The '''Karimi''' were originally a [[Persian Sufi]] class of [[Cuman]] merchants who controlled the trade routes through [[Crimea]] (Persian: Karima) where they interacted with [[Romaniot]] Jews of the [[Karaite]] persuasion. They were known for being [[Karaitizers]]. Their leaders believed they had Israelite ancestry and moved to Lithuania in 1396 where they became known first as the [[Karaimites]] before finally naming themselves [[Karaims]]after their extinct clerical caste. Some of them descend from the proto-[[Molokan]] [[Keraites]] who arrived in the lands of [[Old Rus']] with [[Batu Khan]]'s [[Tatar invasion]].
