Academic study of Jewish mysticism, significantly influenced by Gershom Scholem's Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism (1941), distinguishes various forms practiced throughout history. While Kabbalah, meaning "received tradition," emerged in 12th-century southwestern Europe, it was preceded by forms like Merkabah mysticism (c. 100 BCE – 1000 CE). The Zohar, Kabbalah's primary text, is traditionally attributed to Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai in the 2nd century CE, though academic scholars view it as a 13th-15th century synthesis of older traditions and philosophy.

Theosophical Kabbalah evolved through Medieval/Zoharic Kabbalah and then critically into Lurianic Kabbalah from 1569, which profoundly shaped modern Jewish mysticism. Following Luria, movements like the Sabbatean movements (1666) and Hasidic Judaism (1734) further popularized Kabbalah, with Lurianic and Hasidic forms remaining central in contemporary Jewish practice. Additionally, Christian Cabala (15th-18th centuries) and Hermetic Qabalah (19th century) integrated and spread Judaic Kabbalah into broader Western esoteric culture.