The descendants of Israel, who were at first called Hebrews, by reason of Abraham, who came from the other side of the Euphrates; and afterwards Israelites, from Israel, the father of the twelve patriarchs; and, lastly, Jews, particularly after their return from the captivity of Babylon, because the tribe of Judah was then much stronger and more numerous than the other tribes, and foreigners had scarce any knowledge of this tribe. For the history of this people, see article JEWS.