The termĀ JudaismĀ derives fromĀ Iudaismus, a Latinized form of the Ancient GreekĀ IoudaismosĀ (į¼øĪæĻ Ī“Ī±ĻĻμĻĻ) (from the verbĀ į¼°ĪæĻ Ī“Ī±Īζειν, "to side with or imitate the [Judeans]").Ā Its ultimate source was theĀ HebrewĀ ×××××,Ā Yehudah, "Judah",Ā which is also the source of the Hebrew term for Judaism: ×Ö·×Ö²××Ö¼×Ŗ,Ā Yahadut.
The termĀ į¼øĪæĻ Ī“Ī±ĻĻμĻĻĀ first appears in theĀ Hellenistic GreekĀ book ofĀ 2 MaccabeesĀ in the 2nd century BCE (i.e. 2 Maccabees 2:21, 8:1 and 14:38) .Ā
In the context of the age and period it meant "seeking or forming part of a cultural entity"Ā and it resembled its antonymĀ hellenismos, a word that signified a people's submission toĀ HellenicĀ (Greek) cultural norms. The conflict betweenĀ iudaismosĀ andĀ hellenismosĀ lay behind theĀ Maccabean revoltĀ and hence the invention of the termĀ iudaismos.











