[Cronos]

The Ten Tribes were carried away captive by the Assyrians earlier (722 BC). The present location of the Ten tribes is unknown to us;

Well, not really -- there weren't even 10 lost tribes: remember that Simenon, Judah and Benjamin stayed together along with a large number of Levits. Reuben and Gad on the eastern side of the Jordan had merged with Ammon and Moab. The northern tribes had slowly withered away under the more powerful state of Aram (Syria). The ones that were deported by the Assyrians were most likely deported to the other end of their Empire (standard Assyrian practise) and that would mean that they were moved to Mesopotamia or Turkey. They wouldn't have been moved in a group (As that group could then unite and turn on the Assyrians -- the Assyrians weren't dumb), so they were most likely dispersed. And since they didn't have the strong underpinings of faith the Judeans had, they quietly merged with the Babylonians, Medes, Persians, Assyrians, Anatolians etc. A few did come to Judea after the Persian kings allowed the Judeans to return, but they merged with the Judeans.

[Sam Gamgee]

Thanks for that great explanation. To me that would make the most sense. Where does this Lost Tribes belief come from? Are the supporters of this idea anthropologists or archaeologists? Do any anthropologists give any credence to the view that the Lost Tribes are the Celtic peoples?