Did baptism occur in Judaism, before the birth of Christ?

Not in the sense of the Christian ritual, no. However, baptism is based on ritual immersion in a mikvah as a way of cleansing from some forms of ritual impurity (there are other forms of ritual impurity that cannot be cleansed this way and require a different ritual). read more

Men use immersion to purify themselves before holidays, and some Chasiddic man do it daily. This is a day tme immersion, contrary to the women’s. I am assuming that the baptism of John, the first, was to purify himself, in the manner of men. As of today, baptism is a purification, an acceptance of Christianity. read more

Baptism was practiced before the time of John the Baptist. In fact, Adam, the first man, was baptized as was Eve, Seth, and many of Adam's posterity. The origin of the word "baptism" is Greek and literally means to dip or immerse. read more