‘Went to Hebrew school’: Elon Musk reveals SA ‘Jewish roots’

Elon Musk has reflected on his “Jewish roots” during his childhood in South Africa. The world’s richest man – who was born in Pretoria – shared his experience during the European Jewish Association conference, which took place over the weekend.

Musk – who is the owner of the X platform – emigrated to Canada and later the US as a young adult.

Last year, Elon Musk courted controversy over permitting antisemitic commentary. However, the eldest son of Errol and Maye has made it clear he does not support hate speech.

According to The Guardian, Elon visited the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland on Monday, 23

Following that, he was a guest speaker at the EJA conference, where he spoke about his own ties to Judaism.

He said: “I grew up around a lot of Jewish people. I went to a Hebrew preschool. My name is very Jewish…super Jewish.

"I went to Israel when I was 13. I’m certainly checking the box on a lot of things. Most of my friends are Jewish.

He added: “I’m Jew-ish. Aspirationally Jewis

Elon Musk: "I grew up around a lot of Jewish people, I went to Hebrew preschool — my name is pretty Jewish."

"I went to Israel when I was 13 — most of my friends are Jewish, sometimes I forget 'Am I Jewish?', I'm Jew-ish,  aspirationally Jewish."

 — Censored Men (@CensoredMen) January 22, 2024

Growing up in South Africa

Elon Musk was born to Errol in 1971 and is the eldest of three, including siblings Tosca and Kimbal.

While Elon was born in a middle-class household, he has been vocal about his “unhappy” childhood in SA.

The outspoken businessman went to Waterkloof House Preparatory School and Bryanston High School. He later attended Pretoria Boys High School, which is known for being a prestigious public school.

Elon briefly attended the Univesity of Pretoria, where he studied physics.

He once tweeted: “I left South Africa by myself when I was 17 with just a backpack and suitcase of books”.

Elon also described SA as a “violent” place. This, after enduring bullying during his early high school years.

According to dad Errol, Elon was seriously injured by a group of bullies and had to spend two weeks at the Sandton Clinic.