That is correct as to its origin, in 19th century Germany. At that time, the belief could be sustained in northern Europe that "Semites," including Babylonians, Assyrians, Phoenicians, Canaanites, Hebrews, and Arabs, were a coherent race with some common, and perhaps unpleasant, characteristics, with Jews being a branch of that race that had moved north into Europe. Since the Jews were the only "Semites" involved with the native Europeans, the term was useful for framing opposition to the Jews in terms of opposing those Middle Eastern racial traits and habits that the Jews were supposed to represent.

Since the mid 20th century, with the invasion of Palestine by Zionist Jews, and the consequent hatred by obviously Semitic Arab people toward their oppressors, the term has become absolutely absurd. Given the contempt in which the Zionists hold their Semitic victims, it would be much more logical to describe them, the Zionists, as Anti-Semites.