Karaites

Karaites or Caraites (from Hebrew qārā,”to read”), Jewish sect, considered heretical by Orthodox Jews, which believes in the strict interpretation of the Jewish Scriptures and rejects the Talmud and the rabbinical traditions incorporated in Judaism during the first six centuries ad. The sect was founded in Baghdād (now in Iraq) about 765 by Anan ben David, a Jewish religious leader. The doctrine of Karaism is also called Ananism. Today there are some 30,000 Karaites, concentrated largely in Israel; small communities are also found in the United States, Poland, France, and Turkey.