Theodore Herzi, born in Hungary in 1860 was a lawyer and journalist in Vienna who asserted that antisemitism made jewish assimilation impossible and the only solution was a homecoming. He chaired the first zionist congress of 1897, seeking to assure jewish people of a home in Palestine. Philosophers have used different approaches to zionism. The approaches and paths were legal, social and economic, one being an opportunity to live and work on a kibbutz or community farm.
Jews left Israel during various empires and were dispersed. There was particular enmity between jews and romans. Many civilians were murdered by roman soldiers, including essenes who were writers of the dead sea scrolls. There were three wars with the roman empire in favour of a jewish state of Judea but though many jews may have left during this period, other tribes may have stayed. Zionism has resulted in diversity as jews from various european countries come home.