Who were the Khazars?

Question: Dear Brooks, Who were the Khazars? Are they from Judah?

Editor: An often asked question and is significant considering that the descendants of the Khazars (or Chazars) are said to make up over eighty percent of modern Jewry. Here’s what The Jewish Encyclopedia has to say. The Jewish Encyclopedia – CHAZARS: a PEOPLE OF Turkish origin whose life and history are interwoven with the very beginnings of the history of the Jews in Russia. The Kingdom of the Chazars was firmly established in most of South Russia long before the foundation of the Russian monarchy by the Varangians (855)…Among the classical writers of the Middle Ages, they were known as the “Chozars” “Khazirs” “Akatzirs” …..it was probably about that time that the chaghan of the Chazars and his grandees, together with a large number of his heathen people, embraced the Jewish religion…..”