strict adherence to the Bible as the only source of Jewish law and practice.

Karaite

/ ˈkɛərəˌaɪt /

noun

1. a member of a Jewish sect originating in the 8th century ad , which rejected the Talmud, favoured strict adherence to and a literal interpretation of the Bible, and attempted to deduce a code of life from it

adjective

1. of, relating to, or designating the Karaite sect

Other Words From

• Kar·a·ism [kar, -, uh, -iz-, uh, m], Kar·a·it·ism [kar, -, uh, -ahy-tiz-, uh, m], noun
• Kar·a·it·ic [kar-, uh, -, it, -ik], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Karaite¹

1720–30; < Hebrew qarāʿ ( īm ) (equivalent to qarā Biblical scholar, literally, reader + īm plural suffix) + -ite ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of Karaite¹

C18: from Hebrew qāraīm members of the sect, scripturalists, from qārā to read

Example Sentences

Palestinian residents of east Jerusalem, environmentalists, urban planners, archaeologists and a small community from the Jewish Karaite sect had all lodged protests with the court in recent years.

From Seattle Times

They said the project would harm the holy city’s historic character, desecrate a Karaite cemetery, and impact the lives and businesses of local residents.

From Seattle Times

So in 1398, returning from a military campaign near the Black Sea, Vytautas brought with him a large number of Muslim Crimean Tatars and a small group of Karaite Jews to help defend Lithuanian territory.

From BBC

The Avramoglus are members of Istanbul's tiny Karaite Jewish community of less than 100 people, who trace their roots in the city to the 12th century Byzantine era.

From Reuters

In Feodosia, mansions built in the late 19th Century by Karaite Jews - Jews of Turkic origin who were patronised by the imperial elite - were converted into sanatoria.

From BBC