Dear Jackson: Regarding the possible non-Jewish origin of the …

Comment posted Lifestyle of Kerala Syrian Christians by John Mathew.

Dear Jackson:

Regarding the possible non-Jewish origin of the Knanaya … this may not be as surprising as it seems. I’ve read an anthropology paper that investigated the Northist-Southist divide by looking at old attitudes of both the Northist and the Southists regarding the other. And what the author found was symmetry: *both* groups claimed to have authentic Semitic origin, and accused the other of being from “polluted” stock. The author even reported that in the old days, the Northists would not allow their kids to even play with the Southists on account of this pollution!

I don’t know why, at the present day, it is only the Southists that claim Semitic heritage, but I’m not surprised by the genetic results since the Knanaya story only dates to the 17th century.

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