Galut (Hebrew: גָּלוּת, also spelled golah or golah) is a Hebrew term that literally means "exile" or "dispersion." In Jewish history and theology, it refers to the condition of the Jewish people living outside the Land of Israel, particularly following the Babylonian exile in the 6th century BCE and the subsequent Roman exile in the 1st century CE. The concept of galut is central to Jewish identity and has shaped Jewish religious, cultural, and political life for centuries. It is often associated with themes of longing for return, as expressed in prayers and traditions such as the Passover seder and the blowing of the shofar. The term is also used in other contexts to describe the dispersion of other peoples, such as the Armenian diaspora (Hayots Galut in Armenian) or the Palestinian diaspora (al-shatat in Arabic).
Dispersion of Jews around the globe
The Jewish diaspora, alternatively the dispersion or the exile, consists of Jews who reside outside of the Land of Israel. Historically, it refers to the expansive scattering of the Israelites out of their homeland in the Southern Levant and their subsequent settlement in other parts of the world, which gave rise to the various Jewish communities.