Numbers

The Thirteenth Tribe

"The Thirteenth Tribe" is an expression referring to the Twelve Tribes of Israel and used to indicate:

1. A later group closely identified or sympathetic with the Jewish people;
2. A Jewish group with a different identity and culture than that of the Twelve Tribes;
3. An anointed or holy group; or
4. One of the lost tribes, more commonly referred to as 'one of the Ten Lost Tribes.'

The "Battlestar Galactica" science fiction series used the Biblical numbered list of the Twelve Tribes in developing its civilization by creating a similar structured "Twelve Colonies" and a legendary "13th Tribe," which is the humans on the planet Earth:

• “On Battlestar Galactica, the Sci Fi Channel's darkly relevant reimagining of the 1970s campy space opera, the One Big Solution is us—that is, Earth. Somewhere in space, a few thousand humans have escaped near genocide by the Cylons, a race of robots of their own creation and indistinguishable from humans. The survivors are driven by the search for a planet—ours—on which a religious legend says the '13th tribe' of man long ago settled.”—James Poniewozik, “Life After Earth,” Time, January 19, 2009, p. 62.

How It's Used

“With this rip-roaring tale [Day of Atonement] of two no-hope North London boys made good, Jay Rayner does for Anglo-Jewry what Philip Roth has long been doing for the American variety.  It's not simply that he captures so perfectly the idiom and mannerisms of 'the thirteenth tribe of Israel: the wandering Jews of Edgware and Wealdstone', but that in so doing he cuts to the very heart of what it is to be a Jew in post-war Britain.”

“The seriousness gives weight to a story that, despite its intrinsic passion about dance, music and various types of magic, sometimes refuses to go deeply into the issues and characters. But Highway's mind is on a particular technical strategy. He sometimes strains after Indian metaphors and executes the swiftest caricatures without making much of the motley collection of Black-Eyed Susan, Ann-Adel e Ghostrider, Annie Moostoos (killed by a swinging outhouse door) or Jimmy Roger Buck (who thinks of Indians as the 13th tribe of Israel awaiting the 'Apocalits'). However, his story blends European narrative conventions and native oral forms, robustly mixing Cree and English diction, earthy vulgarity and sensitive poetic lyricism in a way that honours his craft.”

“Understandably, the Basques themselves are fairly obsessed about being old since this is what makes them different. They may not be descendants of the Cro-Magnons or even the lost 13th tribe of Israel, as some versions of the Basque myth suggest, but they do probably represent Europe's oldest living culture. Their language, Euskera, which has no modern relative, predates the Indo-European invasion of Iberia around 900 B.C. They are also physically distinct: Basques have the highest incidence of Type O and Rh negative blood in the world.”

“When I was in 'Fiddler On The Roof,' which is a Jewish piece, Topol said that he thought Madoc was a strange name for someone Jewish. 'Oh no,' I said, 'I'm Welsh.' Topol smiled and said: 'We call the Welsh the 13th tribe.’”

“Led by their cheerleaders in the American press, including New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, lately the Jewish Left has taken on the appearance of a 13th tribe of Israel. And they are gaining strength as they go all out to demonize Sharon, the settlers and Christian Zionists, who have become an important factor in securing support for Israel.”

Links