Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames in the Old Kingdom of Romania 9780271091952

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Historical Implications of ​J ewish Sur names in the Old Kingdom of ​R omania

Studies in Jewish Onomastics: The Project for the Study of Jewish Names Series Editor

Aaron Demsky, Bar-Ilan University Department of ​Jewish History and Contemporary Jewry Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel Pleasant Are Their Names: Jewish Names in the Sephardi Diaspora, edited by Aaron Demsky The Names of Yemenite Jewry: A Social and Cultural History, by Aharon Gaimani Historical Implications of ​Jewish Surnames in the Old Kingdom of ​Romania, by Alexander Avram

Historical Implications of ​Jewish Surnames in the Old Kingdom of ​Romania

Alexander Avr am

The Pennsylvania State University Press  |  University Park, Pennsylvania

The study and the dictionary were supported by the Prize in Memory of Chava Agmon for completed but unpublished research work into Jewish Genealogy, 2018, awarded by the International Institute for Jewish Genealogy and Paul Jacobi Center at the National Library of ​Israel in Jerusalem, as well as by a donation from a trusted friend and colleague. Library of Congress Cataloging-​in-​Publication Data Names: Avram, Alexander, 1958– author. Title: Historical implications of Jewish surnames in the old Kingdom of ​Romania / Alexander Avram. Description: University Park, Pennsylvania : The Pennsylvania State University Press, [2021] | Includes bibliographical references and index. Summary: “Examines Jewish surnames in Romanian-​speaking lands from the sixteenth century until 1944, exploring how the names reflect Jews’ interactions with their surroundings. Uses onomastic methodology to substantiate and complement historical research”—Provided by publisher. Identifiers: LCCN 2021014452 | ISBN 9780271091426 (hardback) Subjects: LCSH: Names, Personal—Jewish—Romania—History. | Jews—Romania—History. Classification: LCC CS3010.Z9 R663 2021 | DDC 929​.4089​/9240498—dc23 LC record available at https://​lccn​.loc​.gov​/2021014452 Copyright © 2021 Alexander Avram All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America Published by The Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, PA 16802-1003 The Pennsylvania State University Press is a member of the Association of University Presses. It is the policy of ​The Pennsylvania State University Press to use acid-​free paper. Publications on uncoated stock satisfy the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of ​Paper for Printed Library Material, ANSI Z39.48–1992.

Contents

List of ​Charts, Maps, and Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Topic of ​Discussion  1 State of ​Research on the Topic  2 Purpose of the Present Study  4 Scope and Limits of the Study and Style Conventions  5 Chapter 1.  Historical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 The Jewish Presence in Historical Moldavia and Walachia, Sixteenth Century to 1944  8 Different and Divergent Historical Narratives  20 Onomastics as a Means of ​Refuting the Anti-​Jewish Claims  28 Chapter 2.  Methodological Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Methodological Background  30 Jewish Names and Naming Patterns  31 Jewish Surnames: A Typology  33 Jewish Surnames and Surnames Used by Jews  38 Romanian Naming Patterns and Romanian Surnames  39 Surnames Used by Jews in the Romanian Linguistic-​Cultural Space  41 Romanian and Romanized Jewish Surnames  42 Sources 43 Statistical Analysis  44 Chapter 3.  Antiquity of ​Early Jewish Settlement Through the Prism of Surnames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Early Jewish Settlement: The Native Jews  49

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Contents

Romanian Jewish Surnames Adopted at the Time of the Early Settlement 51 Conclusions 63 Chapter 4.  Demographic Aspects: Rural and Urban Settlement; Internal Migrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Jewish Geographic Dispersion  66 Rural and Urban Settlement  67 Internal Migrations  72 Conclusions 76 Chapter 5.  Socio-​economic Profile of the Jewish Population . . . . . . . . 78 General Aspects  78 Jews and Their Occupations in the Romanian Lands  82 Statistical Analysis of Occupation-​Based Surnames  86 Categorization of Occupation-​Based Surnames  97 Jewish Specialization in Specific Economic Fields  103 Semantic Analysis of Occupation-​Based Surnames  122 Conclusions 126 Chapter 6.  Jewish Identity as Reflected in Romanian Surnames: From Traditional Separation to Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 General Aspects  130 Adaptation and Romanization of Common Jewish Surnames Brought from Abroad 132 Direct Adoption of ​Romanian Surnames Developed According to Local Patterns 134 Direct Adoption of Surnames in Other Languages: A Comparison  140 Conclusions 144 Chapter 7.  The Romanian Authorities’ Attitude: From Invited Settlers to Undesired Subjects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 Governmental Response to Jewish Settlement: Civil and Political Status 145 Administrative Registration: Regularization of Status and Surnames  149 Jews and Names During the Holocaust Period  153 Conclusions 161 Chapter 8.  A Case Study: Jewish Intellectuals and Romanian and Romanized Surnames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Chapter 9.  A Different Group: The Sephardim in the Old Kingdom . . . 170 General Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

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vii

Appendix 1.  List of ​Jewish Intellectuals and Artists Active in Romania Prior to WWII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 Appendix 2.  List of Surnames Used by Sephardic Jews in the Kingdom of ​Romania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 Appendix 3.  A Dictionary of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized Surnames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

Charts, Maps, and Tables

Charts 1. Concentration of and interaction between occupations processing and trading cereals  108 2. Concentration of and interaction between occupations within beverages production and trade  110 3. Concentration of and interaction between occupations producing clothes, caps, and footwear  115 4. Concentration of occupations within the transportation field  117 5. Concentration of occupations relating to Jewish tradition and religion  120 6. Semantic analysis of ​“shoemaker”: neutral terms vs. status connotations  123 7. Semantic analysis of ​“cap/hat maker”: neutral terms vs. status connotations 124 8. Semantic analysis of ​“miller” and “flour merchant”: neutral terms vs. status connotations 125 9. Concentration of occupations within the different fields of activity and interaction between these fields  128 Maps (based on the administrative map from Enciclopedia României [Bucharest, 1938]) 1. Greater Romania within the post-​W WI borders (shows the dividing lines between the Old Kingdom and Transylvania, Bukovina, Bessarabia, and Southern Dobruja)  7 2. Historical Moldavia (including Bukovina and Bessarabia) and Walachia, indicating the main directions of ​Jewish immigration  11 3. Geographic location of the main concentrations of ​Romanian and Romanized Jewish surnames  47 4. Geographic location of the main concentrations of patronymic surnames based on archaic patterns  54 ix

x

Charts, Maps, and Tables

5. The six districts in which village names appear in over half of the toponym-​ based surnames  72 6. Geographic location of the main concentrations of occupation-​based surnames 86 Tables 1. Occupations Categories  98 2. Manual Crafts  102 3. Other Crafts  104 4. Fields of Activity and Romanian Surnames  166 5. Fields of Activity and New Surnames  167

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank my mentors who encouraged and motivated me through the years to undertake this research. Professor Aaron Demsky introduced me to new scholastic perspectives regarding Jewish names and naming patterns in the historical context. My dearest friend, the lamented Dr. Leon Volovici, wisely guided me through the modern history of ​Romanian Jewry and the relations between Romanians and Jews. I am most grateful to Yad Vashem and its chairman, Avner Shalev, for gracefully encouraging and allowing me to use the vast resources of names at Yad Vashem. I want to thank Professor Dan Michman for his critical observations and most valuable suggestions, and Dr. Robert Rozett, Dr. David Silberklang, and my colleagues at the Hall of ​Names department for their moral support and assistance. I would like to express my thanks to Professors Ben Zion Rosenfeld, Yaron Harel, Shmuel Feiner, and Gershon Bacon at the Department of ​Jewish History at Bar-​Ilan University for their support, interest, and comments on an earlier version of the first part of this manuscript. I am indebted to Mrs. Ditza Goshen and her assistants at the library of the Center for the Research on Romanian Jewry at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem as well as to Professor Liviu Rotman and Dr. Anca Ciuciu at the Center for the Study of the History of ​Romanian Jewry in Bucharest for their kind and precious assistance. Finally, my greatest thanks are due to my wife, Maaiana, and our daughter, Dana, for bearing with me and forgiving my spending so much time on this obsession with names—I am deeply grateful for their love and understanding. This study is dedicated to the memory of my late parents, Maria (Rica) Avramescu and Gherasim Avram, and of my parents-​in-​law, Agneta Desi and José Schapira. The study was supported by the Yad Vashem International Institute for Holocaust Research. xi

Introduction

Topic of ​Discussion The extensive array of different traditions and collective thinking reflected in the adoption of surnames, especially by Jews (by choice or by imposition), suggests that there can be great value in analyzing surnames as an additional, or alternative, research tool in dealing with social developments in specific areas and at specific times. The historian Katharine S. B. Keats-​Rohan, specializing in prosopography, states that “unlike first names, bynames (i.e., surnames) frequently have transparent semantic value. . . . A great deal of information is contained in such descriptions.”1 Linguistic and semantic features contained in names in general, and in surnames in particular, can therefore constitute a rich and interesting corpus of evidence related to and influenced by different historical phenomena such as migrations and dispersion; occupational structure; acculturation and assimilation; relations between authorities and minorities; and beliefs, aesthetics, and social fashions. I believe that the onomastic (i.e., name-​related) evidence that can be assembled from different historical and contemporary sources has the potential to provide insights into most of the above issues as well as other aspects. The present study attempts to seek and find in a large corpus of surnames the direct reflection of different aspects of social history, starting from the individual name bearer and culminating in the assembly of a significant number of names that will reflect upon the society at large. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to prove that through a careful analysis of the surnames used by the members of a historical group, the researcher can learn more about, or at least clarify, and thus better understand and/or corroborate, different sociohistorical trends and processes that characterized that specific group within a given territorial area and time span and even help to resolve disputed historical and historiographical issues. 1.  Keats-​Rohan, “Biography, Identity,” 169.

1

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

State of ​Research on the Topic Research on the History of the Jews in Romania Since the nineteenth century, numerous studies have been dedicated to the history of the Jews in Romania, mostly by Jewish scholars, (e.g., Elias and Moses Schwarz­ feld, Iuliu Barasch, Lazăr Şăineanu, Moses Gaster). Their numbers expanded during the twentieth century, concentrating on documenting the history of the various Jewish communities and different aspects of the Jewish presence in Romania (e.g., Joseph Brociner, Eliyahu Feldman, Theodor Lavi-​Löwenstein, Itzik Schwartz-​Kara) rather than on a comprehensive historical overview (e.g., Israel Bar-​Avi). In the last decades, historians have tended to focus much of their research on specific themes such as the Middle Ages (Victor Eskenasy), the struggle for emancipation (Carol Iancu), socioeconomic aspects ( Jacob Geller, Liviu Rotman), the Holocaust ( Jean Ancel), anti-​Semitism and the post-​Communist period (Michael Shafir, Leon Volovici, Raphael Vago). Among Romanian historians, Nicolae Iorga dedicated a series of studies to the history of the Jews in Romania, and in more recent years scholars such as Dan Berindei, Constantin Giurescu, and Andrei Pippidi have begun investigating different aspects of ​Romanian Jewish history. Research on Names and Names Used by Jews Scientific interest in Jewish names began toward the end of the first half of the nineteenth century with the study published by Leopold Zunz in 1837.2 His overview of over two thousand years of ​Jewish history was intended to prove that the Jews had adopted names of foreign peoples even in very early times; this approach was seemingly used in the petition of 16 August 1838 by the Jewish community of ​ Berlin to the Prussian Ministry of the Interior in order to secure for Jews the right to use names not restricted to the Hebrew Bible.3 Since then, numerous studies, articles, and books dealing with different aspects of names in different areas and time periods have appeared (see Edwin D. Lawson’s annotated bibliographies).4 Among these are various dictionaries of ​Jewish names.5 In Romania, however, there have been only a few sporadic studies, but no 2. Zunz, Namen der Juden. 3. Bering, Stigma. 4.  Lawson, “Some Jewish” and “Some Jewish 2.” 5. Lévy, Les Noms des Israélites en France; Kaganoff, Dictionary of ​Jewish Names; Laredo, Les Noms des Juifs du Maroc; Kolatch, The New Name Dictionary; Faiguenboim, Valadares, and Campagnano, Dictionary of Sephardic Surnames; Menk, Dictionary of German-​Jewish Surnames; Beider’s dictionaries

Introduction

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dictionary and comprehensive study of ​Jewish names in Romania. Names, including Jewish names, have also been treated in other disciplines, mainly psychology6 and sociology.7 In the historical context, prosopography is the discipline investigating the common background that characterizes a historic group by means of a collective study of their lives.8 The basic elements of prosopography are individuals and their name forms, with all their associated variants, occurring in its sources. Any prosopographic study will gather a great deal of evidence that, if ​handled correctly, will provide a valuable database for interdisciplinary research. The names can be investigated by specialists, such as linguists and anthroponymists, as well as by historians, who will not be concerned with the semantics of the names as linguistic units but with the information that they provide about individuals’ identity and occupation and the society in which they lived.9 Prosopographical research proceeds by collecting and analyzing statistically relevant quantities of ​biographical data, including names, about a well-​defined group of individuals. In practice, however, it has the primary aim of ​learning about patterns of relationships and activities through the study of collective biography. Unfortunately, most historians, more interested in discovering patterns of social positions/functions or social mobility, do not follow Keats-​Rohan’s recommendation to investigate the individuals’ names for the information that they contain. Few attempts have been made until now to use the analysis of ​Jewish names or surnames documented in a specific area and period in order to ascertain the different aspects of ​Jewish history in that specific context.10 A few articles have been published in recent years on the issue of ​late official changes of ​Jewish names to non-​Jewish names and the reasons for this in the territories of ​Poland and especially Hungary.11 Nevertheless, the existing onomastic studies do not, at this stage, offer a practical methodology that can make use of ​( Jewish) surnames for the purpose of supporting or clarifying historical issues. Furthermore, practically none of these works have treated the subject of ​Jewish names or surnames in Romania. Among the vast number of ​historical studies regarding Romanian Jewry, I know of no previous attempts to apply the analysis of ​Jewish surnames as an additional, complementary research tool. of ​Jewish surnames from the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of ​Poland, Galicia, Prague, the Maghreb, Gibraltar, and Malta. 6.  David and Harari, “Stereotyping of ​Names”; Falk, “Identity and Name Changes”; Lawson, “Semantic Differential Analysis.” 7.  Maas, “Integration and Name”; Broom, Beem, and Harris, “Characteristics.” 8.  Stone, “Prosopography.” 9.  Keats-​Rohan, “Biography, Identity,” 168. 10. Bering, Stigma; Beider, Dictionary of Ashkenazic. 11.  Jagodzińska, “My Name”; Farkas, “Surnames of ​Foreign Origin.”

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Purpose of the Present Study According to Moshe Rosman, who advocates “methodological hybridism,” the historian specializes in knowledge, mastering myriad details that are brought together to form a context that makes it possible to apply methods to and interpret a given phenomenon. Historiography does not have a particular methodology; it has particular ways of thinking and particular objectives—historicist assumptions and the questions they engender. History is an art of interpretation that uses, among other things, tools offered by the social sciences and other disciplines. There is a wide range of methods that can assist historians in their work; more and more disciplines borrow methods from other fields. Jewish history, therefore, can and should take advantage of the methodologies of other disciplines to help it find answers to its particular brand of questions.12 As a Jewish historian, Aaron Demsky recognized many years ago the importance of onomastics, that is, names and name-​giving practices, as an essential instrument for understanding the social and cultural history of the Jewish people. Following in this vein, the present study is an attempt to explore a new approach in historical research by applying onomastic tools, that is, the linguistic and semantic analysis of the surnames used by Jews, as an additional and valid research method that enables the historian to verify and/or clarify different aspects, trends, and processes within the context of the history of the Jews. Given that there are no previous comprehensive studies on the surnames used by Jews in the Old Kingdom of ​Romania (defined below), such a goal is a desideratum. The application of this historical-​onomastic research approach to provide a better understanding of its particular name patterns should contribute much to the history of ​Romanian Jewry. Given the lack of studies on the subject, this could constitute a “case study” designed to map the issue, open it for discussion, and pave the way for further studies to come. As a by-​product, this study has documented a corpus of surnames for the Jewish population in the Romanian lands for over four centuries. It is not an attempt to establish a prosopography of ​Romanian Jewry, which would be practically impossible, but rather to achieve a description of the sum of most of the Romanian and Romanized13 surnames adopted or used by Jews in these areas. The resulting dictionary of surnames is incorporated at the end of the present work. This study reviews, analyzes, and explains the surnames and naming patterns used or adopted by Romanian Jews from their earliest available historical documentation until the World War II (WWII) period in those areas where the 12. Rosman, How Jewish, 154–67. 13.  The term “Romanized” will be used here, with its linguistic meaning of graphic, phonetic, and morphologic adaptation to the Roman/Latin language, referring in this particular case to the Romanian language.

Introduction

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Romanian language was officially spoken. It focuses, in particular, on the types of ​R omanian and Romanized surnames that are most likely to provide evidence about Jews’ interaction with, and the measure of their adaptation to, their surroundings.

Scope and Limits of the Study and Style Conventions Territorial Limits As stated above, this research will focus on those Romanian lands where, for most of the time, the Romanian language was official and Romanian culture was dominant. These are the territories lying inside the historical boundaries of the former Romanian Principalities of ​Moldavia (the Carpathian Mountains to the west, the Ceremuş and Dniester Rivers to the north and east, the Black Sea and the Danube, Siret, and Neajlov Rivers to the south) and Walachia (the Carpathian Mountains and the Neajlov, Siret, and Danube Rivers to the north, the Black Sea to the east, Bulgaria and the Danube River to the south, and the Carpathian Mountains to the west). This leaves outside the scope of this study the territories to the north and west of the Carpathian Mountains collectively known as Transylvania (encompassing historical/inner Transylvania—Ardeal in Romanian—as well as Maramureş, Crişana, and Banat), where, while Romanian was widely spoken, the Jewish population adopted, at different times in its history, the German or Hungarian languages and cultures of the elite and ruling classes. The principalities of ​Moldavia and Walachia struggled to maintain their independence from the Hungarian and Polish kingdoms and the Balkan states but became vassals of the Ottoman Empire in the the fifteenth century. They succeeded in uniting in 1859 in the wake of the Crimean War and gained full independence and the retrocession of the Dobruja region in 1878, becoming what came to be known as the the “Kingdom” (Rom. Regat) of ​Romania. Following World War I (WWI), Greater Romania was established, which included all of ​Transylvania, Bukovina, and Bessarabia in addition to the core territories now called the “Old Kingdom.” The study will also include Bukovina, which was under Austrian rule from 1775 to 1918, and Bessarabia, which was part of the Russian Empire from 1812 to 1917, because these provinces were an integral part of the Principality of ​Moldavia for most of their documented history and are therefore also relevant to our analysis (map 1). Time Framework This study will try to take into account surname-​like nicknames and surnames used by Jews in the Old Kingdom territories from the sixteenth century during

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

an extensive four-​hundred-​year period until the end of WWII, when a large part of ​Romanian Jewry was annihilated. More exactly, the terminus ad quem is 1944, marking the end of the war in Romania, followed shortly thereafter by radical changes in Jewish life under Communist rule and the beginning of mass emigration to Israel. This specific year was chosen not only because thereafter Romanian Jewry diminished drastically in absolute numbers but also because the new conditions under the Communist regime radically changed its socioeconomic, religious, intellectual, and political composition and institutions, putting an end to its relatively free development. An example of the changes that occurred after 1944 is the phenomenon of interfaith marriages, which were fairly infrequent before WWII (4,145 according to the 1942 Jewish census)14 but greatly increased after it, significantly affecting the naming patterns, and especially the surnames pool, of ​Romanian Jews. In order to provide complementary data, this study will go beyond the above territorial and time frameworks and occasionally present surnames of Romanian-​ born Jews who had left the country in different periods for such destinations as the Land of ​Israel and North and South America. Style Conventions and Transliterations Names of personalities will be given with their official spelling in the language of origin. Names of organizations and titles of written works or newspapers will be given in the original language, followed by an English transliteration within parentheses. Quotes from Romanian sources will be given in English; the original quotes appear in footnotes. Romanian surnames that are subject to linguistic analysis will be given without quotation marks, followed by the English translation—when there is one—also within parentheses. Names of countries, regions, and geographic features will be given in English when they have a traditional English equivalent (e.g., Romania, not România, Bessarabia, not Basarabia; Dniester, not Nistru); the same is true for names of places outside Romania (Warsaw, not Warszawa) as well as for the main cities in Romania (Bucharest, not Bucureşti). Names of towns and villages in Romania, however, will be given with the Romanian spelling, including diacritics. Whenever a place-​name has a traditional English equivalent, it will be given within parentheses only at the first mention of the place in the text. Historical and other specialized terms will be explained in a glossary at the end of the study. Etymological references will be given in italics. Brackets will be used for completing lacunae. 14. Benjamin, Evreii din România, 2:97.

Introduction

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Map 1.  Greater Romania within the post-​W WI borders (shows the dividing lines between the Old Kingdom and Transylvania, Bukovina, Bessarabia, and Southern Dobruja)

7

Chapter 1

Historical Background

Today we have reliable knowledge about the Jewish presence and development in the Romanian Principalities based on a large number of archival documents and material evidence such as architectural remains and epigraphic inscriptions in Jewish cemeteries. These sources have been studied by both Jewish and non-​Jewish historians. They cover the period beginning in the sixteenth century to the mid-​twentieth century, which is the chronological framework of this present study. These sources will be described in the first part of the chapter. During the last third of the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth, however, different narratives developed regarding what was known and especially what was publicly said at the time about the Jewish presence in the country, giving way to fierce and endless discussions, as we shall see later in the chapter.

The Jewish Presence in Historical Moldavia and Walachia, Sixteenth Century to 1944 The territories that would become the Romanian Principalities occupied strategic locations on the main trading routes between Central Europe and the Mediterranean Basin. Walachia was located between the Danubian border of the Byzantine and later Ottoman Empires and the Carpathian border of the Hungarian Kingdom and later Habsburg Empire. Moldavia was crisscrossed by the well-​ traveled “Tartar routes” linking the ports on the Black Sea along its inner rivers to Lemberg (Lwów) in the Polish Kingdom and from there to Russia, the Hanseatic ports on the Baltic Sea, and the main German trade cities. This special location on these major crossroads was an open invitation throughout history to trade activity, to successive invasions, and to waves of immigration.

8

Historical Background

9

Growing Jewish Presence Jewish presence in these territories is documented during the Roman conquest of ​ Dacia at the beginning of the second century CE. There is no proof of continuity of ​Jewish presence for the next millennium—general documentation is almost nonexistent for the entire period in that area. Nevertheless, some historians do assume a certain Jewish presence, considering the sporadic Khazar rule during the seventh or eighth centuries and reports of fugitive Jews fleeing persecution in the Byzantine Empire. A first wave of German-​speaking Jewish immigration was documented in Walachia following the expulsion of the Jews from Hungary in 1360 by King Louis the Great of Anjou. Allowed to take with them most of their property, many found their way to the south of the Danube, but some of them apparently remained and were later granted privileges by Prince Dan I of ​Walachia (1384–86). Another group coming to Walachia in the fifteenth century, this time from the south, was the Greek-​speaking “Romaniote” Jews from the Balkan Peninsula (Rumelia). Unfortunately, there is not much documentation on these early Jewish groups.1 In their wake, the first Spanish-​speaking Sephardic Jews came at the beginning of the sixteenth century, permanently settling along the main routes in Walachia (Turnu Măgurele–Craiova–Transylvania, Giurgiu–Bucureşti (Bucharest)–Ploieşti– Transylvania). Soon they dominated the trade between the Ottoman Empire and the Hungarian Kingdom and subsequently the Polish Kingdom. Coming from Salonika and Istanbul, they became a permanent presence in the history of ​Walachia, and later in Moldavia as well. They are often documented, in relation to both persecutions and privileges, at the time of such princes as Peter Rareş (1527–46), Peter the Lame (1579), Michael the Brave (1593), and Aron Vodă (1594). Sephardic settlements that later developed into organized communities are well documented in Bucharest and later in Craiova as well as Brăila on the Danube. Other Sephardic settlements were also reported along the trade routes of ​Moldavia in Cernăuţi (Chernovitz), Hotin, Siret, Suceava, and Cetatea Albă on the Black Sea shore. Beginning in 1589, the Jewish community in Iaşi ( Jassy) was led by Rabbi Solomon ben Aravi (or ben Aroio), the prince’s physician, who by 1619 hosted Rabbi Joseph Solomon Delmedigo from Candia. In time, however, all the Sephardic communities in Moldavia as well as that of ​Brăila were gradually assimilated into the growing Ashkenazi majority. A much later, new, significant wave of Sephardic immigration came from Serbia and Bulgaria, mostly after the economic liberalization of the principalities in 1829. This strengthened the old communities in Craiova and Bucharest and expanded the Sephardic presence to all the important trading stations, mainly along the 1. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:20–22.

10

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Danube River, such as Turnu Severin, Calafat, Turnu Măgurele, Giurgiu, Călăraşi, and the town of ​Ploieşti. Old Sephardic communities also existed in Constanţa and Silistra in Dobruja that become part of the Old Kingdom in 1878 and 1913 respectively.2 At about the time of the Jewish immigration from Hungary and the Balkans to Walachia, the first Jews came to Moldavia from Poland in the north. Trading on the “Tartar routes” along the Pruth and Sereth Rivers, they established warehouses and inns in different places and started to settle permanently; by the beginning of the sixteenth century there were Ashkenazi Jewish communities in Siret, Suceava, Botoşani, and Jassy. Later, as noted, Sephardic Jews coming from Istanbul started to cross the country northwards to establish commercial missions and then communities as far as Lemberg, Zamość, and Kraków. In 1613, Prince Stephen Tomşa granted the Jews the right to pass freely through Moldavia. During the seventeenth century the number of the Jews increased significantly (communities in Târgu Neamţ, Piatra Neamţ, etc.), especially due to the influx of Yiddish-​speaking Polish Jews fleeing persecutions following Bogdan Chmielnicki’s rebellion in 1648 and the Polish-​Swedish war in 1655–60. Due to very low Moldavian population numbers (250,000 inhabitants in 1793),3 the local princes, as well as some of the rich landlords, invited immigrants of all nationalities and religions, among them Jews, granting them tax exemptions and privileges. This policy, documented under Stephen Tomşa in 1612, Gheorghe Ghica in 1615, and later Grigore II Ghica in 1741 and Constantin Mavrocordat in 1742, resulted in strong immigration of ​Polish Jews from Galicia, who settled in villages and towns along the northern border. In many instances, the Jews established new, small, semirural, semiurban province or market towns (Rom. târg or târguşor), where the local trade fair or market (Rom. târg) was held, with a majority Jewish population such as Oniţcani, at the end of the seventeenth century; Herţa, beginning of the eighteenth; Târgu Frumos, established in 1763; Fălticeni in 1779; then Mihăileni. Much later, market towns were established in Negreşti and Iveşti in 1845 and the last one, Drânceni, in 1862. As of 1843, there were still only forty towns and market towns in the whole of ​Moldavia. The Jews there practiced various trades and crafts; built inns and storehouses, mills and alcohol distilleries; rented farmlands; grew fish in ponds; tended fruit orchards; and introduced economic and industrial ways previously unknown in the region. Known as hrisoveliţi, that is, Jews whose status was based on a hrisov or charter of privileges given by the prince, they enjoyed tax exemptions in the first years. Slowly integrating, they acceded to participation in municipal town councils.4 2. Geller, Rise and Decline. 3. Xenopol, Istoria Românilor, 108, quoted in E. Schwarzfeld, Din istoria evreilor, 97. 4. M. Schwarzfeld, Excursiuni critice, 26–32.

Historical Background Ashkenazi Jews

11

KINGDOM OF POLAND

Sephardic Jews

Dnie

r

Riv

er

“ Wild F ie ld s”

P O RIN F M CIP O A LD L AV I T Y IA

KINGDOM OF H U N G A RY

Da

PRINC CII PA L I T TY Y OF WA L AC ACH HIA

OTTOMAN

ste

nu

EMPIRE

be

Black Sea

R i ve r

0

25

50 mi

Map 2.  Historical Moldavia (including Bukovina and Bessarabia) and Walachia, indicating the main directions of ​Jewish immigration

This Jewish population was reinforced by immigration of ​Jews previously established in Bukovina and Bessarabia, who fled these former Moldavian provinces fearing persecution after their annexation by the Habsburg and Russian Empires in 1775 and 1812, respectively. Another significant wave of ​Jewish immigration was triggered by the introduction of the new military law and the implementation of the “cantonist” system for Jews in Czarist Russia in 1827. As a result, every period of military occupation of ​Moldavia by the Russian army (1828–34, 1848–49, and 1877–78) opened the doors for other Jewish immigrants fleeing persecution. Gradually, this Ashkenazi immigration would make its way also into Walachia, especially to its capital, Bucharest (map 2). The head of the traditional form of ​Jewish organization in the principalities was the Ottoman institution of Hakham Bashi (chief rabbi). The Hakham Bashi was the religious leader representing the Jews before the authorities and charged with tax collection (e.g., on kosher meat). The Sublime Porte appointed the first Hakham Bashi with residence in Jassy in 1719 in the person of ​(Sephardi) Rabbi Bezalel Cohen. The Hakham Bashi had jurisdiction over all the Jews in both

12

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Moldavia and Walachia and appointed a representative in Bucharest for the Jews of ​Walachia. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, a secular organizational structure, parallel to the religious-​oriented Hakham Bashi, also appeared, called the “Jewish Guild.” It was one of the thirty-​three officially recognized guilds representing ethnic minorities (Greeks, Armenians, etc.) and professional associations. The guild was given responsibility for tax collection and the management of communal institutions such as synagogues, Talmud Torahs, cemeteries, and philanthropic activities. The guild was led by an elected Staroste (Rosh Medina in Hebrew), based in Jassy, and a deputy for Walachia in Bucharest (independent since 1822). A Staroste at each local level, together with two-​three advisors, constituted the leadership of the different communities.5 The growing numbers of ​Jewish immigrants from Austrian Galicia and Russian Bessarabia at the beginning of the nineteenth century who came to settle in the new market towns or just to flee Russian army service were not acquainted with the Ottoman-​appointed Hakham Bashi. Concentrating especially in Jassy, they were different from the Jews already rooted in the country (i.e., “native Jews”) in looks, manners, and religious practices, most of them leaning toward Hasidism. They also saw themselves as culturally superior and as such refused to pay taxes to the Hakham Bashi and sought the protection of the Austrian or Russian consuls. Through their interventions with the authorities, they undermined the position of the Hakham Bashi: Prince Alexandru Şuţu decided, in 1819, that this office would have jurisdiction only over native Jews, as opposed to foreign ones. The abolition of the institution of the Hakham Bashi, and subsequently of the Jewish Guild, gave way in 1834 to a long period without organized Jewish self-​government, leading to arbitrary interventions by the Romanian authorities at all levels. Another conflict, stressing the internal divisions in the Jewish population, developed around the establishment in 1856 of the Templul Coral, a modern synagogue, in Bucharest. Promoted by Iuliu Barasch, leader of the Mendelssohnian Haskalah, and a group of modern native Jews together with Jews of Austrian and Prussian origin, it met the fierce opposition of ​R abbi Meir Löb ben Jechiel Michel Weiser (Malbim), representing the Hasidic trend. It proved that native and foreign-​born Jews could eventually work together on the condition that the latter renounce the special status in religious matters conferred by foreign consul protection. Yet the conflict defined other lines of division, such as that between Maskilim and Hasidim as well as between Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews. As a result, in 1864, Malbim’s tenure was terminated; the Romanian state had already ceased all funding of ​Jewish institutions in 1862.6 5. M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 26–29. 6. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:25–26.

Historical Background

13

Persecution The attitude of the Romanian authorities toward Jews over the centuries was ambivalent, to say the least. Latent Christian religion–based, grassroots anti-​ Semitism was reflected and made extreme in laws promulgated by princes Matei Basarab in Walachia in 1640 and Vasile Lupu in Moldavia in 1646, defining Jews as heretics and prohibiting relations between Christians and Jews. Under Alexandru Mavrocordat (1782–92), many Jews living in the villages were expelled, most of them seeking refuge in the city of ​Jassy. In 1817 and 1818, respectively, Ioan Gheorghe Caragea in Walachia and Scarlat Calimachi in Moldavia granted civil rights to foreigners of all religions; but restrictions remained, especially for Jews: no landownership in villages, no aristocratic status (boyars), and no interfaith marriages. The introduction of the Organic Regulations in 1831–32, under the Russian occupation of ​Moldavia and Walachia during 1828–34, brought a Russian-​style anti-​Semitic influence: paragraph 379 stipulated that Jews were not entitled to civil rights and could practice only trade. In Moldavia, paragraph 94 stipulated that “vagrant” Jews were to be expelled. A legal codex compiled by Andronache Donici stated that Jews could not buy land in villages and could not give testimony in court. Under Mihail Sturdza, in Moldavia, 1839, immigration was to be stopped, Jews were limited to “productive professions,” and “vagrants” were to be expelled. At about the same time, the familiar clichés of the Romanian anti-​Semites were coined: “Jewish invasion,” “Jewish exploitation of national resources” (especially in the villages), “Jewish vagrants” (all those not practicing “productive professions”).7 The national revolutions of 1848 brought new hopes of integration for the Jews in Europe. The revolutionary proclamation in Moldavia promised civil rights to all, irrespective of religion; that of ​Walachia, dated November 6, 1848, stipulated equal rights for Jews (“Israelites”), except for buying land in the villages and aristocratic status (paragraph 21). Many Jews participated in the revolutionary events, among them Lăzărică Zaraful, Daniel Rosenthal, Barbu Iscovescu, and, most important, Davicion Bally, the Sephardic banker who financed the endeavor in Walachia.8 The Congress of ​Paris in 1856 initiated a long series of political pressures by the foreign powers to extend equal rights also to Jews, but to no avail. Instead, there were attempts by the Ministry of the Interior to expel the Jews from the villages. In 1864, nevertheless, Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza succeeded, in his Civil Code, in granting to Jews the right to vote in local elections (civil rights conditioned on military service or high school or academic degrees or industrial ownership). However, this involved no political rights. 7.  Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, 3, part 1, 63–65. 8. Kaufmann, Evrei luptători.

14

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

The Constitution of 1866, which allowed Romanian citizenship to Christians only, opened an era of persecutions: repeated expulsions of ​“vagrants” and of ​Jews from the villages (1867–68, 1869–72) and the limitation of liquor-​selling permits, 1873. Despite the large Jewish participation in the Romanian War of ​Independence in 1877–78, the Congress of ​Berlin and subsequent pressure in favor of the Jews were followed by more expulsions and the exclusion of ​Jews from the newly established state monopolies over liquor and tobacco production and trade. A constitutional amendment of 1879 granting rights of citizenship to Jews on a personal basis through parliamentary law (!) was followed by further expulsions of foreign Jews in 1885. This policy was halted by the High Court in 1895, but resumed at the time of the peasants’ revolt of 1907, casting blame on “Jewish exploiters.”9 The 1914 Law concerning foreign control gave the government full powers against foreign Jews. The upsurge of anti-​Semitism in Romania in the last third of the nineteenth century has been explained in socioeconomic terms: although politically independent (1878), Romania was characterized by semifeudal conditions and a grave agrarian problem. Instead of striving for modernity together with the Jewish urban strata, the emerging Romanian bourgeoisie, once in power, preferred to achieve social status by acquiring vineyards and farmland. This resulted in creating a new agrarian class that replaced the decadent boyars. They had no incentive to develop an industrial sector that would deprive them of a cheap labor force.10 The most important philosophic and literary Romanian movements embraced this agrarian vision. At the end of the nineteenth century, the Junimea (Youth) movement, supported by Conservative Party circles (Titu Maiorescu, Petre Carp), thought that modern political systems were not fit for Romanian society and instead developed a national mystique of the Romanian peasant, as expressed by the poet Mihai Eminescu, that bordered on xenophobia. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Semănătorul (Sower) magazine (Nicolae Iorga) opposed social changes while idealizing and advocating a return to the past. The Poporanism movement (Constantin Stere) was against development of capitalism and for the improvement of the peasants’ conditions as the sociopolitical basis of ​Romanian society. Both were opposed to “bourgeois civilization” (urbanism, technology), claiming that the Romanian soul was alien to industrial work (poets Octavian Goga, Lucian Blaga).11 Socialist circles viewed the Jewish problem with indifference, seeing it mainly in terms of class struggle. Nevertheless, the Social Democrats’ congress of 1910 called for equality of rights for the Jews. 9. Iancu, Jews in Romania, 128–52. 10. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:40–41. 11. Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 50–64.

Historical Background

15

Jewish sociologist Ştefan Antim (1879–1944) argued that because the Jews were first invited by landowners to delay the development of an indigenous Romanian bourgeoisie, they thus had a pioneering role. But they were isolated as foreigners and not permitted to participate in the country’s internal political life. When the Jews started to demand political rights, they were declared a national hazard. To have total control over the peasants, landowners came out against Jewish settlement in the villages. The emerging middle class, including those in public positions and the state bureaucracy, saw an interest in derogating and excluding/ keeping out the Jews, and also had the power to do so.12 A pervasive climate of ​hostility toward Jews was created, echoed by the Junimea intellectual movement: all evils in Romania were the fault of the “Jewish invasion” and “Jewish proliferation”—Romania would become the “New Palestine.”13 The Jews, with their different clothes and bizarre customs, were deemed alien to any other culture and therefore could not assimilate. An “Anti-​Jewish League” called in 1887 for outright emigration. A new wave of expulsions of ​Jews from the villages was conducted between the years 1881 and 1884: the Jews living in villages in the district of ​Dorohoi, for example, representing 40.6% of all Jews in the district, were forced to move to the town of ​Dorohoi, doubling the town’s population.14 A law prohibiting the activity of peddlers, a traditional Jewish profession, was promulgated in 1884. Another law, from 1893, sanctioned the expulsion of ​Jewish children from all state-​sponsored schools. The peasants’ revolt of 1907 was the pretext for renewed expulsions of ​ Jews from the villages in 1907–8; after this date, relatively few Jews remained in the villages of ​Moldavia, many having migrated to Bukovina. The most immediate reaction of the Jewish population to these conditions, aggravated by the economic crisis caused by drought in 1900, was mass emigration: between 1881 and 1914 over 100,000 Jews left Romania, including about 62,000 for the United States, 30,000 for the United Kingdom, and 3,000 for the Land of ​Israel. Exact figures are reported for the period 1889–1915: 69,855 persons, that is, 22.5% of the entire Jewish population of the country. The period of maximum emigration was 1900–1907, when 50,000 Jews emigrated, peaking in 1900 at 16,687 persons. Called the “emigrants on foot” (fussgeyer in Yiddish), tens of thousands of ​Jews crossed Romania and Europe on their way to America via Hamburg; most were craftsmen out of work as a result of official restrictions.15

12. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:40–41. 13. Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 34–35. 14. Shlomo, Generations of ​Judaism. 15. Wischnitzer, To Dwell in Safety, 83–85; Rotman, Iancu, and Vago, History of the Jews, 2:137.

16

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Political Activity On another level, many Romanian Jews, especially the native born, whose families had been there for many generations, started to organize in order to struggle for equal rights and emancipation. Jews who had served in the Romanian army organized for the first time in Săveni, Moldavia, opening the way for the Asociaţia generală a israeliţilor pămînteni (General Association of ​Native Jews, AGIP), formed in Bucharest in 1890, professing devotion to the fatherland, fraternity with non-​Jews, and equal rights. Publishing the weekly Emanciparea (Emancipation), the AGIP was active through 1897 and then again in 1903–4, demanding Romanian citizenship for all Jews born in the country. Ideologically, it distanced itself from the foreign Jews, the organized community, and to some extent from Jewish tradition (e.g., accepting mixed marriages, baptisms) and thus was an important stimulus for Jewish intellectual circles to embrace Romanian culture and language (e.g., Max Wechsler, Lazăr Şăineanu, Dr. Hariton Tiktin). The AGIP was opposed to, and attacked by, the incipient Zionist circles, and argued that aliyah was only good for the foreign Jews; despite plans for emigration that had originally been proposed by U.S. consul Benjamin F. Peixotto in 1872, most Romanian Jews decided to stay and struggle for their rights in Romania.16 Jews active in the socialist circle Lumina (Light) called, in 1895, for political rights for all Jews; some of them were even expelled from the country for their activity (B. Brănişteanu, S. Petrianu). Others, such as Dr. Ştefan Stein-​Stâncă, publisher of Asimilarea (Assimilation), went against the Jewish community, claiming it prevented total assimilation. Other assimilatory circles around the newspaper Fraternitatea (Fraternity) railed against Zionists, stressing that a show of nationalist feelings and attracting international attention to anti-​Jewish persecution and attitudes because of emigration would prevent the granting of equal rights. Proposals were made toward assimilation (mixed marriages) and public display of patriotism. Another direction was the attempt to consolidate local Jewish life through the Înfrăţirea Sion (Sion Fraternity) association, by reducing tensions between Sephardim and Ashkenazim, opposing emigration, and demanding rights. After the expulsion of ​Elias Schwarzfeld in 1885, it became part of ​B’nai B’rith in 1888, helping prepare a generation of new leaders, lawyers, physicians, and intellectuals, most of them half assimilated. Zionist activity in Romania started relatively early on. The first attempts at organized aliyah were made in 1880, mostly by foreign Jews affected by professional restrictions and expulsions. Some years before the First Zionist Congress in Basel (1897), a congress for Settlement of the Land of ​Israel was convened in Focşani 16. Wischnitzer, To Dwell in Safety, 25; Iancu, Jews in Romania, 61–67.

Historical Background

17

in 1882, where representatives of the different communities listed the preferred candidates for aliyah: village dwellers, stonecutters, blacksmiths, copper workers, masons, carpenters, shoemakers, tailors, and saddlers. Representatives of native Jews, B’nai B’rith, and the Lumina circle established the Asociaţia Evreilor Pământeni (Association of ​Native Jews) in Bucharest in 1911, to strive for equal rights and against persecution. Made up mostly of intellectuals (e.g., A. Stern, B. Brociner) and some middle-​class Jews, it was active through 1948, advocating moderate assimilation and closeness between Jewish and Romanian citizens while stimulating Jewish participation in professional organizations against discrimination. Later called the Uniunea Evreilor Pământeni (Union of ​ Native Jews), it represented the interests of the entire Jewish population in the Old Kingdom who had adopted the Romanian language; it published the weekly Înfrăţirea (Fraternity), and its legal bureau assisted multitudes, boosting adherence to this political organization. After WWI and the establishment of Greater Romania, the Union became the Uniunea Evreilor Români (Union of ​Romanian Jews) in 1923, to include Jews from the other provinces as well.17 Assimilatory circles regrouped around the Asociaţia Evreilor Români (Association of ​Romanian Jews), established by Jews who had served in the military, who attacked the Union for struggling for general emancipation and the Zionists as unpatriotic and rootless. In the newspaper Viaţa Românească (Romanian life, edited by S. Muncel), they argued that the Jews were not a people with a culture of their own and that the Romanian state could not accept the existence of a nation within the nation. The assimilation trend was stalled, however, by the local anti-​ Semitism and the belief that assimilation of the Jews would lead to the destruction of ​Romanian culture and to race war. The nationalist trend attracted many young intellectuals, especially from the new provinces. Zionist intellectuals in the Old Kingdom grouped around the Romanian language daily Mântuirea (Salvation, edited by A. L. Zissu), advocating cultural, political, and economic rights for Jews as a national minority, thus appealing to the masses. They promoted the study of ​Jewish history and the Hebrew language. Organizations of ​Zionist women and high school students were established, as well as a student organization, Hashmonia, followed by youth movements and the sports club Macabi. A Jewish party was first established in the Old Kingdom in 1930, and then transformed into the Partidul Evreiesc din România ( Jewish Party in Romania) in 1931 to include the provinces. It obtained 64,193 votes and five representatives in the parliament. Unfortunately, it was banned together with all political parties in 1938. The Union of ​Romanian Jews and the Zionist organizations continued their activities outside parliamentarian life.18 17. Mendelsohn, Jews of ​East, 189–90. 18. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:221–24.

18

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Cultural Life A significant Jewish cultural life developed in the Old Kingdom, growing significantly in the eighteenth century, with the arrival of ​learned rabbis, many of them Hasidic, from Galicia (“Hakhmei Jassy,” “Hakhmei Bucharest”). The first Hebrew secular literature in the principalities was an extension of the Galician Haskalah at the beginning of the second half of the nineteenth century. Intellectuals such as Hillel Kahane called upon Jews to adopt local dress, to be patriotic, and to strive for their rights. A second generation was marked by the rise of mostly Romanian-​born intellectuals writing in Hebrew, Yiddish, German, and later Romanian. Yiddish usage, especially in the market towns of ​Moldavia, was reinforced by waves of immigration and close relations with Galicia and Russia. The Mendelssohnian trend, spearheaded by Iuliu Barasch, called for modernization of ​Jewish life. It promoted Hebrew but also helped spread German culture and language, as many Jewish lawyers, physicians, and researchers went to study in Germany and Austria. At the same time, the Romanian elites spoke French, while Romanian literature was gradually maturing. The development of ​Jewish journalism shows how slowly but surely the transition to Romanian progressed: the Israelitul Român (Romanian Israelite, edited by Iuliu Barasch), 1857, was published in Romanian and French and Timpul (Times, edited by N. Poper), 1859, in Romanian and Yiddish. The first Romanian-​only newspaper, Vocea Apărătorului (Defender’s voice), appeared in 1872, in Focşani. The first newspaper to last more than just a few issues (1879– 1885) was Fraternitatea (edited by I. Auerbach and Elias Schwarzfeld). It struggled against anti-​Semitism, advocated assimilation, and was not sympathetic to aliyah. The weekly Egalitatea (Equality, edited by Moses Schwarzfeld), 1890–1940, was supportive of ​Zionism, and in 1910 it endorsed the Union of ​Native Jews. Another long-​lasting newspaper was Curierul Israelit (Israelite courier, edited by M. Schweig), 1906–48. An array of other publications supported Zionist ideas. By the end of the nineteenth century, Romanian Jews were excelling in poetry: Avram Axelrad, Dumitru Iacobescu, Barbu Nemţeanu, and Felix Aderca; in theater: Moise Ronetti Roman; in literary criticism: Henric Sanielevici and Ion Trivale; in translation: Alexandru Toma; in linguistics: Moses Gaster, Heyman Tiktin, and Lazăr Şăineanu; in historiography: Iacob Psantir and Moses Schwarzfeld; in medicine: Iuliu Barasch; in sociology: Ştefan Antim; in mathematics: David Emmanuel; in mineralogy: D. Roman; and so on. Literary critic George Călinescu noted that Jews were among the first philologists and linguists of the Romanian language.19 After WWI, rabbinical works and Hebrew literature were less important. The bulk of ​Yiddish literature and especially journalism was produced in Bukovina and Bessarabia. Romanian became the dominant language, introduced in 1890 in 19. Călinescu, Istoria literaturii, 976, quoted in Cajal and Kuller, Contribuția evreilor, 21–22.

Historical Background

19

all schools. Several Hebrew-​language schools nurtured aspirations for an original Jewish culture and opposed the trend toward assimilation. Jews began to make significant contributions to Romanian modern sciences (philology, linguistics, historiography, philosophy, sociology, medicine, mathematics, mineralogy) and literature (poetry, literary criticism, translations) at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries, but only a few Romanian intellectuals, such as acclaimed literary critics Eugen Lovinescu and George Călinescu, were willing to recognize their value.20 Romanian Jewry practically ended abruptly with the extermination of almost half of its members during the Shoah (1941–44) and the subsequent mass emigration of those remaining, mostly to Israel, after 1948. Only a few thousand are still living today in Romania. Demographic Changes Demographic data regarding Jews in the Romanian Principalities before the nineteenth century are scant and inaccurate. Official reports in Moldavia document about 3,100 Jewish taxpayers in 1803 (about 2% of the general population) and around 20,000 persons in 1820. The first official census, held in 1859 at the time of the unification of ​Moldavia and Walachia and reputedly not exact, reported 135,000 Jews, or 3% of the total population. These included some 37,500 Jewish immigrants arriving between the years 1812 and 17 from Bessarabia, after the Russian Empire annexed that province. The first systematic census, that of 1899, gave a Jewish population of 266,652, or 4.5% of the total population. Subsequent censuses registered lower numbers of ​Jews: 245,064 in 1910 and 239,967 in 1912 (3.3%), owing to massive emigration following anti-​Semitic persecutions.21 The reference census of Greater Romania is that of 1930, giving demographic data on the Old Kingdom and all the other provinces included after WWI: 728,115 Jews according to ethnicity (4% of the total population) and 756,930 according to religion (4.2%); 518,754 Jews were registered as having Yiddish as their mother tongue (68.5% of those professing Judaism). Out of these in the Old Kingdom were 252,066 Jews according to ethnicity (2.81%) and 264,038 according to religion (2.94%). Only 131,913 of them (49.9%) spoke Yiddish. The figures (according to religion) were 207,000 for Bessarabia and 93,000 for Bukovina.22 Two indicators are of importance here: one is the difference between religion and ethnicity—it seems that 4.6% of the Jews preserved their religious 20.  Cajal and Kuller, Contribuția evreilor, 25, 421. 21. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:19–20. 22.  Manuilă and Treptow, Jewish Population.

20

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

identification but considered themselves Romanians. The number is higher in Muntenia Province (8.2%), evidence of an assimilation process. This percentage is much larger than in Bessarabia or Bukovina (0.7% in each province!) but smaller than in most of ​Transylvania (average of 6.3%; 3.4% in central Transylvania but almost 20% in Banat). The second indicator is even more significant: 51.1% of the Jews in the Old Kingdom spoke not Yiddish but Romanian. The internal breakdown is even more telling: 67.9% of the Jews in Moldavia spoke Yiddish compared to 21% in Walachia. In all the other provinces, the percentage of ​Yiddish speakers was significantly higher: 60% in Transylvania (except for Banat—5.4%), 79.8% in Bukovina, and 97.8% in Bessarabia. It is obvious, therefore, that the Jewish population in the Old Kingdom, and especially in Walachia, had undergone significant linguistic acculturation. According to the 1930 census, the clear majority of the Jewish population in Walachia resided in urban areas (98.4%), compared to 86.1% in Moldavia. Jews represented a moderate 8.4% of the total urban population of ​Walachia, but a significant 23.6% of that of ​Moldavia. For comparison, the percentage of the Jewish population living in urban areas in Bukovina was 73.9% and was only 48% in Bessarabia, representing nevertheless 30.2% and 26.8% respectively of the total urban population. These data also point to the fact that a sizable part of the Jewish population—52% in Bessarabia, 26% in Bukovina, and 14% in Moldavia—still lived in rural areas in the first third of the twentieth century. The much smaller percentages in Moldavia, as well as in Walachia, reflect the results of a systematic policy of expulsion of ​Jews from rural areas initiated by the Romanian authorities in 1881.

Different and Divergent Historical Narratives The Jewish presence in the Old Kingdom, although a well-​established fact, has, unfortunately, been the subject of two divergent trends of interpretations and endless political discussions centered on what has been labeled the “Jewish problem.” This has inevitably been expressed in a set of different and conflicting narratives on the history of ​Romanian Jewry. On the one hand, Romanian scholarship has almost completely glossed over the early settlement of the Jews in the area, either out of sheer ignorance of the facts or because of vested interests or a political agenda, resulting in a distorted image of ​Jews in Romania. On the other hand, Jewish scholars and publicists tend to bring to light and stress the antiquity and richness of ​Jewish life and its contribution to Romania. The process of creating a Romanian national consciousness began, according to most specialists, in the eighteenth century under the influence of the

Historical Background

21

Enlightenment and Western culture. It was the intelligentsia, taking the lead in the 1848 Revolutions, that gave a romantic aura to the emerging nationalist doctrine. Within the context of constant existential threats from all too powerful neighbors—the Ottoman, Habsburg, and Russian Empires—the idea of nationhood acquired the force of myth, centered on national unity and sovereignty while also nourishing feelings of xenophobia—directed toward both outside forces as well as identifiable internal ethnic elements. In other words, the national Romanian ideology was founded on an autochthonic cult and values aiming at defining and preserving the specific national character by stressing Românism, characterized by both ethnicity and religious orthodoxy. The fear of strangers and external threats was strengthened by the conservative nature of a community averse to change and innovations based on foreign models and suffering from an inferiority complex. The social structure of ​ Romania as of the mid-​nineteenth century was preponderantly rural and patriarchal, and Romanian culture was based on and oriented toward the traditional, popular values of the “village.” Since the peasant, with his spiritual and ethical values, was seen as the quintessential Romanian, the national doctrine developed the opposing negative image of the menacing foreigner: the “Turk,” the “Pole,” the “Hungarian” (in Transylvania), and the “Russian.” The negative model of the internal alien would be, for a time, the “Greek” and—consistently—the “Jew.” Greeks who came to the Romanian lands under the protection of the Phanariot rulers stemmed from aristocratic Greek families that originated in Constantinople and ruled Moldavia and Walachia during the eighteenth century. They occupied many important state functions, dominated trade, and influenced the culture of the elites. Within a century and a half, however, the “Greek problem” was solved through assimilation (facilitated by their being Christian Orthodox), leaving behind a “Phanariot myth” that symbolized the social and moral degradation of the nation. In time, though, even the Phanariot myth was superseded by that of the “Jewish danger” in public consciousness and in nationalist doctrines.23 The internal alien, whether Greek or Jew, which had “infiltrated” Romanian economic and social life and represented a large part of the middle class, became a constant problem in Romanian political ideology. The Jew came to represent the prototype of the foreigner, both internally because he did not wish to assimilate and externally because of ​his links with fellow Jews in other countries, which were conveniently amplified into a “world conspiracy.” By the mid-​nineteenth century, the so-​called Jewish problem in Romania was enhanced by early political anti-​Semitism appearing in Europe. However, it was not triggered directly by the growth of the Jewish population (from 3% of the general population in 1859 to 4.5% in 1899), although the few waves of immigration from 23. Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 26.

22

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Galicia and Russia were exaggerated as a “Jewish invasion.” Instead, the “problem” really appeared with the formation of the united Romanian state, when the status of the Jews, who were considered perennial foreigners, and their emancipation were called into question and became a condition for recognizing Romania’s sovereignty by the European powers. The response of the Romanian political and intellectual classes was point-​blank refusal, translated into sheer hostility toward the Jews. Among the prominent opponents were Mihail Kogălniceanu, Ion Heliade-​ Rădulescu, Cezar Bolliac, Constantin Negruzzi, Vasile Alecsandri, Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu, Vasile Conta, and Mihai Eminescu. These major figures, who had once spearheaded the 1848 Revolutions in Moldavia and Walachia with their advocacy of equal rights for all, now played a major role in the development of the new Romanian political, social, and cultural ethos.24 Anti-​Jewish attitudes, especially but not exclusively, permeated the middle and upper classes and the intellectual strata. This is how Bogdan P. Hasdeu, at the end of the nineteenth century, summed up the opinions of the Romanian peasants as conveyed to him by village teachers, “Foreigners passing through a village, if they are Christians, are welcomed by the peasants, who give them food and comfort. . . . The Jews are perceived by the people as individuals alien to the nation, to the religion, having the ugliest characteristics.”25 The rejection of foreign intervention on behalf of rights for Jews resuscitated all the medieval prejudices against the Jews and also encouraged new accusations peculiar to the modern anti-​Semitism current in Austria, Germany, and France. The “Jewish problem,” on the other hand, was associated internally with the “agrarian problem” central to Romanian economy and politics: the Jews were to blame for the penetration of capitalist ways within the country and their inevitable destructive effect on the old (feudal) structures. As in Russia and Poland, the mere presence of ​Jewish lessees and tavern keepers in the villages was considered the only and obvious cause for the degradation and pauperism of the Romanian peasant. Thus, the “Jewish problem” became a “vital” question in Romania, a central theme of the debates and discussions on the social and economic state of the country. The historian and politician Mihail Kogălniceanu said as much: “I tell you, Sirs, that no issue is more important for Moldavia than that of the Israelites.”26 More than half a century later, Emil Cioran would note in the same vein, “The 24.  Ibid., 28. 25.  “Străinii ce trec prin sat, dacă îs creştini, sînt bine priviţi de săteni, ospătîndu-​i şi îngrijindu-i. . . . Evreii sînt priviţi de popor ca nişte indivizi străini de naţie, [de] religie şi cu calităţile cele mai urîte.” Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 31. 26.  “Vă spun, domnilor, că nu este nici o cestiune mare pentru Moldova decît cestiunea israeliţilor.” Mihail Kogălniceanu, Cestiunea israelită înaintea Adunarei generale a României din 1864 (Bucharest, 1879), 19, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 29.

Historical Background

23

Judaic invasion in the past decades of ​Romania’s development has made anti-​ Semitism the essential feature of our nationalism.”27 The specter of the emancipation of the Jews, therefore, was equated with putting the Romanian economy, and in fact the whole country, at the mercy of the Jews. A whole series of stereotyped characteristics of ​“the Jew” was paraded as fearful warnings for the future. The press and literature participated intensively, from the beginning, in the crystallization and consolidation of the anti-​Semitic stereotype on the cultural level. Strengthened by the writings of prestigious intellectuals, it acquired an “illustrious” pedigree and became part and parcel of the national culture. The ultimate clichéd image of the Jew was created by Vasile Alecsandri, the most important and popular writer in the last third of the nineteenth century and father of the “Polish Jew” (Ostjude) stereotype in Romanian literature. The sidelocks and long black gabardine–wearing Jew, mumbling in a half-​Yiddish Romanian jargon, a greedy swindler devoid of any scruples, a usurer, exploiter, and poisoner (i.e., purveyor of alcohol) of the Romanian peasant, was to become the prototypical image of the Jew caricatured in Alecsandri’s popular play Lipitorile satelor (The village leeches).28 Another staunch opponent of the emancipation of the Jews was the poet Mihai Eminescu, who participated vociferously in the press debates in the years 1876 to 1879. Written at the beginning of ​his literary career, his articles on the “Jewish problem” had no special significance at the time, but after his death, when he achieved the status of a national poet endowed with a mythical aura, his nationalist ideology and attitude toward the Jews had an overwhelming influence on the orientation of the nationalist and anti-​Semitic currents that proudly claimed him as their forerunner. Around 1870, Eminescu studied in Vienna—a focus of modern European anti-​Semitism—and was close to German Romanticism, which emphasized the “national spirit,” looking to the past and predisposed to xenophobia. In Romanian society, he wrote, the impoverishment and degradation of the peasant class, the only “productive” one, was provoked by the capitalist economy, which promoted a new bourgeois class composed mostly of foreigners that suppressed, through fierce competition, the development of a native middle class. The Greeks and especially the Jews constituted a superposed parasitic stratum exploiting the peasants’ work. National economic protectionism was not directed against Jews as such but against the nature of their economic occupations; religious tolerance did not imply also rights because, says Eminescu, “the Jew deserves no rights anywhere in Europe, because he does not work. . . . He is forever consumer, never producer.”29 27. Cioran, Schimbarea la faţă, 128–34, quoted in Ornea, Romanian, 376. 28. Călinescu, Istoria literaturii, 315. 29.  “Evreul nu merită drepturi nicăiri în Europa, pentru că nu munceşte. . . . El e vecinic consumător, niciodată producător.” Eminescu, Opere, 9:301.

24

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

In the poet’s nationalist vision, economic conflicts exacerbate the imperative for national preservation—the penetration of the Jewish element into the Romanian economy morphs into an ethnic danger: “The danger resides in that they are not Romanians—they cannot be Romanians, as they are not and cannot, as a rule, be Germans, English, French, Italians”30 (emphasis in original). In Eminescu’s writings, the negative image of the foreigner as a danger achieves apocalyptic dimensions (see his Doină, a lyric poem specific to Romanian folklore); moreover, among the foreigners—even those settled for centuries in the land—the Jew is the most estranged from the national body: “foreigners of non-​Christian denomination, who cannot melt into our people.”31 He makes no distinction, in general, between the recent immigrants from Galicia or Russia and the Jews living in the Romanian lands for many centuries—all are alike under the same label, venetic (alien). Prominent philologist and writer Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu also put on display what he called the “negative qualities” of the Jew: “parasitism, dishonesty and hostility toward all other peoples.”32 In 1870, Hasdeu established a cultural society called “Românismul.” In time, the term românism, anchored in ethnicity, tradition, and religion, took on strong xenophobic and anti-​Semitic connotations, especially opposed to the “Jewish spirit,” and became central to the nationalist sociological and philosophical writings in the 1930s. A significant impact at the time was the position of philosopher and parliamentarian Vasile Conta, who proposed a scientific argument for the discrimination of the Jews that was based on the principle of the unity of race and religion as the definition of a homogenous nation. Assimilation was deemed impossible: “The kikes constitute a nation distinct from all others and are their enemies.”33 Accusing the Jews of aiming to disenfranchise the Romanians and establish a Jewish state in the country, Conta warned about “domination of the whole world by the kikes” and exhorted in the lower chamber of the parliament, “If we do not combat the Jewish element, we die as a nation.”34 Following WWI, different currents of ideological anti-​Semitism proliferated, which eventually served as a basis for an array of right-​wing political parties that overtly or even purposely promoted the struggle against the alleged “Jewish danger.” When the emancipation of the Jews became a fact (1919, 1923), the old idea of the Jews’ refusal to assimilate was replaced by another echoing the fear that the 30.  “Pericolul . . . [este] în aceea că ei nu sînt—nu pot fi români, precum în genere nu sînt nici pot fi germani, englezi, franţuji, italiani.” Ibid., 302. 31. “Străini de rit necreştin, ce nu se pot contopi cu poporul nostru” (emphasis added). Ibid., 281. 32.  “Tendinţa de a câştiga fără muncă, lipsa simţului demnităţii şi ura contra tuturor popoarelor.” Hasdeu, Studie asupra Judaismului, 30. 33.  “Jidanii constituiesc o naţiune distinctă de toate celelalte naţiuni şi duşmanii acestora.” Conta, Opere complecte, 642, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 34. 34.  “Stăpînirea lumii intregi de către jidani”; “Dacă nu luptăm contra elementului evreiesc, murim ca naţiune.” Conta, Opere complecte (Bucharest, 1914), 647, 650, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 35.

Historical Background

25

integration of the Jews into Romanian economic, social, and cultural structures endangered the national Romanian character and had to be halted. One of the most prolific ideologues cum politicians in this arena was Alexandru C. Cuza (1857–1947), professor of political economy and finance at the University of ​Jassy. For him, the Jews represented foremost an ethnic threat. “Foreign by race,” they are presented in his works as unable to assimilate. Their presence is perceived as a mortal danger: “it is no longer about a transitory invasion, but a real conquest, a life and death struggle between two different ethnicities.”35 The high percentage of ​Jews among the urban population and in the different occupations justified, in his view, a protectionist policy that required the “Romanization” of the middle class through the gradual elimination of the Jews.36 A. C. Cuza was one of the most fervent proponents of numerus clausus in the universities as a “a phase of transition toward the last phase, the only logical and therefore definitive one: numerus nullus.”37 At a later stage, in his attempts to popularize his brand of anti-​Semitism, Cuza began to appreciate the power of older theological arguments as well. Articles published in his newspaper Apărarea Naţională (National defense) are heavy with mystical stereotypes and reproductions of blood-​libel stories through the ages. In its pages, Cuza laid the foundations for what he called the “science of anti-​Semitism,” focused on Judaism as a social problem. Under the name of Cuzism in the 1930s, this “science” proposed to withhold political rights and the status of ​“native” that had been granted to the Jews, stating that “the only possible solution of the kike problem is the elimination of the kikes.”38 A close collaborator of Cuza was Nicolae C. Paulescu, professor of physiology at the Faculty of ​Medicine in Bucharest. He cultivated mainly the religious aspect of ​Romanian anti-​Semitism but also tried to find medical and psycho-​pathological arguments, focusing on the “domination” and “property” instincts that allegedly were characteristic of ​Jews. His obsessive preoccupation with the Jewish conspiracy for world domination through the Talmud as doctrine and the Cahal as organization led him to an extreme solution: “Could we exterminate them—as simply as one kills bedbugs, for example? This would be the most convenient way to get rid of them quickly.”39 35.  “Strain ca rasă”; “nu mai este vorba de o invazie trecătoare, ci de o adevarată cucerire, de o luptă pe viaţă şi pe moarte între două neamuri deosebite.” Alexandru C. Cuza, Meseriaşul român (Bucharest, 1893), vi, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 45. 36. Cuza, Meseriaşul român, xxxii, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 44. 37.  “Formă de tranziţie către forma din urmă, singura logică şi prin urmare definitivă: numerus nullus.” Cuza, Numerus Clausus, 2. 38.  “Singura soluţie posibilă a problemei jidăneşti este eliminarea jidanilor.” Alexandru C. Cuza, Doctrina naţionalistă creştină—Cuzismul: definiţii, teze, antiteze, sinteza ( Jassy, 1928), quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 47. 39.  “Putem oare să-​i exterminăm—cum bunăoară se ucid ploşniţele? Acesta ar fi mijlocul cel mai comod de a ne scăpa repede de ei.” Nicolae C. Paulescu, Fiziologia Filozofică: Talmudul, Cahalul, Franc-​Masoneria (Bucharest, 1913), 2–55, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 49.

26

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

The eminent historian Nicolae Iorga (1871–1940) was, after Eminescu, the most important promoter of the nationalist ideology—now less romanticist and more conservative, defined by traditionalism, rural life, and fear of foreigners. Iorga, the propagator of the idea of the “Romanian soul” in culture and the arts, wrote prolifically on Romanian civilization and history. Like Eminescu’s, Iorga’s nationalist ideology had a mystical base rooted in traditional rural values, opposition to modernization, and different degrees of xenophobia. During a long phase of political collaboration with A. C. Cuza from 1910 to 1922, Iorga was concerned with the alleged economic domination by the Jews and its destructive effects on the Romanian peasantry. The large number of ​Jews in old Moldavian towns such as Jassy and Suceava was perceived as an “invasion” and the presence of a strong Jewish middle class as a degradation of the national spirit exemplified by the native population.40 A feeling of danger gave his nationalist xenophobic discourse a heavy emotional charge: “an invasive nation. . . . Even in the liberal professions, even in education, sciences, literature, as lawyers, physicians, architects, professors, more and more, with their philologists, philosophers, journalists, poets, with their critics, they are literally throwing us out of our country . . . occupying our places and, even more deadly, falsifying our soul, degrading our morality with their charming journalistic and literary opium.”41 Iorga, however, was no fanatic. At another stage, his style became more conciliatory, European in spirit, rejecting violence and advancing constructive solutions. He acknowledged that the Jews had their own history in Romania—which he studied—and had contributed to Romanian culture. Nonetheless, they were foreigners and therefore dangerous for the Romanian nation because of their numbers and socioeconomic clout. He saw an imperative necessity in replacing the Jews, gradually and “peacefully,” in the important sectors of the country’s social life, with Romanian ethnic elements able to take their place. He favorably viewed redirecting Jews toward other types of occupations, such as farming. Iorga’s cultural and literary influence was felt through his multiple political activities, among them the popular university that he created at his residence in Vălenii de Munte. The juxtaposition of ​his program to promote Romanian spiritual values with the struggle against the “Jewish danger” gave anti-​Semitic discourse a legitimacy and sense of patriotic mission it had lacked before. His thinking changed, however, and in 1922–23 Iorga rejected the numerus clausus claim as an absurdity. In the context of the anti-​Semitic agitations of the period, Iorga 40.  Nicolae Iorga, Sămănatorul, 10 November 1904, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 53. 41.  “Naţie năvălitoare. . . . Pînă şi în profesiunile libere, pînă şi în învăţămînt, în ştiinţă, în literatură, ca avocaţi, ca medici, ca arhitecţi, ca profesori, tot mai mulţi, cu filologii, cu filosofii, cu ziariştii, cu poeţii, cu criticii lor, ei ne dau pur şi simplu afară din ţara noastră . . . ne ocupă locurile şi, ce e mai pierzător, ne falsifică sufletul, ne degradează moralitatea prin opiul ziaristic şi literar cu care ne încîntă” (author’s emphasis). Iorga, Iudaica, 17–18.

Historical Background

27

maintained a careful distance from his former collaborator A. C. Cuza. But his core creed remained the same: those elements, “non-​Romanian by blood,” must defer to and comply with “the rightful masters of this land.”42 Based on this unrelenting tradition of animosity toward the Jews, the popular perception of the Jewish presence in Romania, nourished by hostile xenophobic political circles and even, to some extent, by eminent historians, was that of an alien, parasitical, harmful, and even dangerous element. This perception, unfortunately not limited to Romania, can be summed up in the words of the historian Cecil Roth: “It is alleged by modern anti-​Semites . . . that the Jew is essentially a middleman, who has produced nothing; that he is an alien excrescence on Western life; and that the influence which he has had on the world’s culture, during the past two thousand years, has been entirely negative if not deleterious.”43 Not everyone actually adhered to this way of thinking—there were prominent intellectuals, such as Mihail Sadoveanu, Gala Galaction, Tudor Arghezi, and others, who opposed the trend—but for the majority of simple, honest Romanian men and women who had some knowledge of or shared experience with their Jewish compatriots, this only meant a need to permanently struggle internally with the commonly held stereotyped image of the archetypical Jew. The historical Romanian narratives prevailing at the end of the nineteenth century and in the first decades of the twentieth implied, therefore, that the Jews in the Old Kingdom of ​Romania were all part of a recent wave of immigration (“the Jewish invasion”) of foreign stock, having no roots whatsoever in Romanian history or on the Romanian land (i.e., village life). They constituted an exclusively urban population of parasitic exploiters, who were involved only in trade and financial “speculation,” while disdaining any and all “productive occupations.” The Jews were deemed an alien race hostile to any other culture and religion and as such perceived as not able and, most significantly, not willing to assimilate or integrate into the surrounding Romanian society. Conversely, as a countermeasure and in an attempt to support Jewish demands for equal rights and emancipation, Jewish historiography of the time put forward studies and collections of documents stressing the antiquity of the Jewish presence in the country, the participation of ​Jews in the settlement of the land, and the establishment of many market towns in the provinces as well as their valuable contribution to the development of ​local industry and the Romanian economy, as well as Romanian culture, in general—as seen in the first section of this chapter. 42.  “Neromâneşti prin sînge”; “stăpînii îndrituiţi ai acestui pamînt.” Nicolae Iorga, “Doctrina naţionalistă,” in Doctrinele partidelor politice (Bucharest, 1923), 45–46, quoted in Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 55. 43.  Cecil Roth, The Jewish Contribution to Civilization (New York, 1940), x, quoted in Rosman, How Jewish, 112.

28

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Onomastics as a Means of ​Refuting the Anti-​Jewish Claims Vis-​à-​v is these opposing claims, and to decisively refute the anti-​Jewish claims that negatively characterized the Jewish presence and minimized their contribution to Romanian society, I will present an overlooked historical source, the traditional surnames that were adopted by Jews in the Old Kingdom. Exploring a novel approach in historical research by using onomastic tools as an additional and valid research method for the historian, I will analyze these surnames applying a linguistic methodology that reveals semantic, morphological, and phonetic attributes of the older layers of ​Romanian as well as shedding light on the social and economic history of the land. In so doing, I will suggest answers to six main historical questions regarding Jews in the Romanian lands: 1. Is there any substantive evidence of an early Jewish permanent settlement in the Romanian Principalities prior to the growth in Jewish immigration after 1830–1840? A high concentration of specific surnames in very specific areas, as well as the typology of these surnames, strongly supports the existence of early Jewish settlement (chapter 3). 2. Was there any significant Jewish presence in the villages before the beginning of the general trend of internal migration from the rural areas toward the major urban concentrations at the end of the nineteenth century? Surnames derived from certain toponyms and specific occupations attest to a significant Jewish presence in rural surroundings (chapter 4). 3. Were Jews actively involved in occupations and professions beyond those specifically linked to the financial and mercantile sectors? A wide variety of surnames link Jews to very specific manual crafts and physical activities, demonstrating the extent of ​Jewish involvement in all aspects of economic life in the Romanian lands (chapter 5). 4. Was Jewish identity monolithic and self-​centered, resulting in willing ethnic separation, or was it more diverse, fraught with internal tensions and contradictions, and eventually open to different degrees of integration and acculturation? Is there any evidence, on the individual, group, or general level, of the Jews’ willingness to integrate into the surrounding Romanian society? The very existence of ​local or adapted Romanian surnames among Jews in the Romanian lands points to a trend toward integration for at least part of them. Different types of surnames attest to different degrees of integration (chapter 6). 5. What was the Romanian governing circles’ attitude to the Jewish population’s tendencies toward integration and the reflection of those tendencies as expressed in the Romanization of ​Jewish surnames? The lack of ​legal enforcement of surnames for Jews until late in the nineteenth century by the Romanian

Historical Background

29

authorities implies a lack of interest in the integration of the Jews. The adoption of ​R omanian surnames, which sometimes matched certain Jewish circles’ attempts to prove integration in support of their claims for emancipation and sometimes served as a means to evade the Jewish social stigma, was increasingly perceived by right-​w ing political groups as a national danger, triggering the government’s intervention to stop the process by means of ​legislation in 1940 (chapters 7 and 8). 6. Was there any difference between Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews in coping with their Romanian surroundings? Fewer in number and therefore less menacing, the Sephardic Jews were also more similar in manners, clothing, and language to Romanian society, which in turn was more open to their integration (chapter 9). It is my contention that the analysis of surnames can illuminate historical aspects and processes of ​Romanian society, by either supporting or contradicting specific points of the different anti-​Jewish historical narratives. In this case, I am confident that the analysis of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames used or adopted by Romanian Jews will contribute to providing answers to the above questions and thus support and complement the manifold historical documentation that has been the source of ​Jewish historiography.

Chapter 2

Methodological Approach

Methodological Background A name is a fundamental anthropological fact that has a linguistic basis: it is agreed upon that the linguistic category of a “name” is a universal feature of all languages in the world. As the psychoanalyst Harold Feldman stated, “Personal names are sure to be found in any inventory of cultural items which are common to all known societies.”1 The evolution of ​humanity is seen as being very closely bound up with the institutionalization of names, so much so that the American sociologist Nathan Miller claims that “the nature of societal evolution . . . may be deduced from the study of the name. . . . We are often permitted to gain, through the instrumentality of the name, a flash-​back into the dim recesses of the history of ​human society.”2 In his structuralist analysis, Claude Lévi-​Strauss too gives a central role to proper names.3 Given names therefore characterize mankind from the beginning of ​history, while surnames are a more recent development, motivated by the centralized state authorities. Individuals become aware of the significance of their surnames when they begin to look and live beyond the family circle. Belonging to the social sphere as an identification symbol, the surname can acquire a very different weight, a cumulative one, when the individual lives in a large unit that asserts its rights vis-​à-​vis those of the individual. The practice of naming and the adoption of surnames are both, inevitably, influenced by historical processes, among them emigration and acculturation. Since the individual has no other choice but to realize him- or herself in a name, which is also characteristic of the community, the newcomer tries to receive a name accepted in the new group’s world of names. Sociologists studying the motives 1.  Feldman, “Problem,” 237. 2.  Miller, “Some Aspects,” 585. 3.  Lévi-​Strauss, La Pensée, chaps. 6–7.

30

Methodological Approach

31

and frequency of name adoptions and name changes agree that the new name is being thought of as a way to attain integration, social acceptance, or prestige.4 Changes of names are common in cases of a change of role. A change of name is generally not a phenomenon of the first generation and reflects a deeper contact with the culture of the host country. A surname can refer with some likelihood to such features as social class, religion, and ethnic identity or background.5 Analysis of the character and the forms of names and surnames therefore makes possible a deeper enquiry into the historic processes they reflect. In this study, I will analyze the surnames used by Jews in relation to and in the light of existing historical documentation, including legislative decisions, periodicals, and traditional documents. I will explain in detail the principles of the linguistic and semantic methodology that will be used to analyze surnames and categorize them.

Jewish Names and Naming Patterns Traditionally, a Jewish personal name is either a sacred name (shem kodesh), given, for instance, to Jewish boys at their ritual circumcision, or a vernacular (non-​ Hebrew) name (kinnui) for everyday use. The given names that appear in Jewish religious documents are generally sacred names from one of the following groups: biblical names such as Abraham, David, Nathan, and Samuel; Talmudic or other names from the Hebrew or Aramaic lexicons such as Abba, Ben Zion, Chaim, and Nachman; a number of names borrowed from Greek: Alexander, Kalonymus, and Todros; and from Latin: Senior. Jewish communal record books (Pinkasim) are useful for analyzing Jewish names in Eastern Europe before the nineteenth century. They usually list registered sacred names as well as kinnuim that appear as the second part of a double given name, according to the following patterns: Derived from the sacred name: Isaac/Aizik, Israel/Isserl, Solomon/Zalmen Phonetically similar to the sacred name: Benjamin/Bunim, Menachem/Mendel Similar meaning in different languages: Ashe/Zelig (happy), Uri/Shraga (light), Zevi/Hirsch (deer) Traditionally related: Arie/Yehuda, Benjamin/Wolf, Naphtali/Hertz6

4.  Maas, “Integration and Name”; Broom, Beem, and Harris, “Characteristics.” 5.  For a convenient summary, see A. Demsky, “An Introduction to The Memi De-​Shalit Database of ​Jewish Family Names,” Diaspora Museum (Tel Aviv) online. 6.  Cf ​Jacob’s blessing of ​his offspring, Gen. 49.

32

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

The traditional naming pattern among Jews was rather simple: “Isaac ben Yaacov,” that is, “Isaac son of ​Yaacov.” In documents written in Aramaic the structure is the same, the patronymic particle bar being used rather than ben: “Tanchum bar Aba.” In the Pinkasim, in some cases, instead of the Hebrew pattern “X ben Y,” the Yiddish equivalent “X Ys” can be found, with the Yiddish possessive mark added to the father’s name: Hillels, Kalmens, Nisens. A few names are made using the Hebrew word ish (man), as in Ish Tropa, Ish Stein, also designating descendants of a particular person. In the examples given above, these patterns are the equivalent of surnames, which is not always the case for indications of ​Kohanic (priestly) or Levitic origin or their acronyms: Katz (Kohen Tzedek) or Segal (S’gan Levi), as can be seen in examples like Isaac Kahana ben Yehoshua ha-​Kohen, where Kahana is a surname while ha-​Kohen indicates priestly lineage. The surnames of community elders appearing in the Pinkasim are either based on place-​names from Western and Central Europe—Auerbach, Epstein, Horowitz, Rapaport, Spira—or derived from the Hebrew lexicon—Ashkenazi, Chefetz, Margolioth. Since there is no certainty that they were hereditary (which is the marker for family names), they should be considered at this stage as nicknames rather than real surnames. The same goes for the few Jews mentioned other than the elders, when occupations or places of residence were added to the given names: for example, Ber Kovna (from Kovno), Zalmen Shamash (the synagogue sexton). Another useful source for analyzing Eastern European Jewish names for the period is tombstone inscriptions in Jewish cemeteries. Surnames are unfortunately very rarely found on tombstones throughout Eastern Europe until the end of the eighteenth century. Jewish names are documented also in non-​Jewish sources. Jewish names in Russian sources from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries7 show an early tendency to record the sacred names in a Slavonized manner, usually through addition of Slavic suffixes: Avrametz, Avrashko, Berko, Moshechko, Mordish. Slavonization of ​Jewish names occurred particularly in localities where only a few Jews lived among the local population. In the eighteenth century, as the Jewish population grew and non-​Jewish scribes gradually became familiar with Jewish names, forms ending in the Yiddish diminutive suffix -l, as in Berl, Yankl, became much more common. There is evidence, on the other hand, of given names of completely Slavic origin, such as Drobna and Khlavno, and of calqued translations of ​Jewish names: Bogdan from Elnathan or Jonathan, Dobrusha from Guta, and so on. Among the Jewish names attested in Romanian-​language documents from 7.  Regesty i nadpisi: Svod materialov dlya istorii evreev Rusii, vol. 1 (Petersburg, 1899), quoted in Beider, Dictionary Russian Empire, 4–9.

Methodological Approach

33

roughly the same period8 are names such as Lupul and Cerbul that are obviously Romanian translations of ​Wolf and Hirsch. Most common in Slavic sources are Jewish names made up of a given name and a patronymic. Almost all patronymics were created by adding the suffixes -ovich or -evich to the father’s given name: for example, Abram Fajbishevich. Other suffixes used in patronymics were -uk, -enko, and -chuk. In the case of a woman, the second part of the name could be derived from the husband’s or the father’s given name: Sora Aaronova. Along with patronyms, many nicknames appear in Slavic and other non-​ Jewish sources. Some are based on occupational names or personal characteristics: Abram Dlugach (long), Shalomka Kotlyar (kettle maker), Leizer Vinik (wine dealer). Others are based on place-​names (toponyms) with the addition of the suffix -ski: Movsha Yanovski, Shaya Novgorodski. The major purpose of those nicknames was to distinguish one person from another with the same given name living in the same place. It is sometime difficult to know if the last element of a name is a nickname or a surname (i.e., a hereditary family name). Also, it is not certain these were actual nicknames, or whether Jews were only recorded as such by the Christians living in the same area. Moreover, the number of ​Jews listed with nicknames in Slavic registers in the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries is small compared with those mentioned only by given name or given name and patronymic. Generally speaking, toward the end of the eighteenth century, the Jewish population living in Eastern Europe (i.e., Polish-​Lithuanian Commonwealth, Romanian Principalities) did not have surnames. The standard naming pattern recorded at that time in Slavic documents was the given name and a patronymic. In Romanian documents only the given name was generally recorded, sometimes together with the profession.

Jewish Surnames: A Typology This situation changed with the redrawing of ​Europe’s eastern borders following the three partitions of ​Poland (1772–95) and the rise of modern centralized national states, which needed to have full control of their tax-​collection apparatus and the military service system. Actual legislation making the use of surnames mandatory for Jews was first implemented by the Austrian emperor Joseph II on 23 July 1787 (“Das Patent über die Judennamen”), complemented in 1805 for the Jews of western Galicia. Corresponding laws were later given in other regions of ​ 8. Eskenasy, Izvoare şi mărturii, 121–22.

34

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Europe: Frankfurt am Main, 1807; France, 20 July 1808; Baden, 1809; Westphalia, 1812; Prussia, 11 March 1812; Bavaria, 1813; Wurttemberg, 1828; Posen Territory, 1833; Saxony, 1834. In the Russian Empire, the first law was enacted on 9 December 1804, but the process was long and slow, as proven by the need to promulgate a new law on 31 May 1835. In the Polish territories known as the Kingdom of ​Poland within the Russian Empire, mandatory surnames for Jews were introduced following the law of 27 March 1821, and its repeated extensions through 1825. It can be concluded, therefore, that the adoption or creation of ​Jewish surnames at the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth centuries was in general not the result of a natural process undertaken by the Jews themselves but an imposition by the surrounding non-​Jewish society. This fact heavily influenced the time and place of surname adoption, its structure (Slavic, Germanic, or other suffixes), origin/etymology, and subsequent changes. Following is a typology of ​Jewish surnames (Ashkenazi) according to the semantics of the words on which they are based. As there are a few different categorizations of these surnames, the author has adopted here the criteria, and examples, used by Alexander Beider in A Dictionary of ​Jewish Surnames from the Russian Empire, 2nd ed. (2008). Surnames Indicating Kohen or Levite Origin Kohen—Kagan, Kogan, Kahane, Kohn, rarely Kaganov, Kaganovich, Kahanson; Kaplan (priest in Polish), Kaplanov, Kaplanovich, Kaplanson; the acronym Katz, i.e., meaning “a true priest,”9 as a hereditary surname, Katzman Levi (not always indicating a Levite origin but also a patronymic from the given name Levi)—Loevi, Lev, Levin, Levit, rarely Levitin, Levison, Levinson; the acronym Segal, Segalovich Rabbinical Surnames These are a limited group of surnames used before the nineteenth century by rabbinical authorities, famous religious scholars, and heads of communities. Derived from place-​names: Auerbach, Epstein, Frenkel, Heilpern, Horowitz, Katzenellenbogen, Landau, Luria, Rapaport, Spira Based on the Hebrew lexicon: Ashkenazi, Chefetz, Jaffe, Margolioth, Schor, Teomin The Lithuanian rabbinical surname Rabinovich 9.  According to Professor A. Demsky this Ashkenzic surname has the meaning of ​“true/authentic priestly (lineage).” Cf. the Hebrew term avnei tsedek, i.e., “true weights” (Lev. 19:36) as opposed to avnei mirmah, i.e., “false weights” (Mic. 6:11).

Methodological Approach

35

Surnames Derived from Toponyms These are formed with the name of the place from which the bearer came, to distinguish him/her in another place (following emigration, expulsions). Semantic derivation: from place names with no suffix: Lemberg, Pinsk, Uman Morphologic derivation from place names with suffixes (-ski, -ov, -in): Bershadski, Lubelski, Dubnov, Gluskin, Smolenskin Semantic derivation from the names of inhabitants of those places: Umanets, Vilenchik Addition of the Yiddish suffix -er used to create adjectives from toponyms as well as from names for inhabitants of places: Vilner, Berliner Patronymic Surnames These are based on sacred names as well as vernacular names (kinnui) in their original, colloquial, hypocoristic, or pet forms. Identical to given names: Abram, Hirsch, Mayer, Salomon, Wolf, Zelik; also given names with the addition -man: Fridman, Gutman, Lipman, Kaufman or Aizikman, Berman, Kopelman Formed with the additions of patronymic suffixes or prefixes: Slavic Suffixes -ovich or -evich Abramovich, Itskovich, Izrailevich, Yankelevich -ov or -ev Davidov, Peisakhov, Kopelev -in Aizikin, Peisakhin -ski Berkovski, Senderovski -uk Beniuk, Leizeruk -chik or -chuk Khaimchik, Falchuk, Liberchuk -enko Faibishenko, Mordushenko, Ovseenko -enok or -anok Gershanok, Shmaenok Germanic Suffixes -son (sohn) Abramson, Ioselson, Natanson, Yakobson -s Ioels, Kalmens, Ioines, Motlis -kind Aronskind, Khononkind Hebrew suffix -i Itsoki, Gershuni Hebrew prefix “ben” Bendavid, Benyakov, as well as Slavic calque: Sin Meer Surnames formed with artificial extensions: -berg: Eliasberg, Hirschberg; -feld: Hertzfeld, Hirschfeld; -shtein: Aronshtein, Bronshtein, Borukhshtein; -tal: Joachimsthal, Meiertal; -bein: Fishbein, Volfbein

36

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Matronymic Surnames These are in their original, colloquial, or hypocoristic or pet forms, with no separation into sacred names or vernacular (women were not called up to read the Torah). Identical to given names (very rare): Drazne, Malka, Tauba Formed with matronymic suffixes: Slavic suffixes -ovich Esterovich, Reizelovich, Yakhnovich -ov Estrov, Perlov, Zeldov -in Khanin, Rokhkin, Tseitlin -ich Goldich, Mindich, Rosich -uk Bashuk, Dobruk, Yakhniuk -chuk Bebchuk, Nekhamchuk -enko Goldenko, Slovenko -ski Goldanski, Khavinski, Taubinski Germanic suffixes -son (sohn) Beileson, Faigeson, Roninson, Tsiperson -s Dines, Khaves, Ites, Pesis, Riveles -man (from the Freidisman, Rivesman, Roizenman husband’s name) Surnames formed with artificial extensions: -shtein (Tsipershtein) Occupational Surnames Most occupational surnames were formed semantically from nouns or adjectives designating trades, professions, or occupations. Formed with suffixes or prefixes: Slavic suffixes -nik -(sh)chik -(y)ar

Germanic suffixes

-a(r)zh or -ash -or -ik -er -l

Dvornik, Kupernik, Oleinik, Tabachnik, Tsukernik Bakaleishchik, Perepletchik Aptekar, Korchmar, Pekar, Sklyar, Stolyar Bakalyash, Mlinarzh Introligator, Faktor, Destylator Kovalik, Melamedik, Podkovik Beker, Fidler, Hendler, Kremer, Lerer, Treger, Shnaider Shmidel

Methodological Approach

37

Hebrew prefix

-bal ( synagogue sexton). Loan translation (calque, Lehnübersetzung) that is word-​to-​word: when an indigenous equivalent is matched to a new meaning, resulting in a new word: Süss (sweet) > Dulce (sweet), unknown as a (sur)name in Romanian; sometimes a name is reduced to plain translation: Roth > Roşu (red). Total import of the meaning together with the word, which can be a foreign word (Fremdwort), a word imported recently and felt to be foreign; it is 13.  Haugen, “The Analysis,” 213–16.

Methodological Approach

43

accepted by the common language after a transition period of use: Belfer (teacher’s assistant) from the German Beihelfer (through Yiddish) or a regular loan (Lehnwort), naturalized, whose foreign origin is no longer perceived; completely integrated into the system, participating in the derivation and composition process: Hahamu (ritual slaughterer) from the Hebrew hakham. There are also different degrees of adaptation—the process of interaction of the foreign word with the indigenous systemic environment generates formal transformations: graphic, phonetic, morphologic. From this point of view, different degrees of phonetic and/or morphologic changes can be observed: Zero, when no element of the end language (in this case Romanian) affects the adopted form: Abramowicz, Schneider, Schwartz Partial, when only a part (spelling, sound, suffix, etc.) of the loanword is substituted by an indigenous form: Abramovici, Şnaider, Şvarţ or Şfarţ Total, when the foreign linguistic entity is changed into a pure indigenous form: Avramescu, Croitor, Negru Among those Jews who adopted the Romanian language or used it to a certain extent in their everyday life in the Old Kingdom, many bore surnames that fit almost all of these categories.

Sources Besides the general demographic reports mentioned above, the present study is based on a broad range of sources containing references to Jewish given names and surnames in Romania, including published documents (e.g., Benjamin, Sources and testimonies about the Jews in Romania, vols. 1, 2, 2 part 2, 3, 3 part 2; “SOCEC” Year Book of Greater Romania), monographs and prosopographies of different Jewish communities in Romania, resident lists, newspapers, and so on. Published and unpublished documents were extensively used, with special focus on material related to the Holocaust and WWII period: forced labor, deportation, and ghetto/ camp lists available in the Yad Vashem Archives, as well as the Pages of ​Testimony Names Memorial Repository in the Hall of ​Names at Yad Vashem. In addition, the study made use of a large number of ​historical, sociological, onomastic, and linguistic works in various languages (see bibliography). The linguistic analysis of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames as well as the statistical data are based on a names database assembled from the above

44

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

sources, which include 276,095 name records documenting Romanian Jews present on the territory of Greater Romania, most of them listed for persecution on racial grounds by the Romanian authorities during the Holocaust period (1940– 44). The database contains a large number of personal records having reference to a place of ​birth, the main indicator as to the origin/use of a specific surname. In order to permit a comprehensive analysis, a number of examples of surnames were culled from different additional sources as well.

Statistical Analysis As stated, the statistical data are based on a database including 276,095 name records of ​Romanian Jews living in Greater Romania. However, the database contains only 156,401 personal records having reference to a specific place of ​birth, which is the main indicator as to the origin/use of a specific surname. The breakdown by regions is as follows: % of names Bukovina Bessarabia Moldavia Walachia Old Kingdom (no specific location) Transylvania Romania (no specific location)

36.99 28.36 19.46 8.07 0.64 6.31 0.17

Of these records, 146,263 (93.5%) refer specifically to Jews born in the extended Old Kingdom (including Bukovina and Bessarabia); the others were Jews born in Transylvania or whose registered place of ​birth is simply Romania. This smaller database of 146,263 location-​specific records will serve as a basis for the statistical data referring to surnames related to places within the area of this study. The entire 276,095 name records cover 28,369 different surnames, including their phonetic and graphic variants. An analysis of these different surnames shows that most (close to 92%) of these are common or “imported” Jewish surnames from all the categories described above (of either German or Yiddish origin, such as Berkowitz, Blumenfeld, or Grossmann, or surnames adopted from or adapted to Polish or Russian, such as Portnoi, Reznik, etc.). The surnames with the highest frequency within the area of the extended Old Kingdom are:

Methodological Approach

Grinberg Schwartz Katz Shekhter Segal

# of records

% of all records

1,350 1,346 1,325 1,040 919

0.92 0.92 0.90 0.71 0.63

45

Besides these common Jewish surnames, 2,229 of the surnames in the database (about 7.8% of the total of 28,369 surnames), covering 18,719 individual records, are either Romanian or Romanized. It is very important to stress that when referring only to the Old Kingdom proper, to the exclusion of ​Bessarabia and Bukovina, the percentage of ​Romanian or Romanized surnames proves to be significantly higher: 13.65%. In a nominal list of 5,939 Jewish soldiers, all from the Old Kingdom, fallen, wounded, POW, MIA, or decorated within the ranks of the Romanian Army during WWI this percentage reaches 19.72%.14 The most frequent Romanian or Romanized surnames within the area of the extended Old Kingdom used to be:

Croitoru Ciubotaru Cojocaru Avram Iancu

# of records

% of all records

712 653 649 599 492

0.26 0.24 0.23 0.22 0.18

These specifically Romanian or Romanized surnames can be classified into a few different categories according to their etymology and formation (about 19% of the surnames have unclear etymons and are thus difficult to categorize): 17.55% are derived mostly from toponyms formed with the suffix -(e)an(u): Cornişteanu, Fundoianu, Herţanu 16.86% are derived from names of occupations, formed with the suffix -u(l): Cojocaru, Boiangiu, Harabagiu, Sacagiu 14.29% are derived from old-​style patronymics and matronymics: Sin Bercu, Sin Moişe, Sin Ruhla or Afrimei, Aperlei 14. Filderman, Adevărul, 3–203

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

7.72% are derived from patronymics formed with the suffix -(e)scu: Alterescu, Avramescu, Suharescu 4.87% are derived from patronymics formed with the suffixes -ea and -iu: Conea, Juclea, Basiliu, Chisiliul 4.59% are derived from personal characteristics formed with the suffix -u(l): Ciacâru, Lungu, Şchiopu 4.32% are derived from personal characteristics describing objects, plants, and animals: Cucuruz, Degetaru, Găină 1.79% are derived from given names, with the addition of the suffix -u: Iancu, Lupu, Leibu 1.19% are derived from patronymics formed with the suffixes -vici and -sohn: Buiumovici, Lupovici, Iosubzon, Şaimzon 0.51% are derived from foreign surnames translated into Romanian by calque: Dulce (>Süss), Roşu (>Roth), Epure (>Zając), Neamţu (>Deutsch) A last but important group is special: these are given names adopted as surnames as such, with no suffixes, according to the pattern “XY,” where Y is the name of the father: “Ion Petru,” which is rather unusual for Ashkenazi Jews in other areas. Furthermore, many have specifically Romanian graphic/phonetic forms: Avram, Haim, Şloim, Hoişie, while some are unique to the area: Buium, Iancu, Iosub, Manole. These surnames represent 6.57% of the total. It is interesting to note that these Romanian and Romanized surnames have an especially higher frequency in one specific region, according to the following breakdown: % of names Moldavia Walachia Bessarabia Bukovina Old Kingdom (no specific location)

70.82 11.15 10.42 5.82 1.79

An altogether different and special group is constituted by the Sephardic surnames—about 200 surnames (0.7% of the total) and 840 records—mostly represented in Walachia, which will be treated separately. According to our methodological approach, Romanian and Romanized surnames relevant to the subjects of the different chapters will be identified, investigated, and categorized in order to be analyzed later from a linguistic and semantic perspective.

Methodological Approach Total surname bearers

47

Romanian and Romanized surnames

900 350

Sephardic surnames

50

ve

r

a

r

ia

ld av ia

b

o e D a n u b R i ve r

M Bucharest

25

Ri

r

NIA

ia Walach

0

er

i ve

n

Jassy

VA YL NS A TR

est

hR

a ss Be

ut

vi

Dorohoi

Dni

Pr

B uko a

Black Sea

50 mi

Map 3.  Geographic location of the main concentrations of ​Romanian and Romanized Jewish surnames

The results of such analysis, together with statistical data concerning the frequency of the surnames and their location (map 3), will then be used, in reference to existing historical documentation. This will help clarify the historical circumstances and processes that may have influenced the decisions leading to adopting specific surnames.

Chapter 3

Antiquity of ​Early Jewish Settlement Through the Prism of Surnames

One of the most important arguments used by Jews in their continued struggle for civil and political rights in the Old Kingdom was the antiquity of ​Jewish settlement in the Romanian lands. Organizations such as the General Association of ​Native Jews and later the Union of ​Native Jews argued that, unlike the “foreign” Jews that came in more recent immigration groups, the “native” Jews were born and raised in the country and their families had been living there for many generations, going back to the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The native Jews had adopted the Romanian language and local customs; the argument went that they were Romanian patriots and had served in the army, and thus were entitled to the same equal rights as their Romanian neighbors.1 The adoption of ​Romanian surnames supplies important corroboration of the historical documentation as to the antiquity of the Jewish presence in the Romanian lands. The fact that a significant 8% up to 13.6% of the documented Jewish surnames are Romanian or Romanized is proof of a trend that can be explained either by the adoption of a Romanian nickname as a hereditary surname in earlier times or by the change of a common Jewish surname to a more Romanian-​sounding one (Romanization) at a later stage. An analysis of the different categories of these surnames will show that at least part of them belong to an early period. As a small illustration, the notable Jewish Romanian historian and publicist Elias Schwarzfeld noted the beginnings of the process of ​Romanization of certain Jewish surnames in an article published in the newspaper Egalitatea of 3 June 1911, when referring to bearers of surnames such as (Iţic and Herşcu) Lozneanu, (Leiba) Câmpulungeanu, (Leiba) Tatar, recorded among others on a list of ​Jews affiliated with a synagogue in Fălticeni in 1795. It is interesting that he was pointing mainly to surnames created with the suffix -eanu; the suffix -escu was still relatively rare at that time and would become common only during the nineteenth century. 1. Brociner, Chestiunea evreilor, 12.

48

Antiquity of Early Jewish Settlement Through the Prism of Surnames

49

Early Jewish Settlement: The Native Jews As mentioned above, a more significant Jewish immigration started at the beginning of the second third of the nineteenth century, during the military occupation of ​Moldavia by the Russian Army (1828–34) and related in part to the introduction of the compulsory military service law in the Russian Empire in 1827.2 Originating principally in Ukraine, Bessarabia, and Galicia, a great many of the immigrants were Hasidim, spoke Yiddish, and tended to settle in places already having a Jewish population—many chose Jassy, for example—rather than establishing new settlements from scratch within a preponderantly Romanian surrounding. Coming from the Habsburg and Russian Empires, where laws compelling Jews to adopt hereditary surnames had long been implemented, from 1787 to 1805 and 1804 to 1835, respectively,3 they generally brought with them Jewish surnames common in their places of origin, as many historical documents show (list of Austrian subjects, Jassy 1833: Leibu Flighelman, Izrail Olivănbaum, Herş Glazman, Iosăle Natanzun, etc.; list of inhabitants of ​Brăila 1838: Herşcu Bluman, Smil Vainberg, Moise Goldman, etc.).4 Given their specific religious way of ​life, their speaking Yiddish, and their connections to their countries of origin, it is unreasonable to think that they had any real incentive to rush into adopting Romanian surnames or Romanizing their own right after arriving in the new country. The official legal status of the Jews in the Romanian lands was that of ​“non-​ Christian foreigners.” However, there was a marked distinction between those who enjoyed the protection of a foreign power and the local Jews, who depended entirely on the Romanian authorities. The status of ​“protected” Jew, generally known as sudit (foreign subject), was introduced beginning in 1782 and was intended to defend the interests of recent Jewish immigrants, either as subjects of the Habsburg and Russian Empires or later as beneficiaries of protected status by one of the other four “collective guarantor” European powers: Prussia, France, England, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. These Jews would be registered at the local foreign consulates and have the benefit of diplomatic protection as well as of significant tax exemptions. Interestingly enough, a reminder of the relative significance and frequency of this status was preserved in Jewish Romanian surnames such as Sudit, eight records in the research corpus, and Supusu (“subject” in Romanian), three records. Another common term for this status was târtan or tîrtan, derived from the German Untertan (subject),5 used for those under the protection of the Habsburg 2.  E. Schwarzfeld, “Evreii din Moldova sub Reglementul”; Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:30–31. 3. Beider, Jewish Surnames Russian Empire, 9–10. 4.  Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 2, 180. 5.  Coteanu, Seche, and Seche, Dex: Dicționarul Explicativ, 958.

50

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Empire; in time this would become a Romanian pejorative term for Jews. Actually, Tartan is documented in a list of contemporary Romanian surnames6 but not in our names database. It should be noted, however, that not all new immigrants enjoyed the foreign powers’ protection, this being generally extended to the more affluent; there were also cases, however, in which local well-​off ​Jews obtained this status in order to avoid paying higher local taxes. In contrast, there were local Jews whose status was that of raia (local subject), shared together with the general population of the Romanian lands and implying the obligation to pay a series of different taxes to the Romanian authorities. In historical documents of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and even the beginning of the nineteenth century, a further distinction was made between “invited” Jews and native Jews. The first were those invited or welcomed to settle in the villages or on the estates and to develop or establish new provincial market towns on the legal basis of a hrisov, a princely letter-​patent granting them specific privileges and temporary tax exemptions, hence the name of their status: hrisovoliţi or hrisoveliţi. Along with these, as well as prior to them, were the native Jews, pământeni, whose origins were either simply forgotten or remote enough not to be deemed worthy of mention in the documentation. Some of the hrisoveliţi would retain their foreign allegiance and apply for the status of sudit, while many others became raia(le) once their temporary tax exemptions expired. In time, all “unprotected” Jews came to be known in the public discourse as native Jews. Recognized historians, such as Nicolae Iorga, had to acknowledge the existence of a significant population of native Jews.7 Even the famous poet Mihai Eminescu occasionally recognized the reality of ​Jews “for a long time in the country . . . that is for well over a hundred years.”8 However, this fact was ignored by the prevailing public historical narrative. These native Jews would therefore live for generations either scattered— as craftsmen, merchants, innkeepers, millers, or estate administrators—among, or at least surrounded, in the provincial market towns, by a large majority of Romanian-​language speakers. Because of their specific way of ​life of permanent contact with the surrounding population, they eventually had to learn and use the official Romanian language and sometimes even adapt their names in order to facilitate things. Historical documents from the early seventeenth century9 include testimonies given by Jews that mention conversations in the Romanian language, in matters of financial and even criminal trials. Signatures could be registered either in Romanian written in Cyrillic characters or in Hebrew. 6.  Peţu and Torja, In Constelaţia, 332. 7.  Iorga, “Histoire des Juifs.” 8.  “De mult în ţară, încoace . . . adică de-​o sută şi mai bine de ani.” Mihai Eminescu, Timpul 4, no. 221 (7 October 1879): 1, quoted in Nedelcea, “Eminescu,” 308. 9. Eskenasy, Izvoare şi mărturii, 75–76, 121–22.

Antiquity of Early Jewish Settlement Through the Prism of Surnames

51

In such sources, Jewish given names such as Cerbul, Lupul, and Ursul are found that are obviously Romanian translations of ​Hirsch (deer), Wolf, and Ber (bear). Non-​Jews also used Lupul and Ursul, but among Romanians these names were not as common, and were sometimes thought to have magic qualities and thus given to children whose lives were threatened by illness or death in order to protect them, or in the hope they would not be attacked by their animal namesakes.10 On the other hand, Cerbul, documented during the seventeenth century, is a specifically Romanian Jewish given name created by calque translation, suggesting a very early presence—it is parallel to the French Cerf in Alsace and is quite unusual for the Ashkenazi realm, where Hirsch is the norm. The same can be argued about the given name Leu, as in “Solomon son of ​Leu” (Moldova’s customs register at Mogilev 1765–66),11 which is a specific Romanian rendition of ​Leib (lion) and was unknown as a given name among non-​Jews. Much like the Slavonization of ​Jewish names alluded to before (chapter 2, section “Jewish Names and Naming Patterns”), the Romanization of ​Jewish names seemingly occurred particularly in localities where only a few Jews lived surrounded by a large local population. In the nineteenth century, however, as the Jewish population grew and Romanians became more familiarized with Jewish names, the need for this pattern of ​Romanization became less acute. As Hirsch, Ber, and Leib became more common, Romanian Jewish given names such as Ursul and Leu disappeared while Cerbul faded, though they were preserved as Jewish Romanian surnames (Ursu—Ursuleanu, Leu—Leuleanu, Cerbu—Cerbeanu). At a time, the seventeenth through the nineteenth centuries, and in a land where there were no formal regulations regarding the adoption of ​hereditary surnames, the Jews seemingly had to adopt and use nicknames that would distinguish them from other Jews bearing similar given names. In time these would evolve into hereditary surnames.

Romanian Jewish Surnames Adopted at the Time of the Early Settlement A statistical analysis of ​Jewish surnames in the extended Old Kingdom reveals a very high concentration of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames in certain very specific regions: The border belt of northern Moldavia: the provincial market towns of ​Herţa, Darabani, Mihăileni, Burdujeni, Fălticeni, and the towns of ​Botoşani and Dorohoi along the border with Habsburg Bukovina and Russian Bessarabia 10.  Peţu and Torja, In Constelaţia, 41. 11. Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, part 2, 58–59.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

The city of ​Jassy To a somewhat lesser extent, Bucharest and Ploieşti in central Walachia All of these locations coincide with the areas of the oldest/earliest Jewish settlement in the Romanian Principalities, a fact that points to a close relation between the phenomenon of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames and the early settlement. It should be noted that Bucharest, as the capital of the country, and Jassy and Chernovitz, as major provincial capitals, were main centers of attraction for Jewish—and non-​Jewish—internal migration, and, as a result, some of the Romanian surnames documented in these cities might in fact be surnames of families originating in smaller provincial places. An analysis of the different categories of ​Romanian surnames can, in my opinion, reinforce the antiquity argument. Methodological note: the numbers for productivity, frequency, and geographic distribution of the surnames are all based on the names database, which includes 156,401 personal records having reference to a specific place of ​birth and documenting Jews in Greater Romania between the years 1941 and 1944 (see chapter 2, section “Sources”). By productivity, I mean the capacity of a naming pattern to serve as a model for the creation of a large number of different surnames having the same format; the frequency ratio represents the number of nominal records (i.e., individuals) for each unique surname. Surnames Derived from Old-​Style Patronymics and Matronymics As seen above, the most common and traditional pattern for nickname and surname creation in Romanian was the one using the given name of the father (patronymic): “X son of ​Y,” where Y is the name of the father. This gives “Ion [fiu] a lu’ Petru” in colloquial Romanian, equivalent to standard literary Romanian “Ion fiul lui Petru.” The genitival article was sometimes lost later on giving way to an alternate pattern “XY”—Ion Petru, Maria Ion—to be discussed separately. Historical documentation also offers examples such as “Sandul lui Gligorii” (Botoşani 1766). An interesting note is that this Romanian pattern was paralleled by the equivalent Slavonic pattern “Ion sin Petru,” where sin means son (Rom. fiu), apparently used for official registration purposes (Slavonic was the sacred language of the the Orthodox Church and by extension used in chancellery documents). In Romanian documents from the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries, the words sin (or sân) and fiu are coexistent as patterns for name registration. However, sin fades out and disappears at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Examples: “Enache sin Manea” ( Jassy, 1754), “Gavril sin Petraşcu” (Târgu Neamţ, 1764), “Constantin sin Popii lui Pamfilie” (Bârlad, 1767).

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In the Romanian lands, Jews adopted and used both patronymic patterns, which matched the traditional Hebrew one: “Cerbul jidov sân Moscul” ( Jassy, 1755), “Leiba fiul lui Solomon” (Burdujeni, 1861). However, for the purpose of surname creation only the Slavonic pattern seems to have been selected, probably because Slavonic was used in official records, resulting in surnames such as Sin Aizic, Sin Bercu, Sin Faibiş, Sin Herşcu, Sin Iancu. This may also indicate that the “Sin Y” pattern was established and transmitted in writing rather than by oral tradition. It should be noted that the patronymic pattern was not limited exclusively to male descendancy, as can be seen in matronymic components: Sin Frima, Sin Ruhla, Sin Sura, and others. Romanian linguists did not overlook this phenomenon, as shown by the following dictionary entry: “sin m. (vsl. rus. syn, fiu, bg. sîrb. sin; germ. sohn). Patronymic particle: Ion sin Mihai (Today mostly used when referring to ‘Jews,’ often with a nuance of irony: Leiba sin Avrum, Mehǎlǎ sin Dudl, Nuhǎm sin Iţic).”12 To be sure, the shortened pattern “XY” proved to be much more prolific, resulting in a large number of surnames such as Marcu Iosub, Solomon Lupu, and so on (see next section) but without the possibility of discerning whether the original missing genitival particle was sin or al lui. Another vernacular13 patronymic pattern, the one using the suffix -ea, was also adopted and preserved in Romanian surnames such as Ştrulea (Ştrul’s son/daughter), Cunea (“Co(h)n” or “Ku(h)n”’s son/daughter), and even Cioclea (the Cioclu—gravedigger’s son/daughter). The common matronymic pattern was “Ion a[l] Mariei,” using the genitive case, later reduced to “a Mariei,” where the suffix -ei is the specific mark, as in A Mariei or Amariei. It was a rather vernacular, antiquated pattern that, compared with other patronymics, was used relatively infrequently. Nevertheless, it too was adopted and used by Jews, resulting in surnames such as Afrimei, Aperlei, and Ameiroae. Surname creation according to this pattern took as a basis not only the mother’s given name but sometimes also her occupation or marital status when this was considered a better identifier: Adăscăliţei (the teacher’s son/daughter), Amoaşei (the midwife’s), Avădanei (the widow’s). It is interesting to note is that this matronymic pattern was even used with a male component, as in Arabinului (the rabbi’s). Patronymic- and matronymic-​based surnames such as Sin Bercu, Sin Moişe, Sin Ruhla or Afrimei, Aperlei represent together a significant 14.29% of all Romanian 12.  “Particulǎ care aratǎ descendenţa: Ion sin Mihai (Astǎzi se zice mai mult despre Jidani, de multe ori c’o nuanţǎ de ironie: Leiba sin Avrum, Mehǎlǎ sin Dudl, Nuhǎm sin Iţic).” August Scriban, Dicţionaru limbii româneşti, ( Jassy, 1939), quoted in DEX Online. 13.  Linguists distinguish for any language a large set of styles or registers from which the speaker selects according to the social setting of the moment. One distinction would be between upper-​class and lower-​class registers. In this context, the vernacular is “the most basic style,” that is, a casual variety used spontaneously rather than self-​consciously. Labov, Sociolinguistic Patterns, 208. Here it is used as equivalent to a lower- or popular-​class (as opposed to educated) register.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Total surname bearers

Sin Bercu pattern

140 70 20 5

Abasei pattern Dnie

ste

rR

i ve

r

Bu

Botoșani

v

a

Pr

ut

h

r a ss r ve Be Ri

ko

in

Bucharest

25

e D a n u b R i ve r

ia Walach

0

ia

o

NIA

b

M

VA YL NS A TR

a

ld av ia

Jassy

Black Sea

50 mi

Map 4.  Geographic location of the main concentrations of patronymic surnames based on archaic patterns

surnames, as opposed to only 7.72% for more modern patronymics formed with the suffix -(e)scu. Moreover, most surnames fitting the above patterns are recorded in the border belt area of northern Moldavia: the “Sin Bercu” pattern in Botoşani (76%), Dorohoi (7%), Ştefăneşti (1.6%), Darabani (1.1%), Fălticeni (1.1%) and the cities of ​ Bucharest (5.4%) and Jassy (2.1%), and the “Aperlei” pattern in Dorohoi (29.7%), Herţa (14%), Darabani (12.5%), Săveni (9.4%), Botoşani (1.6%), Ştefăneşti (1.6%) as well as the cities of Chernovitz (7.8%), Bucharest (6.2%), and Jassy (3.1%) (map 4). The selection of these vernacular and to some extent archaic patronymic and matronymic patterns and most especially the “Sin Y” one, rather than of the modern pattern with the suffix -(e)scu, which became common during the nineteenth century, and the extended use made of these patterns in very specific areas identified with the early settlement, strongly suggest that these surnames (nicknames at first) were adopted by Jews, and so recorded by the authorities, before the end of the eighteenth century or in the first decades of the nineteenth.

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55

Surnames Derived from Given Names with No Patronymic or Matronymic Element These are surnames formed according to the pattern “XY,” where Y is the name of the father and the genitival article was lost: “Ion Petru.” It is a very simple pattern consisting of the given name followed by the father’s name, as is, without any additions (suffixes or genitives), popular in the Romanian lands and well documented in a long series of ​historical sources: Nechifor Costache ( Jassy, 1754), Gavrilă Pătraşcu (Târgu Neamţ, 1764), and so on. This is a very common and especially productive surname pattern that was also adopted by Jews, representing 8.36% of all Romanian Jewish surnames. More significantly, these surnames represent 25.59% of the records, which ranks them second in importance after the occupation-​based surnames and first in frequency, with a ratio of twenty-​six individual records to each surname. Though heavily represented in the old settlement areas, this specific type of surname is not limited to these areas: Dorohoi (10.1%), Botoşani (5.6%), Rădăuţi in Bukovina (2.1%), Burdujeni (2.1%), Darabani (1.9%), Fălticeni (1.7%), Suceava in Bukovina (1.7%), Săveni (1.5%), and the cities of ​Bucharest (16.7%), Jassy (10.3%) and Chernovitz (8.8%). In this category I do not include surnames derived from Jewish given names that have no specific Romanian form, such as Alter, David, Froim, Isac, Mordechai, or Samuel. I am referring exclusively to surnames having at least a specifically Romanian graphic or phonetic form, such as Avram (as opposed to Abraham or Avrum), Bercu (Berko), Herşcu (Hershko), Iancu ( Janko, Jankel), Leibu (Leib), Marcu (Marko or Marcus), Pincu (Pinkas), Zisu (Süs or Zis). Most of these bear the distinctive mark of the suffix -u(l) common among Romanian names. Other surnames are based on given names that underwent a more advanced adaptation process to Romanian, resulting in (sometimes hypocoristic) forms such as Elişcu from Elia or Elias, Manaşcu from Manase, Moscu from Moses, Nechemne from Nechemia, Simca from Simcha, Ştrul from Srul. Furthermore, in some cases the Jewish names are identical to the biblical names as known in the Romanian tradition, such as Ilie for Elia, Moise for Moses or Moshe, Noe for Noach, that appear in historical documents and are proof of the solutions found in earlier times when locals were faced with new uncommon names. A whole series of surnames is derived from traditional and specifically Romanian given names that were apparently adopted by Jews throughout their presence in the Romanian lands, among them Bujor, Chiru, Cristea, Ion, Istrate, Leonte, Manole, Marin, Mircea, Pascu, Radu, and Stroe. Some have something of a historical resonance, as in Dabija, Ionaşcu, while some are simple diminutives, as in Mişu, Puiu, Sandu.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Calque-​translated names were discussed above as very early creations stemming from the need to make unknown foreign (sur)names more familiar through ad hoc literal translation into Romanian. They subsequently served as the basis for surnames such as Cerbu (deer), Leu (lion), Ursu (bear), and Lup, Lupu (wolf ), which are common Romanian nouns. The most peculiar are those surnames derived from specifically Jewish given names, parallel to the calque-​translated names. These were created in the first stages of the early settlement by means of sui generis phonetic adaptation and transformation into new names unique to the Romanian areas. These are all very common Jewish names, but in earlier times they were unknown and unfamiliar to the local population, who struggled and mispronounced until transforming them, by means of different phonetic processes, into new names altogether. Through a similar process the Late Latin name Ludovicus became Louis in French, the Germanic Wilhelm became Guillermo in Spanish, and the biblical Latin Johannes became Giovanni in Italian and Ioan in Romanian. Iosub is therefore a Romanian vernacular rendering of ​Joseph that became common among Jews. Among non-​Jewish Romanians, other different renderings of ​Joseph are historically documented, such as Iosip, Iosup, Osup, Iosib,14 where the final [p] and [b] are interchangeable. Following the same principle, Buium is a rendering of ​Benjamin, Hoişie of ​Hoshea—Joshua, Mates of ​Matatias, Nuţă probably of ​Nathan (see Yiddish diminutive form Nute), Şaim probably of ​Yeshayahu (see Yiddish form Shaya). All these became very popular names among Romanian Jews and subsequently very common as surnames as well. An interesting proof of the antiquity of the creation and the high frequency of these “native” Jewish given names is the fact that they also served as a basis for the formation of other types of patronymic surnames, not only with the Romanian suffix -escu, as in Iliescu, Iscovescu, and Lupescu, but also and more so with the Romanian suffix of Slavic origin -vici, as in Buiumovici, Iosubovici, Iosupovici, Iancovici, Ianculovici, Iliovici, Lupovici, Oişiovici, and even with the German/ Yiddish suffix -so(h)n, as in Buiumsohn, Iliesohn, and Iosubsohn. In spite of their foreign suffixes, all these are Jewish Romanian surnames: they were formed from specifically Romanian Jewish given names and were documented in no other country (except as a result of emigration). It should be noted that the formation of ​Romanian surnames with the suffix -vici was known also among non-​Jewish Romanians, as in Eminovici, Diaconovici, Mateevici, Popovici, and Teodorovici. It appears that a large number of surnames were formed according to the archaic patronymic “Ion Petru” pattern, rather than the modern one with the suffix -(e)scu, and that there was a marked preference for traditional Romanian Jewish given 14.  Bălan-​Mihailovici, Dicţionar onomastic, 294.

Antiquity of Early Jewish Settlement Through the Prism of Surnames

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names and calque-​translated given names. The choice of these specific patterns and their high concentration in the areas of the early settlement strongly suggest that these surnames were adopted by Jews in a relatively early period. There was no apparent reason and no status to be achieved for a Jew coming from abroad and bearing a German- or Russian-​sounding surname to change it for one that was in fact an archaic vernacular form of a common given name such as Buium or Iosub. Surnames Derived from Personal Characteristics (Formed Mainly with the Suffix -u(l)) These are surnames generally, but not exclusively, based on human characteristics describing individual features, social status, or ethnic affiliation, and so on. They can be divided into different subcategories as follows: Physical characteristics, by far the most numerous: Bălan(u) (blond, fair-​ haired), Barbălată (wide-​bearded), Barbăroşie (red-​bearded), Bărboi (large beard), Buzatu and Buzilă (thick-​lipped), Ciacâru (cross-​eyed), Ciuntu (one-​handed, maimed), Creţu (curly-​haired), Ghebosu (the humpbacked), Lungu (the tall one), Pătatu (speckled or freckled), Roşcovan(u) (red-​ haired), Şchiopu (the lame), Ştirbu (gap-​toothed), Surdu (the deaf one). It is worth noting that many of the physical characteristics emphasized by these surnames reflect the local popular image, even stereotype, of the Jew: red or fair-​haired, bearded, freckled. Character and moral aspects: Doibani (cheap, of inferior quality), Fudulu (the arrogant), Şiretu (the astute, sly). Here also one can observe reflections of the stereotyped image of the Jew. Family and social status: Băiet(u) (boy, son), Burlac(u) (single, bachelor), Copil (child, son), Sărăcuţu (the poor one), Vădana (widow). In this group are included also surnames formed according to the matronymic pattern discussed above: Adăscăliţei (the teacher’s son/daughter), Amoaşei (the midwife’s), Arabinului (the rabbi’s), Avădanei (the widow’s). Legal status: Sudit and Supusu (subject), Bejnaru (from Băjenaru refugee, exile), also used to refer to the invited settlers ( Jews and others), Pribeagu (vagrant, wanderer), Pripas (stray, by extension vagrant, wanderer), Venetic (foreigner, wanderer). Surnames such as Pribeagu, Pripas, and Venetic include a pejorative connotation expressing the perceived status of the Jew as a rootless foreigner and alien. Religion: within this subcategory we can discern a special group of surnames referring to the perceived high degree of religious piety manifested by Jews: Credinciosu (faithful, pious), Dreptnic (Orthodox), Habot (extremely

58

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

pious, bigot), parallel to the Romanian noun and adjective habotnic (derived from the Orthodox Hasidic movement Chabad). At the other extreme are surnames such as Botez and Botezat(u) (baptized) and even Creştinu (the Christian), which in the Romanian tradition would be given to converts to the Orthodox (Pravoslavic) Christian faith, among them Roma (Gypsies), Jews, Armenians, Catholics and Protestants, or others. The phenomenon of conversion was common because most civil and all political rights in the Romanian lands were traditionally reserved for local Orthodox Christians, and conversion was therefore a direct and quick way toward significant financial betterment and social mobility. Conversion was not uncommon among Jews in eighteenth- and nineteenth-​century Moldavia, as outlined in an illuminating study by Mihai-​Răzvan Ungureanu:15 between 1819 and 1831, thirty-​four Jews would leave their faith every year. They would generally adopt Christian given names, sometimes the namesakes of their godfathers, and had to overtly display their new status. Therefore, historical documents16 make references such as “Avram jidov din Orhei, botezat” and “Vasile jidov botezat” as well as “Mihalache Botezatu frate Cerbu opincariu,” “Andrei Botezatu,” and “Maria botezata,” where the qualifier “botezat” already has the form of a surname. Some, more rarely, called themselves Neumann (new man). A few did very well and rose to nobility or important state positions, among them Mihail Vitlimescu, librarian of the prince Mihail Sturdza, 1834–49, whose Romanian-​sounding surname was supposedly derived through a phonetic transformation of ​his original surname—Bethlehem (Bethlehem > Betlem >Vitlim), according to Mihai-​R ăzvan Ungureanu.17 Reality, however, was much more complicated, and many converts did not improve their lot. Sometimes only one of the spouses would convert but the couple would still live together. They would maintain normal family relations with Jewish relatives. Many converts could not afford or did not wish to move to other neighborhoods and continued to live on the “Jewish street.” They would continue to work and maintain business partnerships with Jews. This inevitably led to suspicions and accusations such as “Christian in name only, but a Jew in deed”; short of inquisitorial trials for false conversos, Romanian documents record complaints addressed to the metropolitan bishop about alleged apostates who offended the rites of the Orthodox Church or desecrated—by word or deed—sacred texts or liturgical objects; these complaints served in ecclesiastical courts as grounds for divorce or official admonition.18 15. Ungureanu, Convertire şi integrare. 16.  Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 2, 185–221. 17. Ungureanu, Convertire şi integrare. 18. Ibid.

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The interesting result of this complex situation is that, a century and more later, surnames such as Botez and Botezat(u) are documented as referring to Jews, half-​ Jews, and baptized Jews alike. Interestingly, Creştinu refers exclusively to Jews, as fas as I can discern; one Creştinu was later documented in the Mogilev ghetto in Transnistria. Ethnicity and nationality: Bulgaru (Bulgarian), Cazacu (Cossack), Franţuzu (French), Grecul (Greek), Leahu (Pole), Prusian (Prussian), Rusu (Russian), Spaniol (Spanish). In this case, considering that these are Jewish surnames, we are speaking of nationality or citizenship rather than simple ethnicity. In the case of Spaniol and Portugez, the surnames likely designate Sephardic Jews. The surnames derived from personal characteristics in all the subcategories analyzed above represent 4.59% of all Romanian Jewish surnames. A majority of these surnames are concentrated, again, in the same area of the early settlement: Dorohoi (27.9%), Herţa (7.7%), Darabani (5.8%), Mihăileni (2.9%), Botoşani (1.9%), Săveni (1.9%) and the cities of ​Bucharest (17.3%), Chernovitz (12.5%), and Jassy (4.8%). It seems unlikely that a person coming from Ukraine or Galicia with a common Jewish surname would have had any interest in changing it for one of these surnames derived at times from uncomplimentary human characteristics, such as Buzilă, meaning “thick-​lipped”; Ciacâru, “cross-​eyed”; Ghebosu, “the humpbacked”; Sărăcuţu, “the poor one”; Ştirbu, “the gap-​toothed”; and so on, or from downright stereotypic qualifiers such as Doibani, “cheap, of inferior quality”; Pătatu, “the freckled”; Şiretu, “the astute”; Pribeagu and Venetic, “foreigner, wanderer.” It is much more probable that these were popular, sometimes ironic and sometimes derogatory, nicknames by which the native Jews in these specific regions were called or known by their Romanian neighbors and that, in time, were registered in local records and became hereditary surnames. One illustrative example of such Romanian language nicknames adopted early on is Fript(ul) (the burned, roasted one). A Leiba Friptul is documented in the first census conducted in Moldavia in May–June 1774 by the Russian authorities of occupation.19 One hundred and twenty-​five years later, in 1899, the name of a Moise Fript appears as a counselor for the epitropie, the synagogue wardens, in the annual report of the Comunitatea Israelită “Voinţa,” Bucharest, Calea Moşilor district, Nr. 66–68 on Sălcuţei Street. Friptu also appears in our research database, and the variant, Fript, could still be found as a surname in Israel in the 1990s. 19. Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, 116.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Surnames Derived from Romanian Words Describing Objects, Animals (Zoonyms), and Plants (Phytonyms) These surnames are based on nicknames derived from common Romanian nouns that describe objects or animated things whose specific characteristics were seemingly associated with the bearer’s physical appearance, character, or occupation: Occupation-​related: Instead of the name of the bearer’s actual occupation, here we have the name of its end product or of an instrument or tool used for exercising the occupation. Many such surnames are related to areas of activity in which Jews were traditionally involved (to be discussed later), such as leather and footwear: Cureloi (leather belt), Safianu(l) (fine leather); liquor production and sale: Coniac (brandy), Rateş (inn); clothes and headwear: Colţun (sock), Degetaru (thimble), Pălăria (hat), Tulpan (fine fabric, mull); cereals processing: Cântar (balance, scales), Cucuruz (corn, maize), Cumpănă (balance, scales); food processing: Brânză (cheese), Săculeţ (small bag, cloth for draining cheese); woodwork: Raşpel (rasper); modern, innovative occupations: Cauciuc (rubber). Products traded by Jews, physical characteristics, or ad hoc nicknames whose original reason for being chosen is totally lost to us: These include Cimpoi (bagpipe), Cioară (crow; dark-​skinned), Clopot (bell), Cocoş (cock, rooster), Coşciug (coffin, casket), Frunză (leaf ), Găină (hen), Gologan (copper, coin), Graur (starling; gray or dark), Şanţ (ditch), Scânteie (spark), Ţapul (he-​goat), Urzică (nettle; fabric woven from nettle). Surnames in this category, those created according to an archaic, vernacular pattern based on a symbol of an occupation rather than the name of the occupation itself, as in Cântar (balance, scales) instead of Cantargiu (merchandise weigher) or Degetaru (thimble) instead of Croitoru (tailor), and those based on odd and not always complimentary nicknames such as Cioară (crow; dark-​skinned), Şanţ (ditch) or Ţapul (he-​goat), suggest that they were adopted or coined, and so registered, in an earlier period corresponding to the first settlement. Together they represent about 4.32% of all Romanian surnames, not an insignificant number. Surnames Derived from Names of Occupations These are generally formed with the suffix -u(l), which represents the mark of a surname derived from a noun or an adjective (as in “the miller”). Occupation-​based surnames such as Boiangiu, Cojocaru, Harabagiu, Sacagiu represent 16.86% of all Romanian surnames used by Jews and 39.2% of all records (analyzed in depth in chapter 5). Again, a vast majority of these surnames were

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documented in the areas of the old settlement: Dorohoi (34.8%), Darabani (9.1%), Herţa (5.6%), Botoşani (5.4%), Săveni (4.7%), Burdujeni (1.9%), Rădăuţi-​Prut (1.4%), Mihăileni (1.1%) and the cities of ​Bucharest (12.4%), Chernovitz (4.6%), and Jassy (2.1%). It is highly probable that in the period of the early settlement many of the Jews who practiced their trades and crafts in the villages and provincial market towns took as nicknames the Romanian names of their actual occupations, which in time became their surnames. This could have been good policy in times when few Jews were living among a majority of non-​Jews. In the nineteenth century, this would no longer have been necessary, as proven by the multitude of foreign surnames such as Tischler (carpenter), Schuster (shoemaker), Reznik (ritual slaughterer), and so on, which coexist with surnames describing the same occupations in Romanian. An important aspect of occupation-​based Romanian surnames is that a series of morphological and semantic features indicate that some of these occupation-​ related surnames must certainly have been adopted early on, at the beginning of the nineteenth century or even earlier. The suffix -iu(l) at the end of a surname is a vestige of an archaic form that was later abandoned and contracted to -u(l). Its presence in a long list of occupation-​ related surnames speaks to their antiquity: Berariu (later, Beraru), Birjariu, Blănariu, Butnariu, Ciubotariu, Ciurariu, Cofariu, Cojocariu, Cotariu, Cotiugariu, Covrigariu, Cuşmariu, Făinariu, Grisariu, Morariu, Pitariu, Rotariu, Sticlariu, Vădrariu, and others. Also pointing to a remote origin are various surnames based on occupations specific to earlier times that later disappeared, or common occupations described by archaic names that were preserved in surnames. Occupations specific to earlier times: • Orendaru, from orendar (lessee of an inn or tavern), from Polish arendar and arenda (> Latin arrendare)—disappeared; a modern, related term is arendaş (lessee), used mainly in relation to farming land. • Velniceru, from velnicer (liquor distiller)—disappeared; a modern, related term is răchier (liquor distiller). The two occupations on which these surnames are based became targets of recurrent anti-​Jewish prohibitions beginning in 1782 and 1783, respectively, and as a result they practically disappeared during the first third of the nineteenth century. Potcăpar, from potcăpar (maker of clerical headgear for orthodox priests)— disappeared Colpacci, from calpacci(u) (maker of fur caps for the aristocracy), from Turkish kalpakci—disappeared

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Mahalu, from mahal (porter of ​barrels)—disappeared; a modern, related term is hamal (porter), from Turkish hamal (derived from Arabic hammāl). Caingiu, from caingiu (tobacconist, seller of piecemeal tobacco), unknown etymology (probably from Turkish)—disappeared; a modern, related term is tutungiu (tobacconist) Archaic variant forms of occupations that were preserved in surnames: Mungiu, from mungiu (candlemaker), from Turkish munci—archaic, replaced by lumânărar Taingiu, from taingiu (military logistics officer), from Turkish tayinci—archaic, replaced by furier Ţimbălaru, from ţimbălar (cimbalom player), from German Zimbal—disappeared, replaced by ţambalagiu All these surnames based on outdated occupations, some of them reduced today to the status of archaisms and some—such as caingiu, colpacci(u), orendar, potcăpar— no longer existent in the lexicon of the Romanian language20 although listed and explained in glossaries within historical works, provide a plethora of proof of the antiquity of their adoption. These and others are all names of occupations that were very much alive in the eighteenth century but were subsequently replaced by more modern terms or disappeared completely. Little social status was to be gained by changing one’s surname in the nineteenth century, or later, to Mindirigiu (mattress maker), for example, a surname of ​Turkish etymology (minderci) based on a dwindling profession. Such surnames must have been adopted before. Surnames Derived from Foreign Surnames as Calque Translations into Romanian Included in this category are Romanian Jewish surnames such as Dulce, which is in fact a literal, “word-​for-​word,” calque translation of the German-​Yiddish surname Süss. This as well as other common calque translations into Romanian, such as Negru (Zając), Neamţu (>Deutsch), appear in Dorohoi (35.1%), Burdujeni (10.5%), Rădăuţi in Bukovina (7%), Soroca in Bessarabia (5.3%), and also in the cities of ​Bucharest (14%) and Jassy (10.5%). Surnames derived from Jewish given names with no suffixes, such as Avram, Haim, Şloim, Hoişie, Buium, Iosub, Manole and Mates, appear in Dorohoi (10.1%), Botoşani(5.6%), Rădăuţi in Bukovina (2.1%), Burdujeni (2.1%), and also in the cities of ​Bucharest (16.7%), Jassy (10.3%) and Chernovitz (8.8%). Surnames derived from names of occupations, formed with the suffix -u(l), such as Boiangiu, Cojocaru, Harabagiu, Sacagiu are documented in the areas of the old settlement in Dorohoi (34.8%), Darabani (9.1%), Herţa (5.6%), Botoşani (5.4%), Săveni (4.7%), but also in the cities of ​Bucharest (12.4%), Chernovitz (4.6%), and Jassy (2.1%). Another important aspect documenting internal migrations is the surnames based on toponyms formed with the suffix -(e)an(u): e.g., Botoşăneanu, Herţanu, Cernăuţeanu. Most of those point to the person’s place of origin within the extended Old Kingdom. A large part of these toponym-​based surnames is reminiscent of names of provincial market towns or larger towns, and sporadically even of the main cities such as Bucharest, Jassy, or Chernovitz. Here is a partial list of these: Bârlădeanu from Bârlad 6 records; Botoşăneanu from Botoşani 12; Bucureştean(u) from Bucureşti (Bucharest) 8; Burdujeanu from Burdujeni 11; Cernăuţean(u) from Cernăuţi (Chernovitz) 21; Craioveanu from Craiova 1; Darabaneanu from Darabani 2; Dorohonceanu from Dorohoi 9; Doronceanu possibly also from Dorohoi 4; Fălticineanu from Fălticeni 9; Focşăneanu and Focşeneanu from Focşani 17; Focşan(u) from Focşani 3; Gălăţeanu from Galaţi 13; Herţan(u) and Herţeanu from Herţa 109; Ieşan(u), Ieşeanu, and Eşean(u)  from Jassy 36; Mihăileanu from Mihăileni 4; Raşcovan from Raşcov or Vadul Raşcov 36; Suceveanu from Suceava 9; Suliţeanu from Suliţa 14; Tecuceanu from Tecuci 14; Văleanu from Văleni 7; Vişcauţan from Văşcăuţi 14. It is interesting to note that for some of these towns there are parallel Jewish and Romanian surnames, with the former having German-​Yiddish (suffix -er) or Slavic (suffix -ski) forms, such as Berladski 18 records versus 6 for Bârlădeanu;

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Botoşanschi 15 versus 12 for Botoşăneanu; Bukaretzki 9 versus 8 for Bucureşteanu; Faltuşanski 14 versus 9 for Fălticineanu; Focşaner 22 and Focşanski 2 versus 17 for Focşăneanu; Iaski 13 and Iaskin 1 versus 36 for Ieşeanu; Raşkovski 39 versus 36 for Raşcovan; Vaşkautzer 20 versus 14 for Vişcauţan. The comparison between these pairs of surnames clearly shows that, while part of the Jewish population spoke Yiddish and “translated” the names of the places where they lived or came from, another significant part used Romanian and adopted the Romanian original name with a Romanian suffix. In Moldavia, this phenomenon was apparently limited almost entirely to names of towns: there are very few examples of ​Yiddish or Slavic forms for toponym-​ based surnames originating in names of villages: Braeşter 4 from Brăeşti (Dorohoi and Jassy); Cerviceşter 2 from Cerviceşti (Botoşani); Bereştir 4 from Bereşti (Moldavia); Sarafinester 5 from Sarafineşti (Botoşani); Zoldeşter 7 from Joldeşti (Botoşani). One other example is very interesting: Fondianer 3 records, parallel to 49 for Fundoianu, from Fundoaia (Moldavia; there is also one in the Soroca district), shows that the Romanian form is overwhelmingly more frequent among Romanian Jews than the foreign one. In Bessarabia, on the other hand, most surnames that originated in names of villages have foreign forms (see below). Another important part of the toponym-​based surnames originated in names of villages and has already been discussed above. Nonetheless, the significant fact here is that most of these toponym-​based surnames are documented in Bucharest (21.3%), Dorohoi (16.5%), Chernovitz (11.5%), Botoşani (6.2%), Ploieşti (3.6%), Bacău (3.4%), and Jassy (3.1%), and only a minority of them in market towns such as Herţa (5%) and Darabani (4.8%). This clearly points to a movement from the (smaller) places mentioned in the surnames toward the larger and more important economic centers. A last complementary aspect regarding Jewish internal migration is represented by Jewish surnames based on toponyms from Bessarabia and Bukovina that instead of ​Romanian have foreign, German-​Yiddish (suffix -er) or Slavic (suffix -ski), forms. Sometimes the name of the place was adopted as such, without a suffix. It appears that many of the Jews who settled in Russian Bessarabia or Habsburg Bukovina eventually adopted as surnames the names of ​local places, either as identifiers when moving from place to place or when they were obliged by the authorities to take family names. Here is a list of such surnames and their frequency, by provinces: Bessarabia: Akerman 431 records from Akerman (Cetatea Albă); Aleksandrenski 3 from Alexandreni; Ataki 1 and Atakski 1 from Atachi; Beltzer 9 from Bălţi; Bender 16, Benderovski 1, and Benderski 82, from Bender (Tighina); Bereştir 4 from Bereşti; Bocikovski 1 from Bocicăuţi; Boiukaner 3 and Boiukanski 25 from Boiucani or Buiucani, a neighborhood of ​Kishinev;

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Branzianski 13 from Brânzeni; Bricianer 5 from Briceni; Broneşter 2 from Brăneşti; Buciumenschi 11 from Buciumeni; Budeştzki 8 from Budeşti; Cepelautzer 1 from Cepelăuţi; Codreanschi 17 from Codreni; Colencauţchi 3 and Kolenkautzi 1 from Colencăuţi; Corneşter 2 from Corneşti; Donduşanski 14 from Donduşani; Dragoneşter 6 from Drăgăneşti/Dragoneşti; Dubosarski 12 from Dubăsari; Faleşski 4 from Făleşti; Farladanski 16 from Fârlădani; Goreşt 4 and Goreşter 4 from Goreşti; Gorodister 2 from Horodiştea; Grinautzki 22 from Grinăuţi; Ismail 1 and Ismanlinschi 2 from Ismail; Kahul 1 from Cahul; Kainarski 1 from Căinari or Gura Căinari; Kauşaner 3 and Kauşanschi 95 from Căuşanii Noui and Căuşanii Vechi; Kilianski 1 and Kiliiski 2 from Chilia; Kipercenski 5 from Chiperceni; Kişinevski 79 from Kishinev; Klimautzki 9 from Climăuţi; Kobilanski 1 from Cobâlea; Krişkautzki 7 from Crişcăuţi; Lapuşner 26 and Lapuşnianski 1 from Lăpuşna; Lenkevitzer 1 from Lencăuţi; Lipkanski 4 from Lipcani; Malaeşter 3 from Mălăeşti; Malineşter 3 from Mălineşti; Mamaliger 5 from Mămăliga; Medelenski 14 from Medeleni; Novoselitzki 18 and Novoselski 2 from Noua Suliţa; Onitzkanski 7 from Oniţcani; Orghei 1 from Orhei; Paveleşter 3 from Paveleşti; Pilipenschi 5 from Filipeni; Prepelitzki 15 from Prepeliţa; Prodaneştzki 3 from Prodăneştii Noui and Prodăneştii Vechi; Raduleanski 2 from Răduleni; Raşkovetzki 2, Raşkovitz 3, Raşkovski 39, and Roşkovski 6 from Vadu Raşcov; Sadovski 8 from Sadova; Sarafinester 5 from Sarafineşti; Securianschi 3 from Secureni; Skaianski 9 from Scăeni; Soroka 9, Soroker 23, Sorokin 8, Sorotzker 6, and Sorotzki 18 from Soroca; Sulciner 7 from (Noua) Suliţa; Talmazski 7 from Talmaz; Tarasautzki 3 from Tărăsăuţi; Trebiseutzki 13 from Trebisăuţi; Tzintzarenski 9 from Tânţăreni; Varzareski 4 and Varzarevski 4 from Vărzăreşti; Vertuzhanski 2 from Vertujeni/Vârtejeni. Bukovina: Banilover 4 and Banilovici 2 from Banila; Bergamet 1 from Berhomet; Chernovitz 11 and Chernovitzer 1 from Chernovitz; Comaneşter 5 from Comăneşti; Cosminschi 2 from Cosmin/Cozmeni; Crasneanschi 13 from Crasna; Horodenker 2 from Horodnicul; Ispaser 3 from Ispas; Kozminer 8 and Kozminski 3 from Cosmin/Cozmeni; Sadagurski 55 from Sadagura; Vaşkautzer 20, Vaşkovitz 2, and Vaşkovitzer 1, from Văşcăuţi; Vizhnitzer 46 from Vijniţa; Zhadovnik 2 and Zhadovski 2 from Jadova.

Conclusions The Jewish population was present all over the Romanian lands, in urban areas as well as rural areas. It is only natural that most Jewish surnames based on Romanian toponyms refer to names of urban locations, some of them mentioned above (Botoşani, Briceni, Galaţi, Suceava), since these were seemingly the preferred

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places where a majority of the Jews settled when they first arrived in the Romanian lands. Internal migrations were frequent, and movements (free or induced) from rural to urban areas are well documented and supported also by the analysis of ​Jewish Romanian surnames. Within this general context, however, it is most significant that over 21% of the toponym-​based Romanian surnames (and 40% of the records thereof ) used by Jews in the Romanian lands refer to names of remote or obscure villages, located mostly in northern Moldavia and northern Bessarabia. In light of the documentary evidence, this should not be surprising. It is tangible proof that Jews were deeply rooted also in the rural areas and were indeed present in a large number of small villages whose names were preserved in their surnames after they left, either of their own will or as a result of expulsions by orders of the central authorities. Moreover, the research database contains interesting evidence of a still-​significant Jewish presence in the villages of ​Moldavia, Bessarabia, and Bukovina during the nineteenth century and around the turn of the twentieth.

Chapter 5

Socio-​economic Profile of the Jewish Population

General Aspects Jews in the Diaspora were historically involved in all economic activities, without exception: in the territories of the Roman and Sassanid Empires, Jews were an integral part of the indigenous population and as such made a living mainly as farmers and artisans, were admitted into local guilds, and were also allowed to organize Jewish guilds. It was only later, during the Middle Ages, in areas such as England, France, Germany, and northern Italy, that Jews were granted permission to establish communities on the condition that they limit themselves only to commercial activities such as pawnbroking and credit, while Jewish artisans were confined to ritually related crafts—bookbinding, illuminating, printing, butchering, baking, weaving, barbering—and obliged to cater exclusively to a Jewish clientele. Christian religious ideology, together with local middle-​class interests, worked hand in hand to exclude Jews from Christian artisans’ guilds and prevent the organization of ​Jewish guilds.1 That Jewish artisans were first limited to a specific set of crafts and were not allowed to serve the general population, and the fact that the Jewish working class (masters, journeymen, apprentices) was employed almost exclusively by Jewish employers (gentile employers would not hire Jews) contributed to the image of the Jewish working man as remote to many gentiles. The prominence of this image, as well as the vilification of the Jewish moneylender, contributed strongly to the development of a pervasive ideology that demonized Jewish existence in Germany and neighboring countries and would spread later to most of ​Europe. Nonetheless, wherever a sizable Jewish artisan class existed, as was the case in Eastern Europe, the typical image of the Jew as an idle exploiter and moneylender did not remain unchallenged. There were discrimination and persecution, even expulsions, but demonization of the Jew had no large grassroots base.2 1.  Werner Sombart, The Jews and Modern Capitalism (Glencoe, 1951), 181, quoted in Wischnitzer, History, 197. 2.  Cahnman, introduction.

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Unlike in Northern Europe, where the local bourgeoisie developed early, in the Polish-​Lithuanian Commonwealth there was no native middle class to speak of,3 and Jews, along with a few other economically specialized ethnic groups, were called upon to come and fill a void in those countries’ social structure. Jews were welcome to promote trade and useful crafts and thereby to provide much-​ needed revenue to governors and landed gentry. The Ottoman Empire, however, was dependent in commerce and crafts on its Greek minority;4 the new Jewish subjects were politically innocuous and served as an alternative to the Greek economic monopoly. In the Polish and Lithuanian lands, the transplanted German burghers who contributed to the establishment and growth of ​local towns had become economically indispensable but, at the same time, were feared political antagonists. Jewish artisans and traders were welcomed and granted privileges and protection in exchange for generating revenue for the crown and the aristocracy.5 Jewish artisans were even allowed to organize into Jewish guilds. Later on, even as the power of the crown gradually declined and a Polish Christian urban middle class arose, the nobles continued to encourage Jewish artisans to settle on their lands, especially in the territories of Ukraine and Belorussia.6 The development of the Jewish artisan class in the Polish and Lithuanian lands was also nourished and stimulated by a large and growing internal Jewish market that enabled these artisans to undersell the Christian guilds’ monopolies. The fact that Jewish artisans were allowed to cater to both Jewish and Christian clienteles further enhanced their possibilities. Another decisive factor was the pogroms that characterized the Ukrainian rebellion under Bogdan Chmielnicki (1645–48): dozens of ​Jewish communities were destroyed, Jewish property was pillaged, and tens of thousands of ​Jews became refugees fleeing westward. Having lost their livelihood, large masses of ​Jews entered into manual occupations, among them predominantly textiles and clothing (especially tailoring), leatherwork, and food and beverages.7 The semi-​independent principalities of ​Moldavia and Walachia represented a territorial bridge between the Polish-​Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire. The emerging middle class there was made up mainly of Greeks, Armenians, Hungarians, and later Jews. The Jews first settled on rural estates owned by local aristocrats or “boyars,” with special permission from the rulers, who sometimes granted them princely privileges. They were also among the founders of new towns such as Fălticeni and Mihăileni, where, having come from 3. Wischnitzer, History, 208–9. 4. Lewis, Emergence. 5. Marcus, Social and Political, 5–6. 6. Ibid. 7.  Ibid., 212–16.

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countries possessing highly developed Jewish crafts (the Polish and Lithuanian lands foremost, but not exclusively), they earned their living not only as merchants but also as artisans and later as manufacturers as well, becoming an essential element in local industry. Jewish artisans in Walachia were admitted to the local guilds (isnaf). In Moldavia, they were also organized in Jewish guilds, such as the tailors’, the furriers’, and so on, and they were behind the mass production of clothing for the peasantry. The main guilds even had their synagogues named after their respective crafts.8 An in-​depth study of the different crafts practiced by Jews throughout their history in the various areas of the Diaspora gives us an interesting image that can help us to better understand the reasons behind the preference of the Jewish artisans for, or sometimes perhaps their confinement to, certain trades rather than others. The multitude of crafts that Jews were involved in can be roughly categorized into three groups: Crafts Relied upon to Satisfy Internal Needs of the Jewish Community These included butchers, bakers, winemakers, soap makers, barbers, embroiderers, tallit and tzitzit makers, parchment makers, scribes, bookbinders, printers; sometimes even engravers and gold- and silversmiths. All these trades have more or less ritualistic elements in their nature, necessary for the conduct of a traditional religious community, and were represented everywhere. Some of them, such as scribe (sofer stam) and ritual slaughterer (shokhet), were considered holy vocations. These were trades that, in principle, did not depend on nor need much communication with the outside world (many of the suppliers and sometimes even the producers of the raw materials were themselves Jewish), with the exception of the butchers, who had to dispose of the ritually unclean hind parts of the animals—and who had an excellent reputation for good-​quality meat among their non-​Jewish customers. High-​Status Crafts These were privileged crafts that brought both higher incomes and social prestige to those practicing them. They were oriented to the wider market and divided into two groups: the monetary or precious metals and stones group: minters, medal engravers, jewelers, gold- and silversmiths; and the cultural group: papermakers, illuminators, bookbinders, printers, cartographers, designers of nautical instruments, pharmacists, and medical practitioners. 8. M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 21–26.

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Lower-​Status Crafts These catered to the general population, among them mostly despised, dirty, and unhealthy tasks, such as those of the tanners, dyers, tailors, furriers, leather and metalworkers, glassblowers, potters, silk weavers, and house painters. To these should be added repair and finishing work by menders of old clothes, shoes, and mattresses; repair work was unavoidable but dismissed as secondhand trade. Tanning, dyeing, and leatherwork were considered dirty and had to be practiced on the outskirts of cities because of the odor, leading to physical separation from the rest of the population. They also involved unhealthy chemical processes and depended on a continuous supply of water.9 Tailoring was considered particularly unhealthy work, frequently relegated to the cramped Jewish quarters. In his book De Morbis Artificium Diatriba (a work about occupational diseases in workers employed in manufacturing and the arts), published in Modena in 1700, Bernardo Ramazzini, considered the father of occupational medicine and hygiene, rendered an overall picture of the relationship between working conditions, health, and disease related to fifty-​two occupations.10 Each section of this work starts with a brief description of disability or health impairment induced by a particular kind of ​job. Among other things, it describes the working conditions of ​Jewish tailors at that time: they lived miserably in narrow alleys, with open windows in winter to get light, and as a result suffered from headaches, earaches, toothaches, colds, sore throats, and sore eyes. Many became hard of ​hearing, short-​sighted, or bleary-​eyed. Further disorders were induced by tailors’ sedentary life: men sitting or standing, sewing, refurbishing old clothes or doing needlework tended to be melancholic, morose, and physically wasting. This trade was so damaging to health that an expression was coined: to sit in the “tailor’s position” or “tailor’s style,” that is, on the floor with one knee bent. Another expression is “tailor’s bunion” (bunionette), a condition resulting from the inflammation of the metatarsal bone at the base of the little toe and so called because in past centuries tailors sat cross-​legged, which was thought to cause this protrusion on the outside of the foot. Equally harmful was the remaking of used wool mattresses, as the foul dust released caused eye and skin sores, coughs, disordered stomachs, and even consumption. However unhealthy these trades might have been, one can observe a high concentration of ​Jews in many of them. The fact that gentiles shunned them opened certain venues to Jewish artisans in an otherwise very tightly controlled market dominated by monopolistic Christians-​only guilds. Having entered these activities 9. Wischnitzer, History, 212–16. 10. Donoghue, Bernardo Ramazzini.

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mostly by necessity rather than by choice, Jewish artisans went on to specialize and in time to excel at their trades, eventually achieving a dominant position and virtual monopoly in many of them. This trend was presumably reinforced in some cases by the trades’ religious implications: weavers, spinners, and tailors were depended upon to respect the ritual observance of shatnez, the prohibition in Jewish law derived from the Torah (in Leviticus 19:19 and Deuteronomy 22:5, 22:9–11) against wearing wool and linen fabrics in one garment as well as the interbreeding of different species of animals, and the planting together of different kinds of seeds (collectively known as kilayim), in order to avoid interfering with the normal order of things.11

Jews and Their Occupations in the Romanian Lands As seen above, at the beginning of the nineteenth century the Jewish population was dispersed all over the territory of the extended Old Kingdom in both urban and rural areas. Jews were present in all economic fields at all levels, from the simplest to the most advanced. They are credited, among other things, with the introduction in Romania of new crafts and industries, such as oil extraction (Gârlele Găzăriei, Moineşti), salt quarries (Târgu Ocna), glass production (Hârlău), woven fabrics (Buhuşi), metals (Paşcani), modern wineries (Panciu, Odobeşti, Nicoreşti, Iveşti), industrial mills (Târgu Frumos, Podul Iloaiei, Herţa, Căuşani), the technology of typolithography, and the use of motors in the printing industry (Craiova).12 Entire collections of ​historical documents, tax registers, and catagrafii (censuses) make frequent references to local Jews throughout the centuries and record in minute detail their occupations as merchants and artisans as well as the much-​ needed taxes and other duties they had to pay or had actually paid. Documents from eighteenth-​century Bucharest enumerate Jewish tailors, shoemakers, tinsmiths, lacemakers, bookbinders, silversmiths, jewelers, and engravers as well as manufacturers of paper, glassware, and potash. In the same period, in Moldavia, there were in addition Jewish tanners, furriers, cap- and hatmakers, watchmakers, coppersmiths, carpenters, masons, and house painters.13 In documents in the Romanian language from the medieval and early modern periods in Moldavia and Walachia, and especially in legal and tax records, those considered foreigners are generally mentioned by given name followed by their ethnic or national qualifier: “Dimitrie grecul” (the Greek), “Moise ovreiul” (the 11.  Encyclopaedia Hebraica 32:252–53. 12.  Rotman, Iancu, and Vago, History of the Jews, 93–106. 13. Spielmann, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, xxxix–xl; Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, part 2, lxiv–lxvii.

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Jew), “Sava arman” (the Armenian), “Dima ţigan” (the Gypsy). The Jews are mentioned with their ethnic qualifier according to the regional usage: “Leul ovreiul” (Bucharest, 1728), “evreul Cerbul” ( Jassy, 1737), “Marcu jidovul” (Hârlău, 1742), “Iancul jidanul ot Zastavna” ( Jassy, 1746). Significantly, for most Jews this pattern includes their actual occupation: “Avram jidov cuiungiu” (silversmith, Jassy, 1736), “Solomon ţimbelarul jidov” (cimbalom player, Jassy, 1741). Signatures of ​Jewish witnesses on legal documents stated the given name and the occupation.14 It is therefore very plausible that the combination “given name + occupation” was the actual way in which many of the Jews were publicly known: Iancu + “croitor” (tailor), for example. The name of the occupation, which accompanied the given name to cover for lack of an actual surname, became an identifying nickname (poreclă) and was duly registered, Iancu “croitor + ul,” and in time became hereditary as a surname, Iancu Croitoru(l). A document from Jassy (excerpt from the “Register of the Individuals and Families of the Third Estate of ​Jassy” of 15 March 1808)15 gives a whole list of ​Jews mentioned by given name and occupation: Herşcu cepregar and Sulin cepregariul (passementier), Iosab croitor and Lupul croitoriul (tailor), Leiba Coşmariu and Şmil cuşmariul (fur cap maker), Slim făinariul (flour merchant), Iancu Pânzariu (weaver), Iţic precupeţ and Marcul precupeţul (merchant of vegetables, poultry, and dairy), Hain şlicar and Moisă şlicariul (maker of fur caps worn by boyars), Iancu telalul (town crier; broker), Leiba zaraf and Leiba zaraful (money changer), and so on. Here one can see the process of surname formation on the basis of the names of occupations: there are names of occupations as simple nouns appended to the given name, as in “John tailor” (cepregar, croitor, precupeţ, şlicar, zaraf ), along with names of occupations as nouns with the definite article, which in Romanian is rendered by the suffix -u(l), as in “John the tailor” (cepregariul, croitoriul, Coşmariu, făinariul, Pânzariu, şlicariul, zaraful). Since, as seen above, the formation pattern of surnames based on names of occupations is “occupation name + suffix -u(l),” we can see here the transition from a plain name of an occupation to a definite, articulated name of an occupation that was prone to become a nickname and later presumably an actual surname. The fact that, in most cases, the l at the end of the suffix was preserved and the names of the occupations were registered, as expected, with lower case (cepregariul, croitoriul, etc.) means that at this stage these were still more qualifiers than surnames. There are, however, two exceptions, Coşmariu and Pânzariu, with capital letter and without the final -l announcing the developing trend. This evolution is illustrated in a later list of ​houseowners living on certain streets of ​Jassy that had to be paved in 1833, which, a generation later, registers 14. Spielmann, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, part 1, 18, 59, and 76. 15.  “Condica Sufletelor şi a Familiilor Stării de Jos din Iaşi,” in Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 1, 323–39.

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names such as Iosef ​Tălpar (sole maker), Solomon Crăşmar (tavern keeper), Avram Chebrazar (passementier), Maier Berariu (beer brewer), Israel Croitoriu (tailor), Şmil Stoleru (cabinetmaker), Pincu Sticlariu and Moise Sticlariu (glassblower), Pascal Răşchieru (perhaps brandy distiller), David Caşcavalagiu (pressed cheese maker), Froim Olariu (potter), Leib Spiţer (pharmacist), Avram Argintar (silversmith), Idel Giuvaergiu (jeweler).16 Here, all the occupation names ending in a suffix lost the final l—generally, Romanian surnames based on occupations end in -u after losing the l—and all, without exception, including those without a suffix, were registered as beginning with capital letters. The process of transformation into surnames was complete. My assumption, therefore, is that most of the Romanian occupation-​based surnames found in the research database are not translations of common Jewish occupation-​related surnames that were brought from abroad but rather were derived from Romanian nicknames based on the occupation the bearers actually practiced in Romanian territory, later becoming hereditary surnames. First, most of these surnames correspond almost identically to the professions appearing in the historical documents mentioned above and therefore fit the established tradition of identifying such artisans and craftsmen. Second, in many cases these surnames are based on Romanian archaic or regional words and describe professions specific to a certain period or area, some of them of ​low social status or long gone. In modern historical documents, Jews protected by foreign powers are mentioned with their foreign surnames, albeit in Romanian phonetic rendition, as in Avram Vecsler or Iţic Rubinştain ( Jassy, 1833) and Iancu Fridman (Bucharest, 1835), which they had every reason to preserve, being registered as such at the consulate of one of the powers. In the same documents, native Jews are mentioned as they always had been, that is, according to the local pattern, as in “Leiba sân Marcu” or “Aron Zaraf ” ( Jassy, 1833) and “Moise sân David” (Bucharest, 1835). It is highly improbable that a Jew coming from Galicia or Ukraine after 1800 with a foreign surname such as Schneider or Sapozhnik (tailor) would have chosen to Romanize it to “Cârpaciu” (old clothes mender), perhaps not even to Croitoru (tailor). It is, of course, possible that some of the bearers of these names had indeed translated into Romanian their foreign occupation-​based surnames, but in these cases they almost certainly would have chosen neutral, standard, and perhaps even more distinguished forms rather than regional, archaic, or low-​social-​status ones. For example, in the Romanian surnames research corpus there are some 688 Ciubotaru—which is a vernacular and regional term for shoemaker in Moldavia. There are only 17 Cizmaru and 4 Pantofaru, both of which are standard, official, and neutral terms for “shoemaker.” A Jewish newcomer who enjoyed a foreign power’s protection and generally held himself above the level of the native Jews 16.  Ibid., 41.

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would translate his surname, if at all, from Schumacher (shoemaker) to Pantofaru or Cizmaru rather than to Ciubotaru, even in Moldavia. Not to speak of Opincaru (laced-​moccasin maker)—there are 40 of them—which is a lower-​social-​status kind of shoemaker catering to poor peasants. Assuming, therefore, that most of the Romanian occupation-​related surnames found in the research database are in fact derived from Romanian nicknames based on the bearer’s actual occupation, we can proceed with a detailed analysis. Out of 2,229 different Romanian and Romanized surnames representing some 18,719 individual records, about 373 surnames representing some 7,298 individual records are occupation related, that is, a percentage of about 16.86% of all Romanian and Romanized surnames and 39% of the respective individual records. This makes the occupation-​related surnames one of the three largest groups of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames, together with the patronym- and matronym-​related surnames, which represent 28.1% of the surnames and 13.27% of the records, and the toponym-​related surnames, which represent another 17.55% of the surnames and 7.98% of the records. This implies that Romanian names of occupation, along with Romanian patronyms-​matronyms and toponyms, constituted the three major sources for the formation of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames used by Jews in the Romanian lands, amounting together to 62.5% (representing almost 60.2% of all individual records). The fact, however, that the ratio between surnames and individual records is 19.57 for the occupation-​related surnames as compared to 4.30 for patronyms-​ matronyms and 3.88 for toponym-​related surnames clearly shows that the surname-​formation pattern based on names of occupations was as much as five times more prolific than the ones based on patronyms-​matronyms and toponyms. Surnames ending in -(i)u(l) and evoking a name of occupation were much more frequently adopted and used than patronym-​related surnames with the prefix sinand than toponym-​related surnames ending in -an(u), and more than any other type of surname, for that matter. This phenomenon must reflect the reality hinted at by a multitude of ​historical documents, namely, that a large percentage of the Jews in Romania were actively engaged in an array of different occupations, including and maybe especially the manual crafts. A last general observation: the occupation-​based surnames repertory seems to be somehow limited, morphologically and semantically, to a certain historical reality that can be characterized as premodern and preindustrial—to some extent even archaic—and definitely provincial, characteristic of villages and small and midsize towns (as opposed to big cities); simple traditional occupations, some of them now obsolete, archaic, or even extinct, are documented in vernacular or regional terms, many of them originating in Turkish words (a feature that also points to a certain historical period), and perhaps concentrated in specific geographic areas.

86

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

It could be argued that these diverse occupation-​based surnames are particular to the Jewish population living in the Romanian lands, especially in Moldavia, and describe their reality as it was during—mostly, but by no means exclusively—the first half of the nineteenth century, when a majority of these surnames must have been adopted.

Statistical Analysis of Occupation-​Based Surnames The occupations that served as the basis for the formation of surnames pertain to most of the fields of economic activity, from commerce and manual crafts to finances and liberal professions (law, medicine, teaching, architecture, sciences, the arts). For the purpose of this analysis we have focused on a corpus of 291 occupation-​based surnames (170 surnames and their graphic variants) linked to 6,954 personal records, representing 78% and respectively 95.3% respectively of the total of 373 surnames and 7,298 records related to occupations (map 6). As for the remaining surnames, although they indisputably have the morphological form of a profession, it has not yet been possible to relate them with certainty to a specific occupation, either due to possible errors of deciphering or because the name of Total surname bearers 500 200 20

Dnie

ste

hR

v

i ve r

a

ld av ia

r

b

ia

e D a n u b R i ve r

M

o

NIA

Bucharest

25

r

a ss Be

ut

ko

a

ia Walach

0

i ve

Pr

Bu

in

Jassy

VA YL NS A TR

rR

Dorohoi

Black Sea

50 mi

Map 6.  Geographic location of the main concentrations of occupation-​based surnames

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

87

the occupation could not be documented well enough. A categorization of these occupation-​based surnames gives us the following eight broadly defined economic fields: manual crafts; commerce and trade; transportation; liberal professions; services; agriculture and farming; administration; and finances. We will proceed to an in-​depth analysis of the various occupations in all these fields in order to gain a better understanding of the matter. Manual Crafts Clothes, Caps, and Accessories Fabric related: Surname Description

Records

Pânzaru fabric maker, weaver Mătăsaru silk weaver Boiangiu dyer Total: 3 surnames and 139 records Clothes and accessories: Surname Description

36 17 86

Records

Croitoru tailor Robaru robe maker Cârpaciu old clothes mender Ceprazariu passementier Total: 4 surnames and 815 records Furs and fur clothes: Surname Description Blănaru furrier Cojocaru fur coat maker Total: 2 surnames and 680 records Caps and hats: Surname Description Cuşmaru Căciularu Colpacci Şepcaru Pălărieru Potcăpar

fur cap maker fur cap maker fur cap maker capmaker hatmaker maker of ​headgear for Orthodox priests Total: 6 surnames and 226 records

807 1 5 2

Records 33 647

Records 153 23 32 16 1 1

88

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

In all, 15 surnames and 1,860 records for clothes, caps, and accessories, that is, 40.93% of all manual-​crafts–related records. Leather and Footwear Leatherwork: Surname Description

Records

Iuftaru tanner of shoe upper leather Dubălaru tanner Tăbăcaru tanner Solonar tanner Total: 4 surnames and 42 records Footwear: Surname

Description

29 10 2 1

Records

Ciubotaru shoemaker Cizmaru shoemaker Pantofaru shoemaker Păpucaru slipper or mule maker Opincaru laced-​moccasin maker Tălpălaru shoe-​sole maker Total: 6 surnames and 790 records Leather accessories: Surname Description Curelaru belt maker Total: 1 surname and 25 records

688 17 4 4 40 37

Records 25

In all, 11 surnames and 857 records for leather and footwear, that is, 18.86% of all manual crafts–related records. Food and Beverages Cereal grain milling and grinding: Surname Description Grisaru miller/grinder Cruparu miller/grinder Moraru miller Total: 3 surnames and 272 records

Records 183 57 32

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

Cereal processing: Surname Description

Records

Pitaru baker Chitaru baker Formagiu baker Pităraşu baker Brutaru baker Covrigaru pretzel maker Total: 6 surnames and 262 records Beverages: Surname

153 19 12 8 2 68

Description

Records

Beraru beer brewer Răchieru liquor distiller Velniceru liquor distiller Drojdieru grape brandy distiller Pivădaru beer brewer Total 5 surnames and 54 records Meat: Surname

Description

Casapu butcher Caţap butcher Total: 2 surnames and 193 records Miscellaneous: Surname Description Oţetaru vinegar maker Alviţaru nougat maker Brânzaru cheesemaker Total: 3 surnames and 6 records

89

41 7 4 1 1

Records 170 23

Records 3 2 1

In all, 19 surnames and 787 records for food and beverages, that is, 17.32% of all manual crafts–related records.

90

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Woodwork and Carpentry Carpentry and furniture: Surname Description Stoleru cabinetmaker Tâmplar cabinetmaker Dulgheru carpenter Teslar carpenter Total: 4 surnames and 164 records Barrel making: Surname Description

Records 160 2 1 1

Records

Butnaru barrel maker Cofaru wooden pail maker total: 2 surnames and 179 records

156 23

Miscellaneous: Surname Description

Records

Rotaru wheelwright or cartwright Dreniceru wood-​tile maker Total: 2 surnames and 76 records

75 1

In all, 8 surnames and 419 records for woodwork and carpentry, that is, 9.22% of all manual crafts–related records. Metalwork Precious metals: Surname Description Argintaru silversmith Sedecaru silversmith Total: 2 surnames and 53 records Tinsmiths: Surname

Description

Alămaru tinsmith Tinichigiu tinsmith Căldăraru cauldron maker Total: 3 surnames and 77 records

Records 52 1

Records 28 22 27

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

Blacksmiths: Surname

Description

91

Records

Covaliu blacksmith Fieraru blacksmith Potcovaru horseshoer/blacksmith Total: 3 surnames and 84 records

58 21 5

In all, 8 surnames and 214 records for metalwork, that is, 4.71% of all manual crafts–related records. Building and Construction Surname Description Petraru Chetraru Sobaru Văraru Zugravu

stonecutter stonecutter stove maker limeburner housepainter

Records 100 34 1 5 6

In all, 5 surnames and 146 records for building and construction, that is, 3.21% of all manual crafts–related records. Other Manual Crafts Surname Description Cărbunaru Săpunaru Scorţaru Sticlaru Mindirigiu Făclieru Frânghieru Olaru Mungiu Groparu Dogotaru Coşaru Ceasornicaru Tapiţer Silistraru

charcoal burner soap maker carpet maker glassblower mattress maker candlemaker rope maker potter candlemaker mazut / crude oil well worker mazut / crude oil well worker basket maker watchmaker upholsterer gunpowder maker

Records 64 54 39 33 20 13 10 9 7 4 1 4 1 1 1

92

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

In all, 15 surnames and 261 records for other manual crafts, that is, 5.74% of all manual crafts–related records. Transportation Freight transport: Surname Description

Records

Sacagiu water carrier Harabagiu wagoner Căruceru wagoner Cotigaru wagoner Cărăuşu carrier Total: 5 surnames and 540 records Passenger transport: Surname Description

224 197 95 22 2

Records

Birjaru coach driver Vizitiu coach driver Surugiu coach driver Total: 3 surnames and 63 records Horse dealership: Surname Description

60 2 1

Records

Geambaşu horse dealer Total: 1 surname and 29 records

29

In all, 9 surnames and 632 records for transportation, that is, 9.09% of all occupation records. Commerce and Trade Cereals and food: Surname Description Făinaru Mălăeru Bacalu Precupeţ

wheat flour dealer corn flour dealer grocer merchant of vegetables, poultry, and dairy Total: 4 surnames and 349 records

Records 147 4 134 64

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

Beverages: Surname

Description

Records

Crâşmaru tavern keeper Cârciumaru tavern keeper Făgădau innkeeper Hangiu innkeeper Orendaru innkeeper Total: 5 surnames and 72 records Tobacco: Surname

Description

42 1 15 13 1

Records

Tutungiu tobacconist Caingiu tobacconist Total: 2 surnames and 7 records General trade: Surname

93

6 1

Description

Records

Crainic announcer, crier Telal broker; announcer, town crier Lipscanu merchant of manufactured goods Agent commercial agent Tejghetaru store clerk Casier cashier Total: 6 surnames and 39 records

15 13 3 2 5 1

In all, 17 surnames and 467 records for commerce and trade. that is, 6.72% of all occupation records. Agriculture and Farming Fruit trees: Surname Description Meraru apple orchard attendant Livădaru orchard attendant Grădinaru garden attendant Total: 3 surnames and 65 records

Records 48 16 1

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Sheepherding: Surname Description

Records

Ciobanu shepherd Strugaru shepherd Oieru shepherd Baciu head shepherd Total: 4 surnames and 29 records

17 7 4 1

Miscellaneous: Surname Description

Records

Pescaru fisherman or fishpond attendant Barcaru seeker of wild beehives Stupar beehive keeper Poenaru forester Păduraru forester Ţăranu peasant, farmer Total: 6 surnames and 41 records

19 5 1 2 1 13

In all, 13 surnames and 135 records for agriculture and farming; that is 1.94% of all occupations records. Services Related to food and beverages: Surname Description

Records

Ciuraru flour sifter Sitaru flour sifter Cantargi merchandise weigher Cotaru barrel weigher Vădraru wine weigher Mahalu porter of ​barrels Hamalu porter Merticaru cereals weigher Total: 8 surnames and 295 records Related to personal hygiene: Surname Description Bărbieru barber Ferederu bath attendant Total: 2 surnames and 62 records

187 4 28 16 20 38 1 1

Records 36 26

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

Miscellaneous: Surname Description

95

Records

Fanargi lamplighter Fanaru lamplighter Cioclu gravedigger, undertaker Acar pointsman (railways) Total: 4 surnames and 24 records

12 5 5 2

In all, 14 surnames and 381 records for services, that is, 5.48% of all occupations records. Liberal Professions Related to Jewish tradition: Surname Description

Records

Dascălu provincial schoolteacher Hahamu ritual slaughterer; rabbi Ceauşu synagogue sexton Total: 3 surnames and 564 records Medicine and pharmacy: Surname Description

239 199 126

Records

Doctor physician Oculist eye doctor Spiţeru pharmacist Farmacist pharmacist Total: 4 surnames and 26 records Music and singing: Surname Description Muzicantul musician Ţimbălaru cimbalom player Psalt cantor Diaconu cantor Total: 4 surnames and 16 records Miscellaneous: Surname Description Tălmaciu interpreter, translator Total: 1 surname and 26 records

12 11 2 1

Records 4 3 6 3

Records 26

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

In all, 12 surnames and 632 records for liberal professions, that is, 9.09% of all occupations records. Administration Guilds and work fraternities: Surname Description Starosta guild president Stareţ guild president Total: 2 surnames and 34 records

Records 26 8

Boyars’ estates administration: Surname Description

Records

Şufaru administrator, supervisor; cattle/horse herder Şafaru administrator, supervisor; cattle/horse herder Taingiu administrator, supervisor Vătafu administrator, supervisor Total: 4 surnames and 37 records Tax collection: Surname Description Tacsier tax collector Mazilu tax collector Total: 2 surnames and 22 records Guard duty: Surname

Description

Străjeru guardsman Plăeşu guardsman Pîndaru watchman Şuraru watchman Uşieru doorman Total: 5 surnames and 5 records Military service: Surname Description Călăraşu cavalry soldier Puşcaru rifleman Ofiţeru military officer Total: 3 surnames and 7 records

Records 14 8

Records 1 1 1 1 1

Records 4 2 1

20 4 10 3

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

Archaic administrative positions: Surname Description

97

Records

Postelnicu secretary Spătaru army or police chief Armaşu police chief Pârcălabu local council administrator Pârgaru local council administrator Chelaru administrator, supervisor Total: 6 surnames and 28 records

20 3 2 1 1 1

In all, 22 surnames and 133 records for administration, that is, 1.91% of all occupations records. Credit and Finances Surname Description Creditor Zarafu

creditor money changer

Records 16 14

In all, 2 surnames and 30 records for credit and finances, that is, 0.43% of all occupations records.

Categorization of Occupation-​Based Surnames Table 1 shows a breakdown by economic fields of the 291 occupation-​based surnames (170 generic surnames, the balance comprising graphic and morphologic variations thereof ), representing 6,954 individual records. This clearly shows that the manual crafts represented fully two-​thirds of all the occupations in which the Jews were employed. To be sure, some of the Jewish artisans would also sell their wares directly instead of through intermediaries, as already mentioned above, but the basis of their occupation nevertheless relied upon their manual crafts. The field of transportation is relatively well represented and is linked, of course, to that of commerce and trade. The liberal professions field is seemingly equally large, but this is mainly because it includes a number of specific occupations needed for the daily life of a traditional Jewish community. What is surprising is that the commerce and trade field is not as extensive as the Romanian historical narrative would have us expect. It includes those whose principal occupation was specifically commerce and trade. But even if we extend

98

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Table 1.  Occupations Categories Occupation category

Surnames

%

Records

%

Average frequency

Manual crafts Transportation Liberal professions Commerce and trade Services Agriculture and farming Administration Credit and finances

81 9 12 17 14 13 22 2

47.65 5.29 7.06 10.00 8.24 7.65 12.94 1.18

4544 632 632 467 381 135 133 30

65.34 9.09 9.09 6.72 5.48 1.94 1.91 0.43

56.10 70.22 52.66 27.21 22.59 10.38 6.04 15.00

170

100.00

6954

100.00

40.90

Total

it to artisans selling their own wares and to transporters involved in trading activities, it is clear that commerce and trade was not the main occupation in which Jews were engaged, at least during the period when these occupation-​based surnames emerged. The very low percentage of those employed in financial matters presents a rather realistic image: not many Jews in the Romanian lands were involved in money transactions and banking. An additional interesting feature pointing to the high percentage of ​Jews in manual crafts and transportation is surname frequency, which is the ratio between specific surnames and individual records. As shown in the table above, the average frequency for occupation-​based surnames is 40.9 records per surname. The ratios of 56.1 for manual crafts and even higher, 70.2, for transportation are both proof of much greater employment of the surname bearers in these specific economic fields. The same goes for the liberal professions, but this is to be expected, for the reasons mentioned above. In the last third of the nineteenth century, the Jewish presence in the local economy was increasingly resented in different Romanian circles. Rather than being seen as a stimulus for productivity and modernization, it was perceived to be unfair competition and even a national threat.17 Romanian anti-​Semites deliberately distorted the picture, describing the Jews either as cruel exploiters or as dangerous parasites (“village leeches”).18 They were accused of disdaining “productive occupations” and being only price-​ripping merchants or cruel estate administrators. Paradoxically, these accusations were hurled at the same time that 17. Hasdeu, Studie asupra Judaismului, 30–34. 18. Alecsandri, Lipitorile satului.

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99

the Romanian authorities were restricting and even blocking Jews’ access to a large number of manual crafts where they competed with Romanian craftsmen. Much was made of the argument that Jews in the Romanian lands made a living almost exclusively as merchants and tavern keepers (that is, liquor retailers) and that, as a rule, they were not productive. A. C. Cuza called them “a mongrel and degenerate nation, sterile, without land that does not constitute a complete productive social organism . . . superposed upon another nation, through exploitation of its productive work, and therefore a parasitic nation.”19 In the same vein, M. Eminescu wrote that “The Jewish proletarian, having absolutely nothing, not money capital nor solid crafts skills . . . [has] to exploit someone else’s work.”20 The critical misleading fact was that most commentators, and sometimes also official statistics, included all Jewish craftsmen in the “merchant” category on the ground that they sold their own wares in “dughene la uliţă” (little street-side shops). In a catagrafie (census) of 1838 in Bucharest, for instance, many Jewish tinsmiths, blacksmiths, and glassblowers were registered simply as merchants. In one of ​his comic sketches, Vasile Alecsandri wrote that “in Jassy you find only little Jewish shops: Leiba tailor for men, Moisi shoemaker for women.” The choice of the qualifier “little shop” (i.e., merchant) in contrast to the stated profession, tailor or shoemaker, is most telling. The little shop was clearly the commercial extension of the workshop where the Jewish artisan actually exercised his occupation.21 Unfortunately, this extension was always and inevitably much more “visible”’ than the workshop itself. In 1820, during Prince Mihail Şuţu’s reign, a catagrafie of all taxpayers in Moldavia registered merchants and craftsmen correctly, in different categories. This census is most important because it was done after a series of successive waves of ​ Jewish immigration to Moldavia following the partitions of ​Poland (1772, 1793, and 1795), and the loss of ​Bukovina to the Habsburg Empire in 1775 and that of ​ Bessarabia to the Russian Empire in 1812. In the city of ​Jassy, for example, this census numbered 1,809 native Jewish household heads, 168 of whom registered as merchants, which is about 9.3%. The same census in Jassy registered 268 master craftsmen and journeymen among the native Jews, 40.5%, as well as 410 masters and journeymen among Jews under foreign protection, 36%.22 19.  “O naţie corcită şi degenerată, sterilă, fără pămănt şi care nu formează un organism social complet, productiv . . . suprapusă pe alte naţiuni, prin exploatarea muncii ei productive, prin urmare ca o naţie parazitară.” Alexandru C. Cuza, Doctrina naţionalistă creştină—Cuzismul: definiţii, teze, antiteze, sinteza ( Jassy, 1928), 12–17, quoted in Report, 23. 20.  “Evreul proletar, neavând absolut nimic, nici capital în bani, nici meşteşug sigur . . . [trebuie] să speculeze munca altuia.” Eminescu, Timpul 4, no. 157 (17 July 1879): 1, quoted in Nedelcea, “Eminescu,” 304. 21.  “În Iaşi nu întîlneşti decît dughene jidoveşti: Leiba croitor bărbătesc, Moisi ciobotar femeiesc.” Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 157. 22.  Ibid., 157–59; Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 1, 442–52.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

The main problem seems always to have been the percentage of ​Jewish merchants among the total number of merchants. According to data for the beginning of the twentieth century, 21.1% of all merchants in Romania were Jewish in 1901–2, 26.1% in 1906, and 24% in 1909. At the same time, the fact that the numbers of ​Jewish craftsmen, 19.5% in 1901–2 and growing, were equal to those of ​Jewish merchants was systematically ignored.23 By rule of thumb, most Jews were automatically classified in the category of merchants. The high Jewish participation in manual crafts was, however, obvious. By the mid-​nineteenth century, Dr. Johann F. Neigebaur, the Prussian consul in Jassy and very knowledgeable about the local situation, wrote, “The big problem that other states have not yet solved, that is, attracting Jews to manual crafts, is already solved in Moldavia. A great part of the Jews in Jassy are making a living working with their hands as craftsmen. Most glassblowers, carpenters, tailors, shoemakers, and jewelers are Jewish.”24 The local newspaper Gazeta de Moldova noted on 29 August 1857 that “trade and crafts were the prerogative of the foreigners, in the Romanian [lands] it is the Jews and Gypsies who are active in these [trade and crafts],” and urged the establishment of vocational schools for Romanians.25 This reality was stressed even more, and lamented, by Mihai Eminescu: “Where the dyer received an aristocratic title and closed his little shop, the Jew opened one; where the son of a furrier obtained a civil servant position, the Jewish furrier opened his shop; where the Romanian shoemaker became a municipal custodian, that is night watchman, there the Jew opened his shoemaker’s shop.”26 Later, at the beginning of the twentieth century, Nicolae Iorga noted that, in contrast to other countries, “in our Moldavia, Jews are holding/dominating commerce but also the manual crafts.”27 The historian Neagu Djuvara noted as well that “Jews are, predominantly . . . merchants or craftsmen.”28 As to moneylending and finances, only relatively few Jews were involved in these activities, which never attained the same development as in Western Europe: 23. Iancu, Jews in Romania, 159–60. 24.  Johann F. Neigebaur, Beschreibung der Moldau und Walachei (Leipzig, 1848), 100, quoted in Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 1, 43. 25.  “Comerciul şi artele erau privilegiul streinilor, la Români se îndeletnicesc cu acestea Evreii şi Ţiganii.” M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 21. 26. “Unde bacalul boierit şi-​au închis dugheana şi-​au deschis-​o Evreul; unde fiul blănarului s’au făcut cinovnic, blănarul Evreu şi-​au deschis dugheana; unde ciubotarul Român s’au facut custode al urbei, adică paznic de noapte, acolo Evreul şi-​au deschis ciobotărie.” Mihai Eminescu, “Influenţa austriacă asupra românilor din Principate” Convorbiri Literare 10, no. 5 (1 August 1876), quoted in M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 22. 27.  “În Moldova noastră [evreii] . . . ţin negoţul, . . . [dar şi] . . . meşteşugurile.” Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 159. 28.  “Evreii sînt, cu precădere . . . negustori sau meşteşugari.” Djuvara, Între orient, 177.

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101

“Jews were not active in moneylending because they had secure and productive occupations and because of the simple, patriarchal life led by Romanians at that time when money was not yet a sought-​after commodity and yielded little profit.”29 In the Romanian lands, society was structured principally into two classes: boyars and peasants. The middle class—craftsmen, merchants, and entrepreneurs who, in need of capital, requested the moneylenders’ services—was thin and precarious and composed mainly of foreigners, among them Jews. As Nicolae Iorga demonstrated, the real “neguţitori de bani” (merchants of money) in the principalities in the eighteenth–nineteenth centuries, who lent money to ordinary people but also to merchants, boyars, and even the princes, were mostly Turks and Greeks. In 1832, for example, out of forty-​four zarafi (money changers and lenders) registered in Bucharest, only nine, 20%, were Jewish.30 The results of the analysis of occupation-​based surnames seem, as far as can be appreciated, to be much closer to the factual historical documentation available, and thus support and confirm it rather than the overblown stereotype of ​Jews as merchants and usurers conveyed by common prejudice. Manual Crafts Table 2 shows more clearly and exactly the subcategories in which most Jewish craftsmen were concentrated: clothes and accessories (17.94%), footwear (17.39%) and furs and fur clothes (14.96%), followed by cereal milling and processing (11.76% together) as well as carpentry and barrel making (7.55% together). It is also stressed by the surname frequency in all these subcategories, well above the average of 56.1 records per surname (in bold in the table). It is also interesting to note additional concentrations in occupational categories related to different aspects of ​Jewish life: fabrics (prohibition of shatnez), meat (kosher slaughter—note frequency!), building and construction (tombstone cutting), beverages (kosher supervision). But the high concentration in the above categories, even when some of them relate to religious precepts (clothes, cereal processing), clearly shows that Jewish artisans were catering to a much more extended and differentiated market than that in the relatively small Jewish communities. Other Occupations Table 3 provides a statistical analysis of economic areas besides manual crafts: here again we can discern a concentration in the categories of freight transport (7.8%), 29.  Robert Höniger, “Zur Geschichte der Juden Deutschlands im Mittelalter,” Zeitschrift für die Geschichte der Juden in Deutschland 1 (1887): 83, quoted in M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 46. 30. Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 171.

Clothes and accessories Furs and fur clothes Caps and hats Fabrics and related Footwear Leatherwork Leather accessories Cereal grain milling and grinding Cereal processing Meat Beverages Miscellaneous Barrel making Carpentry and furniture Miscellaneous Blacksmith Tinsmith Precious metals Building and construction Other manual crafts

Clothes, caps, and accessories

Numbers higher than the average of 56.1 are bold.

All manual crafts

Building and construction Other manual crafts

Metalwork

Woodwork and carpentry

Food and beverages

Leather and footwear

Subcategory

Occupation category

Table 2.  Manual Crafts

81

4 2 6 3 6 4 1 3 6 2 5 3 2 4 2 3 3 2 5 15

Surnames

100.00

4.94 2.47 7.41 3.70 7.41 4.94 1.23 3.71 7.41 2.47 6.17 3.70 2.47 4.94 2.47 3.70 3.70 2.47 6.17 18.52

%

4544

815 680 226 139 790 42 25 272 262 193 54 6 179 164 76 84 77 53 146 261

Records

100.00

17.94 14.96 4.97 3.06 17.39 0.92 0.55 5.99 5.77 4.25 1.19 0.13 3.94 3.61 1.67 1.85 1.69 1.17 3.21 5.74

%

56.1

203.7 340 .0 37.7 46.3 131.7 10.5 25.0 90.7 43.7 96.5 10.8 2.0 89.5 41.0 38.0 28.0 25.7 26.5 29.2 17.4

Average frequency

102 Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

103

cereals, food and beverages trade (6.1% together); and food and beverages–related services (4.24%), supported by the relatively high surname frequency. Professions related to Jewish tradition constitute another concentration, which will be discussed separately. An important fact is that all the most frequently used occupational surnames mentioned above are found among the congregants of the respective synagogues named for the different crafts of the guilds. In the city of ​Jassy, out of 116 synagogues functioning in the interwar period, 31 were traditionally called after specific crafts, among which were Butnari (barrel makers), Cizmari (shoemakers), Cojocari (fur coat makers), Cotiugari (wagoners—2 synagogues), Croitori (tailors—4), Cuşmari (fur cap makers), Merari (apple orchard attendants), Muzicanţi (musicians), Pietrari (stonecutters—4), Stoleri (cabinetmakers—2), Telali (brokers; town criers), Zugravi (house painters).

Jewish Specialization in Specific Economic Fields On the basis of these statistical data regarding categories of occupations, we can now point to the main fields of activity in which Jews became highly specialized: Fabrics and clothes: 13.72% of all records related to occupations; 7 surnames, among which Croitoru (tailor) is the most frequent surname of them all, representing 11.6% of all occupation-​based records. Furs, fur clothes, and caps: 13% of the records; 8 surnames, among them Cojocaru (fur coat maker), the third most frequent, representing 9.3% of all occupation-​based records Footwear and leatherwork: 12.32% of the records; 11 surnames, among them Ciubotaru (shoemaker), the second most frequent, representing 9.89% of all occupation-​based records Cereals processing and beverages production: 7.68% of the records, 14 surnames; together with cereals and beverages trade and related services: 17.98% Furniture and barrel making: 4.93% of the records, 6 surnames Jewish tradition-​related occupations: 8.11% of the records, 3 surnames In all, these represent 59.76% of all occupation-​related records documented by Romanian and Romanized surnames, that is, the vast majority. These records represent 49 out of the 170 generic occupation-​based surnames, meaning that their frequency is remarkably high. Three of the most frequent surnames in these categories, Croitoru, Cojocaru, and Ciubotaru—all three describing manual crafts—represent together not only 30.79% of all occupation-​related records but

170

Total occupations

Numbers higher than the average of 40.9 are bold.

89

5 3 1 4 5 6 2 3 6 4 8 2 4 3 1 4 4 4 2 6 2 5 3 2

Surnames

Total nonmanual crafts

Credit and finances

Administration

Liberal professions

Services

Agriculture and farming

Total occupations

Freight transport Passengers transport Horse dealership Cereals and food Beverages General trade Tobacco Fruit tree growing Miscellaneous Sheep raising Food and beverage–related Personal hygiene–related Miscellaneous Jewish tradition–related Miscellaneous Medicine and pharmacy Music and singing Gentry estates administration Guilds and work fraternities Archaic administrative positions Tax collection Guard duty Military service Credit and finances

Transportation

Commerce and trade

Subcategory

Occupation category

Table 3.  Other Crafts

100.00

52.35

2.94 1.76 0.59 2.33 2.94 3.53 1.18 1.76 3.53 2.35 4.71 1.18 2.35 1.76 0.59 2.35 2.35 2.35 1.18 3.53 1.18 2.94 1.76 1.13

%

6954

2410

540 63 29 349 72 39 7 65 41 29 295 62 24 564 26 26 16 37 34 28 22 5 7 30

Records

100.00

34.66

7.77 0.91 0.42 5.02 1.04 0.56 0.10 0.93 0.59 0.42 4.24 0.89 0.35 8.11 0.37 0.37 0.23 0.53 0.49 0.40 0.32 0.07 0.10 0.43

%

40.9

27.1

108.0 21.0 29.0 87.3 14.4 6.5 3.5 21.7 6.8 7.3 36.9 31.0 6.0 188.0 26.0 6.5 4.0 9.3 17.0 4.7 11.0 1.0 2.3 15.0

Frequency

104 Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

105

also 11.44% of all records of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames. Their frequency rate is fifteen to twenty times higher than the already high average of 40.91 for occupation-​based surnames. As can be seen from this analysis of occupation-​based surnames, while Jews were active in most crafts and trades, they evidently tended to specialize and concentrate in a number of rather specific branches. In this sense, the results of the present analysis come to support historical documentation according to which the Jews specialized mainly in these abovementioned specific fields in which they sometimes held a dominant position. Following is an example of this considerable tendency toward concentration in a small number of ​branches (data from 1808 and 1820 are for the city of ​Jassy; from 1845 for all Moldavia): tailoring (22 Jewish craftsmen in 1808; 120 in 1820; 770 in 1845), shoemaking (9 in 1808; 53 in 1820; 379 in 1845), cabinetmaking (4 in 1808, 7 in 1820, 530 in 1845), and so on. On the other hand, in 1820 Jewish craftsmen outnumbered gentiles in 6 different crafts; in 1845 however, Jews overnumbered gentiles in all 11 crafts in which they were employed. In addition, certain crafts, such as cabinetmaking and passementerie making, were practiced by Jews exclusively.31 For comparison, according to the statistical data of the official census of 1913, the percentage of ​Jews within the active population working in the main industrial branches in Romania was as follows: 21.4% in the clothing sector; 15.1%, printing and graphic arts; 14.5%, textiles; 13.2%, leather and furs; 10.1%, food; 8.1%, chemicals; 7%, metallurgy; 6.8%, wood; and 6.3%, building materials.32 This phenomenon is to some extent similar to the situation in Poland, where Jews dominated the textile, garment, and shoe fields as well as, to a large extent, the food industry.33 The concentration of ​Jewish craftsmen in the areas of clothing and footwear, as shown by both historical documentation and surname analysis, is of a more general nature and was apparent in many different locations and different periods of time. For Romania, a telling example is the district capital town of ​Dorohoi: its Jewish population of 6,804 in 1899 represented 53.6% of the general population. Town records giving professional profiles show a total of 297 craftsmen in 1902, 231 of them Jewish. A breakdown by specific crafts in the same town dating from 1831 shows 24 butchers, all Jewish; 28 tailors—27 of them Jewish; 6 shoemakers—5 of them Jewish; and only 1 baker, also Jewish.34 The reasons might stem from the fact that gentile craftsmen tended to despise these tasks as dirty and unhealthy, leaving them open to Jews, or from the perception that Jews had traditionally achieved a high level of expertise in these fields and thus had a leading advantage. The most 31.  Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 1, 45. 32. Rosen, Participarea evreilor, 141. 33. Marcus, Social and Political, 110–21. 34. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:105.

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frequent surnames in these areas are Croitoru, Boiangiu, Pânzaru, Ciubotaru, Opincaru, and Tălpălaru. In other areas the concentration of ​Jews is more country-​specific, as could be expected. As happened also in the Polish Commonwealth, in the Romanian lands there was a wealth of furs as a result of ​hunting and animal husbandry as well as a great need for fur clothes and caps due to the extreme climate. Jews entered this field with great success, achieving a dominant position. In the Romanian lands, Jewish furriers are credited in historical documents with being the first to realize the potential of ​hare and rabbit furs, which were traditionally disregarded and thrown away by non-​Jewish Romanians.35 The most frequent surnames in this area are Cojocaru, Cuşmaru, and Blănaru. Another field of ​Jewish craftsmen concentration was furniture, carpentry, and barrel making. The Romanian Principalities were rich in wood, and there was a need to transform some of it into furniture. As an example of the Jewish cabinetmakers’ role in this market, sources documenting the “Emigrants on Foot” of 1900 relate that because so many Jewish craftsmen emigrated from Jassy, the entire furniture production sector in the city was paralyzed.36 Most frequent surnames in this area: Stoleru, Butnaru. Most particular to the Romanian lands is the Jewish concentration in the fields of cereal processing as well as trade and transport of cereals and related services. Well before Ukraine became known as a breadbasket, the Romanian Principalities were Europe’s granary, with the wheat trade being a tight monopoly regulated by their Ottoman suzerain until the peace treaty of ​Kucuk Kainarji, 1774. Deprived by law of the possibility of ​buying or owning land, and thus of producing cereals, many Jews nevertheless became gradually involved in the sector as millers and grinders or as bakers and confectioners, as well as in the cereal trade as carriers, weight measurers, and merchants. Since cereals represented one of the country’s most important resources, it was only natural for Jewish craftsmen and traders to be active in this field. Some of them, Ashkenazi and Sephardic alike, even achieved prominent positions. The most frequent surnames in this area are Grisaru, Pitaru, Covrigaru, and Făinaru. Another important local resource was wine, produced in abundance in vineyards in both Moldavia and Walachia, together with various kinds of ​brandy. Again, specifically prevented from buying or owning vineyards and land in general, many Jews became involved in the production of ​brandies from local grapes and fruits as well as in the wine and brandy wholesale and especially retail (inns, taverns) trade. Jews are also credited in historical documents with introducing the production of ​liquor made from cereals, which was previously unknown in 35. Hauterive, Mémoire sur l’état, 130–32. 36. Ancel, Pinkas Hakehillot, 1:91–94.

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the principalities (see below). They were so successful at it that, as in the Polish Commonwealth, they practically dominated this field until official prohibitions were introduced against them, beginning in 1782 under Prince Alexandru Mavrocordat and then through the 1840s under the pretence, similar to those in Poland and Russia, that Jews were poisoning the peasants and working classes with alcohol and robbing them of their meager wages. Eventually, liquor production and trade were to become a state monopoly, like that of tobacco. The current analysis of occupation-​based surnames shows only relatively few records of surnames related to this category. However, the nine surnames documenting as many occupations related to producing and selling alcoholic beverages are vestiges of a larger Jewish participation in this field, and we suppose that the scarcity of records is due to the relatively early prohibitions on exercising these specific occupations. The most frequent surnames in this area are Beraru, Crâşmaru. It is evident from the above that the activities of ​Jewish artisans and tradesmen were concentrated in relatively few and well-​defined fields in which they became important and sometimes even dominant players. But the analysis of occupation-​ based surnames supplies documentation not only for the “horizontal” spread of the different occupations within their respective economic fields but also for a “vertical” approach, that is, of the relation and links between the different occupations within one given field along the entire production and commercialization chain. Judging by the occupation-​based surnames, it appears that not only were Jews present at specific stages of production and commercialization, but they also tended to be involved in or to “cover” the multiple and various interrelated stages within the economic fields they were most active in, along the lifeline of the products from raw materials to the markets. On the other hand, this could also reflect a need to ensure steady and reliable sources of supply as well as available markets. This was seemingly typical—and to some extent even expected—in most places where Jews constituted the majority of the population (50% or more) or a significant part of the workforce was employed in nonagricultural sectors. In Salonika, for instance, Jews traditionally dominated the textile industry in all its phases from wool washing to dyeing to fulling; Jewish porters carried the cloth, and Jewish water carriers provided water.37 In Poland prior to WWI, the Jewish cotton textile manufacturers (unlike the German ones) had a pronounced tendency toward vertical integration, covering all phases of production—spinning, weaving, bleaching, dyeing, printing, finishing, mercerizing, and so on. They also showed unusual versatility in product marketing, stemming from the way they organized their sales: the retailer was provided with all the articles he wanted to buy, needing no contact with competitors.38 37. Wischnitzer, History, 128. 38. Marcus, Social and Political, 90–92.

108

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames cereals milling and grinding Grisaru Cruparu Moraru 272

transport by cart or wagon Harabagiu Cărăuşu 199

flour sifting and weighting Ciuraru Sitaru Cantargi 219

bread and bakery products Pitaru Chitaru Pităraşu Brutaru Covrigaru 250

cereals trade Făinaru Mălăeru 151

rural estate supervision Şufaru/Şafaru Taingiu Vătafu 47

Chart 1.  Concentration of and interaction between occupations processing and trading cereals

Area of Cereals Processing and Trade In the Romanian lands, as mentioned, Jews could not plant and harvest cereals. But they were present at all stations necessary to bring this product to the consumer (chart 1). In the first stage: milling and grinding of the grains in order to produce wheat and corn flour (maize). It has to be noted that wheat flour was generally destined for the populations of the large towns and cities and especially for export abroad, while maize was the basic staple of the Romanian rural diet. Specific surnames: Grisaru (miller/grinder), 183 records; Cruparu (miller/ grinder), 57; Moraru (miller), 32. The second stage: sifting and weighing the flour, or maize, in order clean and package it. Specific surnames: Ciuraru (flour sifter) 187 records, Sitaru (flour sifter) 4, Cantargiu (Cantaragiu) (weigher) 28. It is worth noting that both Ciuraru and Sitaru can also mean “sieve” or “riddle maker,” which could put some of the bearers of these names in the field of manual crafts, thus further augmenting its weight. The third stage: cereals trade per se. Specific surnames: Făinaru (wheat flour dealer), 147 records; Mălăeru (corn flour dealer), 4. Of note is that these surnames describe only dealers of flour and not grains, meaning that in the process of ​bringing cereals to markets the previous two stages were essential. Also, the fact that Făinaru represents 147 records compared with 4 for Mălăeru alludes to the fact that the cereals trade was in fact focused on the more valuable wheat flour, while maize was apparently sold at the local level immediately after grinding.

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

109

The fourth stage: transportation by cart or wagon, in general horse-​driven. Specific surnames: Harabagiu (wagoner), 197 records; Căruceru (wagoner), 95; Cotigaru (wagoner), 22; Cărăuşu (carrier), 2. While Căruceru and Cărăuşu are related to general cargo, Harabagiu is derived from haraba, a type of ​large cart commonly, but not exclusively, used for the transport of cereals. The fact that Harabagiu is the most represented surname related to carting—197 records compared to 119 for all the other three surnames—says a lot about the relationship between Jews and cereals transportation. The fifth stage: processing flour into bread and baked goods. Specific surnames: Pitaru 153 records and Chitaru 19; Pităraşu 8; Brutaru 2; Covrigaru 68. The first three are all variants of the same regional word for “baker,” while Brutaru is the standard word. Many Jews were apparently active in breadmaking. But it is interesting that Covrigaru (pretzel maker) is a very well-​represented surname—68 records compared with 182 for all the others. It seems that we are talking not so much of the traditional local “pretzel” but rather of the “bagel,” which is a bread product introduced by Jews during the nineteenth century and was also known by the Romanian name for the similarly shaped covrig. To these we could also add Jewish involvement in the administration of the rural estates, many of which were producing cereals for the local and international markets. Specific surnames: Şufaru/Şafaru, 24 records; Taingiu, 10; Vătafu, 3— all meaning administrator or supervisor. Area of Alcoholic-​Beverage Processing and Trade Jews could not generally own vineyards and therefore produce wine. But they were definitely part of the production of alcoholic beverages and their commercialization (chart 2). Production of alcoholic beverages such as different types of ​brandy, which in the principalities were traditionally made of grapes or juice of various fruits, such as plums, pears, apples, and so on. Specific surnames: Răchieru (liquor distiller), 7 records; Velniceru (liquor distiller), 4; Drojdieru (grape brandy distiller), 1. Surprisingly, the surname Beraru (beer brewer) is more highly represented, 41 records, pointing to a Jewish concentration in beer production in a later period, perhaps after the interdiction regarding production of and trade in liquor was enforced. Weighing or measuring these valuable liquids was essential to their commercialization, and specialists were needed. Specific surnames: Vădraru, 20 records, was the one who weighed wine or brandy with a standard measure for

110

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

orchard attendance Meraru Livădaru 64 distillation and brewing Răchieru Velniceru Drojdieru Beraru 53

barrels transport Cotigaru Căruceru 117 Mahalu 38

weighting and measuring Vădraru Cotaru 36

inn and tavern keeping Crâşmaru Cârciumaru Făgădău Hangiu Orendaru 72

charcoal burning Cărbunaru 64

cauldron making and tinsmith work Căldăraru Alămaru Tinichigiu 77

barrel and pail making Butnaru Cofaru 179

Chart 2.  Concentration of and interaction between occupations within beverages production and trade

liquids, vadră, which gave its name to the special tax on liquor sales. Cotaru, 16 records, was the one who measured barrels in order to establish their capacity. These are key positions in this specific economic field. Transportation of the barrels had its particular demands. Among wagoners, Căruceru and Cărăuşu are, as mentioned, related to general cargo and Harabagiu mainly to cereals transport; Cotigaru, 22 records, is related to cotigă, a two-​wheeled cart frequently used for transporting barrels. On another level, moving barrels from one place to another required certain skills to avoid breaking them, and this was done by special barrel porters called mahal, hence the surname Mahalu, 38 records. Retailers at the end of the process. There were apparently two kinds of these, depending on the location and dimensions of the establishment. Specific surnames: Crâşmaru, 42 records, and Cârciumaru 1 (tavern keeper), are related to smaller establishments within inhabited locations, while Făgădau 15, Hangiu 13, and Orendaru 1 (innkeeper) are related to larger ones generally located far away from towns and villages. It should be noted that innkeeping was one of the main occupations exercised by Jews who first settled in the Romanian lands, when there was a great need for such way stations along the long commercial roads. It took pioneering audacity for a Jewish family to live in the middle of nowhere, far from a traditional community, exposed to the vicissitudes of the times. There they were nonetheless, facilitating accommodation and boarding for exhausted travelers. Contrary to the common “liquor”-related stigma, those inns also served food for men

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

111

and provided fodder for animals, as well as providing much-​needed overnight shelter and protection against marauders. Additional surnames describe various other activities linked to a certain extent to the processing of alcoholic beverages: Căldăraru (cauldron maker), 27 records, and possibly also Alămaru (tinsmith), 28, and Tinichigiu, 22 (tinsmith), are related to the process of distillation, in which copper or tin cauldrons were essential parts. Cărbunaru (charcoal burner), 64 records, is related to the combustible needed in the distillation process. Butnaru (barrel maker), 156 records, and Cofaru (wooden pail maker), 23 records, are related to the production of wooden receptacles for preserving beverages. Meraru (apple orchard attendant), 48 records, and Livădaru (orchard attendant), 16, are proof that Jews were active in the industrial exploitation of fruit trees, sometimes also for liquor production. Meraru is documented as “apple orchard lessee” as well as “apple merchant”: buying the crop in advance, he would pick the fruit when ripe and then sell some at the market and process the rest into pickled apples, kvas, or cider.39 It should be noted that we find many records here suggesting that a large number of ​Jews were indeed concentrated in these “supporting” occupations, which were an integral part of the field of alcoholic beverage processing and trade. Concerning this field, of interest is that coming especially from Poland and Ukraine, Jews introduced into the Romanian lands in the eighteenth century the production and consumption of cereal-​based liquor (from wheat, corn, rye), horilcă, and vodka, which competed with local brandy made from grape or fruit juice (ţuică, tescovină). Because importing horilcă was prohibited, they would produce it in distilleries (velniţe) established on the estates belonging to monasteries or to Romanian boyars. Since the principalities at the time were subject to the Ottoman monopoly on cereals trade, they had to sell a large part of their cereals harvest to the Turks at very low prices (zaherea). The Romanian boyars and abbots, therefore, preferred to sell their grains at much higher prices by transforming them into liquor in Jewish-​administered distilleries (officially, liquor was made only of spoiled wheat unfit for export, to avoid reprimands from Constantinople). This was one of the reasons why, during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the aristocracy and monasteries had a vested interest in settling Jews from Galicia and beyond in the villages and provincial towns of ​Romania. 39. Sternberg, Ştefăneşti, 58.

112

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

This complex socioeconomic phenomenon was described by Mihai Eminescu, hardly a friend of the Jews, in an article published in 1876: We are all surprised by the high number of taverns in our country—and by the number of ​Jews; the reason is the high quantity of ​liquor and high number of distilleries; where did they all came from? Under Turkish rule, grain export was restricted . . . ; surplus grains had to be fed to cattle that could be exported. The distillery would process the surplus as well as produce fodder for the cattle. It would produce plenty of ​liquor that had to be consumed. A lot of taverns appeared; tavernkeepers were needed. A lot of ​ Jews were brought on.40 Area of ​Fabrics and Clothes Production of fabrics and silk. Specific surnames: Pânzaru (fabric maker, weaver), 36 records; Mătăsaru (silk weaver), 17. Fabrics were made of ​linen, hemp, and especially wool. Woollen fabrics were a Jewish specialty, and Salonikan Jews, for example, were famous for different types, among them the popular aba, and had a virtual monopoly thereof as suppliers to the Ottoman Army.41 Silk was produced only relatively late in the principalities, and Jews were apparently those who introduced it, together with plantations of mulberry trees (see surname Livădaru). Jews had mastered silk production and sericulture in Sassanid Persia (the nickname that developed into the surname Hariri, Arabic for “silk weaver,” is documented early on). They expanded this branch into southern Italy and brought it with them to the Ottoman Empire. In this category we should also mention the surname Scorţaru (carpet maker), 39 records. Dyeing of fabrics. Specific surnames: Boiangiu (dyer), 84 records. The ancient Israelites had learned the secrets of dyeing from their Canaanite and Phoenician neighbors, who obtained purple from certain mollusks gathered on the coast north of present-​day Haifa. A Talmudic commentary mentions it as “purple for the dyeing of their cloth.”42 Throughout the Middle Ages, particularly in southern Italy and Greece, the Jewish communities had almost 40. “Ne mirăm cu toţii de mulţimea crîşmelor în ţara noastră—de mulţimea jidanilor—causa e mulţimea rachiului, mulţimea velniţelor, dar oare această mulţime de unde vine? Supt domnia turcească . . . esportul grînelor era oprit. . . . Grînele neconsumate trebuiau prefăcute în obiect esportabil—în vite. S-​au combinat lucrurile. Velniţa consuma prisosul şi da hrană vitelor [borhot]. Velniţa producea rachiu, rachiul trebuia consumat şi era mult. S-​au făcut multe crîşme. Pentru acestea trebuiau crîşmari. S-​au adus mulţi evrei.” Eminescu, “Influenţa austriacă,” quoted in M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 22. 41. Wischnitzer, History, 128. 42.  Ibid., 45.

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a monopoly on dyeing, which required high skills and secret processes. The relatively large number of records points to Jewish specialization in this occupation. In the ancient period, dyeing was apparently also related to the tzitzit, the specially knotted ritual fringes attached to the four corners of the tallit, which were traditionally colored in a special shade of sky blue (Numbers 15:38–39).43 Clothing production. Specific surnames: Croitoru (tailor), 807 records. Croitoru is by far the most represented occupation-​based surname, 11.6% of all these, and also the most frequent Romanian or Romanized surname. It speaks by itself to the degree of ​Jewish specialization in this occupation. Other specific surnames, although much less represented, attest to other aspects of this field: Cârpaciu (old clothes mender), 5 records, documents the need to recondition old or degraded clothes; it can be assumed that many tailors were also mending clothes, although that was not their main activity. Ceaprazaru (passementier), 2 records, is linked to ornaments used in clothes production. Area of ​Fur Preparation and Clothes and Cap Production Fur preparation. Specific surnames: Blănaru (furrier), 33 records. This surname related to furs per se and not to fur products, but it can be assumed that many other craftsmen were also involved in fur preparation at subsequent stages. Fur clothes and cap production. Specific surnames: Cojocaru (fur coat maker), 647 records; Cuşmaru (fur cap maker), 153 records; Căciularu (fur cap maker), 23; Colpacci (fur cap maker), 32; Şăpcaru (cap maker), 16. Cojocaru is the third-​most-​represented occupation-​based surname pointing to high concentration in order to satisfy a market need. The fact that there are three surnames for fur cap maker, with more than 200 records, also points in this same direction. Caps, as in Şăpcaru, could be made of fur, leather, or fabric. Area of ​Leather and Footwear Leather processing. Specific surnames: Dubălaru (tanner), 10 records; Tăbăcaru (tanner), 2; Solonar (tanner), 1. Three surnames for the same occupation related to the basic processing of ​leather. Still, Jewish concentration is greater in aspects specifically linked with shoemaking: Iuftaru (tanner of upper shoe leather), 29 records. This is related to iuft, a specially treated leather used for the shoe’s upper part, whose preparation process was brought from Russia at a later stage, possibly by Jews. Tălpălaru (shoe 43.  Encyclopaedia Hebraica, 32:823–24.

114

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

sole maker), with 37 records, points to another very specialized subcategory. Another additional aspect is belt and cordon making, represented by surnames such as Curelaru, 25 records. Shoemaking. Specific surnames: there are a few different surnames describing a shoemaker, such as Ciubotaru, 688 records; Cizmaru, 17; Pantofaru, 4; Păpucaru, 4. The semantic differences between them will be explained later. What is important here is that Ciubotaru is the second-​most-​represented occupation-​based surname and, together with others, represents 688 records, a clear proof of ​Jewish specialization and domination in the trade. This trend is further reinforced by the surname Opincaru (laced-​moccasin maker) with 40 records, describing another kind of footwear producer. These three last fields described above have only two or three stages as opposed to the first two. But they have in common a few other categories of ​“supporting” occupations that put them into a wider perspective of interwoven crafts and activities (chart 3). Area of Animal and Especially Sheep Husbandry It appears that Jews were also involved in raising sheep, which was not specifically prohibited for them. They produced either dairy staples (see surname Brânzaru [cheesemaker]) or, and perhaps mainly, supplied wool for fabrics and clothes production and also skins for fur clothes and caps as well as for leather and footwear production. Specific surnames: Ciobanu 17 records; Strugaru 7; Oieru 4; and Baciu 1—all of them meaning shepherd. This is an occupation not generally associated with Jews in the Diaspora, but in the realities of the Romanian Principalities it was not uncommon for Jews to work in fields linked to agriculture, as seen before. The image of ​Jews as shepherds might be surprising in the European context, but it was nonetheless a reality in the Romanian lands. “Jewish sheepfolds in Maramureş as well as in Bukovina are very numerous and are multiplying more and more,” wrote Tiberiu Morariu, who, in the 1920s, investigated sheep husbandry practiced by Jews in these regions, a phenomenon attested since the mid-​nineteenth century. “There are rather frequent cases where the baci, head shepherds, are Jews. They are called cuşerari because they produce kosher cheese.” Tiberiu Morariu also published a few photographs of ​Jewish sheepfolds following the Romanian model.44 “Unprecedented on a European scale, Jewish sheep husbandry in Maramureş and Bukovina is a particularity of the Jewish Diaspora . . . nomads since the beginning of time, oieritul (sheepherding) attracted the Jews 44.  “Sînt destul de dese cazurile cînd bacii sînt evrei.” Ei se numesc “cuşerari,” pentru că “fac brînză cuşeră.” Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 213.

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

fabrics and silk Pânzaru Mătăsaru 53

fur processing Blănaru 33

leather processing Dubălaru Tăbăcaru Solonar Iuftaru Tălpălaru Curelaru 105

dyeing Boiangiu 84

fur clothes and caps Cojocaru Cuşmaru Căciularu Colpacci Şepcaru 871

shoemaking Ciubotaru Cizmaru Pantofaru Păpucaru Opincaru 753

clothing production Croitoru Cârpaciu Ceaprazaru 814

water carrying Sacagiu 224

115

sheep raising Ciobanu Strugaru Oieru 30

Chart 3.  Concentration of and interaction between occupations producing clothes, caps, and footwear. The three most common surnames are bold. Very unusual surnames are small caps.

and they reappropriated rapidly one of their basic activities in antiquity,” wrote the historian Victor Neumann.45 Sheepraising by Jews left traces even in folklore and popular mythology. The great Romanian writer Mihail Sadoveanu, who had a good knowledge of ​Romanian folklore, begins his pastoral novel Baltagul (The ax) with a legend collected in Bukovina “from an old baci who was Jewish in his youth.” Also well acquainted with Romanian musical folklore, Avram Goldfaden noted that in the second half of the nineteenth century, Jewish fiddlers in Romania interpreted, in Yiddish, a popular Jewish tune entitled “Eu, biet cioban” (I, poor shepherd). The most spectacular reminiscence of this socioeconomic phenomenon is a variant of the Romanian national ballad “Mioriţa” (The little ewe lamb), collected in the Vrancea district: “three herds coming down, with three handsome shepherds: one is Transylvanian, one is Moldavian, and one is jîdan ( Jewish).”46 45.  Victor Neumann, Tentaţia lui homo-​europaeus: Geneza spiritului modern în Europa Centrală şi de Sud-​Est (Bucharest, 1991), 111, quoted in Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 214. 46.  De la un baci bătrîn, care fusese jidov în tinereţă  . . . Iată vini-​n cali, Tri turmi di oi, Cu tri mîndri fişiori: Unu-​i ungurean, Unu-​i moldovean Şî unu-​i jîdan. (Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 214)

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Area of ​Water Carrying This was essential not only for household use but also, and most importantly, for wool washing, fabric dyeing, and leather tanning. All these productive activities were highly dependent on an abundant and regular water supply. Specific surnames: Sacagiu (water carrier), with 224 records, related to the saca, a barrel on wheels. Considering that Jews were in general a minority and supplying water to the population was the responsibility of the local council, one might be surprised at first glance by the high Jewish concentration in this prosaic occupation. It is only by knowing water’s importance for the orderly functioning of the production process of so many Jewish workshops that we can understand this phenomenon. This is why, in Salonika, there were so many aguadores, the Spanish word for “water carriers,” serving the wool washers and dyers.47 Area of ​Woodworking and Furniture and Barrel Making This includes different parallel activities: General woodworking is poorly represented. Specific surnames: Dulgheru 1 record; Teslar 1—both meaning carpenter or joiner. Dreniceru, 1 record, describes a wood-​tile maker. Furniture production. Specific surnames: Stoleru, 160 records, and Tâmplar, 2 records, both meaning carpenter and cabinetmaker. Here we see a high concentration; as mentioned, Jews had a dominant role in the production of furniture. Making of ​barrels and pails mentioned in relation to the need of recipients for preserving beverages. Specific surnames: Butnaru (barrel maker) 156 records, and Cofaru (wooden pail maker) 23 records, another important concentration of ​Jewish craftsmen. Wheels and cart making and repairing. Specific surnames: Rotaru (wheelwright or cartwright), with 75 records, points to a concentration in this important occupation related to transportation of cereals and beverages, for example. Area of ​Transportation This last occupation is the one where links between the different professions can be clearly seen. Some of the occupations have already been alluded to in the 47. Wischnitzer, History, 128.

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previous paragraphs, but listing them together here gives a clearer image of their interdependence. Here also we have different parallel activities (chart 4). Freight transport divided into general cargo: Căruceru (wagoner) 95 records, and Cărăuşu (carrier) 2; cereals transport: Harabagiu (wagoner) 197; and beverages transport: Cotigaru (wagoner) 22. Water carrying is discussed above as a very specific type of cargo transport. Specific surnames: Sacagiu (water carrier), with 224 records. Passenger transport. Specific surnames: Birjaru (coach driver), with 60 records; Vizitiu and Surugiu (coach driver), 1 record each. Birjaru is derived from birjă (horse-​driven coach), a special carriage for passengers’ urban transportation. This shows that Jews were involved in all types of transportation and not only that related to the economic sectors in which they were predominant. Apart from these categories, there are a few other occupations related to transportation that are worth looking at: Wheels and cart making and repairing. Specific surnames: Rotaru (wheelwright or cartwright), with 75 records Horseshoes and metal parts for wheels and carts. Specific surnames: Potcovar (horseshoer/blacksmith), with 5 records, and especially Covaliu, 58 records, and Fieraru, 21, both blacksmith. This is another small concentration in a field apparently not common for Jews. Belt and harness making, represented by surnames such as Curelaru, 25 records.

freight transport Harabagiu Căruceru Cotigaru Cărăuşu 316

passenger transport Birjaru Vizitiu Surugiu 62

water carrying Sacagiu 224

belt and harness making Curelaru 25 wheels and carts making Rotaru 75

horseshoes and metal parts Potcovar Covaliu Fieraru 84 horse dealership Geambaşu 29

Chart 4.  Concentration of occupations within the transportation field

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Horse dealership, represented by the surname Geambaşu (horse dealer), 29 records The different varieties of surnames and the large number of records related to this field reflect the fact that transportation became an activity specific to Jews in Eastern Europe. The large number of ​Jewish artisans and merchants encouraged the development of this related activity of ​“carting” (Romanian cărăuşie) merchandise between the recently established semirural, semiurban market towns, târguri (plural of ​Romanian târg), including those with preponderantly Jewish populations, shtetlech, which constituted the birthplace and fertile ground of capitalist relations in the area. Arthur Koestler and A. N. Poliak included transporting among the few occupations that “became virtually a Jewish monopoly.”48 They were referring specifically to Poland and Lithuania, but the situation in Ukraine, Bukovina, Moldavia, and Bessarabia was very similar. Jewish artisans had to sell their wares to Jewish and non-​Jewish merchants. Merchandise, as well as people, had to be transported to (yearly) trade fairs, iarmaroc in Romanian (and Ukrainian), from the German Jahrmarkt, perhaps through Yiddish mediation. In the Romanian lands, many Jews were involved in transporting by cotigă, haraba, or birjă (different types of cart or wagon). Others became dealers and even raisers of ​horses needed for transportation. Moses Schwarzfeld wrote in 1889 that “since ancient times, horses are one of the favorite items of ​Jewish trade.”49 Other Jews specialized in producing and repairing carts and wheels as well as saddles, harnesses, and leather upholstery for horse-​driven carriages and “the other Jews are horse dealers.”50 At the beginning of the nineteenth century there is documentation about căruţele jâdoveşti ( Jewish carts) called haraba, hence harabagiu for the driver, on the Jassy-​Galaţi route. M. Kogălniceanu spoke of harabagiii jidani ( Jewish haraba drivers) in Jassy in 1844. As late as at the beginning of the twentieth century, Nicolae Iorga wrote about “side-​curled wagoners” and noted that the Jews in Bukovina tended to monopolize transportation by cart and birjă of merchandise and passengers: “the birjă driver is, inevitably, Jewish.”51 The development of the railways during the second half of the nineteenth century, however, brought about the gradual decline of this important Jewish field of

48. Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 203. 49.  “Calul e din vechime unul din obiectele de predilecţie a negoţului evreilor.” M. Schwarzfeld, “Anecdote populare române cu privire la evrei: Cercetare critică,” Anuar pentru israeliţi 12 (1889): 127–43, quoted in Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 202. 50.  “Restul de jidovi sînt geambaşi.” Cătălin Turliuc, “Procesul locuitorilor din Darabani (1878),” Studia et Acta Historiae Iudaeorum Romaniae 5 (2000): 165, quoted in Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 202. 51.  “Harabagii cu perciuni. . . . Birjarul e, neapărat, evreu.” Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 204.

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activity. Nonetheless, in Marc Chagall’s paintings from the end of that century, the image of the cart driver from the Eastern European shtetl still endures.52 Another noteworthy aspect related to transportation in the Romanian lands is that some of the occupations included in this field were traditionally practiced by Roma (Gypsies), who were mostly slaves of the prince, boyars, and monastery estates until their emancipation in 1855–56. There were many Gypsy horseshoers and blacksmiths, wheelwrights, and cartwrights; they were also well known as being horse dealers and horse thieves. Beyond these, there were Gypsy tinsmiths, goldsmiths, and sieve and bucket makers. It is plausible that, when interested in raising the value of their estates and in replacing Gypsy slaves that had been freed, Romanian boyars and abbots encouraged Jewish artisans to come and develop the newly established târguri on their lands and also to extend these activities. Jewish Tradition–Related Occupations These are, as expected, well represented and include a number of specific pursuits (chart 5). Jewish school was of the greatest importance. Dascălu (provincial schoolteacher), has 239 records. This high number attests to the fact that a primary schoolteacher was a very common occupation. It cannot be discerned if it is linked exclusively to Jewish schools or to schools in general. Dascăl(u) became the “specialized” rendition of the Hebrew traditional occupation melamed. To this surname we should add Belfer (schoolteacher’s assistant), from the German Beihelfer, with 34 records. This is in fact a Yiddish word that entered the Romanian language with the derogatory meaning of provincial schoolteacher. However, it cannot be considered a Romanian or Romanized surname. Ritual slaughter and kosher meat, cardinal activities within the Jewish community. Specific surnames: Hahamu (ritual slaughterer), with 199 records, is derived from the Hebrew hakham (learned, wise man). It entered the Romanian language through the intermediary of ​Turkish, or rather Judeo-​ Spanish, the word haham meaning both rabbi and ritual slaughterer of poultry and cattle. The ritual slaughterers had to be learned and well versed in Jewish precepts, and, in times and places where rabbis were difficult to find, they replaced them. A Jewish community can function without a rabbi but not without kosher meat. On the other hand, the Ottoman establishment acknowledged the status and position of the local hakhamim (rabbis), recognizing the Hakham Bashi residing in Jassy as the chief rabbi of ​both 52.  Walther and Metzger, Marc Chagall; Chagall, Gauss, and Conrad, Marc Chagall.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Jewish schoolteacher Dascălu 239 (Belfer)

ritual slaughterer Hahamu 199

butcher Casapu Caţap 193

‫מלמד‬

‫שוחט‬

‫קצב‬

cantor Psalt 6 synagogue sexton Ceauşu 126 ‫שמש‬

bath attendant Ferederu Budaru Băieşu 28 ‫בלן‬

‫חזן‬

gravedigger Cioclu 5 ‫קברן‬

Chart 5.  Concentration of occupations relating to Jewish tradition and religion

Moldavia and Walachia. The native Jews as well as the Yiddish-​speaking immigrants used the term haham(u) to refer to the traditional occupation of shokhet or shokhet-​u-​bodek (ritual slaughterer and supervisor).   Other related surnames are Casapu (butcher), with 170 records, and Caţap (butcher) 23, describing this very common occupation. Note that in historical documents the common word for a butcher’s shop was meserniţă, hence meserciu, while the current standard word is măcelărie, hence măcelar. The choice for Casap(u) and especially Caţap, from the Turkish kasap (derived from the Arabic) as family names, is particularly appealing since it is a calque of ​Hebrew katzav (butcher). These ritual surnames, as well as others, are based on names of professions having a Greek, Turkish, or Semitic etymon that had been integrated for a long time into the Romanian language, and as such became part of the Romanian vocabulary. Synagogue administration. Specific surnames: Ceauşu (synagogue sexton), with 126 records. The person takes care of the physical maintenance of the synagogue, also performing minor related duties. Ceauş(u) became the specialized rendition of the Hebrew traditional task of shamash. Ritual bath and hygiene. Specific surnames: Ferederu (bath attendant), with 26 records. Because it was very important for Jews to respect precepts of personal hygiene, the ritual bath was a must in every community. In time, Jews managed public baths for the benefit of the public. Another occupation related to personal hygiene was Bărbieru (barber), with 36 records, related to the Jewish calendar (e.g., the pre–Sefira period rush for haircuts,

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and before the holidays). Barbers sometimes also performed simple medical procedures due to the lack of available physicians. Other occupations: Psalt (from Greek psáltes, church singer, cantor), 6 records, the equivalent of hazan, a respected synagogue cantor. The surname Diaconu, 3, could perhaps have the same meaning. Cioclu (undertaker, gravedigger), a member of the hevrah qadishah, the burial society, with 5 records. This is an honored communal position responsible for the purification of the body and its respectful handling after death. Besides these main areas of concentration, many Jews, primarily craftsmen, were active in a wide range of various other occupations, some of them pioneering and innovative. It is worth looking at a few of them: Glass production. Jews are credited as being among the first to introduce and produce glass in the Romanian lands. Glassblowing was based on specific professional secrets that Jews had mastered since ancient times and had practiced throughout the medieval period (Judaeum scilicet—Jewish glass).53 Specific surname: Sticlaru (glassblower), with 33 records. Soap production. Jews had produced soap since ancient times54 and were very active in this field in the Romanian lands. Specific surname: Săpunaru (soapmaker), with 54 records. Petroleum and mazut extraction: Jews were definitely pioneers in oil extraction at Moineşti and other places in the Carpathian areas of ​Moldavia (and Galicia). This was not a Jewish traditional occupation, but it was a new, and thus risky, field; Jews were among the first to try their luck at it. Specific surnames: Groparu (mazut / crude oil well worker), 4 records, as in deschide groapă de păcură (opening an oil well), and Dogotaru (mazut / crude oil well worker), 1 record. Gunpowder production. Specific surname: Sili(s)traru (gunpowder maker), from silitra (azotate of potassium), with 1 record. This was a singular and rare occupation, of utmost importance. A document from Jassy, 1792, mentions that “Jews will be sought after and sent there (Soroca) to establish a gunpowder-​production facility.”55 During the reign of Constantin Brâncoveanu (1688–1714) there was only one single silitrar in all Walachia: ovreiul silitrariul (whose actual name is not mentioned).56

53. Wischnitzer, History, 53. 54. Ibid. 55. Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, part 2, 383. 56. Spielmann, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, part 1, 6.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Another new product of modern life was soda or seltzer water, in great demand during the summer heat. Jews were among the first to commercialize soda water in the principalities, known in German as Soda Wasser and in Romanian first pronounced as zoda. Mihail Sadoveanu, with a deep knowledge of the realia of ​Jewish life in the provincial market towns of ​Moldavia towards the end of the nineteenth century, immortalized this trade in one of ​his short stories, “Isac Zodaru” (1923). He illustrates the simple process of the creation of occupation-​based surnames. Iţic (no surname given) was an all-​trades man, buying and selling food items, carrying children on his back to the heder, selling gas for heating in winter and soda water refreshments in summer. His pitch was “Sweet electric ‘zoda’! Five pence a glass!” Says Sadoveanu, concisely: “from this trade of ​his, the nickname of ​Zodaru stuck to him.”57

Semantic Analysis of Occupation-​Based Surnames I maintain that statistical analysis provides us the possibility to fathom the extent, concentration, and frequency of the different occupations practiced by Jews in the Romanian Principalities. The semantic analysis of the names of occupations that I have proposed above has added another perspective for understanding and tracing these specific economic branches. Jews did not focus on highly esteemed sectors; they did not seek only wealthy patrons, but catered to all sectors of the population, including simple peasants. For example, the standard equivalent of ​“shoemaker” in Romanian is cizmar, hence the surname Cizmaru, with 17 records. Another neutral term is pantofar, hence Pantofaru, with 4 records. Pantofaru would sound classy, while Cizmaru is mainstream. However, the most frequent surname related to this occupation is Ciubotaru, with 688 records, from ciubotar, a regional and vernacular word used mainly in Bukovina and Moldavia. Another common regionalism from Moldavia is păpucar, hence Păpucaru, with 4 records. Both are related to the middle and working classes rather than the elites. As can be seen, Ciubotaru is overwhelmingly preponderant, suggesting a large mass clientele. On the other hand, the surname Opincaru, derived from opincă (laced moccasin), the simple peasant’s footwear, is specifically related to the village population. The fact that Opincaru has 40 records is telling (chart 6). Blănaru, 33 records, from blănar, is the standard equivalent of ​“furrier” in Romanian, referring to more expensive or high-​quality fur clothes. However, the most frequent surname, with 647 records, is Cojocaru, derived from cojocar (fur 57.  “De la negustoria aceasta a lui îi rămăsese porecla de Zodaru.” Sadoveanu, Dureri înăbuşite, 414.

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population High status

123

Pantofaru 4

Cizmaru 17 Neutral Păpucaru 4

Low status

Ciubotaru 688

laced-moccasin maker Opincaru 40

Chart 6.  Semantic analysis of ​“shoemaker”: neutral terms vs. status connotations. “Ciubotaru” is one of the most frequently occurring surnames.

coat maker), which is a more working-​class term. Cojocaru would then cater to the working classes, while Blanaru would aim higher to more wealthier patrons. In the field of ​headwear there is the modern Pălărieru (hatmaker) with 1 record, which is in a different league. Şepcaru, from şapcă (peaked cap), with 16 records, is related to a relatively newly introduced cap used in general by military men, students, and workers. But the traditional headwear in the Romanian lands was the fur cap. Căciularu, 23 records, derives from căciulă, which is the standard equivalent of ​“fur cap” in Romanian. Cuşmaru derives from cuşmă (fur cap), a regional head covering worn by the working class. The term is found mainly in Bukovina and Moldavia and refers to a less refined product. Cuşmaru is much more frequent, with 153 records. On the other hand, there is the surname Colpacci(u), with 32 records, from calpac or colpac, a high-​class, expensive fur cap used in general by princes and boyars and thereafter also by rich merchants. This might be a vestige of earlier times when some Jews became purveyors of specific and elaborate items for the aristocracy (see also Potcăpar, maker of clerical headgear for Orthodox priests). Or, given that most records of Colpacci(u) are from Bessarabia, it is possible that in this context colpac has lost its connotation of an expensive fur cap and simply denotes a fur cap common in the region among the neighboring Tatar population (Turkish kalpak) (chart 7). The standard word for “tailor” in Romanian is croitor, hence the surname Croitoru, with 807 records, the most frequent occupation-​based surname. The word has no specific connotation per se hinting at a higher or lower status. But it is known that high-​class tailors in Romania would write on their signs “croitor de lux” in order to differentiate themselves from common ones. Of course, neither “de lux” nor another particle was preserved in this surname, perhaps because most of them were plain “croitor.” On the other hand, the surname Cârpaciu (old

124

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames hatmaker Pălărieru 1

High status

capmaker Şepcaru 16

fur cap maker Căciularu 23 fur cap maker Colpacci 32

Neutral

fur cap maker

Cuşmaru 153 Low status

Chart 7.  Semantic analysis of ​“cap/hat maker”: neutral terms vs. status connotations. “Cuşmaru” is one of the most frequently occurring surnames.

clothes mender) is specifically related to a low-​class clientele that could ill afford to purchase new clothing items. In another area, cereals processing and trade, the standard equivalent of ​ “miller” in Romanian is morar, from which the surname Moraru, with 32 records, was derived. However, the most frequent surnames related to milling are Grisaru, with 183 records, and Cruparu, with 57 records, both related not to flour making but to grinding cereal grains, especially corn, into grits. We remember that wheat (and flour) was a valuable export item; corn, rye, and other cereals, less so. Corn was the basic staple of the Romanian peasant and the working classes in the form of coarsely ground maize, from which a thick porridge was made, known as mămăligă (Romanian polenta). The fact that most Jewish millers were processing mostly low-​value cereal grains for local consumption by the common masses is clearly evident from the frequency of these two surnames. When it comes to trading the processed cereals, however, the proportion is inversed. As it appears, one cannot sell what is not in demand. The surname Făinaru (wheat flour dealer), derived from făină (wheat flour), is far more represented, 147 records, than Mălăeru (corn flour dealer), with 4 records, showing that many more Jews were involved in wholesale trading of wheat flour than of corn flour (chart 8). Significantly, most of the above examples, which make possible a comparative semantic analysis because of the diversity of various names for the same occupation, are concentrated mostly in the area of manual crafts and include the best-​represented occupation-​based surnames. The analysis shows not only that Jews were most active in those sectors that attended to the primary necessities of the population such as clothes, footwear, and food but also that they catered not so much to the elites as to the general population and perhaps even mainly to the working classes.

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High status

wheat flour dealer

miller Moraru 32

Făinaru 147

Neutral

corn grinder

grits maker

Cruparu 57

Grisaru 183

corn flour dealer Mălăeru 4

Low status

Chart 8.  Semantic analysis of ​“miller” and “flour merchant”: neutral terms vs. status connotations. “Făinaru” and “Grisaru” are among the most frequently occurring surnames.

Another feature relevant for this semantic analysis is the presence of regional variants along with the standard term for many of the occupations. As seen, Cizmaru is the standard term for “shoemaker,” with 17 records. Ciubotaru, with 688 records, is a regionalism used mainly in Bukovina and Moldavia. Căciularu, with 23 records, is the standard term for “fur cap maker.” Cuşmaru, with 153 records, is a regionalism used mainly in Bukovina and Moldavia. Tăbăcaru, with 2 records, is the standard term for “tanner.” Dubălaru, with 10 records, is a regionalism used mainly in Moldavia, Bukovina, and Transylvania. Solonar, with 1, is both a regionalism (Moldavia) and an archaic term. Tâmplar, with 2 records, is the term for “cabinetmaker.” Stoleru, with 160 records, is a regionalism used mainly in Moldavia and Bukovina and today is somewhat archaic. Fieraru, with 21 records, is the standard term for “blacksmith.” Covaliu, with 58 records, is a regionalism used mainly in Moldavia and Bukovina. Dogaru is the standard term for “barrel maker.” It is not documented as an occupation-​based surname among Jews. However, Butnaru, a regionalism used mainly in Moldavia and Bukovina, is well represented, with 156 records. Cârciumaru, with 1 record, is the standard term for “tavernkeeper.” Crâşmaru, with 42 records, is a vernacular variant but also the usual word used in Moldavia. Hangiu, with 13 records, is the standard term for “innkeeper.” Făgădău, with 15 records, is a regionalism used mainly in Moldavia and Transylvania. Geographic information in the surnames database, such as birthplace, shows that the standard terms for occupation-​based surnames are not restricted to a

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

specific area but coexist with regionalisms in the same locations. But the comparison between standard terms and the regional variants clearly shows that most occupation-​based surnames were derived from regional names of occupations, generally from terms particular to Moldavia and Bukovina. This could be proof that most Jews involved in those occupations were concentrated in these two provinces.

Conclusions Out of 2,229 Romanian or Romanized surnames documented in 18,719 records, the occupation-​based surnames constitute a very significant part: 366 surnames—​ 16.86% and 7,257 records—38.77%, implying that the pattern of surnames creation based on occupations is one of the most productive. This argument is further reinforced by a frequency ratio of 40.9, compared to the average of 8.4. Different morphological and semantic features suggest that many occupation-​ based surnames were adopted long ago—as indicated by several archaisms, as early as the first third of the nineteenth century or even before. A breakdown by categories of the different occupations gives a rather clear picture: Manual crafts—65.34% of the records (and 47% of the surnames) Transportation—9.09% Both categories are in the “productive” sector of the economy, representing together about three-​quarters of the Jewish workforce. Commerce and trade—6.72% of the records Services—5.48% Credit and finances—0.43% All three categories in the tertiary sector represent less than 13% of the Jewish workforce. These figures contradict the opposing general perception in the Romanian lands that Jews were “not productive” and were involved mainly, if not exclusively, in commerce and finance (cf. chapter 5, section “Categorization of Occupation-​Based Surnames”). It is noteworthy that the above results based on surname analysis confirm and strengthen the evidence emerging from the preserved historical documentation (cf. chapter 5, section “Jewish specialization in Specific Economic Fields”). It appears that this reality could easily have been perceived empirically by any sensible person, even in a later period. The Romanian poet Alexandru Macedonski, in an article titled “The Jews as Craftsmen” in the weekly Biruinţa (Victory)

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in 1909, stated that “today, in the whole world, they are glassblowers, tinsmiths, enamelers, painters, jewelers, carpenters, potters, machine builders, plasterers, mirror makers, after all, they are doing everything and work hard and honestly in all fields. Then, what about the legend that the Jew is nothing other than usurer, moneylender, banker, petty merchant and the like? Like so many other legends, this one also has to fall.”58 Beyond manual crafts, from a cross-​category perspective and taking into account the interaction and links between the various occupations involved in the production, transportation, and commercialization process (chart 9), a number of economic ares of ​Jewish specialization can be distinguished: Cereals and alcoholic beverage processing, and trade—19% of the records. This includes, for example, the commercialization of wheat flour for foreign markets but also the production of ground corn flour (mălai) for local consumption. Fabrics and clothes production—21% Fur clothes and fur cap production—19.93% Leather and footwear production—18.86% Furniture and barrel production—7.55% These are economic areas in which Jews made up a high percentage of the overall workforce and in which they sometimes became predominant. We can mention here, along with the image of the Jewish innkeeper, which was blown out of proportion, that of the traditional Jewish tailor, shoemaker, and fur coat maker. Less familiar, but particular to the Romanian lands, is the image of the Jewish shepherd and of the “cart driver with side curls.” In addition, about 12.36% of working Jews were involved in tradition and religion-​related occupations (teacher, cantor, ritual slaughterer, butcher, etc.). Finally, semantic analysis of the occupation-​based surnames shows that that within these specific economic fields Jews did not focus only on high-​status occupations catering to the elites but attended to all the sectors of the general population, including the working classes. At the same time, the fact that the most frequent surnames describe regional names of occupations suggests a large concentration of the bearers of these names in the regions of ​Moldavia and, to a smaller extent, Bukovina, linking them again to the area of early Jewish settlement. 58.  “Astăzi, şi aceasta în toată lumea, ei sînt sticlari, tinichigii, smălţuitori, vopsitori, giuvaergii, tîmplari, olari de lux, constructori de maşini, ipsosari, fabricanţi de oglinzi, în sfîrşit se ocupă cu orice şi muncesc din greu şi cinstit în toate direcţiunile. Cum rămîne deci cu legenda că evreul nu este decît cămătar, zaraf, bancher, vînzător de mărunţişuri şi altele? Ca şi multe legende, şi aceasta trebuie să cadă” (author’s emphasis). Alexandru Macedonski, “Evreii ca meseriaşi,” Biruinţa, no. 166 (1909), quoted in Oişteanu, Imaginea evreului, 161–62.

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cereals processing and trade

beverages production and trade

Jewish traditional and religious areas

footwear

fabrics and clothing

transportation

furniture and barrel production

fur clothes and caps

Chart 9.  Concentration of occupations within the different fields of activity and interaction between these fields

In all fairness, as stated above, the picture reflected in these occupation-​based Romanian surnames is an approximate description of a certain historical reality that can be characterized as premodern and preindustrial, to some extent regional and provincial, specific to the period (during the first half of the nineteenth century) when the surnames were adopted and when the bearers were actually exercising these occupations. In later periods many examples are documented of ​Jews called Cojocaru (fur coat maker), Ciubotaru (shoemaker), or Croitoru (tailor) who practiced trades altogether different from those described by their surnames. Historical documentation shows that in the first decades of the twentieth century this picture had changed to a certain extent but was not altogether different. An official statistical table from 1913 for the Old Kingdom gives the following breakdown:59 Category

% of ​Jewish population

% of all professionals in category

2.4 41.9 37.2

0.1 12.2 31.3

Agriculture Industry–crafts Commerce–banking 59. Rosen, Participarea evreilor, 56.

Socio-economic Profile of the Jewish Population

Category Transportation Public officials and liberal professions Other

% of ​Jewish population

% of all professionals in category

3.5 3.2

4.3 4.3

10.9

—

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The “productive” occupations (agriculture, industry and crafts, transportation) represented 47.8% and the tertiary sector (trading and banking, public officials and liberal professions) 40.4%, respectively, of the active Jewish population. For comparison, the percentage of 41.9% of all active Jews working in industry and crafts in Romania in 1913 was relatively higher than that of 35% in Hungary in 1920 and 31.7% in Poland in 1921.

Chapter 6

Jewish Identity as Reflected in Romanian Surnames: From Traditional Separation to Integration

General Aspects Due to historical circumstances, the Jewish population in the Old Kingdom was not homogenous and, as such, was not without internal tensions and conflicts. These would affect the history of the Jews in the area as well as their place within Romanian society. As might be expected, this reality is corroborated in the study of ​Jewish surnames. A basic division among the Jews in the Old Kingdom was that between Sephardim and Ashkenazim. The former settled mainly in Walachia and more sporadically in Moldavia. The Ashkenazi immigration to Moldavia, and later to Walachia, changed the situation dramatically. In 1930, of 756,930 Jews (according to religion) only about 10,000 were Sephardim. The arrival of the Ashkenazim had led to tensions and the Sephardim struggled to preserve their heritage and to avoid being engulfed by the Ashkenazi majority. This separation is most evident in Jewish surnames, where Sephardic family names like Alcalay, Angel, Benvenisti, Hasan, Mizrahi, Modiano, Profeta, and Sabetay stand out in contrast to the common Ashkenazi surnames. During the nineteenth century, a second division between native Jews and newcomers developed, this time among the Ashkenazim themselves. Friction arose between the native Jews, speaking Romanian and familiar with local customs, and those “foreign” Jews who had recently immigrated from the Habsburg and Russian Empires, with different mores and aspirations. Some of them had even obtained the privileged status of sudit (foreign subject). A further division developed by the mid-​nineteenth century between the exponents of the Haskalah movement, who advocated a modern approach to Jewish life, culture, and religion, and the staunch defenders of ​Hasidism and Orthodoxy. All these various internal tensions resulted in a process of reassessment of ​Jewish identity in the context of the Romanian lands and subsequently in different ways of action. As expected, a large part of the masses, especially in the provincial market towns, continued to lead a traditional way of ​life and to speak their Yiddish 130

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language. However, the elites and the growing middle class, in the market towns, regional centers, and large cities alike, became ever more engaged in the cultural and political life of the country. Gradually this opened the way for participation of the majority of the Jewish population in Romanian culture.1 Sociologically speaking, minority groups, among them Jews, can be classified as subcultures: groups within society differing in language, religion, lifestyle, norms, and traditions. The minority shares many of the values of the larger society and therefore wants to be a subculture, not a separate culture, aiming for inclusion as a component of the dominant society and culture. As a rule, the majority disapproves of the subculture’s separate norms, regarding them as inferior, divisive, and threatening; it resorts either to encouraging the minority to shed its separateness and to assimilate, or attempting to frustrate its sharing in the values and culture of the larger society by discriminating against it and making it the victim of various exclusionary practices. For a long time, the Jewish minority was frustrated in its attempts to realize a comfortable identity as a subculture. However, through emancipation and acculturation, Jews in the modern period moved from the margins of society toward its center, although Jewish identity never shed all of its distinctive characteristics.2 The above is valid also in the case of the Jews of ​Romania. During this process, three main directions or trends emerged among the sympathizers of modernization: “Integrationist” circles, which promoted “moderate assimilation” (i.e., acculturation or integration as Jews) “Assimilationist” circles, which saw the Jewish community’s institutions as a barrier against full integration and therefore welcomed mixed marriages and ultimately conversion “Nationalist-​pro-​emigration” circles, led by the Zionists, who stated that aliyah was the solution to the “Jewish problem” in Romania The fact is that all three circles adopted the language of the country, publishing their own newspapers in Romanian. Their adherents embraced modern ways of ​life and participated actively in public and cultural life. This became apparent in their customs, their fashion, and, ultimately, their adopting of ​Romanian or Romanized names and surnames.3 The analysis of the Jewish surnames used by Jews in Romania outlines the different phases and degrees of the adaptation process. 1.  Voicu, “Aculturarea evreilor,” 181–83. 2. Rosman, How Jewish, 114. 3.  Voicu, “Aculturarea evreilor,” 22–23.

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Adaptation and Romanization of Common Jewish Surnames Brought from Abroad The adaptation was performed through changes at all linguistic levels (graphic, phonetic, morphologic, lexical, and semantic). Graphic Adaptation to Romanian Phonetic Writing Examples: Abramovich > Abramovici, Aizikovski > Aizicovschi, Barasch > Baraş, Buchholz > Buholţ, Chervinski > Cervinschi, Eisenstein > Aizenştain, Finkelstein > Finchelştein, Herszkowitz > Herşcovici, Itzkovich > Iţcovici, Schneider > Şnaider, Stein > Ştain, Schwartz > Şvarţ, Zucker > Ţucăr. This practice did not alter in a significant way the non-​Romanian surname— it merely rendered it more phonetically intelligible and more familiar-​looking to a Romanian audience. Phonetic Modifications Imposed by Romanian Tradition or Pronunciation For example: bilabial b is replaced by fricative v: Abramovich > Avramovici; unstressed unrounded vowels like open central a and mid-​front e are replaced by mid-​central ă: Iona > Ioină, Lazar > Lazăr, Nucham > Nuhăm, Peisach > Peisăh, Schein (shain) > Şăineanu, Burech > Burăh, Orenstein > Orănştein, Samuel > Samoilă. These phonetic modifications represent a first modest step in the process of adaptation of the non-​Romanian surnames, making them easier to pronounce for Romanian speakers and thus rendering them even more familiar. Incorporation of ​Romanian Suffixes Addition of the Romanian definite article: -u(l) -u: Copolovich > Copoloviciu, Gross > Gros(s)u, Süss > Zis(s)u, Kahal > Cahalu. Most of the suffixes adopted are those used in the formation of patronymics and matronymics: -(e)anu postposed to a given name and used with a patronymic value: Aron > Aroneanu, Lazăr > Lăzăreanu, Leon > Leoneanu, Riva > Riveanu, Solomon > Solomoneanu; or to a foreign surname: Behner > Behnăreanu, Israelit > Israeliteanu, Schein > Şăineanu

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-escu postposed to a given name: Alter > Alterescu, Anania > Ananiescu, Aron > Aronescu, Avram > Avramescu, Ber > Berescu, Berl > Berlescu, David > Davidescu, Froim > Froimescu, Isac > Isăcescu, Iţic > Iţicescu, Moise > Moisescu, Naum > Naumescu; or to a foreign surname: Finckel > Finchelescu, Segal > Segalescu, Wurmbrand > Wurmbrescu -ei: Basia > a Basei (Abase), Frima > a Frimei (Afrimei), Iţic > a Iţicesei, Malca > a Malcei (Amalcei), Meir > a Meiroaei (Ameiroae), Perla > a Perlei (Aperlei), Rifca > a Rifcăi, Rukhla > Rukhlei (Ruhlei); -iu: Chisil > Chisiliu(l), Manole > Manoliu This is a more advanced stage in the adaptation process. Probably in some cases we are speaking of surnames that already contained a foreign suffix, such as -vich, -vitz, or even -sohn, that was traded for the Romanian -escu and -eanu, as in Abramovich > Avramescu, Aronsohn > Aroneanu—and this is indeed a significant change. More significant are the cases in which the Romanian suffixes are added to non-​Romanian given names and even surnames, resulting in hybrid new surnames created on Romanian soil. This is clear from examples such as Schein > Şăineanu and Froim > Froimescu, and especially Frima > Frimei and Chisil > Chisiliu(l). Creation of Altogether New “Local” Surnames Based on the non-​Romanian surnames brought from abroad, this can be done through different procedures: Calque translation of the foreign surname into Romanian, involving, in general, a noun, as in Schneider > Croitor, Türk > Turcu, Zając > Iepure, or an adjective, as in Roth > Roşu, Schwartz > Negru. This literal translation can sometimes produce unusual results, such as Stein > Stâncă, or an oddity for the Romanian speaker, such as Süss > Dulce. Specialized translations for specific surnames, mostly based on names of traditional Jewish occupations: Shamash (synagogue sexton) > Ceauş(u), Melamed (teacher) > Dascăl(u), Shokhet (ritual slaughterer), and sometimes Cohen > Haham(u) Approximate translation and addition of a suffix: Weiss (white) > Alb + -escu > Albescu, Süss (sweet) > Dulce + -eanu > Dulceanu, Weinberg (vine hill or hill slope vineyard) > Vie + -anu > Vianu This final example above is interesting: a Dr. Adolf ​Weinberg from Bacău converted to Christianity and changed his name to Vianu, allegedly in memory of the village of ​Vianul, where a Jew was murdered during the reign of ​Mircea the Shepherd (ruled intermittently 1545–59), who held the village responsible and

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fined it heavily for the deed.4 The surname was inherited by Romanian literary and art critic Tudor Vianu. Both etymologies of the surname are valid and compatible.

Direct Adoption of ​Romanian Surnames Developed According to Local Patterns Surnames based on local toponyms generally referring to places with a significant Jewish population or where Jews used to live: Botoşeneanu, Herţeanu, Suceveanu Surnames based on names of occupations practiced by the bearers: Ciubotaru (shoemaker), Croitoru (tailor), Moraru (miller), Pitaru (baker) Surnames derived from personal characteristics Creţu (curly-​haired), Lungu (tall one), Roşcovan(u) (red-​haired), Şchiopu (lame), Surdu (deaf one) The final degree of adaptation is reflected in the adoption of regular Romanian surnames having no apparent meaning relating to the bearer: Bobulescu, Dumitrescu, Mănescu, Prutu, Vieru. However, a hidden link between the Romanian surname and the earlier Jewish one is to be found in alliteration, that is, a first letter common to both surnames, as in Deutsch replaced by Dumitrescu. Another case of specialized surnames has to be mentioned: those documenting the actual act of conversion to Christianity: Botez (baptism) and Botezat(u) (baptized), Creştinu (the Christian) (see chapter 3, section “Romanian Jewish Surnames Adopted at the Time of the Early Settlement”). These are all genuine Romanian surnames adopted by Jews in different periods and circumstances, first as nicknames and only later as hereditary surnames. Looking at the different methods of treatment of the non-​Romanian surnames and the adoption of ​Romanian ones, it could be argued that the degree of adaptation and the choices made by Jews regarding surname adoption and surname changes in the Romanian lands were in concordance with the different reasons behind this process: Need or desire to fit in, not to stand out, in a new environment Integration and acculturation to the surrounding society Total assimilation or assimilation through conversion Special reasons: need for a new literary identity (pseudonym), fear of discrimination 4.  Alexandru Odobescu, “Împământenirea israeliţilor,” in Alexandru Odobescu, Opere, ed. Tudor Vianu and Alexandru Dima (Bucharest, 1965), quoted in Eskenasy, Izvoare şi mărturii, 33.

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It is important here to make a clear distinction between two main categories of ​ Romanian and Romanized surnames: those adopted during the earlier period, until the beginning of the nineteenth century, and those adopted beginning with the second half of the nineteenth century and during the twentieth century, motivated by the modern trend to acculturate and identify with the emerging national state and its language and culture that was spearheaded by Jewish intellectuals. The first group, by far the largest, is constituted by those surnames adopted during the centuries-​long natural process, through which native Jews, and later newcomers who so wished, blended into the new environment and became known to their neighbors and to the official agencies by nicknames or bureaucratic qualifiers based mainly on old-​style patronymics, personal characteristics, zoonyms and phytonyms, and occupations, as well as many toponyms. This process resulted in a phenomenon of spontaneous name assimilation characterized by a collective change. In most of these cases, the term “adoption” is not the most adequate in the sense that these nicknames were generally bestowed on Jews by outsiders rather than deliberately adopted. The surnames in this main category are the most significant testimonies to Jews’ long presence and significant contribution to their Romanian motherland. The second group includes surnames adopted intentionally as an act of acculturation, assimilation, or conversion; a manifest change of one’s artistic identity reflected in a pen name; the desire to escape stereotyping as a Jew. Here we are speaking not so much of surname adoption, for those who had no previous surname at all, as of changes (later officially sanctioned changes)5 of non-​Romanian surnames brought from abroad as well as the adaptation of such surnames to the Romanian context. The surnames in this category are based mostly on modern-​ style patronymics (suffixes -escu, -ea), to a certain extent on toponymics and calque translations (Blum > Florin, flower), and, for the most part, on plain Romanian names, whether derived from given names or adopted surnames. These are conscious name changes that were individually initiated and typically influenced by various external factors. As nationalism became the dominant ideology of the mid-​nineteenth century, aimed at unifying the “nation” politically, culturally, emotionally, and symbolically, a strong emphasis was put on strengthening the linguistic-​ethnic character of the community. This manifested itself also in the growing importance of surnames as ethnic markers, determined by their linguistic character and typical usage in the community in question. Surnames of foreign origin began to be associated with the foreign origin of their bearers. In this context, preserving or changing a 5.  Although the issue of name change by Jews, especially in the Communist period, is occasionally brought up in the public discourse in Romania, a systematic analysis of the petitions for and records of name changes, for any period, is still unavailable.

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family name of foreign origin might clearly represent one’s attitude: acceptance and belonging or refusal.6 This mechanism of assimilation can turn into a phenomenon that is supported, or even partly expected, by the dominant community. That was the case in Hungary but not in Romania. However, from the perspective of a minority group, it can be seen as a means, or even a condition, of personal and social advancement, as well as an attempt to get rid of evidence of a foreign origin. The Jews, desiring social integration, were therefore prone to willingly changing their names. The special features of ​Jewish name changes can be explained, on one hand, by their specific names and a kind of stigmatization linked to them and, on the other hand, by the typical social background of the Jews: those who changed their names were usually in frequent contact with the dominant linguistic and social community, were on a high level of social mobility, were modern city dwellers, were better educated, and came from a Romanian-​speaking background. Nevertheless, the motivation for Jewish name changes cannot be limited to assimilation of national characteristics. It is also connected with the question of secularization and modernization, and with the role of individualization, as it would identify the bearer of the name not as a “Jew,” but as a member of the nation. These factors, in addition to other personal and artistic motives, had an important, sometimes even decisive, role in the conscious change of a surname. It should be noted, however, that the phenomenon of surname changes and Romanization, increasingly common among Jews in Moldavia and Walachia, did not extend much to the provinces of ​Bukovina and Bessarabia, nor to Transylvania for that matter, after these were incorporated into Romania in 1918. The Jewish communities there possessed strong and long-​entrenched German, Yiddish, and Hungarian cultural identities and attempted to achieve equal rights within the Romanian state without having to undergo linguistic acculturation, thus forgoing, with few exceptions, name changes. Strong support for Zionism, as well as for communism, in Bukovina and Bessarabia further stalled the trend. In the first decades of the twentieth century, it became common among Jewish writers and artists to adopt Romanian pen names or pseudonyms. Generally, among the Jewish population, the adoption of a Romanian surname signaled, besides the drive toward integration, also an attempt to downplay Jewish identity. This view stemmed primarily from a perceived pervasive anti-​Jewish prejudice coupled with a desire for better economic and social opportunities. Soon after WWI, Isac Ludo, advocate of a Jewish cultural nationalism, discussed in an essay the issue of the Jews who had abandoned the names associated with their ethnic origin.7 He was preoccupied not with literary pseudonyms (Ludo 6.  Maitz and Farkas, “Der Familienname,” 163–96. 7.  Isac Ludo, Despre pseudonim (Bucharest, 1947), quoted in Volovici, “Numele, pseudonimul,” 2.

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was one) but with the deeper meaning of ​Romanizing surnames within modern Jewish circles. According to him, unlike in France or Italy, where a Leon Blum or Luigi Luzzatti could aspire to the highest office with an explicitly Jewish surname and identity—a sign of maturity and respect characterizing the whole society— in Romania the Jews, subject to harassment and persecution by the authorities, considered the Romanization of names a means of salvation from humiliation and discrimination. However, changing the (sur)name or adding an -escu at the end did not spare them trouble since, he says, the Romanization was perceived as a “trick,” “unmasked” by nationalist journalists who published notifications juxtaposing the Romanian names and the “Jewish” names of successful Jews, among them intellectuals and artists, or ridiculed by the traditional Jewish circles. Speaking of the mentality of ​Romanian society prior to WWII, Ludo stated in a polemical tone that the relationship of ​Jews to non-​Jews was characterized by servility, humiliation, and fear; the Jew was afraid and ashamed of ​his name and origin because the surrounding society imposed on him this fear and shame. Despite several harsh but justified observations, Ludo gave the Romanization of names and adoption of pseudonyms his own special explanation. Seen from a historical perspective, the individual and social reasons determining (sur)name changes are much more complex. Much as in the rest of ​Europe, the Jews in Romania were changing or Romanizing their names not only out of fear but also out of a legitimate desire to integrate into the culture of the majority through the symbolism of one’s name. A negative reaction, between irony and sarcasm, would arise in Jewish circles only when the change of name was paralleled by an attempt to renege on and totally obliterate one’s Jewish identity, especially when the new name was ostentatiously Romanian. In such cases failure was guaranteed: the Jewish origin would inevitably resurface one way or another, sometimes with the help of well-​intentioned bystanders who would hurry to recall it and divulge the “secret” publicly.8 It is important to stress that, unlike in Hungary and some other countries, in Romania most of the Jews who changed their surnames, and given names for that matter, did not do away with the last factor that separated them from the dominant society: their religion, conversion being usually the last step in the assimilation process. The reality is that the clear majority of the growing number of ​Jews who adopted Romanian and Romanized surnames continued to consider themselves Jewish and to be known and identified as such by acquaintances, neighbors, and clients. In a society where religious affiliation was still strong, family network important, and intermarriage minimal (4,145 according to the 1942 Jewish census), a Romanian surname would have been a poor palliative in most cases. 8.  Volovici, “Numele, pseudonimul,” 2–3.

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Good proof of the above is the fact that, on a list of 1,035 Jews who asked to convert to Christianity during the WWII years, a significant 19% already had genuine Romanian surnames (as well as given names), such as Georgescu, Ionescu, Petreanu, Petrescu, Rădulescu, or Vâlceanu.9 The fact that they contemplated formally converting even though their Romanian names and surnames in no way disclosed their being of ​Jewish origin clearly shows that the adoption of a Romanian surname had mostly linguistic and cultural implications, and did not change one bit the formal status of the person. The relatively large number of surnames formed with the help of the suffix -escu also points in a similar direction. Most of these surnames are based on highly recognizable Jewish given names, as in Alterescu, Froimescu, Iţicescu, Segalescu. Toward the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth a general trend developed of adopting surnames ending in the suffixes -escu and -an(u). Traditionally these patterns were more typical in Walachia, where they were used at first by the “boyars” (local nobles) to indicate their origin: -an(u) referred to the princely estate as in Greceanu, sire of Greci, Bălăceanu of ​Bălăceşti, and so on. The suffix -escu was at first ambivalent: it sometimes showed the lineage down from a prominent ancestor, founder of family power, as in Buzescu, from Buzea (thick lipped), Florescu, from Florea (fourteenth century); later filiation gave place to geographic derivation: Golescu of Goleşti, Văcărescu of ​Văcăreşti. The interchangeability between the suffixes -an(u) and -escu and the particles din and ot (of ) was so clear that through the centuries names of ​boyars would be recorded in documents indifferently—for example, Matei Brâncoveanu or Matei din Brâncoveni, Radu Kretzulescu or Radu ot Creţuleşti. It was only at the beginning of the nineteenth century that the patronymics of the noble families were fixed.10 At about that time, the primary meaning of the suffix -escu (offspring of ​X) was artificially readopted when it became necessary to create a whole new civil registration system fitting for an emerging bourgeoisie. Schoolchildren who did not have family names would be allotted ex officio a surname formed from the father’s given name followed by the suffix -escu. This is how surnames such as Ionescu (son of ​Ion) and Vasilescu (son of ​Vasile) proliferated. In some cases, the suffix was added to the title of the father’s, or an ancestor’s, occupation: Popescu (son of the priest), Ceauşescu (son of the beadle or bailiff; in Jewish tradition, the synagogue sexton). Feeling part of the rising middle class, many Jews conformed to this modern need and trend and began to “standardize” their surnames by adopting the “new” 9.  Center for the Study of the History of ​Romanian Jewry, Federation of ​Jewish Communities in Romania, Bucharest. 10. Djuvara, Între orient, 128–29.

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pattern, making use of the suffix -escu, as well as -eanu for that matter, as shown above (Aronescu or Aroneanu, Lăzărescu or Lăzăreanu). This phenomenon, however, was much more extensive in the urban areas and was apparently slower to spread in rural ones. The fact that a significant percentage (8.364%) of the Romanian surnames discussed in this study are based on given names proper, without -escu, -eanu, or any other suffix, can be explained by a rural context where the modern pattern was somehow ignored, or else by a much earlier date of adoption. Another interesting phenomenon in the adoption of ​Romanian surnames is the presence of double surnames in which one is generally foreign and one is Romanian, such as Rosen Cojocaru, Schwarz Soreanu, Mendelovici Sin Iosub. In the Romanian surnames research corpus there are 150 such “double” surnames, representing close to 1% of the records. Statistically this percentage is perhaps insignificant, but for our purposes it certainly can help to understand the mechanism of surname adoption. Out of the 150 “double” surnames, 71 (47%) are composed of a non-​Romanian and a Romanian surname based on a popular patronymic formed with the particle sin, as in Sin Avram or Sin Moise (examples: Sin Alter Blumenfeld, Sin Buium Moscovici, Sin Şmil Leibovici. These examples, in fact, document cases of ​Jews who already had a non-​ Romanian surname or were registered with one, say Blumenfeld, and nevertheless adopted or were known by a “local” surname, say Sin Alter. Moreover, nine of these local surnames are Romanian renderings of the actual foreign surname, as in Sin Avram Abramovici, Sin Bercu Bercovici, and Sin Suchăr Suharovici. On the other hand, in fourteen other cases the non-​Romanian surnames are not specific surnames but generic ones such as Segal(l) (S’gan Levi), Cohen, and Kahane. In these cases, the local surname became the real identifier: Sin Aron Segal, Sin Avram Segall. The presence together of the non-​Romanian and the local name shows us a phase in the process of adopting Romanian surnames. It is, of course, possible that not all those who had a foreign surname kept it in parallel with a Romanian one. But the fact is that in the Romanian surnames corpus there are 1,169 records of surnames formed with the particle sin and 289 with the suffix -ei. It is therefore highly probable that many Jews who used these types of surnames had no previous foreign surnames at all and adopted them as such in order to fill a need rather than to make a change. Pretty much the same can be said of the other types of double surnames. About 23 of them contain a specifically Romanian Jewish given name, as in Bercu Schwartz, Herşcu Zeilicovici, Iosub Haimsohn. Some are Romanian renderings of the actual foreign surname, as in Bercu Bercovici and Strul Strulovici. About 28 of them contain the name of an occupation, as in Butnaru Schwartz, Croitoru Nadler, Sacagiu Moscovici. The name of the occupation practiced was added to

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the earlier foreign surname. But the name of the occupation is present in 7,257 of the records in the Romanian surnames corpus, by far the largest group, which suggests that in most cases it was adopted not as a local surname in addition to a foreign one, but as the surname, period. The 23 double surnames cited above do not fit into any certain classification but offer some enlightening examples of surname changes: Weissman and Albu (white), Leib and Lebşanu, Ungar and Ungureanu (Hungarian). The most interesting thing about these double surnames is their very existence as juxtapositions of a non-​Romanian surname and a Romanian one. Many have accused the Jews of trying to conceal their identity under common Romanian names and surnames. Here are quite a few examples of ​Jews who Romanized their surnames or adopted Romanian ones while still openly keeping and registering their “Jewish” surnames. One more illustrative example is Romanian poetess Nina Cassian’s father, a translator of ​literary works, who was known as Iosif Cassian Mătăsaru (silk worker). Whether this was only a temporary stage in the process of integration or a personal statement, the fact speaks for itself.

Direct Adoption of Surnames in Other Languages: A Comparison To better understand the dimensions and significance of the phenomenon of ​ Romanian surname adoption as a reflection of the degree of integration of the Jews, or at least a significant part of them, to the surrounding society, observations from a comparative perspective should be of some help. The occupation-​based surnames are among the most representative of the phenomenon in that they are generally based not on mere linguistic adaptations but on concrete words (lexemes) pertaining to the vocabulary (lexicon) of the surrounding local language. I have thus tried to draw a simple comparison of such surnames adopted by Jews in the Romanian lands with similar surnames adopted or used by Jews in other Central–East European countries. Similar surnames here mean surnames based on names of occupations in local languages such as Polish, Russian (or Ukrainian), and Hungarian, as opposed to German and Yiddish, which were imported and are therefore less relevant to the process of adaptation and integration. The comparison has been made on the basic list of 134 of the most common manual crafts and other occupations. Each of these occupation names was translated into the three other relevant languages while also taking into consideration different variants and synonyms for each term (the most common of them, but by no means an exhaustive list thereof ). A thorough search has been carried out for these variants and synonyms in the Central Database of Shoah Victims’ Names at Yad Vashem, which currently contains more than 4.8 million records of ​Jews

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murdered during the Holocaust. A majority of these lived in Central–East European countries, and the records document their given names and surnames. The results of the search show that not all the occupation names on the list served as a basis for the formation of surnames, at least not those used by Jews (it must be noted that the Central Names Database does not include the names of all European Jews, and therefore these results, though representative, cannot be absolute). Following is a breakdown of the number of such surnames found in each language: Surnames

Number of occupations

Polish

Russian

Hungarian

Romanian

134

75

68

41

118

Here we can see that the lowest number of occupation-​based surnames is in Hungarian, while the highest number is in Romanian. Different occupation names may have one or various synonyms in the different languages, and it is important to see which and how many of these were instrumental in the formation of surnames. Considering the number of synonyms, the resulting breakdown is as follows: Number of synonymous surnames 2 3 4 5 Number of occupations generating synonymous surnames

Polish

Russian

Hungarian

Romanian

8 1 1 0 10

12 3 0 0 15

7 0 0 0 7

26 7 6 3 42

The number of synonymous surnames for a certain occupation provides, in my opinion, a measure of ​how common that occupation was among Jews at the time when the occupation name was adopted, or imposed, as a nickname or surname. An occupation having three, four, or five synonyms was probably very common, and therefore specialization was in order: in any language there is no such thing as synonyms of identical meaning (e.g., shoemaker, bootmaker, cobbler, shoe repairer, etc.). The above table shows that the number of synonyms varies from language to language and implicitly from one specific historical cultural area to

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another; in Russian, the number of synonyms is almost double the number in Hungarian or Polish, while in Romanian it is far higher. Moreover, in Polish and Russian there are respectively two and three occupations with more than two synonyms, while in Hungarian there is none: in Polish: carpenter or cabinetmaker (Cieśla, Drwal, Stolarz, Strugacz) and tanner (Białoskórnik, Garbarz, Skórnik); in Russian: cantor (Kantor, Pevchin, Pevtsov), coppersmith (Kotelshchik, Kotlyar, Mednik), and watchman (Karaulnik, Storozh, Strazhnik). In Romanian, the number of occupations with more than two synonyms is 16; 3 of them have as many as five different synonyms: baker (Brutaru, Chitaru, Formagiu, Pitaru, Pităraşu); innkeeper (Cârciumaru, Crâşmaru, Făgădau, Hangiu, Orendaru); administrator or supervisor (Chelaru, Şafaru, Şufaru, Taingiu, Vătafu), suggesting these were common occupations during the early nineteenth century. A comparative analysis of the above data on the number of occupation-​based surnames as well as the number of their synonyms in the different languages permits one to draw the following primary conclusions: In Hungarian: only about 30% of the occupations referred to served for the formation of occupation-​based surnames. The number of synonyms is relatively reduced, and there are no occupations with more than two synonymous surnames. These results are, to my knowledge, in concordance with the historical realities of Hungarian-​speaking Jewry: when adopting surnames became mandatory for Jews in the Habsburg Empire (1787), all the Jews living in the territories that later would belong to the Hungarian Kingdom (Hungary proper, Slovakia, Carpathian Ruthenia, Transylvania, Banat, and Croatia) were German and/or Yiddish speakers and therefore adopted German- or Yiddish-​sounding surnames. It is only beginning with 1867 within the framework of the Austro-​Hungarian dualism that Jews in the Hungarian Kingdom felt compelled, in a climate of intensive Hungarianization, to adopt the Hungarian language and later to change their German surnames to Hungarian ones.11 Accordingly, they seem to have tended to adopt more “typical” and perhaps “higher-​scale” Hungarian surnames (e.g., toponym-​based Dési, Erdély, Vámosi, or patronymic-​based Ferenczi, Jánosi, Pál, Sebestyén) rather than occupation-​based ones; when they did so, they preferred the standard, official names of the occupations Szabó (tailor), Kádár (cooper), Molnár (miller) rather than the more specialized, popular, regional or archaic variants and synonyms. This was an intensive and large-​scale process of surname changes, taking place in a favorable climate

11. Mendelsohn, Jews of ​East, 87–94.

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and even encouraged to a certain extent by the authorities, but definitely a rather late one. In Russian (including, occasionally, occupation names in Ukrainian or Belorussian) and Polish, 51% and 60%, respectively, of the occupations served for the formation of occupation-​based surnames. The number of synonyms is higher, up to double that in Hungarian, and there are a few occupations with more than two synonymous surnames. These results reflect the situation in what was called the Pale of Settlement, that western part of the Russian Empire in which the residence of ​Jews was permitted. In the Russian Empire, the adoption of surnames was made mandatory for Jews between 1804 and 1835 through a long and slow process. Most of the Jews in those areas were Yiddish speakers, but they were well acquainted with, and sometimes even proficient in, the local Slavic languages as a result of a long common history of coexistence. They used Polish in the so-​called Congress Poland territory, Belorussian and Ukrainian in the areas stretching from the Baltic to the Black Seas, and, later, Russian over the entire Pale of Settlement. It was therefore only natural that, at the time of surname adoption, they should also adopt surnames in Polish, Russian, and other languages from among these relatively numerous occupation-​based surnames in those languages, including their respective variants and synonyms.12 In the case of ​ both Polish and Russian, we can speak of a much longer and slower process of acculturation that is reflected, in part, in the adoption of specific Polish and Russian surnames. It should be noted, however, that in the case of the Russian Empire (not to speak of the Polish territories under Habsburg and Prussian jurisdiction) the surname-​adoption process was heavily regulated through legal dispositions, a fact that most certainly interfered with the freedom to choose this or that surname.13 In Romanian, a massive 88% of the occupations served for the formation of occupation-​based surnames. The number of synonyms is much higher than in all the other languages combined (42), and 16 occupations number more than two synonyms. This is a singular situation that reflects a particular reality in the Romanian lands. In my opinion, it is proof of a very long and close coexistence with the Romanian-​speaking population that resulted in an early adoption of the language, at least by the native Jews. The high number of synonyms represents an array of archaic, vernacular, and regional terms typical of more provincial and rural areas. In a certain way it could be said that these surnames reflect to some extent a certain historical 12. Beider, Jewish Surnames Russian Empire, 9–15; Beider, Jewish Surnames Kingdom of ​Poland, 19–41. 13.  Jagodzińska, “My Name,” 45–46.

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reality of ​Jewish settlement in the faraway borderland, on the fringe of the more important and well-​structured communities, where Jews, scattered around in small numbers, had to practice all trades and speak the local language in order to survive. Due to the fact that surname adoption was not really hindered by the local authorities during most of the nineteenth century, this integration trend through names continued and was amplified later on, as can be seen in the adoption of different types of ​Romanian surnames. It should be noted, again, that the above list of occupation-​based surnames and synonymous surnames in the different languages is by no means exhaustive; the results of the comparison are therefore neither absolute nor final. I trust, however, that they are representative enough to outline certain valid trends in each of the four languages.

Conclusions The mere existence of a significant number of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames can be interpreted as a clear proof of the willingness, sometimes even eagerness, of numerous Jews to integrate into Romanian society, showing a clear trend toward acculturation and perhaps, in some cases, even complete assimilation. The fact that 92% of the Jews in the extended Old Kingdom bore common Jewish (foreign) surnames does not mean that only close to 8% of the Jews were integrated and spoke Romanian. The bearers of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames were only the most visible sector of the majority of a Jewish population that was gradually integrating and adopting Romanian as its language and cultural expression. A comparison of occupation-​name based Jewish Romanian surnames with Jewish Hungarian, Polish, and Russian surnames suggests that the process of ​linguistic integration of the Romanian Jews seems to have been at least as extensive as in the neighboring countries but perhaps less limited to the middle and upper socioeconomic strata.

Chapter 7

The Romanian Authorities’ Attitude: From Invited Settlers to Undesired Subjects

Over the centuries, the relations between Jews and the Romanian population in the Old Kingdom were full of contradictions. Although influenced by latent religious-​based popular anti-​Jewish prejudices and stereotypes, the vast majority of the Romanians lived in a perhaps uncomfortable but mutually beneficial interaction with the Jews who settled in their midst, interspersed with short periods of violent rejection. In time, the Romanian rural aristocracy as well as the rising middle class, composed of ​Romanians, Greeks, Armenians, Bulgarians, and others, came to perceive the Jews as fierce and dangerous competitors. Some of their exponents vilified the Jews, accusing them of all possible evils in order to exclude them from the general consensus. The central and local authorities oscillated between the stringent needs of economic realities and the will to please and appease their different Romanian constituencies.

Governmental Response to Jewish Settlement: Civil and Political Status During the premodern sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, rulers of the Romanian Principalities welcomed foreigners, among them Jews, to come and practice trade and manual crafts, and ultimately to settle in their lands, for the benefit of their subjects and their own treasuries. This resulted in a day-​to-​day social intercourse between Jews and Romanian Orthodox Christians that had to be “regulated.” An undercurrent of religious-​based anti-​Jewish prejudices is reflected in the first codes of church canon law, given by Matei Basarab in Walachia, 1640, and Vasile Lupu in Moldavia, 1646, which defined those who did not embrace Orthodox Christianity as heretics and prohibited contact with Jews under pain of excommunication.1

1. Iancu, Jews in Romania, 20.

145

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

The increase in the number of ​Jews was later made possible by the benevolent policies of the Phanariot princes. They sought to bolster their countries’ small populations and remediate their backwardness; they also wanted to foster the economic development of their principalities in order, of course, to obtain additional revenues. Moldavia, especially, offered many possibilities and resources: a small or nonexistent indigenous middle class and an administration keen to increase the number of taxpayers. These rulers actively encouraged Jewish immigration through tax exemptions and privileges.2 In time, however, the growth in the numbers of the new comers—Greeks, Bulgarians, Armenians, Jews, and so on—gradually led to a rise in xenophobia, expressed as a “defensive” Romanian reaction against foreign socioeconomic pressure. As mentioned above (chapter 1, section “Different and Divergent Historical Narratives”), Romanians felt that their precarious autonomous existence was continually under threat. In a society where also rights were unequally divided among social groups, the differentiation “native-​foreigner” was legitimized in the name of national consciousness and encouraged by the existence of an official policy to limit foreigners’ rights, primarily those of the Jews.3 Within this xenophobic trend, which was also nourished by old prejudices determined by the survival and adaptation of religious beliefs formulated in the medieval period, the Jew was widely perceived as the foreigner par excellence.4 While all other groups were resented on the grounds of their different place of origin, ethnicity, or religious denomination, they all shared at least a common advantage, that of Christianity. The Jews were not only different by origin, ethnicity, and faith but forever marked by the theological stigma of so-​called deicide, by Judas’s treason and other associated stereotypical sins, coming to be perceived as the pre-​eminent “Other.”5 In this period of increased numbers of ​Jews and intense xenophobia, a series of measures to stop the migration process was imposed. In Moldavia in 1764, Prince Grigore III Alexandru Ghica forbade Jews from living in villages; in 1766, Jews were prohibited from possessing public houses in villages—measures that were renewed by Alexandru Mavrocordat in 1782. Prince Alexandru Moruzi (1788–92) prohibited Jews from leasing or buying land, including vineyards.6 At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the modern legislation passed by Scarlat Calimachi in Moldavia (1817) and Ioan Gheorghe Caragea in Walachia (1818) contained similar stipulations but granted limited civil rights to foreigners of all religions. They maintained, however, the prohibitions on interfaith marriage, 2. M. Schwarzfeld, Excursiuni critice, 26–32. 3. Iancu, Jews in Romania, 128–38. 4. Volovici, Ideologia naţionalistă, 26. 5.  Balan, “Integration or Assimilation,” 190. 6. Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 2, part 2, lxiv.

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on acquisition of farm land (moşie) in villages—“Jews are prevented forever from buying arable land” (Calimachi Code, Jassy, 1817), “acquiring control of arable land, vineyards and Gypsies (i.e., slaves) is befitting only persons of Christian rite” (Caragea Code, Bucharest, 1818)—as well as on holding public office and acquiring nobility ranks. Thus, Jews (and also Armenians, to some extent) enjoyed only partial civil rights and were not considered to be full-​fledged Romanian citizens.7 Of note is that the Jews born in the Romanian lands were, nonetheless, citizens or subjects of the state (raiale), which was not true in most European countries before the French Revolution. The legal disabilities they faced were generally the same as those faced by others who were not members of the Orthodox Church (i.e., Roman Catholics, Protestants, or Armenians). They could not hold public office (beyond being a town council member), but such disability was not considered a social stigma or barrier to economic success. There was the specific prohibition against owning rural estates, but there were generally no restrictions on the trades they might follow, the goods in which they might trade, the areas in which they might live. Nor were they subject to vexing “Jewish” taxes, levies, or extortions. Jews who were not born in the Romanian lands could become naturalized citizens through princely letters patent (hrisov). The status of the Jews in the Romanian lands during the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth centuries was therefore, to some extent, analogous to that of the Jews in contemporary England,8 another small peripheral community (close to thirty thousand Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jews in 1830) on the outer fringes of ​European Jewry, and by comparison also enviable, as attested to by the steady stream of ​Jewish immigrants from Central and Eastern Europe to both countries in the nineteenth century. After the end of ​Phanariot rule (1821) and the Treaty of Adrianople (1829), a large wave of immigration prompted the implementation of a series of measures and special laws directed expressly against Jews. The Organic Regulations (or Constitutional Settlements) of 1831–32, legislated under the Russian occupation and fashioned in accordance with Russian policies toward Jews, abruptly revoked those limited rights. The government’s old preoccupation with religious separation and protection of ​land ownership linked to aristocratic status—“the Jewish nation, according to the old custom, will be barred from owning arable land” (Organic Regulations, Jassy, 1832)—was now aggravated by the need felt to protect the rising Romanian middle class through professional restrictions. The situation of the Jewish people grew considerably worse, due to the proclamation that civil rights applied only to Christians (sic!). Essentially, the Jews were now considered to be aliens. Article 94 (chapter 3) of the Constitutional Settlement of ​Moldavia likened the status of the 7.  “Jidovii sînt opriţi deapururea de a cumpăra moşii”; “Dobîndirea proprietăţii de moşii, vii şi ţigani nu se poate cuveni decît feţelor de rit creştin.” E. Schwarzfeld, “Evreii din Moldova sub codica.” 8. Endelman, Jews, 73–77.

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foreigner to that of a vagrant, increasing the possibilities for expulsion of the Jews.9 The revolution of 1848 represented a crucial moment in the Jews’ struggle for civil rights in Romania. The revolutionary Romanian leaders, influenced by the ideas of the French Revolution, affirmed a more inclusive version of national identity. The “Proclamation of ​Islaz” (Walachia, June 1848) called, in article 21, for “the emancipation of the Jews and political rights for all fellow countrymen of whatever denomination.” “The demands of the National Party in Moldavia” (August 1848) proposed, in article 27, “The gradual emancipation of the Jewish population in Moldavia.” The failure of the revolutionary movements, however, stalled further progress. The outbreak of the Crimean War (1853–56) created conditions for a change in the political-​juridical situation in the Romanian Principalities, but article 46 of the Treaty of ​Paris (19 August 1858) still stipulated that only the inhabitants of ​“Christian denominations will benefit from equal political rights.”10 The rule of Alexandru Ioan Cuza (1859–66) brought significant improvement in the juridical status of the Jews. Advocating gradual reform, Cuza permitted Jews to participate in the “little naturalization,” which gave them the right, under certain conditions, to participate in local elections. His Civil Code (Codul Civil Român) abrogated the previous Caragea and Calimachi codes and represented a step toward recognition of political rights for Jews. After Cuza’s demise, the Romanian Constitution of 1866 enshrined—for a long time—the marginal legislative status of the Jews. Its article 7 stated, “Only foreigners of Christian denomination can attain Romanian citizenship.”11 Without their liberty of conscience being limited, the Jews were in essence deprived of their recently achieved civil and political rights. Romania opposed the emancipation movement and continued to relegate its Jews to an inferior juridical status until the end of WWI. The period between 1866 and 1914 was one of relatively hostile government policy toward the Jews. It was only under international pressure by the Great Powers at the Berlin Treaty (13 July 1878) recognizing Romania’s independence that the principle holding that “the different religious creeds are not an obstacle in Romania to civil and political rights” was adopted into the constitution, together, however, with the caveat that “naturalization cannot be given to a group, but individually, and by virtue of ​law,” which made it possible for only a couple of thousand Jews to obtain citizenship during the following three decades. The reaction of the Jews in this difficult context was, in general, to maintain a stubborn and continuous struggle for a better life and emancipation. Some would 9.  “Naţia jidovească, după vechiul obicei, va fi oprită de a ţine în posesie moşii.” Iancu, Jews in Romania, 25. 10.  Ibid., 33. 11.  Radu Rosetti, La Roumanie et les Juifs (Bucharest, 1903), 123–24, quoted in Ornea, Romanian, 367.

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deal with their lot in islands of traditional religious life, while others would seek relief from their harsh situation through emigration to the West or aliyah to Palestine. But most of them remained linked and bound to the country and continued to strive against their hardships. Paraphrasing the words of ​Jacob Litman referring to Poland, it can be said that “the Jews, while possessing their own national culture and not being ethnically Romanian, were still Romanian natives whose made-​in-​Romania culture gave them legitimacy and the right to see themselves as not just in Romania but of it and the prerogative to make demands upon government and society.”12 WWI was followed, nevertheless, by radical change in the juridical status of the Jews. The naturalization of the Jewish population in Romania was regulated by means of three laws on 30 December 1918, 22 May 1919, and 12 August 1919. Citizenship for the Jews was finally granted in the Constitution of 1923. Unfortunately, the emancipation of the Jews resulted in an aggravation of the hostility against them. In spite of occasional hostile outbursts and recurrent official restrictions and prohibitions, prior to the Holocaust period, for most of their long presence in the Romanian lands, Jews experienced a relatively tolerant climate and had a fair relationship based on coexistence with the local population. As a result, a great number of ​Jews became, as mentioned above, ever more involved in the economic, cultural, and even political life of the country. As in a love-​hate relationship, they were frequently encouraged and given incentives to do so by the authorities and then sometimes recriminated against and hindered by the same incumbents or their successors. This, however, did not prevent Jewish efforts to make a decent living while contributing to the modernization and prosperity of ​Romanian society and furthering their integration into it. The interwar period saw a massive diffusion of anti-​Semitic ideas and doctrines as well as the establishment of ​lightly veiled and even overtly anti-​Jewish political parties. Abrasive political Jew-​bashing degenerated into venomous accusations, ostracism, and manifestations of physical violence, culminating with the formation of the Goga-​Cuza government (December 1937 to February 1938) and its official anti-​Jewish policy. Emancipation was brutally brought to end, together with the lives of ​half of ​Romanian Jewry, under the Antonescu regime (September 1940 to August 1944).

Administrative Registration: Regularization of Status and Surnames This rather ambivalent attitude of the Romanian authorities toward Jews can also be seen in their policy regarding registration and naming requirements. 12.  Jacob Litman, The Economic Role of ​Jews in Medieval Poland: The Contribution of ​Yitzhak Schipper (New York, 1984), 232–35, quoted in Rosman, How Jewish, 105.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

As mentioned before, highly centralized states such as the Habsburg and Russian Empires demanded that Jews adopt surnames and duly register them beginning in 1787 and 1804, respectively. A similar legal obligation expressly concerning Jews was never enforced in the Romanian lands, as far as can be assessed. The earliest “institutionalized” attestations of ​Romanian surnames in general are from the late eighteenth century, when the first censuses were compiled. Researchers, however, have concluded that, in Moldova especially, the personal name alone, that is, the given name, was recorded at the time. The given name could nevertheless be accompanied by an identifier, nickname, or other term, indicating occupation (“Ion, olar” potter), ethnicity (“Eni, grecul,” Greek), social status (“Neculai, slugă,” servant), religion (“Ion, calvin,” Calvinist), or one’s family relationship (“Ioan sin Nicolai,” son of, “Andreiu brat popii Alexandru,” brother of the priest).13 The first laws that introduced the concept of the “family name” or surname were the abovementioned Caragea Code (Legiuirea Caragea), issued in Walachia by Ioan Gheorghe Caragea in 1818, and the Calimachi Code, issued in Moldavia by Scarlat Calimachi in 1817. The latter, influenced by the Austrian general civil code of 1811 and the French civil code of 1804, stipulated that the child was to receive the father’s family name while the wife was to adopt the husband’s family name. It is not clear to what extent the letter of these laws was abided by, but it is almost certain that the Calimachi Code, originally redacted in Greek, was not fully enforced until the official Romanian translation was completed in 1833. Both pieces of ​legislation received juridical recognition from the Organic Regulations promulgated by the Russian military administration authorities in Walachia and Moldavia in 1831 and 1832, respectively, and continued to be the law of the land until 1 December 1865.14 An important role in establishing a person’s juridical status was reserved to the local registration administration, centered on the three most important life events: birth, marriage, and death. Alexandru Ioan Cuza’s Civil Code, elaborated in 1864 and implemented in December 1865, regulated the procedures of registration and made them the responsibility of the local authorities at all levels. Birth and death were registered in the communal centers irrespective of one’s nationality or religion. The birth certificate stated the date, hour, and place of ​birth, the gender, the given name to be bestowed at baptism, the “family name,” as well as the residence and occupation of the parents and witnesses (art. 43, Cod Civil).15 It should 13.  Ichim-​Tomescu, Gramatica numelor. 14.  Dariescu, “Norme de drept.” 15.  Chiţu, “Statutul juridic,” 64–65, also quoting Constantin Hamangiu, Codul General al României: (Codurile, legile şi regulamentele uzuale în vigoare) 1856–1920: Întocmai după textele oficiale (Bucharest, 1920), 1:519.

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be noted that previously the registration of these events was the sole prerogative of the different faiths. The first normative act providing standard dispositions as to a person’s name was the Law of 18 March 1895 (Legea asupra numelui), which stipulated that every person had to have a family name (nume patronimic or nume de familie). The person had to sign at the mayor’s office a declaration adopting the father’s given name with the addition of one of the suffixes -escu or -eanu (e.g., Ion > Ionescu) as his/her officially registered surname.16 It is important to note that until almost the end of the nineteenth century the election or adoption of a patronymic, or surname, in the Romanian lands was not limited by legal measures. It was rather common for anyone, especially someone aspiring to upward social mobility, to choose a surname that better suited his/her purposes. It was only with the above Law concerning names (art. 1248), promulgated in 1895 under minister A. Marghiloman, that the onomastic domain became a property regulated and protected by the state. From then on, changing or modifying one’s name required a formal application to the Ministry of ​Justice.17 The official naming system, therefore, with its central element—the family name—took over from its popular predecessor almost all the types of surnames that were common in the respective community, promoting them from the status of nonobligatory to that of compulsory family names, assigned not only by usage but also by law. Yet, despite these different legal measures, spread over almost a century, to regulate the issue, the process of ​hereditary surname adoption in the Romanian lands was especially slow; it was reported that people living in rural areas still changed names to their liking, and the regulations were not effectively applied until the early 1920s. The situation among the Jews was very similar. In most of the historical documents from the nineteenth century, Jews are mentioned, for example, with their given names followed by identifiers indicating the family relation (“Volf sin Iancu,” “Nahman [sin] Solomon”), occupation (“Haim Zisu, zugrav,” house painter, “Şain boiangiu,” dyer), ethnicity (“Mihail Ovreiul,” the Jew), and sometimes even religion (“Gligore Botezatu, din ovrei,” formerly Jewish) (list of ​Jews registered in a census by neighborhoods of ​Bucharest in 1838).18 There are, of course, also Jews bearing foreign surnames, such as Mendel Speghel or Bercu Ritman, Austrian subjects, but most of the others either did not yet have a formal surname or it was widely understood that the additional identifier was already recognized as a de facto surname. In the market town of ​Podu Iloaei, in the Jassy district, for example, 16.  Peţu and Torja, In Constelaţia, 37, also quoting D. Lupulescu and A. M. Lupulescu, Identificarea persoanei fizice (Bucharest, 2002), 12. 17.  Bordaş, “Conflictul generaţiilor,” 3. 18.  Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 2, 185–221.

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in a census taken as late as 1898, 90 out of 723 Jews have no surname other than the patronymic “sîn X”: Copel sîn Moise, Rifca sîn Avram.19 It is interesting to note that women, such as Rifca, are registered as “sîn” (son) and not daughter, a further hint to the probability that “sîn Avram” was already considered the equivalent of a surname. The authorities did attempt, nonetheless, to regulate the status and movement of the Jews, including through name registration. Such registration was needed foremost for taxation purposes: a princely order of 1814 given in Moldavia by George Caragea, later mentioned in another order by Ioan Sandu Sturdza in 1826, directed the categorization “by condition and wealth [of] the Armenians and Jews who are bound to the treasury by means of their names.”20 Later it became necessary for military drafting and in many instances in order to control and limit Jewish immigration. One illustrative example is “the High Council report and instructions for the identification of vagrants of all nationalities and halting the Jews’ invasion into the country,” approved by Moldavian Prince Mihail Sturdza in Jassy in June–July 1839.21 Among a long series of dispositions dealing with treatment of ​“vagrants” by local authorities and the police, this document introduces the obligation that every [ Jewish] foreigner or traveler identify himself with an officially issued bilet or adeverinţă (certificate) in the Romanian language stating name and “nickname” (“arătarea numelui şi poreclei”), nationality, physiognomy, occupation, and, if relevant, passport number. What is interesting here is that the obligation to register does not refer to the family name but to the nickname, thus implicitly recognizing the reality that most Jews did not have a real surname at the time. This document was further ratified by the Extraordinary Administrative Council on 14 October 1843 as one more anti-​Jewish measure. In centralized states, such as the Habsburg Empire, that had a large Jewish population, or Prussia, France, and others that were receiving Jewish immigration from the east, the governments’ efforts to impose surnames and to regularize the naming patterns of the Jews was part of a wider policy of integrating them into the larger society as “productive” elements. In the Russian Empire, it was, at least, an attempt to include the Jews in the mechanism of the central government for management and control purposes. The lack of an official policy for the names of ​ Jews in the Romanian lands during the nineteenth century is therefore symptomatic: the authorities’ concern with the Jews was not exactly to bring them in and 19.  Schwartz-​Kara, Obştea Evreiască. 20.  “Să se aşeze după stare şi putere pe Armenii şi Ovreii ce sunt legaţi de visterie cu numele lor.” M. Schwarzfeld, Momente din istoria, 51. 21.  “Anaforaua Sfatului şi instrucţiunile alcătuite pentru cercetarea vagabonţilor de toată naţia şi oprirea năvălirii jidovilor in ţară.” Gyémánt and Benjamin, Izvoare şi mărturii, vol. 3, part 2.

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regularize their status within the social body but rather to prevent their immigration and restrict and limit the occupations and activities of those already there. The abovementioned High Council report specifically stated in article 35 that “the Jews in the Principate have no civil right other than trading and paying their due taxes to the authorities.”22 The very use of the word speculaţiei (speculation), at the time meaning merely transaction or trade, but always implying a certain degree of unfairness, is emblematic. In light of these considerations, of the different and repeated attempts at regulating the adoption of surnames by the general population of the Romanian lands, and of their obviously poor enforcement until the very end of the nineteenth century, it is safe to conclude that Jews living in those areas went through a rather slow process of adopting hereditary surnames, which they were able to choose more or less at their own will, without much official imposition or interference. Jews in the Old Kingdom either adopted surnames of their own free will within the country or brought with them their common Jewish surnames from other countries of origin. This freedom of choice, in turn, contributed, in my opinion, to the fact that a significant number of them took local (Romanian) surnames, more so perhaps than in other European countries where the process was tightly regulated.23 A relevant case is that of ​Jews known to have been among, or supporting, the Romanian revolutionaries of 1848. Two of them, Hillel Manoah and Davicion Bally, were well-​known Sephardic bankers. Together with them were Lăzărică Zaraful and the famed revolutionary painters Barbu Iscovescu (formerly Iţcovici or Iscovici) and Daniel Rosenthal. Rosenthal was born in Pest and raised in Hungary, hence his Ashkenazi surname. The others, on the contrary, are good examples of early adoption of ​Romanian surnames (and given names, for that matter), one based on a patronymic created with the suffix -(e)scu (Iscovescu), the other on the name of an occupation ending with the suffix -u(l) (Zaraful, money changer). The adoption of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames by Jews seems to have developed as a natural process in the context of their long history in the Romanian lands. It can perhaps be perceived as a popular expression of ​Jews’ willingness and efforts to integrate and acculturate into the larger social surroundings.

Jews and Names During the Holocaust Period In time, as the growing tendency toward Romanization of ​Jewish surnames came to be noted, Romanians in different circles began to criticize and even oppose the 22.  “Jidovii nu au în Principat nici un drept civil, decât numai acel al speculaţiei şi a plăti darea cuvenită ocârmuirii.” Ibid., 229. 23.  Jagodzińska, “My Name.”

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trend. In the 1930s, propaganda demanding the exclusion of ​Jews from Romanian society grew exponentially, and newspapers such as Sfarmă Piatră, founded by Nichifor Crainic in 1935, and Porunca vremii assiduously denounced the “Jewish invasion” into different areas of activity, “unveiling” the previous Jewish names of those who had adopted Romanian names and surnames or literary pseudonyms, in an attempt to have them profiled and marginalized. Personalities such as A. C. Cuza proposed annulling their political rights and revoking the title of ​“native” bestowed on Jews as well as the officially sanctioned changes of names;24 Nicolae Iorga stated that Jews, “in order to hide [their social] advance, make use of changes of name in life, of pseudonyms in literature.”25 In the context of the growing climate of anti-​Jewish hostility and as one more measure meant to exclude the Jews from Romanian society, successive anti-​ Semitic governments dealt with the names issue at the state level. The Goga-​Cuza government proposed in 1938, for the first time, a law preventing Jews from adopting Romanian surnames. It has to be noted here that the legal interdiction of name changes by Jews was a late development in Romania, whereas strict dispositions— strictly limiting or forbidding changes even in cases of ​“ugly” or derogatory surnames—had been enforced in the Russian and German Empires already at the end of the nineteenth century.26 A couple of years later, on 8 August 1940, King Carol II himself signed, at the proposal of ​Prime Minister Ion Gigurtu and with the blessing of ​Minister of ​ Justice Ioan V. Gruia, the “Law decree concerning the legal status of the Jewish inhabitants of ​Romania,” Nr. 2650, stipulating, among other things, that Jews were forbidden to bear Romanian names. This stipulation was in tandem with another decree, Nr. 2651, issued on the same day, prohibiting marriages between Romanians and Jews by blood (“căsătoriile între romanii şi evreii de sânge”). Both dispositions were nothing less than faithful renditions of the respective paragraphs of the Nuremberg Laws. Specifically, article 14 of the first decree (2650) stated as follows: “Jews of all categories cannot acquire Romanian names. Documents attributing [Romanian names] in contravention of this disposition are null and void. Those trying or succeeding in acquiring Romanian names will be punished under the stipulations of this decree bearing authority of ​law.”27 24. Alexandru C.Cuza, Doctrina naţionalistă creştină—Cuzismul: definiţii, teze, antiteze, sinteza ( Jassy, 1928), 12–17, quoted in Benjamin, Evreii din România, vol. 1. 25.  “Ca să ascundă înaintarea, recurg la schimbările de nume în viaţă, la pseudonimele în literatură.” Iorga, Iudaica, 18. 26.  Jagodzińska, “My Name”; Bering, Stigma. 27.  “Decretul lege privitor la starea juridică a locuitorilor evrei din România”; “Evreii din orice categorie nu pot dobândi nume româneşti. Actele de atribuire potrivnice acestei dispoziţiuni sunt nule. Cei ce încearcă să dobândească şi cei ce vor dobândi nume româneşti se vor pedepsi în condiţiunile acestui decret cu putere de lege.” Benjamin, Evreii din România, 1:46–48.

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Although hostile to the authoritarian regime of ​King Carol II, the Antonescu regime that came into power in September 1940 not only did not repudiate the legislative act of 8 August 1940 but, on the contrary, took over its directive principles and integrated them as fundamental elements within the ideological-​political corpus of anti-​Jewish legislation that it would itself elaborate. The prohibition of mixed marriages, conversion to Christianity, and acquiring Romanian names continued to be enforced and was reiterated. These legal measures designed to prevent Romanian Jews from changing their names echoed similar dispositions implemented in Germany and then in other Axis or satellite countries. In Hungary, for example, from 1938 onwards (the year of the first law that limited the rights of the Jews in that country), the traditional restrictions used by the administrative system for not approving applications for name changes were extended even to Jews who had already been converted. In addition, one of the Hungary’s counties went to the extreme of introducing a bill to obtain the a posteriori annulment of ​Jewish name changes performed before 1938, “so that a Jew cannot be mistaken for a Hungarian”28 (the bill never passed). In Bulgaria, beginning in January 1941, special legislation, reminiscent of the Nazi practices, forbade Jews from adopting names other than those specified on a list of ​“given names for people of ​Jewish descent.” As far as is known, the Romanian authorities, as typical of ​Romanian mores, did not go to the extremes of the Nazi efforts to establish detailed tables of recognizable Jewish given names in order to enable the systematic marking of all Jews bearing German or non-​Jewish names with the ill-​famed Israel and Sara tag.29 But the Romanian government’s official arms did do something akin to this on a selective basis in order to “unmask” the “hidden” Jewishness of prominent Jews, journalists, writers, and artists seemingly deemed to be particularly subversive and dangerous for the purity of ​Romanian culture and its national soul. In November 1941, lists entitled “Scriitori evrei,” containing the names of ​Jewish writers, were published and publicly displayed by government order in all bookstores and libraries in Romania. The selling of the respective writers’ works was forbidden. Books authored by Jews were thrown out of all public and school libraries. Contraventions would be reported to the Ministry of ​Propaganda. In addition, all Jews were ordered out of any journalistic activities. On these nominal lists of ​Jewish intellectuals and artists their Romanian surnames were listed together with their previous “Jewish” names, in an attempt to discredit them by arguing that the Romanian surnames were meant to serve as a mask 28.  Viktor Karády and István Kozma, Név és nemzet: Családnév-változtatás, névpolitika és nemzetiségi erőviszonyok Magyarországon a feudalizmustól a kommunizmusig [Name and nation: name change, name politics, and nationalities in Hungary from feudalism to communism] (Budapest, 2002), 247–48, quoted in Farkas, “Surnames of ​Foreign Origin,” 329. 29.  “Zweite Verordnung”; “Verzeichnis der jüdischen.”

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for the nefarious Jewish influence on the Romanian soul and spirit. This attempt at depriving Jews of their long-​held Romanian surnames, or sometimes mere artistic pseudonyms, became a means to deprive them of their civil rights, their livelihood, and later even of their humanity, as was tragically proven during the Holocaust. The lists contained the names of forty-​five writers, with mention of the date and place of ​birth, their parents’ names, and the titles of their writings to be banned. Most importantly, their original or previous “Jewish names” were stated next to their current “Romanian names” or Romanian-​sounding pseudonyms in visible bold letters, in order to put them in evidence. Furthermore, the names of the parents are stated in full, including their surnames, with the intention of stressing their Jewish origin even more. Here are the forty-​five names published on the “Jewish writers” lists as they were recorded in the Ministry of ​Propaganda’s publication. In cases where the names published contain inconsistencies, we will add the correct name (according to George Călinescu, Istoria literaturii române): Aderca Florin-​Popov = Froim Zeilic Avram Adercu Edelstein Froite, father’s surname Adercu. Correct name: Felix Aderca, formerly Froim Zelic Avram Aderca Avram Axelrad = Axelrad Avram, father’s surname Axelrad Balthazar Camil = Leibu Goldstein, father’s surname Goldstein. Full former name Leopold Leibu Goldstein Banuş Maria Edel, father’s surname Banuş Birnberg Isidor, father’s surname Birnberg Bonciu H. = Beniamin Haimovici, father’s surname Haimovici Carp Horea = Hoişie Mihăl, father’s surname Hoişie (Carp) Cassvan Pas Sarina = Casvan Sara, father’s surname Casvan Călugaru Ion = Buium sin Strul-​Leiba Croitoru, father’s surname Croitoru Câmpeanu Marcu Dr. = Schönfeld Dan Sergiu = Isidor Rotman, father’s surname Rotman. Correct former surname: Rosman Dominic A. = Reichman Alex., father’s surname Reichman Dorian Emil = Isidor Lustig Fundoianu B. = Benjamin Barbu Wecsler, father’s surname Wecsler. Researchers (e.g., Leon Volovici) of ​B. Fundoianu’s (later Fondane) life and work affirm that he was never named Barbu. Furtună Enrik = Heinrich Pechilman, father’s surname Pechilman. Correct former surname: Peckelman Giordano = Berman Goldner Lascăr Sebastian = Rechter Leon-​Leonard Sebastian

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Lăzăreanu Barbu = Avram Leizerovici, father’s surname Leizerovici. Correct former surname: Lazarovici Luca B. = Ţală Avram Bernstein, father’s surname Bernştein Ludo I. = I. Iacovitz. Full former name: Isac Iacovitz Massof ​Henry Ionel Ioseph, father’s surname Massoff Millian Maximin = Grimberg Pascu Mendel, father’s surname Grimbert Mircu Marius = Isdrail Marcus, father’s surname Marcu Monda Virgiliu = Moscovici Zeilic, father’s surname Moscovici. Correct name: Virgiliu Moscovici-​Monda Nemţeanu Barbu = Benjamin Deutsch Ormuz = Avram Leiba Esra-​Zissu, father’s surname Zissu Peltz Iţig = Isac Nathan Peltz, father’s surname Peltz Pribeagu Ion = Iţic Palicu, father’s surname Palicu Răcăciuni Isaia = Isaia Beniamin Nacht, father’s surname Nacht Relgis Eugen = Eisig Siegler, father’s surname Siegler. Correct former name: Aizic Sigler. The Romanian surname is the reverse of Sigler. Ronetti Roman = Moise Romanu. Original former name: Aron Blumenfeld Rosen Teodor Săteanu C. = Iosef ​Haim Şenfeld, father’s surname Şenfeld. G. Călinescu gives former surname as Feldman. Sebastian Mihail = Iosef ​Mendel Hechter, father’s surname Hechter Silviu George = Silvius Iancu Goliger, father’s surname Goliger. G. Călinescu gives former surname as Gollingher. Sincerus Edmond = E. Schwarzfeld Dr. Spina Geri = Iosef Schreiber, father’s surname Schreiber Steuerman = Avram Iancu Rodion, father’s surname Steuerman. Correct name: Steuerman-​Rodion Taller Emilia Toma A. = Solomon Leibu Moscovici, father’s surname Moscovici. Full name: Alexandru Toma Tudor Andrei = Andrei Heinrich Raiber, father’s surname Raiber. G. Călinescu gives former surname as Rosenzweig Tzara Tristan = Rozinstoch Samueli, father’s surname Rozinstoch. Correct former name: Samuel Rosenstock Verea Adrian = Adolf ​Wechsler Vero Leon = Leib Vecsler, father’s surname Vecsler. Full former name: Leon Leib Wecsler Voronca Ilarie = Eduard Isidor Marcus, father’s surname Marcus An analysis of the names listed above gives us some interesting results:

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

1. The list also includes names of ​Jewish writers who were already expatriated, living in France: Tristan Tzara since 1919; B. Fundoianu, i.e., Benjamin Fondane, since 1923; Ilarie Voronca since 1933. It also contains the name of ​Ronetti Roman, long deceased since 1908. The list’s authors obviously could not ignore these facts. It becomes clear, therefore, that the intention was to single out all past and present significant Jewish writers in the attempt to forbid their works. 2. On the other hand, there was no serious effort to check the details and to verify the veracity of the information regarding the names. There are inaccurate spellings, incorrect names: Rotman—Rosman, Aderca Florin-​ Popov instead of Aderca Felix—as well as incomplete names: Moscovici-​ Monda, Steuerman-​Rodion. 3. In at least eight cases, there are no Romanian alleged “camouflage” names, and the current name is the same as the former one: Avram Axelrad, Birnberg Isidor, Cassvan Pas Sarina, Massof ​Henry Ionel Ioseph, Peltz Iţig, Rosen Teodor, Steuerman, and Taller Emilia. These names were not changed, are decidedly not Romanian, and most are recognizably Jewish. 4. In some other instances, the former “Jewish” name is in fact a very Romanian, or Romanian-​sounding, one, especially when it comes to the surname: Banuş, Croitoru, Palicu, Romanu. Others are Romanized surnames that are difficult to recognize as specifically Jewish: Adercu, Marcu. 5. Some cases reflect indeed different Romanization patterns discussed above such as translations and/or adoption of ​Romanian suffixes: Schönfeld > Câmpeanu, Deutsch > Nemţeanu, Şenfeld > Săteanu, Leizerovici > Lăzăreanu, including the adoption of a toponymic as in Fundoianu. 6. The vast majority of the cases are in fact mere pseudonyms and pen names, a very natural and common phenomenon when speaking of writers and journalists in general. Some are one-​word names such as Giordano and Ormuz, while others include an initial, as in Bonciu H., Dominic A., Ludo I. and Toma A. Eugen Relgis’s name is the backwards spelling of ​his original surname, Sigler. Most pseudonyms are completely new names that either contain, perhaps, some hidden semantic hint, as in Ion Călugaru, Enrik Furtună, Ion Pribeagu, Leon Vero, or are simply meant to conceal the author’s identity, whatever it happened to be. Nor are these pseudonyms of a permanent nature: before signing as Tristan Tzara, Samuel Rosenstock was, for a time, S. Samyro. Eduard Isidor Marcus authored works under the pseudonyms Alex Cernat, Roneiro Valcia, and Ilarie Voronca. This practice was not limited to Jewish artists and cannot be interpreted as a mere attempt at concealing one’s Jewish origin. It was rather common among non-​Jewish Romanian writers as well, and George Călinescu’s Istoria literaturii

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române proves the point. Here are but a few illustrative examples: Tudor Arghezi was the pen name of ​Ion N. Theodorescu, George Bacovia that of Gheorghe D. Vasiliu, Gala Galaction that of Grigore Pişculescu, Otilia Cazimir that of Alexandrina Gavrilescu; Perpessicius and Jean Bart were the pseudonyms of ​Dumitru S. Panaitescu and Eugeniu P. Botez, respectively. One of the most fervent denouncers of the Jews during the interwar period himself disguised his unassuming true name (Ion N. Dobre) under the resoundingly populist and semantically charged Nichifor Crainic (Nichifor would translate as “carrying victory” and Crainic as “announcer or herald”; the combination of ​both would therefore result in something akin to “herald of victory,” which perfectly echoed the bellicosity of ​his extreme right-​wing propaganda). From the perspective of the Romanian and Romanized surnames, the analysis of the names on the list, more exactly those in paragraphs 4 and 5, points to two successive phases of integration: that of the parents who had already adopted Romanian surnames by the turn of the nineteenth century, and that of the children—the writers—some of whom Romanized their inherited foreign surnames or took Romanian-​like pen names at the beginning of the twentieth century. Another example of an attempt to enforce the prohibition preventing Jews from acquiring Romanian names and to single out those who did so by making public their previous Jewish names were the posters announcing the performances of the Jewish Theater “Baraşeum” in Bucharest. Following the implementation of the racial laws in Romania, Jewish artists were excluded from Romanian theaters in the autumn of 1940. It was only after strenuous interventions and long delays that, on 1 March 1941, the Baraşeum Theater was established in the Jewish quarter of ​Bucharest. Jewish artists were not allowed to perform in Yiddish or any language other than Romanian, they could not perform plays or songs by Romanian authors, and the scripts’ content was subject to the strictest censorship. By order of the authorities, on the posters and the Jewish newspaper announcements about these performances, some of the artists and musicians at Baraşeum were mentioned, just as in the lists of ​Jewish writers, with both their current (Romanian) and former ( Jewish) surnames. The Jewish surnames were put in evidence by placing them after the Romanian ones, either within brackets: the Gamberto (Fischmann) sisters, Bob Gerescu (Schlesinger), Henri Mălineanu (Lazarovici); or separated by a dash: Teodor—Cosma—Zwiebel, Toto—Gruia—Grunbaum, Eugen Mirea—Mayer, Benno Verea—Vexler, Louis—Jumping—Grossman. This pattern was applied blindly: in the cases of ​Nicu Kanner (Nican) and Ely (Roman) Goldstein, the Romanian name is the one presented in brackets; Nicu Kanner-​Nican used a double, hyphenated recognizably Jewish surname, so there was no need to emphasize the Romanian part. During the WWII years, almost half of the Jews in Romania, mainly from Bukovina, Bessarabia, and northern Transylvania, lost their lives in the Holocaust,

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a large number of them under Romanian jurisdiction. Among the victims who originated in Moldavia (the city of ​Jassy and Dorohoi district) and Walachia (mostly Bucharest) were thousands bearing Romanian and Romanized names and surnames, the first and most overt mark of their integration into the surrounding society. However, their Romanian surnames served as no protection for them and were of no consequence whatsoever as a defense against the violent anti-​Jewish persecution. At that time, apparently, integration was not an option at all. In the immediate postwar period, a large number of those who survived left the country in a few major waves of emigration. As a result of the abrupt decrease in the Jewish population through both violent persecution and emigration, many of the most typical Jewish Romanian surnames analyzed in this study practically disappeared from the Romanian onomastic inventory. A sample search for a few of the more frequent of these surnames (according to the research database) in the online phone directories of ​Romania30 and Israel31 brought the following results: Surname

Research DB

Paginialbe

Bezeq Israel

Sacagiu Grisaru Cuşmaru Făinaru Hahamu Căruceru Covrigaru Cruparu Mahalu Alămaru Tălpălaru Iuftaru Ferederu

224 182 148 145 104 77 68 59 35 28 27 25 24

13 2 2 9 0 36 0 0 5 10 14 2 0

65 105 67 91 52 27 44 42 10 18 5 14 7

As can be seen, most of these surnames are still very well represented in Israel but very poorly in Romania, with the exception of Căruceru and Tălpălaru. A number of them, Hahamu, Covrigaru, Cruparu, and Ferederu, are no longer documented in Romania. Others, such as Sacagiu, Grisaru, Cuşmaru, and Făinaru, are well represented in Israel but very little in Romania (between 1% and 6% only). A logical conclusion should be that these surnames were used predominantly and 30.  Pagini Albe. 31.  Bezeq.

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perhaps, sometimes, almost exclusively by Jews and therefore today their numbers in Romania have dwindled to an extremely low level. Further proof is the fact that none of these surnames appear in a list, based on data from the Romanian population register, of common Romanian surnames published in a book by Paraschiv Peţu and Ionel Torja.32

Conclusions Romanian rulers’ attitude toward the Jews through the centuries, as seen from the perspective of the authorities’ approach to their names, naming patterns, and compatibility with the needs of the state and society, appears to have always been ambivalent, oscillating between nationalist and ideological pressures and down-​ to-​earth practical needs. However, in the 1920s and 1930s, when the process of acculturation of the Jews intensified after the emancipation, the practice of ​Romanization of surnames by certain Jews began to be perceived and denounced, by specific right-​w ing Romanian circles, as a threat to the national body and soul. The Romanization of ​ Jews’ surnames was sharply curtailed by successive dictatorial regimes (1940 and thereafter) through legislative measures reminiscent of the Nazi policy on Jewish names.

32.  Peţu and Torja, In Constelaţia.

Chapter 8

A Case Study: Jewish Intellectuals and Romanian and Romanized Surnames

By the end of the nineteenth century, most Jewish intellectuals were already using or had adopted the Romanian language and were publishing in Romanian-​language newspapers, writing Romanian-​language literary works, and even excelling in the study of the Romanian lexicon, grammar, and folklore (M. Gaster, H. Tiktin, L. Şăineanu). In large numbers, they made important contributions to the development of ​Romanian sciences and culture in general. It is, therefore, not surprising that many of them were among the promoters of the acculturation and integration trend. Residency and occupation were the two most important avenues by which Jews were brought into more intensive contact with the larger society. For a much smaller number, there were also two more direct paths “out of the ghetto”—the world of radical politics and the world of ​literature and art. Both were spheres of activity that stood outside the common run of everyday experience and above the usual divisions separating the mass of ​Jews from their fellow citizens. These were realms in which Jews and gentiles mixed more or less freely and intimately because the nature of the activity in which they were engaged was self-​professedly universal, rendering irrelevant, in theory, the background and inheritance of the participants. Involvement in either sphere did not require Jews to abandon their religion in any formal sense, although most had already ceased to be practicing Jews; nor did it inevitably lead to social estrangement from their kin and eventual intermarriage.1 Within this context, a massive tendency toward integration, followed by Romanization of surnames, as well as first names, can be observed among Jewish intellectuals and artists, especially during the interwar period. Evidence suggests that some of these surnames were already inherited; many were adopted as a statement of self-​identity, others as literary pen names, and some perhaps even as a means to evade anti-​Jewish prejudice. 1. Endelman, Radical Assimilation, 184.

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163

I have analyzed the names, and especially the surnames, of a representative number of ​Romanian Jewish intellectuals and artists born before 1921 and publicly active until 1944 (and sometimes beyond) in a variety of fields, such as linguistics, philosophy and sciences, literature and journalism, arts and architecture, music, theater and film, and so on, based on the compendium by Nicolae Cajal and Hary Kuller.2 Jewish intellectuals who came of age and whose activity developed principally after 1944 are not included in this study since their names could have changed due to different circumstances after WWII and under the Communist regime. According to these criteria, I list 664 persons, by no means an exhaustive list, who were all recognized Jewish intellectuals and artists active in Romania prior to WWII. A breakdown by different categories of activities gives us the following table. (Numbers higher than the average are bold.) Area of activity

Individuals

Percentage

19 12 70 27 30 57 15 175 5 32 30 30 40 35 28 14 32 14 664

2.86 1.81 10.54 4.07 4.52 8.58 2.11 26.36 0.75 4.82 4.52 4.52 6.02 5.27 4.22 2.11 4.82 2.11 100.00

Architecture Historiography Journalism Juridical sciences Linguistics-​Philology Literature Mathematics Medicine Motion pictures Music Natural sciences Pharmacology Philosophy-​Sociology Plastic Arts Printing-​Publishing Sports Teaching-​Pedagogy Theater Total

It is evident here that a very large number of ​Jewish intellectuals were concentrated in a few specific areas, such as medicine (26.36%) and related pharmacology (4.52%) as well as journalism (10.54%), literature (8.58%), and related printing and 2.  Cajal and Kuller, Contribuția evreilor.

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publishing (4.22%). From a wider perspective, a breakdown by larger spheres of activity gives the following results: Theoretical and applied sciences (medicine, pharmacology, natural sciences, mathematics): 37.5% Arts (plastic arts, architecture, music, motion pictures, theater, literature, printing and publishing): 28.61% Social sciences and related activities (linguistics and philology, philosophy, historiography, juridical sciences, teaching and pedagogy, journalism): 31.87% It can be seen here that the activities of ​Jewish intellectuals encompassed all the main cultural spheres of society, with a notable penchant toward the natural sciences. A statistical analysis of the surnames of these Jewish intellectuals gives interesting results: Six of them, 0.90%, had Italian surnames, such as Della Pergola, Fermo, Finţi; in Romania Jews bearing Italian surnames were in general affiliated with the Sephardic community. Twenty-​five, 3.77%, had Sephardic surnames, such as Alcalay, Benvenisti, Hasan, and Samitca. 189, 28.46%, had Romanian, or Romanized, surnames, such as Brănişteanu, Câmpeanu, Feraru, Marcu, Naumescu. Four hundred thirteen, 62.2%, had non-​Romanian, mostly recognizably Jewish, surnames, such as Adler, Bercovici, Blumenthal, Feldman, Ghelerter, Kanner, and Şaraga; Thirty-​one, 4.67%, had surnames that were neither specifically Romanian nor evidently foreign, such as Baltazar, Daniel, and Dorian. Some were simply literary pseudonyms, such as Giordano and Ygrec. The 189 Romanian and Romanized surnames that are the main object of our analysis can be broken down into a few different categories: Fifty-​nine (31.22%) are based on given names as such, mostly on common Romanian ones: Barbu, Bogdan, Mihail, Voicu. However, 11 of these are based on Jewish given names, in general those specific to the Romanian lands, formed mostly with the suffix -u: Cerbu, Iancu, Marcu, but also Solomonică (diminutive of Solomon). Thirty-​six (19.05%) are based on toponymics formed with the suffix -(e)an(u): Clejan, Focşeneanu, Tismăneanu. Twenty-​four (12.70%) are based on patronymics formed with the suffix -(e)scu: Diamandescu, Mărculescu, Naumescu, Săvulescu.

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Eighteen (9.52%) are based on patronymics formed with the suffix -ea: Cernea, Ralea, Verea. Thirteen (6.88%) are based on occupations and formed, in general, with the suffix -u: Bacalu, Breslaşu, Economu. Ten (5.29%) are based on personal and other characteristics: Barbălat, Săculeţ, Straja. As can be seen, the patterns of creation of ​Romanian or Romanized surnames in the case of ​Jewish intellectuals are largely similar in method (given names and suffixes, for example) and proportion to those followed by the general Jewish population. In regard to this elite group who were no longer bound by traditional mores, we might ask to what extent their family names are a reflection of surnames adopted through the long natural process described in previous chapters or are the result of more recent changes and what the reasons were for these changes. From the data publicly available and without an in-​depth study in specialized archives for the history of the name of each individual on our list, it can be assessed that 102 of them, that is, about 54%, had plain Romanian or Romanized surnames only, which do not recall or provide a clue to any previous foreign or Jewish surname. This could hint, as said, to an early adoption of the Romanian or Romanized surname, or to an inherited surname adopted by previous generations. In the other 87 cases (46%), however, a few different categories of surnames can be differentiated: Double surnames in which one of the components is foreign (or recognizably Jewish) and the other Romanian: Cohen Lânaru, Kaufman Dan, Rosenberg Şerban, Weismann Constantin. There are 24 double surnames, 27.6% of these cases. Calque-​translated surnames: Goldner > Aurescu (semantic basis: gold), Blum > Florin (flower), Deutsch > Nemţeanu (German). In two cases the previous surname that was translated was preserved in a double surname: Bergman Munte (mountain), Honigman Fagure (honey, beehive). There are 11 translated surnames, 12.64%. Adaptation of surnames, mainly with the use of suffixes: Iacobsohn > Iacobescu, Lazarovici > Lăzăreanu, Schor > Soreanu, or omission of a suffix: Mihailovici > Mihail. There are 6 adapted surnames, 6.9%. New Romanian surnames that came to replace the previous foreign surnames. Some new surnames bear a certain resemblance to the former ones: Braunstein > Brănişteanu, Cahana > Canianu, Brauer > Graur, Gropper > Gropeanu; sometimes there is no connection whatsoever: Heft > Cândrea, Finkelstein > Economu, Binder > Pană. Some are plain pseudonyms such as Blumenfeld > Scrutator, Roman > Robot. There are 46 of these new surnames, 52.9%.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames Table 4.  Fields of Activity and Romanian Surnames Individuals

Romanian surnames

Percentage

Motion pictures Literature Journalism Sports Music Juridical sciences Architecture Linguistics-​Philology Philosophy-​Sociology Plastic arts Natural sciences Medicine Theater Pharmacology Teaching-​Pedagogy Printing-​Publishing Historiography Mathematics

5 57 70 14 32 27 19 30 40 35 30 175 14 30 32 28 12 14

3 28 31 6 12 10 7 9 11 9 7 39 3 5 4 3 1 1

60.00 49.12 44.29 42.86 37.50 37.04 36.84 30.00 27.50 25.71 23.33 22.29 21.43 16.67 12.50 10.71 8.33 7.14

Total

664

189

Area of activity

Numbers higher than the average are bold.

The general picture, therefore, is as follows: Non-​Romanian surnames, including Italian, Sephardic, and double surnames (foreign-​Romanian): 468, 70.5% of the total Romanian-​only surnames: 165, 24.85% Surnames that are neither specifically foreign nor Romanian: 31, 4.67% It is evident, therefore, that about 70% of these Jewish intellectuals preserved their non-​Romanian or Jewish surnames (a few adopted Romanian surnames in parallel), while between 25% and 30% adopted Romanian or Romanized surnames by different ways and procedures. It would be interesting to see whether there are differences in these patterns of surname preservation and adaptation in the different fields of activity and to try to understand some of the underlying reasons for that. Table 4 details the different fields of activity and the number and percentage of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames. A quick view of the data shows that the Romanian and Romanized surnames are not evenly split between the fields of activity, but they are nonetheless spread over all of them. Taking into account

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Table 5.  Fields of Activity and New Surnames Romanian surnames

New, adapted, translated surnames

Percentage

Literature Journalism Motion pictures Printing-​Publishing Linguistics-​Philology Plastic arts Philosophy-​Sociology Juridical sciences Sports Music Medicine Architecture Natural sciences Theater Pharmacology Teaching-​Pedagogy Historiography Mathematics

28 31 3 3 9 9 11 10 6 12 39 7 7 3 5 4 1 1

19 21 2 2 3 3 3 2 1 2 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

67.86 67.74 66.67 66.67 33.33 33.33 27.27 20.00 16.67 16.67 12.82 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

Total

189

63

Area of activity

Numbers higher than the average are bold.

a natural process of adoption of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames, which in many cases implies also a higher degree of social integration, it would be expected that intellectuals in all fields would be part of the general trend, and this expectation is generally met. However, a clear tendency can be noted toward higher concentrations in fields such as motion pictures, literature, journalism, and . . . sports. Is it reasonable that Jews involved in, say, literature and journalism should be so much more integrated from the point of view of surnames than their counterparts involved in medicine, pharmacology, or mathematics, for that matter? We tried to answer this question by having a critical look not at all the Romanian and Romanized surnames in general, but rather at those new, adapted, or calque surnames for which there is public recollection of or “inside information” about a previous foreign or Jewish surname. Table 5 gives a better image of the fields of concentration and perhaps a hint as to the significance of the phenomenon. Here it is clearer that the changes in the surnames are especially concentrated in a very specific group of intellectual activity: literature, journalism, motion pictures, and publishing. Out of the 65 Romanian or Romanized surnames of the

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Jews active in these four areas, 44—that is a massive 67.7%—are represented by pseudonyms, pen names, and “new” surnames, a percentage much higher than in any other field of intellectual activity. This is a striking conclusion that usually has been ill-​interpreted, and it informs us that 14 of these 44 surnames are at the top of the list of ​banned “Jewish writers.” But this phenomenon is most significant from a sociological and psychological perspective and can be attributed mostly to the fact that these specific fields are generally linked to a much deeper expression of an artist’s identity and a much more intimate involvement, coupled with an extremely high degree of personal exposure to the general public. It was assumed that the precariousness of ​Yiddish culture among the emancipated strata had diminished the Jewish cultural substance of ​Jewish intellectuals. Many of these opted early on for an ambiguous, Romanian-​Jewish identity that was easily recognizable in a name change. But in the realm of ​letters, the choice of the name an author will use to sign his or her works, a “pseudonym,” is much more complicated than for anyone else; personal, individual motivations, many times of an aesthetic nature, prevail. The pseudonym has the tendency to supplant the actual name (and surname) as registered in official documents—and often succeeds in doing so, by a dynamic of its own.3 Many of those Romanian Jews active in the field of ​literature, journalism, and publishing adopted Romanian or Romanized surnames (and given names) and pseudonyms in order not so much to conceal their Jewish origin as, it can be argued, to escape the constraints, internal and external, of ​being defined within a minority group—in cultural, ethnic, and religious terms—and to aim at a higher sphere of expression. One should consider as perfectly legitimate the option taken by those who adopted names that would be more easily accepted and perceived as integrated within the cultural space in which they desired to affirm themselves. This phenomenon was not, after all, limited only to Jews, certainly not in the Romanian lands. Romanian intellectuals, and especially poets and writers, some of them of various foreign filiations, similarly chose to change or adapt their names or surnames, among them illustrious personalities such as Anton Pann, previously Pantaleon Antonie; Vintilă Horia—Caftangioglu; Mihai Eminescu—Eminovici; Ciprian Porumbescu—Golembiovski; Ion Vinea—Iovanaki. This trend is further demonstrated by the case of ​Jewish intellectuals generally active in less visible areas of endeavor, such as medicine, linguistics, and philosophy-​sociology but who were also strongly involved in literary and journalistic careers. Unlike many of their colleagues in the same fields who were— apparently—less preoccupied with the name issue, some of these latter adopted a new surname: Brauer > Graur and Stein > Stâncă (medicine), Cahana > Canianu 3. Volovici, Numele, pseudonimul, 1.

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(philosophy-​sociology), Hechter > Sebastian (juridical sciences), Maier > Mirea (music). It is precisely this trend that was vilified and decried by some anti-​Semitic circles, and later by successive governments themselves, as a subterfuge used to conceal the “real” Jewish identity of certain writers and journalists. But even should that be partly true, what other choice was there in the late 1920s and the 1930s, when overt anti-​Jewish propaganda and outbursts of violence were shutting down the public scene, newspapers, books, and editorial houses for Jews? In the Russian Empire at first and then in the heated atmosphere of interwar Poland, a well-​known Jewish pediatrician and author of children’s books, Henryk Goldszmit, adopted and wrote under the pen name Janusz Korczak. In a later, hostile period this enabled him to publish in Polish newspapers and air his educative radio program. He was but one among others. In interwar Romania, many prominent Jewish intellectuals had to act in a similar way. It is emblematic to recall here that the renowned playwright Mihail Sebastian (pseudonym of ​Iosif ​Hechter) was able to have his widely applauded play Steaua fără nume (The nameless star) performed on stage on 1 March 1944 in Bucharest, during the anti-​Jewish persecution period, but only under an alternative pseudonym, Victor Mincu. In order to get permission, even that was not sufficient to hide his real—Jewish—identity, so the name of a Romanian lawyer, Ştefan Enescu, had to be written on the play’s poster. The fact that Romanian or Romanized surnames are much more frequent among Jewish intellectuals and artists (25% to 30%) than among the general Jewish population (about 7.8%, up to 13.6% in the core Old Kingdom) could suggest a stronger natural tendency toward acculturation, if not assimilation, in these circles. On the other hand, a closer analysis of the data suggests other possible reasons as well. The figures show clearly that the percentage of ​Romanian or Romanized surnames, adopted either through a long natural process or through more recent change, grows significantly with the degree of public exposure and cannot be explained only by simple acculturation. Out of 160 surnames of ​Jews active in literature, journalism, and motion pictures as well as printing and publishing, 65 (40.6%) are Romanian or Romanized, largely fitting the integrative trend. But the fact that 44 out of these 65, a massive 67.7%, are represented by pseudonyms and “new” surnames is rather intriguing. Many of them were adopted, in all certainty, as mere literary pseudonyms, and it is very difficult to ascertain any other reasons behind them. But taking into account the historical cultural context, it is probable that at least some of these surnames may have been taken as a means to circumvent anti-​Semitic prejudice in certain social-​intellectual circles and later, during the WWII years, even downright anti-​Jewish persecutions.

Chapter 9

A Different Group: The Sephardim in the Old Kingdom

The Sephardic presence in Romania dates, as mentioned above, from the beginning of the sixteenth century and reached its apex in the first half of the twentieth century, when the Sephardim numbered about ten thousand persons in 1940, six thousand in Bucharest alone. Wherever they settled, even when sharing communities with Ashkenazim, the Sephardim insisted on preserving their particular traditions. They built and established Sephardic synagogues, Talmudei Torah, and secular schools teaching in Judeo-​Spanish (Ladino), as well as their own hospitals, Chevra Kadisha, and cemeteries: the typical oriental architecture of some of these buildings can still be admired today. They kept community registers and tax books in Judeo-​Spanish, as documented in different archives. Between the years 1719 and 1834, the Sephardic-​dominated institution the Hakham Bashi, with residence in Jassy and nominated from Istanbul, protected the traditions, privileges, and autonomy of all the Jewish communities, Sephardic and Ashkenazi, in Moldavia and Walachia. During the first period of settlement throughout the Romanian Principalities, the Sephardic Jews preserved their traditional ways (religious life, specific professions) and completely identified with the Ottoman Empire, their economic lifeline and protector. During the formation of the modern Romanian state, they became secularized, acculturated, and active in the great events of national history, supporting the Romanian revolutionaries of 1848 politically and financially and volunteering in Romania’s war for independence of 1877–78.1 The contribution of the Sephardim to Romania’s economy and culture was notable as bankers, merchants, and philanthropists, editors and printers, publicists, poets and playwrights, and musicians and composers. The integration of the Sephardim succeeded only too well. In the 1930s, as secularization and assimilation grew, mixed marriages proliferated. Judeo-​Spanish lost its prestige and was abandoned altogether;2 it was replaced in schools by Hebrew, 1. Siniol, Portrete şi schiţe, 95–101. 2. Sala, Phonétique et phonologie.

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taught alongside the Romanian language. Their acculturation and sometimes assimilation accelerated after the naturalization of 1919 and the law of 1928 recognizing the Sephardic rite as a “historical cult.” On the other hand, some members of the community were attracted to the Zionist organizations, such as Chovevei Zion and B’nei Zion Israel, that encouraged the aliyah movement, an increasing tendency at the time of the upsurge in fascism and anti-​Semitism.3 The Sephardic community in Romania declined in the late 1930s, and the final blow came with the anti-​Semitic legislation and persecution in 1938, followed by the Holocaust. The Sephardic presence as a group is almost nonexistent in Romania today, but their memory and contribution live on, documented in archives but also in architecture and other cultural achievements. Sephardic surnames survived until the Holocaust within the overwhelmingly Ashkenazi Eastern European population, as witnessed by such names as Alcalay, Benvenisti, De Mayo, Mizrahi, and Moscuna. The integration pattern of the Sephardim in the Old Kingdom was conditioned by factors similar, to some extent, to those relevant to the Ashkenazim, including two significant waves of immigration, an early one spread over centuries, and another, more recent and massive one, leading to tensions between the two; and exposure to Western cultural modernizing influences (e.g., Haskalah and the ensuing establishment of the Alliance Israélite Universelle) and subsequent internal divisions between liberals and traditionalists. But the acculturation of the Sephardim started earlier, and they shared with non-​Jewish Romanians many Balkan cultural affinities, evident in clothing, food, and manners, resulting from the principalities being part of the Ottoman sphere of influence. There were evident linguistic similarities between Romanian and Judeo-​Spanish (Ladino), both Latin languages, peppered with similar lexical loans from the Turkish and Greek languages, which were culturally dominant in the region. Unlike the “Polish” or “German” Jews, the “Spanish” or “Frankish” Jews, as they were called, were generally accepted by Romanians as “native” Jews due to the perceived antiquity of their presence in the country and the abovementioned cultural and linguistic affinities. They were fewer in number and therefore seemed less menacing; they were more familiar in manners; and many of them were well known as generous philanthropists and intimately involved in the country’s affairs. Romanian society was obviously more open to their integration. There were circles who deemed the [Ashkenazi] Jews alien, part of a totally different culture and therefore inassimilable, but considered the Sephardim “good” Jews, having succeeded in assimilating with great success. One important difference from the Ashkenazim is that in the process of integration the Sephardim rarely abandoned or Romanized their surnames. Boasting a 3. Geller, Rise and Decline.

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Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

strong esprit de corps as Sephardi tahor with a Davidic pedigree (see the biblical source of this point in Malachi 21), even when totally acculturated they were very proud of their tradition and kept their ancient surnames. These surnames were brought in from abroad: some of them had a long history in medieval Spain, and some were created in the wake of the expulsion of 1492.4 There is only scant and rare documentation of Sephardic Jews who adopted Romanian surnames. An Isac Beligrădeanu is mentioned as a merchant in Craiova—a surname based on a toponym formed with the suffix -(e)an(u): Beligrad is an archaic variant of either Belgrade or Belgorod (Cetatea Albă), both places of early Sephardic settlement. A few other cases are documented in a register of Societatea Ezra Betzaroth din Bucharest. Albumul membrilor decedaţi, 1917–1925 (Memorial list of deceased members) at the Center for the Study of the History of ​Romanian Jewry, Federation of ​ Jewish Communities in Romania, Bucharest,5 for example. These surnames were formed with the modern patronymic suffix -escu: Cucescu, Moisescu, and Rozescu. For one of them, the patronymic etymon is clearly stated in this document: I. B. Moshe Moisescu (Moshe > Moise + escu). For the other two, J. L. Eskenasy Cucescu and H. S. Suchar Rozescu, there is no certainty about the source: Cucescu could be derived from Cuceşti (Vâlcea), north of Craiova (as mentioned above, in earlier times the suffix -escu was also used for toponym formation), while Rozescu is probably from a matronymic. What is interesting is that both the Romanian and the previous surname were registered together. These might be Romanian surnames adopted by Sephardic Jews; however, this is not entirely sure, because the register also includes, for unclear reasons, some Ashkenazi surnames as well as a Romanized surname of an S. S. Efraim Froimescu (Efraim > Froim + escu), derived from Froim, which is a common Yiddish hypocoristic form. This situation is rather similar to that in Greece, for example, where the Sephardic Jews also preserved, with minor exceptions, their traditional surnames. On the other hand, there were the Romaniote (native Greek) Jews, who represented the earlier Jewish settlement and lived for centuries scattered among a large Christian majority population—somewhat akin to the native Jews in the Romanian lands. Having no previous tradition of surnaming patterns, in time many of these came to adopt common Greek surnames or Jewish surnames adapted to the Greek language, such as Bacolas, Bechoropoulos, Daskalakis, Gavrielides, Hadzopulos, Matsas, and Samouilidis. Concerning the genuine Sephardic surnames, out of all surnames of ​Jews documented in the research database only 200 are Sephardic, about 0.7%, covering a 4.  Faiguenboim, Valadares, and Campagnano, Dictionary of Sephardic Surnames; Demsky, Pleasant. 5.  Center for the Study of the History of ​Romanian Jewry, Federation of ​Jewish Communities in Romania, Bucharest.

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total of 840 records. It is interesting that while the Romanian and Romanized Jewish surnames cover an average of 8.7 records each, the Sephardic ones cover only 4.2 records each, which means that there are fewer Sephardic surnames of ​ high frequency (the most frequent, with at least 5 records, are Sabetay, Angel, and Profeta). The Sephardic surnames are most represented, as expected, in the main urban centers of ​Bucharest, 45.7%, and Ploieşti, 28.7%; the others are scattered in different locations, but mostly in Walachia. Several categories of Sephardic surnames can be recognized: Based on toponyms (places and county names): Catalan, Creta, Cuenca, Djaen, Londres, Medina, Modiano Based on given names as patronymics: Alberto, Amedeo, Angel, Avadia, Baruch, Bivas, Hasan, Sabetay; Ben Simon Surnames specific to Muslim Spain formed with the Arabic prefix al-: Alagem, Albala, Alcalay, Alfandari, Almosnino, Altaras Most of the Sephardic surnames are specific to Judeo-​Spanish–speaking Jewry in the Balkans area and were preserved as such without being adapted phonetically or morphologically to the Romanian language. A special group, however, can be identified as of ​Italian origin or Italian-​sounding surnames, such as Luzzato, Profeta, Semaria, and Sinigilia, attesting to a later influx of ​Italian Jews, who were integrated into the Sephardic community in Romania. Onomastic analysis shows that, unlike the case of the Ashkenazim, the surnames of the Sephardic Jews do not reflect the real degree of their acculturation or integration into the surrounding society of the Old Kingdom. It is almost certain that there were more cases of Sephardic Jews who adopted Romanian surnames or Romanized their previous surnames, especially in more recent times, with the help of the suffix -escu. As additional relevant documents are made available, some of these will eventually surface, but it is not expected that they will reach significant numbers that would change the overall picture. A comparative view shows that this phenomenon was replicated in England and Germany as well as in other similar European cultural environments.6 Among other things, such as a more conservative naming tradition, this could be due to the fact that, again unlike the Ashkenazim, many of the Sephardim had adopted hereditary surnames centuries before, at the time of and following the expulsion from Spain, and some even further back. Yet another local factor could be the fact that, within the Balkan or Levantine context, the Sephardic surnames sounded more familiar and much less obviously foreign than the German-​sounding Ashkenazi ones, making the need for their Romanization less acute. 6. Endelman, Radical Assimilation; Avraham, “Sephardim.”

General Conclusions

The present study proposes a new historical research method: a linguistic and semantic analysis of surnames to verify and/or clarify various aspects, trends, and processes in the social history of a specific ethnic/cultural group in a designated area. I have developed this method, applying it to the history of ​Jews living in the extended Old Kingdom of ​Romania since the sixteenth century. Specifically, my research centers on the deep-​rooted anti-​Jewish claim that Jews in Romania were neither indigenous to the country nor economically beneficial. As a result of the above analysis of surnames, a number of pertinent conclusions can be drawn that, in my opinion, should amply answer the six main questions posed at the beginning of this social-​historical study. Foremost, it must be admitted that the analysis of ​Jewish names indicates that the large majority (92%) of the surnames within the assigned area are of German and Yiddish, and occasionally Polish or Russian, origin and indicate immigration (as such they could also shed light on the origins or provenance of these same Jews). However, a significant number (7.8%; for Moldavia and Walachia alone up to 13.6%) are either Romanian or Romanized surnames, thus constituting a corpus that reflects the measure of acculturation or integration of ​Jews into the Old Kingdom society.1 It is precisely the analysis of these specific types of surnames that provides answers to the main points discussed. An inner division can be established among these Romanian and Romanized surnames: those adopted through a natural process during an earlier period, the largest group, represented primarily by occupational surnames, and old-​style patronymics, which constitute the main thrust of this study. Yet there are also those surnames, most of them similar to modern Romanian gentile surnames, adopted in the modern period, that is, the mid-​nineteenth century, as a result of changes in 1.  The research database does not include all the Romanian and Romanized surnames used by Jews in the territory of the Old Kingdom of ​Romania. Only when the “Census of the inhabitants having Jewish blood” of ​May 1942 and perhaps also the questionnaires filled out by Jews for the general census of April 1941, including additions in October 1941, are mapped, processed, and analyzed will it be possible to obtain a comprehensive description of most of these surnames.

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the cultural and national identity of the bearers. These are also valuable indicators of ​historical and social developments in the life of ​Romanian Jewry. 1. Is there any substantive evidence of an early permanent Jewish settlement in the Romanian Principalities prior to the growth in Jewish immigration after 1830–40? A significant number of ​Romanian and Romanized Jewish surnames confirm the antiquity of permanent Jewish presence in the Romanian lands, especially in Moldavia. One argument is the high concentration of such surnames in northern Moldavia (Burdujeni, Botoşani, Darabani, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Herţa, and Mihăileni), the city of ​Jassy, and areas of ​Bukovina and northern Bessarabia, in what can be called the area of the early settlement. Romanian surnames (Boiangiu, Căciular, Covrigar, Croitor, Săpunar, Ştirbul, Tălpălar, Zaraf ) documented among Jews born late in the nineteenth century in Chernovitz, Rădăuţi, Siret, and Suceava in Bukovina, and even in northern Bessarabia, provinces separated from Moldavia in 1775 and 1812, respectively, attest that these surnames were adopted by forefathers who lived in these areas prior to their separation. Another strong argument is the specific typology of many of the Romanian and Romanized Jewish surnames. Old-​style vernacular patronymics (Ştrulea) and matronymics (Aperlei) and, most especially, the archaic Slavonic pattern, Sin Bercu, definitely point to an early period. Numerous surnames derived from personal characteristics (Sărăcuţu, Ştirbu) and words describing objects, animals, and plants (Talpă, Cioară) are characteristic of earlier times when nicknames stressed the individual’s personal qualities or, mostly, physical defects. Surnames based on very specific Romanian Jewish given names (Iosub, Buium) peculiar to long-​time residents are also most telling. Finally, surnames based on archaic or outdated names of occupations (Orendaru, Velniceru) can be easily ascribed to the period before the beginning of the nineteenth century. All these surnames must have been adopted in a more remote period, corresponding to an early settlement between the seventeenth and the eighteenth centuries, by those who would later be known as “native Jews.” 2. Was there any significant Jewish presence in the villages before the beginning of the general trend of internal migration from the rural areas toward major urban concentrations at the end of the nineteenth century? The Jewish presence all over the territory of the Romanian lands, in urban areas as well as in rural areas, is amply documented by their toponym-​based Romanian surnames. It is most significant, however, that over 21% of the toponym-​based Romanian surnames (and 40% of the records thereof ) used by Jews in the Romanian lands refer to names of remote villages, located mostly in northern Moldavia and northern Bessarabia (Aroneanu, Baronceanu, Bolboceanu, Broscăuceanu, and so on). There was no reason for Jews to take their surnames from such insignificant villages unless they used to live there at some point in time. The research database also contains evidence of a still-​significant Jewish presence in the villages of ​Moldavia, Bessarabia, and Bukovina around the turn of the nineteenth century.

176

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

Another important reference to Jewish presence in the villages can be found in surnames based on names of occupations specific to rural life (Ciobanu, Livădaru, Meraru, Stupar, Ţăranu). These surnames were adopted by Jews who lived far away from urban centers and were actually exercising these professions in rural areas. 3. Were Jews actively involved in occupations and professions beyond those specifically linked to the financial and mercantile sectors? The fact that the Jews in the Romanian lands were involved not only in trade and finance, as the common stereotype portrayed them, but mainly in a multitude of industries and crafts, is well documented by numerous Romanian and Romanized Jewish surnames based on names of occupations. There was no reason for Jews to take their surnames from such occupations—many of them humble and of ​low status—unless they used to practice them at the time. The statistical analysis shows that out of 2,229 Romanian or Romanized surnames, representing 18,719 records, the occupation-​based surnames constitute a very significant 16.86% and an impressive 38.77% of the records, proof that the pattern of surname creation based on occupation names was one of the most common and productive. An important detail: different morphological and semantic features (the suffix -iu(l), an archaic form later contracted to -u(l): Berariu, Cofariu, Făinariu; archaic and obsolete professions: Mungiu, Orendaru, Sedecaru) suggest that many occupation-​based surnames were adopted as early as the first third of the nineteenth century, and even before. A breakdown by categories of the different occupations reflected in the occupation-​based Romanian surnames permits reconstruction, to a certain extent, of the occupational profile of the active Jewish population in the historical period of the first half of the nineteenth century, characterized as largely premodern and preindustrial, when most of these surnames were adopted. The first two categories (manual crafts and transportation with 65.34% and 9.09% of the records, respectively) are linked to physical work and fall in the “productive” sector of the economy, representing together about three-​quarters of the active Jewish workforce. The last three categories (commerce and trade, services, credit and finances), within the tertiary sector, represent only about 12.24% of the Jewish workforce. From a cross-​category perspective and taking into account the interaction and links between the various occupations along the production, transportation, and commercialization process, a number of areas of ​Jewish specialization can be distinguished in which Jews represented a high percentage of the overall workforce and sometimes became predominant: cereals and alcoholic beverages processing and trade (18.75% of the records), fabrics and clothes production (13.71%), fur clothes and fur caps production (13.03%), leather and footwear production (12.30%), furniture and barrel production (4.93%). The semantic analysis of the occupation-​based surnames, in contrast, shows that within the above specific economic fields, Jews did not focus exclusively on high-​status occupations catering to the elites but attended to all the sectors of

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the general population and perhaps mostly to the lower classes. The fact that the most frequent surnames are based on lower-​class regional names of occupations strengthens the above assertion, pointing at the same time to a large concentration of the bearers’ names in the provinces of ​Moldavia and Bukovina, the area of early Jewish settlement. The above image of the occupational profile of ​Jews in the Romanian lands, as reflected in their surnames, stands in blatant contradiction to the opposite general perception, according to which the Jews were “not productive” and involved mainly, if not exclusively, in “nonphysical” commerce and finance. 4. Was Jewish identity monolithic and self-​centered, resulting in willing ethnic separation, or was it more diverse, fraught with internal tensions and contradictions, and eventually open to different degrees of integration and acculturation? Is there any evidence, on the individual, group, or general level, of ​Jews’ willingness to integrate into the surrounding Romanian society? The very existence of ​local or adapted Romanian surnames among Jews in the Romanian lands points, at least in a significant part, to a trend toward acculturation—a process that can be divided into two phases where the different types of surnames adopted attest to different degrees of integration: An early phase during the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth centuries, when native Jews and their descendants adopted, in a rather spontaneous manner, surnames based on old-​style patronymics, personal characteristics, archaic occupations, and many toponymics A later phase, from the mid-​nineteenth century to the first half of the twentieth century, when Jews in all walks of ​life intentionally adopted surnames formed with the modern suffix -escu, based on local occupations and toponymics, or changed their non-​Romanian surnames to plain Romanian surnames (Pascu, Ştefan, Verea). At the same time, many of them resorted to Romanization of their non-​Romanian surnames through phonetic changes and specific suffixes. This second group includes surnames adopted or changed with a specific intention: acculturation, assimilation, or conversion; change of one’s artistic identity reflected in a pen name; desire to escape the Jewish stereotype. The presence of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames in both periods (before the early part of the nineteenth century and the modern period of the late nineteenth–twentieth centuries) is clear proof of the willingness of ​Jews to integrate into Romanian society. The bearers of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames were but the most visible sector of the majority of the Jewish population that was gradually integrating and adopting Romanian as its language of social intercourse and cultural expression.

178

Historical Implications of Jewish Surnames

5. What was the Romanian governing circles’ attitude toward the Jewish population’s tendencies toward integration and the reflection of those tendencies in the Romanization of ​Jewish surnames? Unlike in other countries where hereditary surnames were imposed on Jews by the authorities, the adoption of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames by Jews evolved unhindered through their long history in the Romanian lands and clearly as an expression of their willingness to integrate into the larger social surroundings. Still, the lack of ​legal enforcement of surnames for Jews until the end of the nineteenth century, when surnames were required for all, does imply a lack of official Romanian interest in the integration of the Jews. Through the centuries, the official Romanian policy toward the Jews, as seen from the authorities’ approach to their names, naming patterns, and compatibility with the needs of the state and society, appears to have always been oscillating between practical needs and accommodation on one hand and, on the other, hostile nationalist and ideological pressures. After the emancipation, the adoption of ​Romanian surnames by Jews was increasingly perceived by right-​wing political groups as a national danger, triggering the government’s intervention to stop the process by means of ​legislation in 1940. A case in point is that of the Jewish intellectuals and artists. The fact that Romanian or Romanized surnames are much more frequent among them (25% to 30%) than among the general Jewish population (about 8% to 13.6%), as well as the choice of these surnames, suggest a stronger natural tendency toward acculturation, and sometimes even assimilation, in these circles. However, the figures show that the percentage of ​Romanian or Romanized surnames grew significantly with the measure of public exposure their bearers achieved and cannot be explained only by simple acculturation. About 40.6% out of 160 surnames of ​Jews active in literature, journalism, and motion pictures as well as printing and publishing are Romanian or Romanized. But the fact that an impressive 67.7% of these are represented by pseudonyms and especially newly adopted surnames replacing the Jewish ones is telling. Many of these were adopted as mere literary pen names for reasons difficult to discern; but, in the specific historical cultural context described above, it is very probable that at least some of those surnames may have been adopted as a means of evading in certain social-​intellectual circles the stigma of ​being Jewish, and later, during the WWII years, even open anti-​Jewish persecution. 6. Was there any difference between Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews in their coping with their Romanian surroundings? The Sephardim’s integration process was longer and more generalized than that of the Ashkenazim: fewer in numbers and therefore less menacing as perceived by the gentile population, Sephardic Jews were also more familiar in manners,

General Conclusions

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clothing, and language to Romanian society, which was therefore more open to their integration. Although very well integrated, due to their conservative traditions and to the fact that many of them had adopted hereditary surnames centuries before, at the time of or even before their expulsion from Spain, the Sephardim preserved, to a much larger extent, their traditional surnames in their areas of ​habitation. The analysis of Sephardic Jewish surnames therefore does not reflect, except for a few meager exceptions, the measure of their acculturation, or assimilation, into the surrounding society of the Old Kingdom. Most of their traditional surnames are, however, a faithful reflection of their extensive former integration within their original Hispanic motherland. To sum up, the detailed morphological, statistical, and semantic analysis of the Romanian and Romanized surnames used by Jews in the extended Old Kingdom does attest to a long, continued, and voluntary process of integration into the surrounding Romanian society, encompassing a multitude of aspects in all walks of ​ life, urban and rural, over more than four centuries. Initiated by the native Jews and gradually joined by later arrivals, it was a process not imposed, but certainly not facilitated, and sometimes even opposed, by the Romanian authorities— an expression of many Jews’ desire and willingness, certainly more pronounced among but by no means limited to the intellectual circles, to belong through acculturation. A process abruptly stopped by the delirium of the Holocaust period. The Holocaust resulted, unfortunately, not only in the annihilation of about half of ​Romanian Jewry but in the extinction, on Romanian soil, of a majority of the Jewish Romanian surnames that so enriched the common linguistic and cultural patrimony of all Romanians. I do hope that this analysis of the Jewish Romanian and Romanized surnames used or adopted by Romanian Jews proves instrumental in complementing and supporting the available historical documentation on the Jews in the Romanian lands and, at the same time, in countering the entrenched, stereotypical image of the Jews. Perhaps this study will also be helpful to bring to the fore previously unnoticed aspects of ​Jewish existence in this specific environment, as well as Jewish naming patterns and surname preferences related thereto, thus paving the way for further studies in this direction.

Appendix 1

List of ​Jewish Intellectuals and Artists Active in Romania Prior to WWII

This list served as a basis for the analysis of surnames in chapter 8. The names are reproduced as registered in Nicolae Cajal and Hary Kuller, Contribuția evreilor din România la cultură şi civilizație. Surnames are separated from given names by a double space, and multiple given names or surnames by a single space. Romanian and Romanized surnames are given in bold, Sephardic surnames are underlined, and previous names are set within parentheses. In a few cases, only surnames are given. The names are classified by the main fields of activity according to the growing number of ​Romanian and Romanized surnames, usually from the barely represented to the dominant.

Mathematics Ernest ​Abason, Ion ​ Barbălat, Richard ​Blum, David ​Emanuel, Alexandru ​ Froda, Emil ​Grosswald, Adolf and Mendel ​Haimovici, Abraham ​Hollinger, Froim ​Marcus, Maria ​Neumann, Simion ​Sanielevici, Iso ​Schönberg, Paul Israel ​Suchar, George ​Theiler.

Historiography Iuliu ​Barasch, Eliza ​ Campus, Silvio ​De Mayo, Samuil ​Goldenberg, I.  ​Niemirower, Lazar ​Rosenbaum, Mihail ​Roller, Moses ​Rosen, Elias, Moses, and Wilhelm ​ Schwarzfeld, Alexandru ​ Vianu.

Printing and Publishing Leon ​ Alcalay, Michel ​Aziel, Samuel ​Beinglass, I. ​Cuperman, I. ​Florin (Lazar Fişler), publisher Haimann, Hecht, Naum ​Kitzler, Theodor ​Löwnstein, 181

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A. A.  Luca (A. ​Axelrad), Carol ​Müller, Iuliu ​Poch, I. ​Pinath, B. ​Pohl, Adam and Iosif ​Samitca, Aizic, Elias, Iancu and Samuel ​Şaraga, S. ​Schwartz, Sigmund ​ Sigma, I. M. ​ Ştefan, B. ​Vermont, Weissman, Moise ​Windwar.

Teaching and Pedagogy Heinrich ​Alperin, Alice  ​Aronescu, Max ​Aziel, Carol ​Blum, Arno ​Cahane, S. Calmanovici, Renzo  ​Della Pergola, M. ​Emanuel, R. ​Faion, M. ​Halevy, M.  Halperin, Heyer, N. ​Iacob, A. L. ​Ivela (Halevi), Mauriciu ​Kandel, Elena and Benedict ​Kanner, Andrei ​Kuhn, Dora ​Littman, V. ​Marcus, M. H. ​Maxy, A. ​ Mihail, Marcu ​Onescu, A. ​Papier, I. ​Safir, Salzberger, Mauriciu ​Schachter, Hugo ​Schwartz, Herbert Belu ​Silber, A. ​Stambler, E. ​Ungher, I. ​Vardi.

Pharmacology Pascal ​ Alămaru, Rachela ​Barber, Aurel ​Barhad, Mayer ​Baruch, Haim ​Berall, Aurel ​Bernstein, Gerş ​Bogonov, Herman ​Brand, Alfons ​Brociner, Zalman ​ Bruckmayer, Simion ​Caufman, Iosef ​Cofman Nicoreşti, Issiel ​Cohn, Max ​ Frenkel, E. ​Goldhammer, Osias ​Hermelin, D. ​Herzenberg, Raşela ​Ifrim Mendel, Şloim ​Iosepovici, Estela ​Iuster Fichman, Jean ​Klarfeld, Baruch ​ Mayer, Gheorghe ​Miletineanu, I. ​Polak, Gerş ​Şain, Mişu ​Solomon, Eugen ​ Solomonică, Henrietta ​Solomovici, Leon ​Stern, Theodor Veissman.

Theater Agnia ​Bogoslava, Leny ​Caler, Faust Mohr, Alexandru ​Finţi, Beate ​Fredanov, Scarlat Froda, Alexandru ​Giovani, N. ​Kanner, Ioan ​Massoff, V. ​Ronea, Maria ​ Sandu, Dida Solomon, Nicolae ​Stroe (Nacht), Maria  ​Ventura, Herman ​ Rhenstein, Alexandru ​Westfried.

Medicine Huna ​Aizicovici, David ​Almogen, Yvonne Constance ​Ardan Faur, Aurel ​ Avramovici, Abraham ​Bally, Gabriel ​Barbu, Rubin ​Bărbuţă, Bernard ​Barhad, Copel ​Bercovici, Leon ​Bercu, Ludwig ​Berghoff, Samuel ​Birman-​Bira, Nicolae ​Blatt, Mauriciu ​Blechmann, Şmil ​Blumenfeld, Mauriciu ​Blumenthal, Iosif ​ Bogdan, Vasile ​Bratu, Rudolf ​Brauner, Alfred ​Brill, Leon  ​Caffe, Mareş ​

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Cahana, Samuel ​Cahane, Marcu and Nicolae ​Cajal, Marcu ​Câmpeanu, Alexandru ​ Cerbu, Alexandru Cociu (Cohen), Marcel ​Cohen, Sigismund ​Cohl, Dinu ​Conitz, Louis ​Copelman, Natalia ​Corotcov Scurtu, Eduard ​Crigel, Daniil ​ Critzman, Darius David ​Cuper, Isac Ica ​Daniel, Idel ​David, Mauriciu ​Deleanu, Adelina ​Derevici, Alfons ​Dortheimer, Marcel ​ Dulce, Horia ​Dunăreanu, Haim ​ Elias, Oscar ​Engelberg, Alexandru ​Eskenasy, Enric ​Façon/Fason, Avram ​Faibiş, Iacob ​Felix, Herman ​Fischgold, George ​Flaisen, Alice ​ Focşăneanu Magheru, Emanuel ​Frankel, Bernard ​Frenckel, Iuliu ​Friedman Câmpina, Alfons Missel ​ Fruchter, Iosef ​Fux, Andrei ​Gartner, Iuliu ​and Litman ​Ghelerter, Nandor ​Gingold, Theofil ​Glück, Ede ​Goldberger, Valentina Goldenberg, Rosa ​Goldenberg Lupu, Moise ​Goldstein, Moritz ​Gottfried, Filip ​Gottlieb, Grigore ​Graur (Ghidale Gherş ​Brauer), Eugenia ​Gross Streja, Jules Idel ​Grossmann, Iosif ​Hasan, Pincu ​Herşcovici, Simion and Zalman ​Iagnov, Isidor ​Iancu, Matyas ​Ilian, Franţ ​ Isac, Osias ​Kauffmann Cosla, Lazar ​Kleinerman, Arthur Kreindler, Leopold Kugel, Heinrich Lack, Ilie ​Lazarovici, Max ​Leibovici, Chivu Constantin ​Lichter, Sandu ​Lieblich, Emil ​Liebreich, Karpel ​Lippe, Avram Albert and Ionel ​Lobel, Arthur ​Löbel, Alfred ​Maisler, Ferdinand ​Mandel, Alexandru ​ Manolescu (Solomon ​Cahana), Max ​Marbe, Neuman and Paul ​Marcovici, Carli and Emanoil Ion ​ Marcu, Emil ​Max, Lazar ​Mayersohn, Oscar ​Meller, Solomon ​Mendelssohn, Benedict ​Menkes, Oscar ​Millian, Miron ​ Miron, Gheorghe ​Miron Sigalea, Bernat Herşcu Burăh, Mauriciu and Samuil Burăh ​Moscovici, Petre ​Mureşan, Andrei ​ Nass, Herman and Justin ​Neuman, Mihail ​Neuman Maur, Heinrich ​Neumann, Ştefan ​ Oprişan, Petre ​Penciu, Sebastian ​Pineles, Ileana ​Pollak Banu, Beno ​Pollinger, Maximilian ​Popper, Paul ​Pruteanu, Anghel ​Radovici, Berthold ​Răsvan, Moriţ ​Rosenthal, Aurel ​Rosin, Mauriciu ​Roth, Oscar ​Sager, Avram  ​Şaim, David Bercu ​Salzberg, Bercu ​Şapira, Marcel ​ Saragea, Max ​Schachmann, Abraham and Mendel ​Schachter, Mor ​Schapira, Alexandru and Heinrich ​Schlesinger, Paul ​Schwartz, Iancu ​Şechter, Hugo ​Seligman, Rudolf ​Mayer ​Sigmand, Isac ​ Silberzweig, Leon and Moise ​Solomon, Eugen ​Spirt, Ştefan ​Stâncă Stein, Marc ​ Steinbach, Sigmund ​Steiner, Iosef ​Sternberg, Marcel ​Straja, Leon ​Strominger, Emil ​Tauber, Alice ​Tauber Saragea, Bernard ​Taussig, Alfred ​Teitel, Hermina ​ Tismăneanu, Alfred ​Toff, Alexandru ​Tudor, Isac ​Uziel, Leon ​Vaian, Herman ​ Vascoboinic Birnbaum, Adrian ​Verea, Alexandru ​Vianu (Weinberg), Lazar ​Wasserman, Isidor ​Weinberg, Moriţ Mauriciu ​Wertheimer, Filip and Iosif ​Westfried, Borelly ​Wisner, Ion ​Ygrec (Haim Glücksmann), Herman ​Zimel, Iulius ​Zucman.

Natural Sciences Martin ​Bercovici, Theodor ​Blumenfeld, Angel ​Fridman, Leon ​Hamburger, Iosif ​Herzog, Teofil ​Revici, Ignat ​Saphier, Roman Emanuel and Roman Teofil ​

184

Appendix 1

Silberman, Carol ​Steinberg, Zicman ​Feider, Ion ​Fuhn, Francisc ​Porface, Tscharna ​ R ayss, Alice ​ Săvulescu, Martin ​Bank, Isac ​Blum, Lazar ​Edeleanu, Mihail ​ Florescu, Nicolae ​Mărculescu, Raul ​Mihail, Yvette ​Steinberg-​ Davidescu, Steven ​Taussig, Alexandru ​Szmuk, Alexandru ​Sanielevici, Iacob ​ Dermer, Samuel ​Fenisel, Ella ​Marcus, Iulius ​Popper, David ​Roman.

Plastic Arts Nicolae ​Amza-Argintescu, Max ​Arnold, Victor ​Brauner, Mina ​Byck Wepper, Ella ​Cancicov, Henri ​Daniel, Margareta Medi ​Dinu, Dita ​Finţi Fruchter, Nicolae ​ Gropeanu (Gropper), Marcel ​Iancu, R. ​Iosif ​(Iosif ​Rosenbluth), Barbu  ​Iscovescu (Iehuda ​Iţcovici), Iosif ​Iser, G. ​Iuster, Vasile ​Kazar, A. ​Laserson, S. ​Maur (Sigismund ​Mohr), Arthur ​Mendel, Samuel ​Mützner, Eugen ​ Pascu, Elena ​ Pătrăşcanu, Jules ​Perahim (Iuliş ​Blumenfeld), Constantin Daniel ​Rosenthal, Iosif ​Ross (Iţic ​Rosenfeld), Reuven ​Rubin, Solomon ​Sanielevici, Eugen ​ Schileru, Lola ​Schmierer Roth, Arthur ​Segal, Sell (Sellmann), Margareta  ​Sterian, Nicolae ​Vermont (N. ​Grünberg), Lascar ​Vorel, Mauriciu ​Wainberg, Lazar ​Zin.

Philosophy and Sociology Jean ​ Aberman, Haim ​ Bejarano, Mendel ​Braunstein Mibashan, I.B. ​Brociner, Mihail Canianu (Moritz Moise ​Cahana), Cilibi  ​Moise (Froim Moise ​ Schwartz), I. ​Cohn, Constantin ​Dobrogeanu Gherea (Solomon ​Katz), Marcu ​ Farchi, M. ​Feldman, Leopold ​Filderman, Beriruş ​Goldenberg, Lucien ​ Goldman, Mişilim ​Grindea, Joseph ​Halevy, I. ​Ipcar, Adolf ​Last, Jacob ​Lewy Moreno, B. ​Lieber Librescu, S. M. ​Littman, W. ​Löwenthal, Leon ​Lupescu (Wolf  ), Eduard ​Lustig, Lazar ​Meyerson, Ilie ​Moscovici, Moise ​Ornstein, Iacob ​Psantir, Lion ​Rabinovici Rodescu, V. ​Rausser, M. ​Rudinescu, S. Schechter, Moritz ​Schwartz, Albert ​Speier, M. ​ Stăureanu, Max ​Vecsler, Ştefan ​ Voicu, Şerban ​Voinea, A. ​Weinberg, Nicu and Paul ​Weisengrün.

Linguistics and Philology Jacques ​Byck, Aurel ​I. ​ Candrea (Marcu ​Heft), Ileana ​Constantinescu, Frida ​Edelstein, I. ​Fischer, Mozes ​Gaster, Yves ​Goldenberg, Alexandru ​ Graur (Aisig ​Brauer), F. ​Hasan, Paula ​Iancovici, E. ​Iarovici, Renée ​ Jerusalmi, Solomon ​Marcus, ​Iulia ​ Marian, G. C. ​Moisil, Toma ​Pavel, Toni ​ Radian, I. ​Rizescu, Lazar ​Şăineanu (Schein), P. ​Schveiger, A. ​Steinberg,

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185

E.  Tauberg, Hariton Haymann ​Tiktin, Lucia and H ​Wald, B. ​Wechsler, S. Weinberg, S. ​Wolf, Tony ​Brill, Constantin ​Gulian Ionescu.

Architecture Ladislau ​Adler, Emanuel ​Arnet, Hermann ​ Clejan, Rudolf ​Fränkel, Dora ​ Gad, Leon ​Garcea, Horia ​Goldstein Maicu, Dorian ​Hardt, Marcel ​Locar, Gustav ​Marcuzon Gusti, Jean ​Monda, Ignace ​Rosenberg Şerban, Lucian Emanuel ​Schwartz, Mauriciu ​ Silianu, Alexandru ​Solomon, Ion ​Spitz Silvan, Ludovic ​Staadecker, Harry Hermann ​Stern, Paul ​Weissman Constantin.

Juridical Sciences Ştefan ​ Antim (A. ​Wechsler), Iacob ​ Bacalu, Marco I. ​Barasch, Mişu Benvenisti, Marcel Breslaşu (Bresliska), Iosif ​Brucăr, Iosef ​Cohen, Lupu ​Dichter, Mayer ​Ebner, Eugen ​Ehrlich, Wilhelm ​Filderman, I. ​Flavius, Nicu ​ Focşeneanu, Moni ​Ghelerter, Mişu ​Graur, I. ​Madger, Jean and Mişu ​Ralea, Samuel ​Rosenthal, Mihail ​Sebastian (Iosef ​Hechter), George ​ Silviu (Silvius Iancu ​Goliger), Carol ​Spiegler Fronda, Benno ​Straucher, Alexandru ​Velescu, Alfons ​Vogel, Aureliu ​Weiss, Aron Zalman ​Galaţi.

Music Leon ​ Algazi (Alphonse Steinhart), Harry ​Brauner, Dumitru ​Bughici, Paula ​Carp, Mauriciu ​Cohen Lânaru, Edmond ​Deda, Wilhelm ​Demian, Max ​Eisikovits, Edgar ​Elian, Ludovik ​Feldman, Aurel ​ Giroveanu, Avram ​ Goldfaden, Stan ​Golestan, Clara ​Haskil, Mişu ​Iancu, Hilda ​Jerea, Leon ​ Klepper, Herman Harry ​Maiorovici, Henri ​Mălineanu (Lazarovici), Alexandru ​ Mandy, Iolanda ​Mărculescu, Alfred ​Mendelsohn, Marcel ​Mihailovici, Eugen ​ Mirea (Maier), Leib ​Nachmann, Iosif ​Paschill, Emil ​Săculeţ, Haim ​ Schwartzmann, Matei ​Socor, Ghizela ​Suliţeanu, Ovidiu ​Varga, Eduard ​ Wachmann.

Sports Jack ​ Berariu, Fredy ​Feraru, Caroline ​Goldstein, Moldovan, Munster, Nicu ​ Naumescu, Pinka, Angelica ​Rozeanu (Adelstein), Schlessinger, Narcis ​

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Schreiber, S. ​Schwartz, Moti Spakov, Alexandru Tyroler, Anna ​Weimberg Verea.

Journalism N. ​ Aurescu (Nathan ​Goldner), A. ​Bergman Munte (Arthur Bergman), Azra ​ Berkovitz, I. ​Berman, Carola ​Blank, Bolocan, B. ​Brănişteanu (Burăh ​Braunstein), Alexandru ​Călin (Avram ​Cohler), Ana ​Canarache (Brauer), O.  Cernea (Osias ​Kindler), A. ​Coler, Diamandescu, F. ​Dima (David ​Fuchs), M.  Economu (Finkelstein), E. ​Ettingher, I. ​Fermo, I. ​Fior, I. B. ​Florian (I. Blumenfeld), L. ​ Florin (Blum), F. ​Brunea Fox ​(Brauer), A. ​Friedman, Emil ​Goldman, Emil, G. and S. ​Grosmann, Otilia ​Grünberg, Alexandru ​ Gruia (Alter Moise sin Ghidale), Alfred and Jean ​Hefter, Albert ​Honigman, Emil D. ​Honigman Fagure, I. ​Hussar, Max ​Kaufman Dan, M. ​Konitz, E. ​Kradt, S. ​Labin, B.  Litorescu, Gherasim ​Luca, Marcu, Marcel ​Marcus, Erwinia ​Marghita (Ostersetzer), C. ​Martin (M. ​Konitz), Maximin ​Millian, J. ​Melle, August ​Moritz, I. ​ Negreanu (Schwartz), Emil (Şmil) and S. ​Pauker, I. ​ Petea (Iosef ​Kliner), Sache ​Petreanu, B. ​Râpeanu (Burăh Rosenberg), Roth, L. ​Rozenfeld, Alexandru ​Rubin, A. P. Samson (Samson Avramovici), A.  Sandu (Avram ​Schuldman), S. ​Sanielevici, M. Schönfeld, Clement ​Scrutator (Kalman ​Blumenfeld), Lascăr ​Sebastian (Leon ​Hechter), Iancu I. ​ Segall, H. ​Soreanu (Haim ​Schor), Stânca, Avram ​Steuerman Rodion, Stromingher, Dolfi ​Trost, Traian ​Vlad (Saniel ​Labin), A. ​Vogel, B. ​Wolf, Moise ​ Zelter Sărăţeanu.

Literature Felix ​Aderca (Froim Zeilic Avram ​Adercu), A. ​Axelrod, Camil ​Baltazar (Leopold ​Goldstein), ​ Maria ​ Banuş, Aurel ​Baranga, Ury ​Benador (Simon ​ Schmidt Grumberg), M. ​Blecher (Marcel ​Max), H. ​Bonciu (Haimovici), Marcu ​Brociner, Ion ​Călugaru (Buium ​Croitoru), Horia ​Carp, Iosif ​Cassian Mătăsaru, Sarina ​Cassvan, Adolf ​Clarnet, Jacques ​Costin, V. ​Crăsescu (S. ​ Basarabeanu), V. ​Cristian, Sergiu ​Dan (I. ​Rosman), A. ​Dominic (A.  Reichman), Emil ​Dorian (Lustig), Dan ​Faur, Leon ​Feraru (Otto ​Enselberg), Benjamin ​Fundoianu (Wechsler), Enric Horia ​Furtună (H. ​Packelman), Giordano (B.  Goldner), Constantin ​Graur (Abrahahm ​Brauer Rosenfeld), Filip ​Horovitz, D. ​Iacobescu (Iacobsohn), Ilie Ighel ​Deleanu (Sofronie Ivanovici), Barbu ​Lăzăreanu (Bubi ​Lazarovici), I. ​Ludo (Isac ​Iacovitz), B.  Marian, Virgiliu ​Moscovici Monda, Barbu ​Nemţeanu (Benjamin ​

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187

Deutsch), Saşa ​Pană (Alexandru ​Binder), Isac ​Peltz, Ion ​Pribeagu (Iţic ​ Palicu), Isaiia ​Răcăciuni (Benjamin ​Nacht), Eugen ​Relgis (Aizic ​Siegler), Alexandru ​Robot (Alter ​Roman), Moise ​Ronetti Roman (Aron ​Blumenfeld Moise), S. ​Samyro (Samy ​Rosenstock Rosenstein), H. ​Sanielevici, Lazar ​ Şaraga, Schoss Roman, Salomon ​Segall, Cella ​Serghi, Alexandru ​Sever, Nicu ​ Steinhardt, Adolf ​Stern (Avner), H. S. ​Streitman, Alexandru ​Toma (Solomon ​ Moscovici), Ion ​Trivale (Iosef ​Netzler), I. ​Vero (Leon Leib ​Wecsler), Ilarie ​ Voronca (Eduard ​Marcus), A. L.  Zissu (Avram Leiba Esra).

Motion Pictures Samson Fainsilber, Marcel ​Luponiu, Jean ​Mihail (Mihailovici), Nizan (Elisabeta Eli ​Şăineanu), Jean ​Yonnel (Schachmann).

Appendix 2

List of Surnames Used by Sephardic Jews in the Kingdom of ​Romania

This list was used as a basis for the analysis of surnames in chapter 9. The great majority of the following Sephardic surnames appear in the research database; some of them (marked with an *) are documented in additional sources. The few Italian or Italian-​sounding surnames are included within the Sephardic category. When the birthplace is not documented, a permanent residence (p.r.) or a wartime place (w.p.) is given. à Cohen* Ablas (p.r. Bucharest) Abramo (w.p. Bucharest) Adania (Bucharest) Adriani (w.p. Bucharest) Italian Sephardic Adut (dist. Covurlui, Ploieşti; w.p. Craiova) Aftalion (w.p. Bucharest) Alagem (p.r. Bucharest) {Aladgen} Aladgen (Ploieşti) see Alagem Albahari (Bucharest) Albala (w.p. Bucharest, Chernovitz) Alberto (Galaţi) Albri*: possibly Sephardi Alcalay (Bucharest, Căuşani in Bessarabia, Ploieşti) Alchek (Bucharest) Aletrino (p.r. Bucharest) Alfandari (Bucharest) Algazi (Bucharest) Alhalel (Bucharest, Turnu Severin) Almalech (Bucharest) Almosnino (Bucharest) Almuly (Bucharest) Altaras (Darabani, Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) {Alteras} 188

Surnames Used by Sephardic Jews

189

Alteras (Darabani; p.r. Bucharest): see Altaras Amadu (Craiova) Amigo (Lipova, Timişoara) Arditti (Calafat) Arie Aruesti (Timişoara) Aşer* Assael (Cluj) Atias (Bacău, Bucharest) Avramatci (w.p. Kishinev) possibly Sephardic Avadic (p.r. dist. Buzău, Constanţa, dist. Prahova, Ploieşti) possibly Sephardic Aziel* Bally (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Brăila, Chernovitz) Barcelos (Soroca) Bassa* Behar (Constanţa, Silistra; p.r. Bucharest) Behmoiras (Silistra) Bejarano (Bucharest) Ben Şuşan* Bensimon (Bucharest) Benaroyo (w.p. Bucharest) {Benaroiu} Benaroiu (w.p. Chernovitz, Constanţa): see Benaroyo Benbasat (Giurgiu) Beniaesh* Benmayor* Benon (no specific place) probably variant of ​Ben Nun Benoni (w.p. Bucharest): see Benon Benrey (Constanţa) Bentora (w.p. Bucharest) Benvenisti (w.p. Bucharest) Beraha* Bitti* Bivas (w.p. Timişoara) Bohor (Chernovitz) Boni (Bacău, Bucharest) Bulat* Buton (w.p. Bucharest, Corabia) Caffe* Calef or Calev (Calafat; p.r. dist. Prahova, Slatina; w.p. Bucharest) Calmi: see Calmy Calmy (Bucharest) {Calmi}

190

Appendix 2

Camhi (Bucharest) Campus (Bucharest) Canetti (Bucharest) Italian Sephardic Cappon (Bucharest, Ploieşti) Carasso (Bucharest, Jassy) Catalan (Turnu Severin) Cauly (Bucharest, Silistra) Cazes* Conforte* Confino (no specific place) Covo* Cret(t)a (p.r. Craiova, Ploieşti; Braşov, dist. Prahova) Crispin (p.r. Ploieşti) Dafiel (Constanţa) De Mayo (Călăraşi) {Demajo, Demajorovic} Demajo (no specific place): see De Mayo Demajorovic (Turnu Severin): see De Mayo Derera (Craiova; w.p. Bucharest, Chernovitz) Dimonte (w.p. Dorohoi) Dingasi (Craiova) Djaen (w.p. Bucharest) {Djain} Djain (p.r. Ploieşti): see Djaen Eliya* Emanuel* Ergas (Bucharest) Eskenazi (Bucharest, Craiova, Galaţi; w.p. Chernovitz) under different spellings: Eskenasy, Eskenasi, Eskenazy, Eschenasy, Eschenazi, Eschenazy Fayon (w.r. Bucharest) Farchi (Bucharest, Ploieşti) Ferera (Râmnicu Vâlcea, p.r. Bucharest) Fermo (Bucharest) Italian Sephardic Finţi (w.p. Călăraşi dist. Ialomiţa) Italian Sephardic Franco (Bucharest) Frangi* Frarisi* Gabai (Ismail, Siret; w.p. Bucharest, Constanţa){Gabay} Gabay (w.p. Constanţa): see Gabai Gaon (Chernovitz; p.r. Noua Suliţa) Gherontes* Grassian (w.p. Bucharest): see Grazian Grassiany (Bucharest): see Grazian Grazian (w.p. Dorohoi) Italian Sephardic {Grassian, Grassiany}

Surnames Used by Sephardic Jews

Gueron (w.p. Bucharest) Habiff (w.p. Chernovitz) Halfon (w.p. Bucharest) Has(s)an (Bucharest) Hayon (Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Heschia: see Heskia Heskia (Bucharest; p.r. Craiova) {Heschia} Hodara or Hudara (Bucharest) Iachia* Iarchi (w.p. Călăraşi dist. Ialomiţa): see Jarchi Jarchi (Călăraşi dist. Ialomiţa; w.p. Turnu Măgurele) {Iarchi} Jerusalmy (Constanţa) Kamhi (Bucharest) Katan (no specific place) Leventi* Lillu (Craiova) Londres (Bucharest) Luzzato (Timişoara) Mantasan* possibly Sephardic Manuah* Marco* Massoff (no specific place) Mat(h)eo (Akerman) Mayo (w.p. Bucharest) Matza (w.p. Bucharest) Mazaltov* Mazliach (w.p. Bucharest) Medina (w.p. Craiova) Mesca* Mercadoff (Vâlcea) Mevorah (Ploieşti) Mitrani (Bucharest, Craiova) Mizrachi (Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) {Misrachid} Misrachid: see Mizrachi Modiano (Rădăuţi) Italian Sephardic Moreno (Alba Iulia, Silistra; w.p. Bucharest) Moscuna (Bucharest) Moya (w.p. Turnu Severin) Naardeea Nachmias (Bucharest) Nasi (no specific place) Navon (Constanţa)

191

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Appendix 2

Negri (Ploieşti) Nissim (Bucharest; w.p. Călăraşi, Constanţa, Covurlui) Ovadia (Bucharest) Panijel (w.p. Dumeşti dist. Vaslui) Papo (Craiova, Turnu Severin) {Pappo} Pappo: see Papo Penchas (Craiova; w.p. Bucharest, dist. Dolj) Perera (Bucharest, Craiova, Râmnicu Vâlcea, Turnu Severin) Pinto (Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Prado (no specific place) Preciado (Bucharest) Presente (w.p. Bucharest) Prizano (Buhuşi) Profe(t)ta (Ploieşti; w.p. Bucharest) Rebiya* possibly Sephardic Romano (w.p. Constanţa) Russo (Calafat; w.p. Bucharest) Sabetai (Bucharest, Craiova): see Sabetay Sabetay (Ploieşti; p.r. Bucharest) {Sabetai, Subatai} Sacerdoti (Kishinev) Italian Sephardic Saddik (Tulcea) Samitca* Samuely ( Jassy; w.p. Rădăuţi) {Samueli} Samueli (w.p. Bucharest): see Samuely Sason ( Jassy; w.p. Constanţa, dist. Vlaşca): see Sasson Sasson (w.p. Bucharest, Constanţa, Giurgiu) {Sason} Segal(l)a (Ploieşti, Piatra Neamţ; w.p. Bucharest) {Sigala, Sigali} Semo* Sigala (Brăila): see Segala Sigali (w.p. Bucharest): see Segala Semaria (p.r. Ploieşti) Semo (Bucharest; w.p. Constanţa, Giurgiu, Ploieşti, Turnu Severin) Simantof (no specific place) Sinigallia (Bucharest) Italian Sephardic Soliman (p.r. Ploieşti; w.p. Bucharest) Subatai (no specific place): see Sabetay Surmany* Uziel* Varsano (Silistra; w.p. Constanţa) Veisy (Constanţa) Ventura: see Bentora

Appendix 3

A Dictionary of ​Jewish Romanian and Romanized Surnames

A number of dictionaries have been published in the last two decades describing Jewish surnames in the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of ​Poland, Galicia, and North Africa as well as German and Sephardic surnames. There are none, however, on Jewish surnames on the territory of ​Romania. The present dictionary is intended to make a contribution, even if only partial, to filling this gap. The territory: the scope of the dictionary will cover those Romanian lands where, for most of the time, the Romanian language was official and Romanian culture was dominant, that is, the historical Romanian Principalities of ​Moldavia and Walachia. In modern terms this means the “Old Kingdom” (Rom. Vechiul Regat) (Moldavia, Walachia, and Dobruja) as well as Bukovina, which was under Habsburg rule from 1775 to 1918, and Bessarabia, which was part of the Russian Empire from 1812 to 1917 (map 1). The time framework: the dictionary will describe surname-​like nicknames and surnames documented for Jews in the territories of the Old Kingdom from the sixteenth century until the end of the Second World War, when a large part of ​ Romanian Jewry was annihilated. The terminus ad quem is 1944, marking the end of the war in Romania. The sources: a broad range of sources have been consulted containing references to Jewish given names and surnames in Romania, including published documents (e.g., Benjamin, Sources and testimonies about the Jews in Romania, vols. 1, 2, 2 part 2, 3, 3 part 2; “SOCEC” Year Book of Greater Romania), monographs and prosopographies of different Jewish communities in Romania, resident lists, newspapers, and so on. Published and unpublished documents were extensively used, with special focus on material related to the Holocaust and WWII period: forced labor, deportation and ghetto/camp lists available in the Yad Vashem Archives, as well as the Pages of ​Testimony Names Memorial Repository in the Hall of ​Names at Yad Vashem. A database including 276,095 name records of ​Romanian Jews living in Greater Romania was established based on the different sources. However, the database contains only 156,401 personal records having reference to a specific place of ​birth, 193

194

Appendix 3

which is the main indicator as to the origin/use of a specific surname. Of these records, 146,263 (93.5%) refer specifically to Jews born in the extended Old Kingdom (i.e., including Bukovina and Bessarabia). The total of 276,095 name records cover about 28,300 distinct surnames, including their phonetic and graphic variants. An analysis of these different surnames shows that most (close to 92%) of these are common or “imported” Jewish surnames of either German or Yiddish origin. Besides these, 2,229 of the surnames in the database (about 7.8% of the total of 28,369), covering 18,719 individual records, are either of ​Romanian origin or Romanized, and these are surnames that constitute the object of the present dictionary. We hope that in the future a more extensive description of all Jewish surnames in the Old Kingdom will be possible. Jewish Romanian surnames can be defined as surnames that are partially or completely identical to native Romanian surnames, either through slight adaptation or, mostly, by simple adoption of a local preexisting surname (see chapter 2, section “Romanian and Romanized Jewish Surnames”). By Romanized surnames we understand non-​Romanian surnames of foreign origin that were adapted, through different sets of procedures (i.e., Romanization), to the Romanian language. It is important to stress the fact that when referring only to the Old Kingdom proper, to the exclusion of ​Bessarabia and Bukovina, the percentage of ​Romanian or Romanized surnames proves to be significantly higher than 7.8%, reaching 13.7%. It is also notable that these Romanian and Romanized surnames have an especially higher frequency in one specific region, according to the following breakdown: Moldavia 70.8%, Walachia 11.2%, Bessarabia 10.4%, Bukovina 5.8%, but this result is to some extent influenced by the sources available. The present dictionary is by no means a full inventory of all Romanian and Romanized surnames used by Jews in the territory of the Old Kingdom of ​Romania; it is only a preliminary attempt at such an endeavor. A more comprehensive description of most of these surnames will be possible if or when the “Census of the inhabitants having Jewish blood” of ​May 1942 and/or perhaps also the questionnaires filled out by Jews for the general census of April 1941, including additions in October 1941, are mapped, scanned, and fully processed and analyzed. The subsequent results will make it possible to illustrate a phenomenon of ​ linguistic and cultural adaptation and integration that was much more rooted and extended than was thought of and acknowledged until now.

Methodological Considerations Most of the surnames in this dictionary originate in the research names database. Surnames marked with an # appear only on the list of ​Jewish intellectuals and artists (appendix 1); those with an ^ appear only on the list of ​Jewish soldiers (see

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195

p. 45), no location mentioned. A large number of these surnames are known in Romania and described in the authoritative onomastic dictionary by academician Iorgu Iordan;1 however, many of them, or variants thereof, are not represented in that dictionary: these must be uncommon and probably specifically related to Jews. They are marked here with an *. Entries in this dictionary are structured as follows, according to the model established by Alexander Beider:2 Surname [Language spelling] (Location) Type: Source Word {Related surnames} Surname: family name described in the entry. In this work, “surname” is used in the sense of a hereditary family name, transmitted from generation to generation. Language spelling, here in Romanian: In the Surname component of all dictionary entries appellations are listed as they are spelled in the documentary sources. The Romanian spelling will render the correct standard spelling in the Romanian language, including diacritics. For the user’s convenience, in some cases the Romanian spelling will appear as a separate entry pointing (–) to the main entry with the original spelling. Location: Where in the extended Old Kingdom the surname occurred. The elements present under Location are generally birthplaces, either villages, towns or cities, or districts (marked dist.) and regions,3 in alphabetical order. Administrative affiliation is given only for places whose names appear in more than one district or region. Locations related to more than ten occurrences of a surname will be given in bold, while those related to more than one hundred occurrences will be also underlined. When the birthplace is not documented, a permanent residence (p.r.) or a wartime place (w.p.) is given. Type: Abbreviation that indicates the basic etymology of the surname. The following codes are used in the dictionary to designate the type of surname. For more details on types of surname see Beider, chap. 2: Artificial surname: derived from zoonyms, phytonyms, food and household utensils, colors, precious materials, coins, greetings, titles, etc. Borrowed surname: borrowed as such from non-​Jews, plausibly as an expression of integration or assimilation Foreign surname: brought to the area covered by this study by migrants from other regions Kohen-​Levitic surname: indicating Kohen or Levite origin 1. Iordan, Dicţionar. It includes also Romanian surnames of Greek, Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Hungarian, and occasionally Jewish origin. 2. Beider, Jewish Surnames Russian Empire. 3.  The administrative regions are Oltenia, Muntenia, and Dobrogea [Dobruja] in the former Principality of ​Walachia and Bucovina [Bukovina], Moldova [Moldavia], and Basarabia [Bessarabia] in the former Principality of ​Moldavia.

196

Appendix 3

Matronymic surname: derived from a female given name Nickname-​based surname: based on personal characteristics, nicknames Occupational surname: based on the name of an occupation or profession Patronymic surname: derived from a male given name Rabbinical surname Secondary surname: formed by addition of endings/suffixes to a primary surname Toponymic surname: derived from a place-​name For a number of surnames, several types are suggested. This implies that the actual type is uncertain, or that a specific surname was derived from two different sources: Source word: Origin(s) of the surname. To preserve consistency, references to Yiddish given names are based on Alexander Beider’s dictionary.4 For many surnames several source words are given, each of which represents a different hypothesis about its origin (etymology). Suffix: In many cases the surname and its source word differ by the presence of a suffix or other additional elements (prefixes, articles) in the surname. In this cases the suffix is listed explicitly in the entry (other elements will be specified). The language of the additional element will be specified only if different from Romanian. Related surnames: Other surnames derived or related to the root surname, if directly or indirectly, are cited in italics in braces in the entries for root names. Most surnames considered to be related consist in general of phonetic variations of the same surnames. There are also surnames with identical semantics and morphology that sound similar but are based on different languages or dialects, or with slightly different morphology (for example different suffixes). All entries include surname and source word, but other elements may be absent. Related surnames that are not root surnames appear in the proper alphabetic sequence as “see” references, which direct the reader to the etymology of the root surname. The following is a sample root entry that includes all possible elements: Ameiroaie [Romanian spelling: Ameiroaiei] ( Jassy, Ţigănaşi) Matronymic: from Talmudic male given name Meir, of  common use among Jews. 4. Beider, Dictionary of Ashkenazic.

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Meiroaia, derived from Meir, means Meir’s wife/daughter {Amoraii}. A typical “see” reference would therefore be: Amoraii ( Jassy, Ţigănaşi) Matronymic: see Ameiroaie.

Dictionary Entries a Iţicesei* (Frumuşica) Matronymic: from male given name Iţic, Yiddish Itsik, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Iţiceasa, derived from Iţic, means Iţic’s wife/daughter {Aiţicesei, Iţicesei}. a lui Măli* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from female given name Măli or Mali, from Yiddish Malke, derived from postbiblical Malka and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . a Rifcăi* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from female given name Rifca, from Yiddish Rifke, derived from biblical Rebecca and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . a Văduvului^ Patronymic: from n. văduv [Rom.] widower . Abase* [Romanian spelling: Abasei] (dist. Baia) Matronymic: from female given name Basea or Basye, from Yiddish Basheve, derived from biblical Batsheva and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Abranţei*: see Branţei. Acar (Ploieşti; w.p. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. acar [Rom.] switchman (railway). Achirei (Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Chira, used by Romanian Christians {Achiri; also Chire}; Borrowed surname: from surname Achirei, used by Romanian Christians. Achiri (Dorohoi) Matronymic: see Achirei. Achiţe [Romanian spelling: Achiţei] (Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Chiţa, hypocoristic form (cf. Voichiţa) used by Romanian Christians ; Borrowed surname: from surname Achiţei, used by Romanian Christians. Aciornei*: see Ciornei. Aclipei* (Bârlad, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Săveni) Matronymic: from surname or nickname Clipa, used by Romanian Christians {Aklipi}. Adăscăliţei: see Dăscăliţei. Adeculesi* (Herţa) Matronymic: see Aduculesi.

198

Appendix 3

Aduculesi* [Romanian spelling: Aduculesei] (Herţa, Ibăneşti dist. Dorohoi) Matronymic: from male given name Ducu, hypocoristic form (cf. Răducu) used by Romanian Christians. Duculeasa, derived from Ducu, means Ducu’s wife/daughter {Adeculesi}. Aesterei* (no specific place) Matronymic: from female given name Ester, biblical name used by both Christians and Jews . Afrime* (Burdujeni, Darabani) Matronymic: see Afrimei. Afrimei* (w.p. Jassy) Matronymic: from female given name Frima, Yiddish Frime, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Afrime, Afrimi, Frime}. Afrimi* (Burdujeni) Matronymic: see Afrimei. Aghinei (Darabani, Jassy) Matronymic: from female given name Ghina, probably hypocoristic form of ​Reg(h)ina used by both Christians and Jews . Agoldoaiei* (w.p. Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Golda, Yiddish Golde, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Goldoaia, derived from Golda, has an augmentative meaning . Aiţicesei* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: see A Iţicesei. Aklipi* (Dorohoi, Edineţi, Herţa) Matronymic: see Aclipei. Alămaru (Bacău, Bessarabia, Botoşani, Bucharest, Focşani, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ, Vaslui; w.p. Chernovitz, Roman) Occupational surname: from n. alămar [Rom.] tinsmith, brass maker {Alămariu} . Alămariu (Dorohoi, Moldavia) Occupational surname: see Alămaru. Albeanu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Albeni dist. Bacău (Moldavia) and dist. Gorj (Oltenia); Artificial surname: from adj. alb [Rom.] white . Alberescu* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: probably from male given name Albert . Albescu (p.r. Bucharest paired with Waisz) Artificial surname: from adj. alb [Rom.] white ; Toponymic: from the villages of Albeşti dist. Botoşani, dist. Jassy and dist. Vaslui (Moldavia); Borrowed surname: from surname Albescu, used by Romanian Christians. Albu (Bacău, Craiova, Galaţi paired with Weisman) Artificial surname: from adj. alb [Rom.] white ; Secondary surname: calque translation of German Primary surname Weiss; Borrowed surname: from surname Albu, used by Romanian Christians. Albulescu (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from adj. alb [Rom.] white ; Toponymic: from the village of Albuleşti dist. Mehedinţi (Oltenia); Borrowed surname: from surname Albulescu, used by Romanian Christians. Aldeanu (no specific place) Toponymic: from the villages of Aldeni dist. Buzău (Muntenia) or Aldea dist. Odorhei (Transylvania).

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Aleiba* (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Leiba, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Almăşanu (Galaţi, Ploieşti; w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Toponymic: from the village of Almaş dist. Piatra Neamţ (Moldavia) . Alterescu (Bârlad, Botoşani, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Herţa, Jassy, Ploieşti, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Târgu Neamţ, Vaslui; w.p. Bacău, dist. Făgăraş) Patronymic: from Yiddish male given name Alter, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Alviţaru* (Huşi; w.p. Băneasa) Occupational surname: from n. alviţar [Rom.] nougat maker or seller . Amalcei (Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Malca, variant of postbiblical Malka of common use among Jews {Amalcii}. Marked as Jewish surname in Iordan. Amalcii* (Dorohoi) Matronymic: see Amalcei. Amănăloaiei (Codăeşti) Matronymic: from male given name Manole, used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania due to similarity to Manuel or Manul, derived from biblical Emanuel. Mănăloaia, derived from Manole, means Manole’s wife/daughter . Ameiroaie [Romanian spelling: Ameiroaiei] ( Jassy, Ţigănaşi) Matronymic: from Talmudic male given name Meir, of common use among Jews. Meiroaia, derived from Meir, means Meir’s wife/daughter {Amoraii}. Marked as Jewish surname in Iordan. Americanu* (w.p. Jassy) Nickname-​based: from n. american [Rom.] American . Amindelei*: see Mindelei. Amişeloaie* [Romanian spelling: Amişeloaiei] (Brăila, Piatra Neamţ, Săveni) Matronymic: from male given name Mişel or Mishl, probably from Yiddish Moyshe, derived from biblical Moses and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Mişeloaia, derived from Mişel, means Mişel’s wife/daughter . Amoaşa (Herţa) Nickname-​based: see Amoaşei. Amoaşei (Darabani, Dorohoi, Herţa) Nickname-​based: from n. moaşă [Rom.] midwife {Amoşe, Amoaşa}. Amoraii* ( Jassy, Ţigănaşi) Matronymic: see Ameiroaie. Amoşe (Dorohoi, Herţa, Hotin) Nickname-​based: see Amoaşei. Ananiescu (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Anania, used by Romanian Christians; could also be a substitute for biblical Chanania, rarely used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Anciu ( Jassy; w.p. Brăila) Borrowed surname: from surname Anciu, used by Romanian Christians.

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Appendix 3

Andronache (p.r. Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: from surname Andronache, used by Romanian Christians. Androniu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Androne, used by Romanian Christians . Antonescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Anton, used by Romanian Christians, and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Antonescu, used by Romanian Christians. Aperlei* (Botoşani, Herţa) Matronymic: from female given name Perla, Yiddish Perl(e), used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Aperli}. Aperli* (Herţa) Matronymic: see Aperlei. Apifamei*: see Pifamei. Apinei*: see Pinei. Arabagiu (Burdujeni, Darabani, Dorohoi, Săveni) Occupational surname: see Harabagiu. Arabin* (w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: see Arabinului. Arabinului* (w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from n. rabin [Rom.] rabbi {Arabin, Rabinului}. Araţei* (Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Raţa, Yiddish Raytse, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe; Nickname-​based: from n. raţă [Rom.] duck {Raţei}. Arestianu (w.p. dist. Baia) Toponymic: see Areşteanu. Areşteanu (w.p. Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of Areşteuca dist. Hotin (Bessarabia) {Arestianu}. Argentaru (Hârlău, Jassy; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Argintaru. Argentoianu (Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the village of Argetoeni dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia) . Argintar (Cahul, Chernovitz, Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: see Argintaru. Argintaru (Adjud, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Jassy, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Cahul) Occupational surname: from n. argintar [Rom.] silversmith {Argentaru, Argintar}. Argintescu# Artificial surname: from n. argint [Rom.] silver . Arhire (p.r. Jassy) Borrowed surname: from surname Arhire or Arghire, used by Romanian Christians; Toponymic: from the village of Arghira dist. Baia (Moldavia). Arifcăi*: see a Rifcăi. Armașu (Soroca) Occupational surname: from n. armaș [Rom. arch.] warden, police chief .

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Aroneanu (Bacău, Mărgineni in Moldavia, Răducăneni in Moldavia) Toponymic: from the village of Aroneanu dist. Jassy (Moldavia). Aronescu (Brăila, Bucharest, Podu Iloaei, Vatra Dornei) Patronymic: from biblical male given name Aron, used by both Christians and Jews . Aronesei (Frumuşica dist. Botoşani, Jassy) Matronymic: from biblical male given name Aron, used by both Christians and Jews. Aroneasa, derived from Aron, means Aron’s wife/daughter {Aronisei}. Aronisei (Frumuşica dist. Botoşani) Matronymic: see Aronesei. Aroşoaiei*: see Roşoaie. Aruhlei*: see Ruhlei. Asacagiţei*: see Sacagiţei. Asurei* (Botoşani; w.p. Roman) Matronymic: from female given name Sura, from Yiddish Sore, derived from biblical Sara and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Asuri, Surei}. Asuri* (no specific place) Matronymic: see Asurei. Ataubei*: see Taubei. Aţiprei* (Botoşani, w.p. Jassy) Matronymic: from female given name Ţipra, Yiddish Tsipoyre, derived from biblical Zipporah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Aurel (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Kishinev) Patronymic: from male given name Aurel, used by Romanian Christians, documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Aurescu (no specific place, paired with Goldner) Artificial surname: from n. aur [Rom.] gold . Avădanei* (Bucharest, Jassy, Ploieşti, Podul Iloaei) Matronymic: from n. vădană [Rom.] widow {Avădani, Avădanii}. Avădani* (Dorohoi, Herţa, Galaţi, Săveni) Nickname-​based: see Avădanei. Avădanii* (w.p. Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: see Avădanei. Avram (Bacău, Bârlad, Bivolari, Bodeşti Precista dist. Neamţ, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Burdujeni, Caracal, Căiuţi dist. Bacău, Chernovitz, Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Craiova, Davideni, Domneşti, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Focşani, Galaţi, Gâşteşti dist. Baia, Ghidigeni, Giurgiu, Havârna dist. Dorohoi, Herţa, Jassy, Mănzaţi dist. Tutova, Moineşti, Negreşti dist. Vaslui, Odobeşti, Panciu, Piatra Neamţ, Piteşti, Ploieşti, Podu Iloaei, Podu Turcului, Probota dist. Baia, Pueşti dist. Tutova, Roman, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Talpa dist. Neamţ, Târgovişte, Târgu Neamţ, Tulcea, Turnu Severin, Vaslui, Vatra Dornei, Zvorâştea dist. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Avram, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from biblical Avraam through double vowel reduction, and Jews, derived from Yiddish Avrom, from biblical

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Abraham [Heb. Avraham], and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Avramescu (Bucharest, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Roman) Patronymic: from male given name Avram, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from biblical Avraam through double vowel reduction, and Jews, derived from Yiddish Avrom, from biblical Abraham [Heb. Avraham], and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Avramul* (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Avram, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from biblical Avraam through double vowel reduction, and Jews, derived from Yiddish Avrom, from biblical Abraham [Heb. Avraham], and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Bacal (Arbore dist. Suceava, Botoşani, Briceni, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Făleşti, Hârlău, Hotin, Lipcani, Noua Suliţa; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Bacalu. Bacalu (Adaşeni dist. Dorohoi, Botoşani, Broşteni dist. Roman, Bucharest, Bucecea, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Edineţi, Focşani, Hotin, Jassy, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi dist. Dorohoi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti; w.p. dist. Baia, Bucium, Fălticeni, Tighina, Timişoara, dist. Tutova) Occupational surname: from n. bacal [Rom. arch.] grocer {Bacalul, Bacal}. Bacalul (w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: see Bacalu. Baciu (Craiova) Occupational surname: from n. baci [Rom.] head shepherd . Badea^ Borrowed surname: from surname Badea, used by Romanian Christians. Bădean (Rădăuţi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bădeni dist. Buzău (Muntenia) and dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . Băetu (Botoşani, Târgu Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: see Băietu. Băietu (Bucharest, Botoşani, Chernovitz, Târgu Neamţ) Nickname-​based: from n. băiet [Rom.] boy {Băetu, Bojet}. Bălăceanu (Lespezi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bălăceana dist. Suceava (Bukovina) or Bălăceanu dist. Râmnicu Sărat (Muntenia) . Bălan (Bacău, Bălţi, Botoşani, Brăila, Bukovina, Bucharest, Câmpulung, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Drăgăneşti dist. Bălţi, Drăgăşani, Fălticeni, Herţa, Jassy, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Ştefăneşti, Vadu Raşcu; w.p. dist. Baia, Hârlău) Nickname-​based: see Bălanu; Occupational surname: see Bălanu. Bălanu* (Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from n. and adj. bălan [Rom.] person having fair hair and skin, blond; Occupational surname: from balan [Heb.] bath attendant ; Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bălanu dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) and Neamţ (Moldavia) {Bălan}.

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Bănăţeanu (w.p. Suceava) Toponymic: from the Banat region . Banea (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Banea, used by Romanian Christians. Banu# Occupational surname: from n. ban [Rom.] arch. dignitary rank ; Artificial surname: from n. ban [Rom.] coin, cent, money . Baraboi^ Artificial surname: from n. baraboi [Rom.], type of turnip; Borrowed surname: from surname Baraboi, used by Romanian Christians. Baranceanu* (Darabani, Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Baronceanu. Barbă (Călăraşi dist. Lăpuşna, Kishinev) Nickname-​based: from n. barbă [Rom.] beard. Barbălat (Darabani, Făleşti dist. Bălţi, Kishinev, Reni, Rezina dist. Bălţi; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Roman) Nickname-​based: see Barbălată. Barbălată (Baimaclia, Bucharest, Galaţi, Hârlău, Rădăuţi, Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani, Kishinev) Nickname-​based: from n. barbă [Rom.] beard and adj. lată [Rom.] wide {Barbălat}. Barbăneagră (dist. Baia, Lespezi dist. Baia) Nickname-​based: from n. barbă [Rom.] beard and adj. neagră [Rom.] black. Barbaroş*: see Barbarosch. Barbarosch* [Romanian spelling: Barbaroş] (Bender, Bessarabia, Kishinev, Teleneşti dist. Orhei) Nickname-​based: from n. barbă [Rom.] beard and adj. roş [Rom.] red. Bărbieru (Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Jassy, Mitoc Moldavia, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi dist. Dorohoi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca; w.p. Bălţi) Occupational surname: from n. bărbier [Rom.] barber . Bărboi (w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from n. bărboi [Rom.] long, great beard. Bărbos (p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from adj. and n. bărbos [Rom.] bearded, person wearing a beard. Barbu (w.p. Bucharest, Hotin) Patronymic: from male given name Barbu, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the nineteenth century {Barbul}. Barbul (Rezina in Bessarabia) Patronymic: : see Barbu. Barcaru (w.p. Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. barcar [Rom.] seeker of wild beehives; or kind of shepherd . Barişnicu* (Dorohoi) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Barişnic, derived from Baryshnik, originated in the Russian Empire . Bârlădeanu (Tecuci; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the town of ​Bârlad (Moldavia) . Bârnoveanu* (no specific place) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bârnova dist. Hotin and dist. Soroca (Bessarabia), dist. Jassy and dist. Putna (Moldavia) .

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Baronceanu (Bacău, Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani) Toponymic: from the village of ​ Baroncea dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) {Baranceanu}. Barteriu* (w.p. Chernovitz) uncertain etymon . Basarabeanu# Toponymic: from the Basarabia region or the villages of ​Basarabi dist. Baia (Moldavia) and dist. Dolj (Oltenia) . Basiliu (p.r. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Basil, used by Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Batinescu* (Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the village of ​Bătineşti dist. Putna (Moldavia) . Behnăreanu* (Bucharest) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Behner, of foreign origin . Surnames such as Bahnaru, Bahneanu were documented in Romania. Bejnaru (no specific place) Nickname-​based: from n. băjenar [Rom.] wanderer, refugee . Beligrădeanu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the town of ​Beligrad, archaic form of either Belgrade in Serbia or Belgorod in Bessarabia . Beloianu* (no specific place) Borrowed surname: from surname Beloianu used by Romanian Christians. Bencea (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Bencea, used by Romanian Christians. Berariu (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Beraru. Beraru (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Iţcani, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Piatra Neamţ, Podu Iloaei; w.p. Bacău, Botoşani, Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. berar [Rom.] beer brewer {Berariu}. Berbanescu* (no specific place) Artificial surname: from n. berban [Rom.] type of fish . Bercu (Bacău, Băceşti dist. Roman, Bârlad, Botoşani, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Cârligi dist. Roman, Chernovitz, dist. Covurlui, Craiova, Dorohoi, Fălciu, Fălticeni, Floreşti dist. Tecuci, Frumuşica, Hârlău, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, Mihăileni, Moineşti, dist. Neamţ, Nicoreşti dist. Covurlui, Panciu, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Podu Iloaei, Podu Turcului, Rădăuţi, Roman, Săveni, Suhărău dist. Dorohoi, Suliţa, Ştefăneşti, Târgu Neamţ, Turnu Severin; p.r. Galaţi; w.p. dist. Baia, Brăila, Constanţa, Sadagura) Patronymic: from male given name Berk derived from Yiddish Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Marked as Jewish surname in Iordan. Bereanu (Ploieşti; w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: probably from Yiddish male given name Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe or from Berea, male given used by Romanian Christians .

Dictionary of Surnames

205

Berescu (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from Yiddish male given name Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe; Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bereşti dist. Dorohoi, dist. Jassy and dist. Putna (Moldavia), dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) . Bereşteanu (Brăila, Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bereşti dist. Dorohoi, dist. Jassy and dist. Putna (Moldavia), dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) . Berlescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from Yiddish male given name Berl derived from Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe; Toponymic: from the villages of ​Berleşti dist. Brăila (Muntenia) and dist. Gorj (Oltenia) . Bernescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given names Bern(ard) or Bern(at) used by both Christians and Jews ; Borrowed surname: from surname Bernea, used by Romanian Christians. Biliban* (Rădăuţi Prut; p.r. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: see Bilibou. Bilibau* (Darabani, Rădăuţi Prut; p.r. Botoşani, Dorohoi, w.p. Tighina) Nickname-​based: see Bilibou. Biliboc* (no specific place) Nickname-​based: see Bilibou. Bilibou* (Darabani, Rădăuţi Prut; p.r. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: from belibou or bilibou [Rom.] to skin a bull {Bilibau, Biliban, Biliboc}. Birjar (Săveni) Occupational surname: see Birjaru. Birjariu (w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Birjaru. Birjaru (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Herţa, Paşcani, Săveni; w.p. Botoşani, Chernovitz, dist. Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. birjar [Rom.] coach driver {Birjar, Birjariu}. Bizineanu* (Chernovitz, Jassy) uncertain etymon . Perhaps from the same toponym as Buzneanu. There is a surname Bizideanu documented in Romania. Blănar* (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Blănaru. Blănariu* (Botoşani, Jassy) Occupational surname: see Blănaru. Blănaru* (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Herţa, Mihăileni, Odobeşti; w.p. Kishinev, Botoşani, Fălticeni) Occupational surname: from n. blănar [Rom.] furrier {Blănar, Blănariu}. Bobulescu (Bacău, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani) Toponymic: from the village of ​Bobuleşti dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) . Bobuşanu* (Pungeşti dist. Vaslui; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Boboşi dist. Tecuci (Moldavia) . Bocancea (w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of Bocancea-​Schit dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia); Borrowed surname: from surname Bocancea, used by Romanian Christians.

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Appendix 3

Bococeanu* (w.p. Chernovitz) uncertain etymon . Most likely a distorted form of ​Bocanceanu (see Bocancea). Bodnaru (Herţa, Suliţa) Occupational surname: see Butnaru. Bodoagă (Botoşani, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Galaţi) Borrowed surname: from surname Bodoagă, used by Romanian Christians. Boiangiu (Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Chernovitz, Cireş, Dorohoi, Frumuşica, Ghidigeni, Haruşeşti dist. Tecuci, Herţa, Jassy, Leova, Moineşti, Paşcani, Ploieşti, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi dist. Dorohoi, Săveni, Suliţa; w.p. Kishinev, Ştefăneşti) Occupational surname: from n. boiangiu [Rom.] dyer . Bojet (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: see Băietu. Bolbocean (Bălţi) Toponymic: see Bolboceanu. Bolboceanu (Bălţi, Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bolbocii Noi or Bolbocii Vechi dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) {Bolbocean}. Boldescu (Târgu Frumos) Toponymic: from the village of ​Boldeşti; Borrowed surname: from surname Boldea, used by Romanian Christians . Boldur (Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Borrowed surname: from rare surname Boldur, used by Romanian Christians. Bolocan (Hârlău) Borrowed surname: from surname Bolocan, used by Romanian Christians. Borangiu (Bucecea) Occupational surname: from n. borangic or burangic [Rom.] silk thread or silk fabric {Burangiu}. Borcea (Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: from surname Borcea, used by Romanian Christians. Borociu* ( Jassy; w.p. Bender) uncertain etymon . Bosianu* (w.p. Balta) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bosia dist. Dorohoi, dist. Jassy and dist. Tecuci (Moldavia) . Bostan (w.p. Fălticeni) Artificial surname: from n. bostan [Rom.] pumpkin. Boşerniceanu* (w.p. Balta, Odessa) Toponymic: from the village of ​Boşerniţa dist. Orhei (Bessarabia) . Botez (Ploieşti; w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from n. botez [Rom.] baptism, conversion. Botezat (w.p. Suceava) Nickname-​based: see Botezatu. Botezatu (w.p. Storojineţ) Nickname-​based: from adj. botezat [Rom.] baptized, converted {Botezat}. Botoşăneanu (Dolheşti, Jassy, Săveni; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the town of ​Botoşani (Moldavia) . Bozianu (Bozieni Balş; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Roman) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bozieni dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) and dist. Roman (Moldavia), or Bozieni Balş dist. Roman (Moldavia) .

Dictionary of Surnames

207

Brad (Darabani, Dorohoi, Jassy; p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. brad [Rom.] fir tree; Foreign surname: Brad. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Brăileanu (Adjud) Toponymic: from the town of ​Brăila in Muntenia . Brănişteanu ( Jassy, Ploiesti, Roman; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Tecuci) Toponymic: from the village of ​Brănişteni dist. Roman (Moldavia) or Braniştea in Moldavia and Bessarabia . Branţei* [Romanian spelling: Abranţei] (Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Matronymic: from female given name Branţa, derived from Yiddish Brayne and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Braşoveanu (Botoşani) Toponymic: from the town of ​Braşov in Transylvania . Brăteanu (w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of ​Brăteni dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Brȃnză (w.p. Orhei) Artificial surname: from n. brȃnză [Rom.] cheese. Brȃnzaru (Rădăuţi dist. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. brȃnzar [Rom.] cheesemaker or seller . Breazu (p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from adj. breaz [Rom.] marked with a white spot; well known; smart . Breseanu [Romanian spelling: Brezeanu] (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Breaza dist. Prahova (Muntenia) . Breslaşu# (paired with Bresliska) Occupational surname: from n. breslaş [Rom.] guild member; artisan . Brezeanu: see Breseanu. Broscăuceanu (w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Broscăuţi dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) and dist. Storojineţ (Bukovina) . Brutaru (w.p. Botoşani, Teiş) Occupational surname: from n. brutar [Rom.] baker . Bucă (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: from n. bucă [Rom.] buttock; arch. cheek; Borrowed surname: from surname Bucă, used by Romanian Christians. Bucsescu* (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bucşa dist. Ialomiţa (Muntenia) and dist. Tecuci (Moldavia) . Bucur (w.p. Constanţa) Borrowed surname: from surname Bucur, used by Romanian Christians. Bucureştean (Hotin, Noua Suliţa) Toponymic: see Bucureşteanu. Bucureşteanu (Herţa) Toponymic: from the city of ​Bucharest, capital of ​ Romania {Bucureştean} . Budeanu (Lespezi; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Budeni dist. Baia (Moldavia) . Budnariu (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Butnaru.

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Appendix 3

Budnaru (Botoşani, Bukovina, Burdujeni, Darabani, Dorohoi, Herţa, Jassy, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Săveni; w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: see Butnaru. Bughici ( Jassy, p.r. Akerman) Borrowed surname: from surname Bughici, documented in Romania. Buium (Bârlad, Botoşani, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Constanţa, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Galaţi, Hăneşti dist. Dorohoi, Jassy, Letea Veche dist. Bacău, Mihăileni, Negreşti dist. Vaslui, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, dist. Prahova, Roman, Siliştea dist. Baia, Suceava, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Târgu Neamţ, Vaslui; w.p. Bacău, dist. Baia, Râmnicu Sărat, Tecuci) Patronymic: from Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Buium, locally derived from Yiddish Benyomen, biblical Benjamin, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Marked as Jewish surname in Iordan. Buiumovici* (Botoşani, Brăeşti dist. Dorohoi, Bucecea dist. Botoşani, Săveni; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bodeşti dist. Neamţ) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Buium, locally derived from Yiddish Benyomen, biblical Benjamin, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Buiumsohn* (Fălticeni) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Buium, locally derived from Yiddish Benyomen, biblical Benjamin, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Bujor (Costeşti dist. Lăpuşna, Cubani dist. Bălţi, Găureni dist. Lăpuşna, Răşcani dist. Bălţi, Văratic dist. Lăpuşna) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bujor dist. Covurlui (Moldavia) and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia); Borrowed surname: from surname Bujor, used by Romanian Christians. Bujoreanu (Câmpina; w.p. Kishinev) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Bujor dist. Covurlui (Moldavia) and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia); Secondary surname: from Primary surname Bujor, used by Romanian Christians ; Borrowed surname: from surname Bujoreanu, used by Romanian Christians. Bulgaru (Botoşani, Bucharest, Dorohoi; w.p. Jassy) Nickname-​based: from n. bulgar [Rom.] Bulgarian . Bunea (Chernovitz) Matronymic: from female given name Buna, Yiddish Bune, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Bunea, used by Romanian Christians. Burcă^ Artificial surname: from n. burcă [Rom.] heavy wool or fur coat. Burdujeanu* (Codăeşti; w.p. Bucharest, Roman) Toponymic: from the village of ​Burdujeni dist. Suceava (Bukovina) . Burangiu Occupational surname: see Borangiu. Buricovici* (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Burikhovitz, probably by association with n. buric [Rom.] navel.

Dictionary of Surnames

209

Burileanu ( Jassy) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Burila Mare and Burila Mică dist. Mehedinţi (Oltenia) . Burlacu (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: from n. burlac [Rom.] single, unmarried . Buruiană (no specific place, paired with Buricovici) Artificial surname: from n. buruiană [Rom.] weed. Butnariu (Dorohoi, Știubieni dist. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Butnaru. Butnaru (Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Darabani, Dorohoi, Hârlău, Huşi, Jassy, Lucăceşti dist. Bacău, Piatra Neamţ, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Săveni, Suliţa; w.p. Bacău, dist. Baia, Chernovitz, Constanţa, dist. Fălciu) Occupational surname: from n. butnar [Rom.] barrel maker, cooper {Bodnaru, Budnariu, Budnaru, Butnariu}. Butucel* (w.p. Kishinev) Artificial surname: from n. butuc [Rom.] stump, log ; There is a surname Butucelea used by Romanian Christians. Buzatu (Ciorăşti, Fălticeni) Nickname-​based: from adj. buzat [Rom.] thick lipped . Buzilă (w.p. Răuţel dist. Bălţi) Nickname-​based: from n. buzilă [Rom.] thick lipped {Buzile}. Buzile (Soroca) Nickname-​based: see Buzilă. Buznean* (Chernovitz) Toponymic: see Buzneanu. Buzneanu* (w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of ​Buznea dist. Jassy (Moldavia) {Buznean}. See also Bizineanu. Caciabulea*: see Kaciabulea. Cacibulea* (p.r. Bucharest): see Kaciabulea. Căciularu (Buhuşi, Dorohoi, Moineşti, Panciu, Piatra Neamţ, Plopana dist. Tutova; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bacău, Bodeşti dist. Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. căciular [Rom.] fur cap maker . Căinareanu* (w.p. Kishinev) Toponymic: from the village of Căinari dist. Tighina (Bessarabia) . Caingiu* (Tămăşeni dist. Roman) Occupational surname: from n. caingiu [Rom.] tobacconist. Calancea (Kishinev) Borrowed surname: from surname Calancea, used by Romanian Christians, derived from n. calangiu [Rom.] tinsmith. The loan may be occupation motivated. Călărașu (Suliţa dist. Botoşani, w.p. Botoşani, Fălticeni) Occupational surname: from n. călăraş [Rom.] cavalry soldier . Calcuţa*: see Kalkutza. Căldăraru (Bacău, Bârlad, Botoşani, Buhuşi, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Herţa, Paşcani, Târgu Frumos, Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational

210

Appendix 3

surname: from n. căldărar [Rom.] bucket or cauldron maker {Kolderar}. Căleţeanu^ Toponymic: uncertain etymon ; possible distortion: see Gălăţeanu. Călin (w.p. Bucharest, paired with Cohn and Cohler) Borrowed surname: from surname Călin, used by Romanian Christians. Caliu* (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Caliu, used by Romanian Christians. Călugăr (Dorohoi, Herţa) Occupational surname: see Călugăru. Călugăru (Dorohoi, Herţa; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. călugăr [Rom.] monk {Călugăr}. Câmpeanu (Bârlad; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of Câmpeni dist. Bacău (Moldavia) ; Borrowed surname: from surname Câmpeanu, used by Romanian Christians, perhaps as a calque translation for Feldman. Câmpina#* Toponymic: from the town of Câmpina (Muntenia). Cană (Bucharest, Drăguşeni dist. Covurlui paired with Kahane; w.p. Jassy) Artificial surname: from n. cană [Rom.] cup, mug, probably by association with surname Kahan or Kahane. Canarache# Borrowed surname: from surname Canarache, used by Romanian Christians. Candrea (no specific place) Borrowed surname: from surname Candrea or Cândrea, used by Romanian Christians. Canianu# (paired with Cahana) Secondary surname: probably from Primary Ca(ha)n ; Borrowed surname: from surname Canianu, documented in Romania. Cȃntar (Mălini dist. Baia; w.p. Bucharest) Artificial surname : from n. cȃntar [Rom.] weighing scale {Kantar}. Cantargi (w.p. Hotin) Occupational surname: see Kantargiu. Cantargiu: see Kantargiu. Cantemir (p.r. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of Cantemir dist. Cetatea Albă and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia); Borrowed surname: from surname Cantemir, used by Romanian Christians. Cărăuş: see Karaush. Cărbunaru (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Herţa) Occupational surname: from n. cărbunar [Rom.] charcoal burner . Cărbuneanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Cărbuna dist. Tighina (Bessarabia) . Cârciumaru (Huşi) Occupational surname: from n. cârciumar [Rom.] tavern keeper {Corcimar, Corcimari}. See also Crâşmaru. Cȃrlig: see Karlig.

Dictionary of Surnames

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Cârligeanu (Bucharest, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of Cârligele dist. Râmnicu Sărat (Muntenia) . Cârnu^ Nickname-​based: from n. cârn [Rom.] snub nosed. Cȃrpaciu (Herţa; w.p. Sadagura) Occupational surname: from n. cȃrpaci [Rom.] old clothes mender . Carpen: see Karpen. Cărucer (Bivolari, Herţa) Occupational surname: see Căruceru. Căruceriu (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Căruceru. Căruceru (Botoşani, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Herţa, Hotin, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. cărucer [Rom.] wagoner {Căruceriu, Cărucer, Cărucieru}. Cărucieru (Bucharest, Darabani, Ghidigeni, Herţa, Sinăuţi dist. Rădăuţi) Occupational surname: see Căruceru. Casap (Bucecea, Hotin, Noua Suliţa) Occupational surname: see Casapu. Casapu (Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, dist. Fălciu, Fălticeni, Herţa, Lespezi dist. Baia, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, dist. Putna, Săveni; p.r. Rădăuţi; w.p. dist. Baia, Kishinev, Roman, Tȃrgu Jiu) Occupational surname: from n. casap [Rom.] butcher {Casap, Caţap, Caţapu, Kasap}. Casier* (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. casier [Rom.] cashier; Foreign surname: Kasjer. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Caţap* (w.p. Răuţel dist. Bălţi) Occupational surname: see Casapu. Caţapu* (Suceava; p.r. Botoşani, Bucharest, Darabani; w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: see Casapu. Catargi (Hotin; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Cantargiu. Căţulescu* (p.r. Bucharest) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Katz spelled Caţ . Catzap* (Bălţi, Bucharest, Kishinev, Făleşti, Hotin, Isacova dist. Orhei, Leova, Orhei) Occupational surname: see Casapu. Cauciuc (Bucharest, Jassy) Artificial surname: from n. cauciuc [Rom.] rubber {Kautshuk}. Cazacu (Galaţi, Herţa, Mihăileni; w.p. Dorohoi ) Nickname-​based: from n. cazac [Rom.] Cossack . Ceasornicaru (w.p. Bacău) Occupational surname: from n. ceasornicar [Rom.] watchmaker . Ceasu* (Chernovitz, Jassy) Artificial surname: from n. ceas [Rom.] watch . It could also be a deformation of Ceauşu. Ceauş (Bacău, Herţa) Occupational surname: see Ceauşu. Ceauşu (Bacău, dist. Bălţi, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Hârlău, Herţa, Jassy, Lespezi, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist.

212

Appendix 3

Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Văculeşti dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani, dist. Fălciu, Roman) Occupational surname: from n. ceauş [Rom.] usher, courier; synagogue sexton {Ciauşu, Ceauş}. Ceprigaru* (Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. ceprigar, equivalent to ceaprazar [Rom.] passementier . Cerbeanu (Adjud, Bucharest, Dorohoi; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of Cerbu dist. Botoşani (Moldavia); Patronymic: from Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Cerb, calque translation of ​Yiddish Hirsh, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania; Toponymic: from the villages of Cerbu dist. Argeş (Muntenia) and dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Cerbu (Bacău; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia, Fălticeni) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Cerb, local calque translation of ​Yiddish Hirsh, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Cernăuţeanu (Botoşani, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Târgovişte; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the city of Chernovitz, capital of ​Bukovina region . Cernea (Bârlad; p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from female given name Cerna, Yiddish Tsherne, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern. Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Cernea, used by Romanian Christians. Cervanteanu* (no specific place) uncertain etymon . Chelaru: see Chielaru. Chetraru (Darabani, Dorohoi, Jassy, Ploieşti; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Găeşti, Răuţel dist. Bălţi, Soroca) Occupational surname: from n. chetrar, variant of pietrar [Rom.] stonecutter . Chielaru^ [Romanian spelling Chelaru] Occupational surname: from n. chelar [Rom.] steward, administrator . Chilipir* (Brăila) Nickname-​based: from n. chilipir [Rom.] a bargain. Chira (Bucharest, Piatra Neamţ) Matronymic: from female given name Chira, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Chira, used by Romanian Christians. Chire [Romanian spelling: (a) Chirei] (Bălţi, Dorohoi, Kishinev, Rădoaia dist. Bălţi, Secureni, Teleneşti dist. Orhei) Matronymic: from female given name Chira, used by Romanian Christians . See also Achirei. Chiru (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Chiru, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Chiru, used by Romanian Christians. Chisiliul* (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Chisil, variant of ​Yiddish Ikusiel, derived from biblical Iekuthiel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Chitaru (Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Focşani, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Moineşti, Tȃrgu Gloduri; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bukovina, Găeşti, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. chitar, regional variant of pitar [Rom.] baker .

Dictionary of Surnames

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Chitlaru (Dorohoi, Jassy, Săveni; w.p. dist. Baia, Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Could be a distortion of Chitaru. Chivu (p.r. dist. Buzău, w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Chivu, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Chivu, used by Romanian Christians. Chivuţa* (Focşani) Matronymic: from female given name Chiva, perhaps hypocoristic form of ​Paraschiva used by Romanian Christians . Ciacâru (Fălticeni, Gura Humorului) Nickname-​based: from adj. ciacâr [Rom.] cross-​eyed {Ciachir}. Ciachir (Kishinev, Oneştii Noi dist. Lăpuşna) Nickname-​based: see Ciacâru. Ciauşu (Bacău; w.p. Bălţi, Chernovitz, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Ceauşu. Cimpoi (Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi) Artificial surname: from n. cimpoi [Rom.] bagpipe. Cioară ( Jassy, Râmnicu Sărat; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Roman) Artificial surname: from n. cioară [Rom.] crow; Nickname-​based: black skinned, from n. cioară [Rom.] crow. Cioban (Chernovitz; p.r. dist. Teleorman) Occupational surname: see Ciobanu. Ciobanu (Chernovitz, Soroca; w.p. Drăsliceni dist. Lăpuşna, Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. cioban [Rom.] shepherd {Cioban}. Cioc (w.p. Gura Humorului) Artificial surname: from n. cioc [Rom.] beak. Ciocanile (Bucharest) Artificial surname: see Ciocanu. Ciocanu (w.p. Kishinev) Artificial surname: from n. ciocan [Rom.] hammer {Ciocanile}. Cioclea* (Leova; w.p. Soroca) Occupational surname: from n. cioclu [Rom.] gravedigger . Cioclin* (Căuşani, Galaţi; p.r. Bucharest) perhaps distortion of Ciocliu. Occupational surname: see Cioclu. Cioclu (Liteni, Roman; w.p. dist. Baia, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. cioclu [Rom.] gravedigger, undertaker {Cioclin}. Ciolan^ Artificial surname: from n. ciolan [Rom.] big bone with meat; perhaps Nickname-​based. Ciolpan (w.p. Storojineţ) Artificial surname: from n. ciolpan [Rom.] old, desiccated tree or big, deformed man. Ciomârtan (p.r. Kishinev) Toponymic: from the village of Ciomârtan dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia). Ciornea (w.p. Botoşani) Secondary surname: from Russian Primary surname Chornyi ; Borrowed surname: from surname Ciornea, used by Romanian Christians. Ciornei [Romanian spelling: Aciornei] (Hotin, Ismail, Noua Suliţa dist. Hotin; p.r. Bucharest, Odessa; w.p. Rădăuţi) Matronymic: from female given name

214

Appendix 3

Ciorna, Yiddish Tshorne, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Ciornei, used by Romanian Christians. Ciortan (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. ciortan [Rom.] midweight carp; chicken thigh. Cireşeanu (Bârlad, Podu Iloaei; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Cireş dist. Storojineţ (Bukovina) . Cismar (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Cizmaru. Ciubotariu (Bucharest, Dorohoi) O: see Ciubotaru. Ciubotaru (Bâra dist. Roman, Bivolari, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucecea, Bucharest, Ceadâr Lunga, Chernovitz, Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Darabani, Dorohoi, Drânceni, Drobeta, Fălticeni, Frumuşica dist. Jassy, Gânceşti dist. Lăpuşna, Ghidigeni, Hăneşti dist. Dorohoi, Hârlău, Herţa, Huşi, Ibăneşti dist. Dorohoi, Jassy, Lespezi, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Negreşti, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi dist. Dorohoi, Răducăneni, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Suceava, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Târgu Neamţ, Ugreşti dist. Vaslui, Vârful Câmpului; w.p. Bacău, dist. Baia, Băneasa, Bălţi, Kishinev, Paşcani, Roman, Sadagura) O: from n. ciubotar [Rom.] shoemaker {Ciubotariu}. Ciumacu (w.p. Soroca) Occupational: probably Romanized form of chumak [Ukranian] coachman . Ciuntu (Bivolari, Vaslui; w.p. Jassy) Nickname-​based: from adj. ciunt [Rom.] one handed, maimed . Ciurariu (Călăraşi dist. Botoşani, Dorohoi paired with Segal, Drăguşeni dist. Baia paired with Aronovici, Jassy, Moineşti paired with Arensohn) Occupational surname: see Ciuraru. Ciuraru (Bârlad, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, dist. Neamţ, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Pocluga dist. Dorohoi, Rădăuţi, Răducăneni, Roman, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Suliţa, Tecuci; w.p. Bacău, Găeşti, Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. ciurar [Rom.] flour sifter {Ciurariu}. Cizmaru (Buzău, Fălticeni, Galaţi, Herţa, Noua Suliţa; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia, Botoşani, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. cizmar [Rom.] shoemaker {Cismar}. Clejan (Ploieşti; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Cleja dist. Bacău (Moldavia) or Clejani dist. Vlaşca (Muntenia) . Clinghiu (Chernovitz) uncertain etymon . A similar surname Clinciu used by Romanian Christians was documented. Clopot: see Klopot. Cociu (p.r. Bucharest, Târgovişte) Occupational surname: probably from n. cocie [Rom.] cart, wagon, hence wagoner ; Borrowed surname: from surname Cociu, used by Romanian Christians.

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Cocoş (Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Herţa, Hotin, Mihăileni, Roman paired with Hendel; p.r.: Bucharest, Jassy; w.p.: Botoşani) Artificial surname: from n. cocoş [Rom.] cock {Cucoş}. Codreanu (Bukovina, Săveni; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Codreni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) or Codrenii Noui dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) . Cofar (Burdujeni) Occupational surname: see Cofaru. Cofariu (dist. Baia) Occupational surname: see Cofaru. Cofaru (Burdujeni, Jassy; w.p. Fălticeni, Suceava) Occupational surname: from n. cofar [Rom.] wooden pail maker {Cofar, Cofariu}. Coflea^ Toponymic: from the village of Cofa dist. Hotin (Bukovina) ; a very rare surname Coflea was documented in Romania. Cojan (Bacău) Toponymic: from the village of Cojani dist. Gorj (Oltenia) . Cojoc (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. cojoc [Rom.] coat made of sheepskin. Cojocar (Leova; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Cojocaru. Cojocariu (Darabani, Ştefăneşti) Occupational surname:see Cojocaru. Cojocaru (Bivolari, Burdujeni, Botoşani, dist. Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Ciumuleşti, Darabani, Deleni dist. Botoşani, Dorohoi, Drânceni, Focşani, Frumuşica, Galaţi, Havârna, Hârlău, Herţa, Hotin, Jassy, Lunca dist. Dorohoi, Mihăileni, Paşcani, Podu Iloaei, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Răducăneni, Roman, dist. Roman, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Târgu Frumos, Târgu Neamţ; p.r. Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Bacău, dist. Baia, Bălţi, Bârlad, Brăila, dist. Dorohoi, Fălticeni) Occupational surname: from n. cojocar [Rom.] fur coat maker {Cojocarul, Cojocariu, Cojocar}. Cojocarul (Panciu) Occupational surname: see Cojocaru. Cojuşnia* (w.p. Kishinev) Toponymic: from the village of Cojuşna dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia). Colpacci (Bessarabia, Bender, Hotin, Jassy, Kishinev, Olăneşti dist. Cetatea Albă; w.p. Chernovitz, Oneştii Noui dist. Lăpuşna) Occupational surname: see Colpaciu; Secondary surname: from Primary surname Kolpakchi by association with n. calpacciu [Rom.] fur cap maker. Colpaciu (p.r. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. calpacciu [Rom.] fur cap maker {Colpacci}. Colţ* (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. colţ [Rom.] corner. Colţun* (Drăgăneşti dist. Baia) Artificial surname: from n. colţun [Rom.] sock {Kolţun}. Comăneşteanu* (Darabani, Hârlău) Toponymic: from the village of Comăneşti dist. Bacău (Moldavia) {Comeşteanu}.

216

Appendix 3

Comeşteanu^ Toponymic: probably distortion: see Comăneşteanu. Comisioneru (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. comisioner [Rom.] broker . Comşa (Bucharest, Dorna Cândrenilor; w.p. Kishinev) Borrowed surname: from surname Comşa, used by Romanian Christians. Conea (p.r. Bucharest) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Co(h)n ; Borrowed surname: from surname Conea, used by Romanian Christians. See also Cunea. Conescu (Bucharest, Piteşti) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Kohn spelled Con ; Borrowed surname: from surname Conescu, documented in Romania. Coniac ( Jassy) Artificial surname: from n. coniac [Rom.] cognac {Koniac}. Constantinescu (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Râmnicu Sărat) Borrowed surname: from surname Constantinescu, used by Romanian Christians. Conu (w.p. Bucharest) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Kon or Ko(h)n ; Borrowed surname: from surname Conu, documented in Romania. Copcă* (no specific place) Artificial surname: from n. copcă [Rom.] clasp; a hole in the ice surface. Copil (Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Gura Humorului, Săveni) Nickname-​based: from n. copil [Rom.] child. Copoloviciu* (Trifeşti dist. Orhei) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Copelovici or Copolovici . Corbu (w.p. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. corb [Rom.] raven ; Toponymic: from the villages of Corbu in multiple districts. Corcimar (Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Cîrciumaru. Corcimari (Colencăuţi dist. Hotin; w.p. Bălţi) Occupational surname: see Cîrciumaru. Coreloi (Noua Suliţa dist. Hotin) Artificial surname: see Cureloi. Corhăneanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Corhana dist. Bacău and dist. Roman (Moldavia) . Corlăţeanu (w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the village of Corlăteni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) . Cornaci (Botoşani, Burdujeni paired with Hershkovitz-​Korentz, Vertujeni dist. Soroca) Nickname-​based: from adj. cornaci [Rom.] having long horns, perhaps by association with the Yiddish male given name Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali {Cornaciu}. Cornaciu (Botoşani) Nickname-​based: see Cornaci. Cornea (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. corn [Rom.] horn, perhaps by association with the Yiddish male given name Hirsh, meaning deer, kinnui for biblical Naphtali .

Dictionary of Surnames

217

Cornel (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Cornel, used by Romanian Christians {Corneliu}. Corneliu (Bucharest, w.p. Bacău) Patronymic: see Cornel. Cornescu (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. corn [Rom.] horn, perhaps by association with the Yiddish male given name Hirsh, meaning deer, kinnui for biblical Naphtali . Cornişteanu (Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the villages of Corneşti dist. Jassy and dist. Roman (Moldavia), dist. Bălţi, dist. Hotin and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) . Cornu (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. corn [Rom.] horn, perhaps by association with the Yiddish male given name Hirsh, meaning deer, kinnui for biblical Naphtali . Coşaru: see Kosharu. Coşciug* (w.p. Bălţi) Artificial surname: from n. coşciug [Rom.] coffin. Coşiu (w.p. Balta): see Coşoiu. Coşoiu (no specific place) Borrowed surname: from surname Coşoiu, used by Romanian Christians {Coşiu}. Costin (Brăila) Patronymic: from male given name Costin, hypocoristic form of Constantin used by Romanian Christians. Costinean (w.p. Storojineţ) Toponymic: from the village of Costineni dist. Bacău (Moldavia) . Coşuleanu (Dorohoi, Suceava) Toponymic: from the villages of Coşuleni dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) and dist. Hotin (Bessarabia) . Cotariu (Suliţa dist. Botoşani; w.p. Brăila) Occupational surname: see Cotaru. Cotaru (Botoşani, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Cahul) Occupational surname: from n. cotar [Rom.] barrels weigher {Cotariu, Cutaru}. Cotigaru (Botoşani, Bucharest; w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. cotigar [Rom.] wagoner {Cotiugaru, Cotiugariu}. Cotişel (w.p. Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: from surname Cotişel, used by Romanian Christians. Cotiugariu (Ghidigeni; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Cotigaru. Cotiugaru (Hemeiuş dist. Bacău, Piatra Neamţ, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Târgu Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi, Hârlău, Jassy, Roman) Occupational surname: see Cotigaru. Coţuşteanu* (Darabani, Dorohoi, Rădăuţi; w.p. Botoşani, Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of Coţuşca dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) . Covali (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Covaliu. Covaliu (Botoşani, Darabani, Dorohoi, Frumuşica dist. Soroca, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, Săveni, Ştefăneşti; p.r. Bucharest ; w.p. Bârlad, dist. Fălciu) Occupational surname: from n. covali [Rom.] blacksmith {Covali}.

218

Appendix 3

Covăsneanu (Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the villages of Covasna dist. Jassy (Moldavia) and dist. Covasna (Transylvania) . Covrigariu (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Covrigaru. Covrigaru (Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Hangu dist. Neamţ, Herţa, Huşi, Ismail, Mihăileni Moldova, dist. Neamţ, Talmaz dist. Tighina; w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. covrigar [Rom.] pretzel maker {Covrigarul, Covrigariu}. Covrigarul (no specific place) Occupational surname: see Covrigaru. Crăcăoanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Crăcăoani dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Crăciun (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Crăciun, used by Romanian Christians. Craescu [Rom Crăiescu] (Roman) Artificial surname: from n. crai [Rom.] king; Don Juan . Crai (Băcesti dist. Roman, Hârlău, Roman) Nickname-​based: see Craiu. Crăiescu: see Craescu. Crainic (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Odobeşti; w.p. Jassy, Orhei) Occupational surname: from n. crainic [Rom.] announcer, crier. Craioveanu (Craiova) Toponymic: from the town of Craiova, capital of Oltenia region . Craiu (Brăila) Nickname-​based: from n. crai [Rom.] king; Don Juan {Crai}; Borrowed surname: from surname Craiu, used by Romanian Christians. Crăsescu#* Matronymic: from female given name Krase, Yiddish Kresl, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Crâşmariu* (Bacău, Dorohoi, Săveni; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Crâşmaru. Crâşmaru* (Dorohoi, Lipcani; w.p. Botoşani, Fălciu, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. crâşmar [Rom.] tavern keeper {Crâşmariu}. See also Cârciumaru. Credinciosu (Botoşani, Darabani, Dorohoi, Ghidigeni, Jassy, Suliţa; w.p. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from n. credincios [Rom.] religious believer, observant of religious precepts; faithful . Creditor* (w.p. Soroca) Occupational surname: see Creditoru. Creditoru* (Soroca) Occupational surname: from n. creditor [Rom.] creditor {Creditor, Kreditor}. Creştinu* (Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Fălticeni) Nickname-​based: from n. creştin [Rom.] Christian, converted to Christianity . Creţescu (p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from adj. creţ [Rom.] curly-​haired .

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Creţu (Bacău, Bucharest, Darabani, Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Piatra Neamţ, Roman, Siret; p.r. dist. Baia; w.p. Fălticeni) Nickname-​based: from adj. creţ [Rom.] curly-​haired . Cristea (Soroca; w.p. Bălţi) Borrowed surname: from surname Cristea, used by Romanian Christians. Cristescu (p.r. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Cristescu, used by Romanian Christians. Cristoreanu (Stulpicani) probably Cristureanu. Toponymic: from the village of Cristur dist. Hunedoara (Transylvania) ; Borrowed surname: from surname Cristureanu used by Romanian Christians. Croitor (Baimaclia, Botoşani, Bucharest, Cahul, Dorohoi, Jassy, Leova, Miclăuşeni dist. Dorohoi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti, Volcineţ; w.p. dist. Baia) Occupational surname: see Croitoru. Croitorescu* (Chernovitz, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. croitor [Rom.] tailor . Croitori (Botoşani, Bucharest, Cahul, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Croitoru. Croitoriu (Beceni dist. Buzău, Dorohoi, Moineşti, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Croitoru. Croitoru (Adjudu Vechi dist. Putna, Bacău, Bivolari, Botoşani, Bozieni, Brăila, Briceni, Bucecea, Bucharest, Cahul, Chernovitz, Cordăreni dist. Dorohoi, Dămieneşti dist. Roman, Darabani, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Focşani, Frumuşica, Galaţi, Ghidigeni, Hăneşti dist. Dorohoi, Hârlău, Herţa, Hotin, Huşi, Igeşti, Jassy, Podu Iloaei, Leova, Lespezi, Mihăileni, Moineşti, Negreşti dist. Vaslui, Noua Suliţa, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Plopana dist. Tutova, dist. Prahova, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Roman, Săbăoani dist. Roman, Săveni, Siret, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Suceava, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Tȃrgu Neamţ, Vasilău dist. Chernovitz, Vaslui; w.p. dist. Baia, Constanţa, Paşcani, Sadagura, Sărata). Occupational surname: from n. croitor [Rom.] tailor {Croitor, Croitori, Croitoriu, Croitorul}. Croitorul (Răducăneni) Occupational surname: see Croitoru. Crupariu (Botoşani, Jassy; p.r. dist. Neamţ; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Cruparu. Cruparu (Borşa, Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Darabani, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Hârlău, Herţa, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Frumos) Occupational surname: from n. crupar [Rom.] grinder/miller {Crupariu, Krupari, also Gruparu}. Cucescu* (no specific place) Toponymic: from the village of Cuceşti dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Cucoş (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: see Cocoş.

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Cucuruz* (Bârlad, Secureni dist. Hotin; p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. cucuruz [Rom.] corn, maize. A similar name with the spelling Kukuruza is documented in other countries. Culea ( Jassy) Borrowed surname: from surname Culea, used by Romanian Christians. Cumpănă (Buzău, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Herţa, Mihăileni, Ploieşti; w.p. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. cumpănă [Rom.] scales; shadoof. Cunea (Bacău, Dorohoi, Kishinev, Piatra Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Co(h)n and Ku(h)n {Kunia}. See also Conea; Borrowed surname: from surname Cunea, documented in Romania. Curcă (Dorohoi, Herţa) Artificial surname: from n. curcă [Rom.] turkey. A surname spelled Kurka is documented in other countries; it is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Curelariu (w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Curelaru. Curelaru (Borduşani dist. Ialomiţa, Burdujeni, Lespezi, Roman; w.p. dist. Baia, Botoşani, Dorobanţi, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. curelar [Rom.] belt maker {Curelariu}. Cureloi* (Noua Suliţa dist. Hotin) Artificial surname: from n. cureloi [Rom.] belt, thong {Coreloi}. Cuşmar* (Briceva, Darabani, Hotin) Occupational surname: see Cuşmaru. Cuşmariu* (Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Cuşmaru. Cuşmaru* (Buzău, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Focşani, Ghidigeni, Hârlău, Herţa, Hotin, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Odobeşti, Săveni; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bacău, Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. cuşmar [Rom.] fur cap maker {Cuşmar, Cuşmariu, Kozsmari}. Cutaru* (Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: see Cotaru. Cuteanu (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Cuteanu, used by Romanian Christians. Cuţic^ Borrowed surname: probably from surname Cutic, used by Romanian Christians. Dabija (Bivolari dist. Jassy, Sculeni; w.p. Jassy) Borrowed surname: from surname Dabija, used by Romanian Christians. Dagăţanu* (Boteşti dist. Roman) Toponymic: from the village of ​Dagâţa dist. Roman (Moldavia) . Daianu (w.p. Bălţi) Toponymic: from the village of ​Daia dist. Vlaşca (Muntenia); Occupational surname: from n. daian [Rom.] rabbinical court judge . Dambu (p.r. Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of ​Dâmbul dist. Prahova (Muntenia) or Dâmbu dist. Cluj (Transylvania). Dămidanu* (Botoşani) Toponymic: see Dămideanu.

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Dămideanu* (Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani) Toponymic: from the village of ​Dămideni dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) {Dămidanu, Danudeanu} . Danciu (w.p. Costeşti dist. Storojineţ) Borrowed surname: from surname Danciu, used by Romanian Christians; Toponymic: from the village of ​Danciu dist. Tecuci (Moldavia) {Danciul}. Danciul (w.p. Costeşti dist. Storojineţ) Borrowed surname: see Danciu. Danudeanu^ Toponymic: see Dămideanu. Darabaneanu [Romanian spelling Dărăbăneanu] (Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the town of ​Darabani in Moldavia . Dărăbăneanu: see Darabaneanu. Darabanescu [Romanian spelling Dărăbănescu] (Rădăuţi) Toponymic: from the town of ​Darabani in Moldavia; Occupational surname: from n. daraban [Rom.] infantry soldier . Dărăbănescu: see Darabanescu. Dascăl (Baimaclia, Bolgrad, Bucharest, Chilia, Darabani, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Huşi, Jassy, Moineşti, Moisei, Orhei, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Poiana Ruscova, Rădăuţi, Săveni, Scorţeni dist. Orhei, Văşcăuţi; w.p. Bârlad, Bucharest, Jassy, Răuţel dist. Bălţi, Sadagura) Occupational surname: see Dascălu. Dascăli (no specific place) Occupational surname: see Dascălu. Dăscăliţei [Romanian spelling: Adăscăliţei] (no specific place) Nickname-​ based: from n. dăscăliţă [Rom.] primary schoolteacher’s wife . Dascălu (Bacău, Bârlad, Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Darabani, Dorohoi, Frumuşica, Galaţi, Huşi, Jassy, Kishinev, Lipcani, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi Prut, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. dascăl [Rom.] schoolteacher {Dascăl, Dascălul, Dascali}. Dascălul (Lăpuşna; w.p. Bucharest, Suceava) Occupational surname: see Dascălu. Dascu* (p.r. Bucharest) probably Daşcu. Borrowed surname: from surname Daşcu, documented in Romania. Davideanu (w.p. Botoşani) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Davideni dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) and dist. Storojineţ (Bukovina) . Davidescu (Bârlad, Bucharest, Buzău, Focşani, Ploieşti, Râmnicu Sărat, Siret; w.p. dist. Baia, Fălticeni) Patronymic: from male given name David, biblical name used by both Christians and Jews . Degetaru (Piatra Neamţ, Roman, Suliţa dist. Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani) Artificial surname: from n. degetar [Rom.] thimble . Deleanu (Bucharest, Vadul Roşca) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Deleni dist. Bacău, dist. Baia, dist. Fălciu, dist. Tecuci and dist. Vaslui (Moldavia) .

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Dercăuţan* (Soroca, Zguriţa) Toponymic: from the village of ​Dărcăuţi dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) . Derneanu* (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Dorneanu. Diaconescu (w.p. Reni) Occupational surname: from n. diacon [Rom.] priest, low-​rank clergyman . Diaconu (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bolgrad, Reni) Occupational surname: from n. diacon [Rom.] priest, low-​rank clergyman . Diamandescu# Artificial surname: from n. diamant [Rom.] diamond; Secondary surname: from Primary surname Diamand . Dinu (p.r. Jassy, w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Dinu, hypocoristic form of Constantin; Borrowed surname: from surname Dinu, used by Romanian Christians. Dobȃnda (w.p. Hotin) Artificial surname: from n. dobȃndă [Rom.] interest rate. Dobrogeanu# Toponymic: from the Dobrogea region . Doceanu^ Toponymic: probably from the Docani, dist. Tutova (Moldavia) . Docteur (Bucharest, Ploieşti) Occupational surname: see Doctor. Doctor (Secureni; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. doctor [Rom.] physician {Docteur}; Foreign surname: Doktor. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Doctoraş* (Botoşani, Jassy, Lespezi, Ţigănaşi; w.p. Bălţi) Occupational surname: see Doctoraşu. Doctoraşu* (Lespezi) Occupational surname: from n. doctoraş [Rom.] young or second rate physician {Doctoraş}. Dodianu* (Bucharest) uncertain etymon . A very rare surname Dodeanu was documented in Romania. Dogariu^ Occupational surname: see Dogaru. Dogaru^ Occupational surname: from n. dogar [Rom.] barrel maker, cooper {Dogariu}. Dogot* (Bacău; w.p. Kishinev) Artificial surname: from n. dogot or dohot [Rom.] mazut / crude oil. Dohotaru (w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. dohotar [Rom.] mazut / crude oil well worker . Doiban (Bessarabia; p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from numeral doi [Rom.] two and n. bani [Rom.] money, doi bani meaning cheap, of inferior quality; Toponymic: from the village of ​Doibani in dist. Transnistria (Ukraine) across the Dniester River bordering with Bessarabia region. Doinescu (no specific place) Matronymic: from female given name Doina, used by Romanian Christians; Artificial surname: from n. doina [Rom.] lyric poem or song; Toponymic: from villages Doina dist. Botoşani and

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dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . A rare surname Doinescu documented in Romania. Dorel* (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Dorel, hypocoristic form of ​Doru used by Romanian Christians. Dorneanu ( Jassy, Piatra Neamţ; w.p. Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Bucharest, Dorohoi) Toponymic: from villages Dorna dist. Câmpulung (Bukovina) or Dorneni dist. Tutova (Moldavia) {Derneanu} . Dorohonceanu (Herţa; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the town of ​Dorohoi in Moldavia {Doronceanu}. Doronceanu* (Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Dorohonceanu. Dragonişteanu* (Săveni; w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: probably from the villages of ​Drăgăneşti dist. Baia, dist. Jassy and dist. Tecuci (Moldavia), dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) perhaps by association with n. dragon [Rom.] horse-​ borne infantryman; Toponymic: perhaps Drăgoişteanu, from the villages of ​Drăgoeşti dist. Suceava (Moldavia), dist. Gorj and dist. Olt (Muntenia) . Dreniceru* (Piatra Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. drenicer, variant of drănicer [Rom.] wood roof tile maker . Drepnic* (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: from n. dreptnic [Rom.] straight, orthodox. Drimeru* (Galaţi) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Drimer . Drojdieru* (w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. drojdier [Rom.] (grape) brandy distiller . Dubălaru (Botoşani, Herţa; w.p. Galaţi, Mediaş) Occupational surname: from n. dubălar [Rom.] tanner . Dulce (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Jassy) Nickname-​based: calque translation from adj. dulce [Rom.] sweet; Borrowed surname: from very rare surname Dulce, documented in Romania. Dulceanu (no specific place) Toponymic: from the village of ​Dulceni dist. Teleorman (Muntenia) or Dulceşti dist. Roman (Moldavia); Secondary surname: from Primary surname Dulce . Dumitrescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Dumitru, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Dumitrescu, used by Romanian Christians. Dumitriu (w.p. Kishinev) Patronymic: from male given name Dumitru, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Dumitriu, used by Romanian Christians. Dunăreanu# Toponymic: from the Dunăre River .

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Economu# Occupational surname: from n. econom [Rom.] administrator; Nickname-​based: from adj. econom [Rom.] thrifty; stingy . Edeleanu# Matronymic: probably from female given name Edel, Yiddish Eydl, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname (I)Edeleanu, documented in Romania. Elicu* (Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Elişcu* ( Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Elişa, Yiddish Elishe, derived from biblical Elisha and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Enciu (Paşcani, Podu Iloaei, Vaslui; w.p. dist. Baia, Roman) Borrowed surname: from surname Enciu, used by Romanian Christians {Anciu}. Ene (w.p. Târgu Neamţ) Patronymic: from male given name Ene, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Ene, used by Romanian Christians. Epure [Romanian spelling: Iepure] (Burdujeni, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Chernovitz) Artificial surname: from n. iepure or epure [Rom.] hare, rabbit {Jepure}; Secondary surname: calque translation of ​Polish Primary surname Zając. Erescu (w.p. Jassy) Patronymic: see Herescu; Borrowed surname: from surname Erescu, used by Romanian Christians. Ergiu* (w.p. Kishinev) uncertain etymon . Erlea* (Botoşani) uncertain etymon . Eşanu (Bucharest, Roman, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca; w.p. Botoşani, Jassy) Toponymic: see Ieşanu. Eşeanu (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Jassy, Roman) Toponymic: see Ieşanu. Facheru* (w.p. Suceava) Occupational surname: probably from n. fachir [Rom.] fakir, illusionist . Făclieru (Borduşani dist. Ialomiţa, Burdujeni, Sculeni; w.p. Botoşani, Bucharest, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. făclier [Rom.] torch, candlemaker {Ficleru}. Făgădău (Bucharest, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. făgădău [Rom.] inn, instead of făgădar [Rom.] innkeeper. Fagure* (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. fagure [Rom.] honeycomb. Făinari* (w.p. Sadagura) Occupational surname: see Făinaru. Făinariu* (Dorohoi, Herţa, Săveni) Occupational surname: see Făinaru. Făinaru* (Bacău, Bârlad, Botoşani, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Herţa, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Negri, Noua Suliţa, Petreşti, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Răducăneni, Ripiceni dist. Botoşani, Roman, Săveni, Vaslui; w.p. dist. Baia, Băneasa, Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Brăila) Occupational surname: from n. făinar [Rom.] wheat flour dealer {Făinari, Făinariu}.

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Fălticineanu (Fălticeni, Pungeşti, Roman, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Jassy) Toponymic: from the town of ​Fălticeni in Moldavia . Faltoianu* (w.p. Bucharest, paired with Falkenstein) Toponymic: probably from the villages of ​Fălcoiu dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia) or Fălcoianu dist. Ilfov (Muntenia). Fanar* (Bender) Artificial surname: from n. fanar [Rom.] streetlamp. Fanargi (Mărculeşti dist. Soroca, Orhei) Occupational surname: from. n. fenarği [Turk.], equivalent to n. fanaragiu [Rom.] lamplighter {Fonargi}. See also Fanaru. Fanaru (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. fanar [Rom.] streetlamp by association with fanaragiu [Rom.] lamplighter . See also Fanargi. Farmacist* (p.r. Jassy; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. farmacist [Rom.] pharmacist. Faur (Bucharest; p.r. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. faur [Rom.] blacksmith. Feisanu* (Darabani) Toponymic: possibly from the village of ​Feisa dist. Târnava Mică (Transylvania) . Ferariu (Piatra Neamţ; w.p. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Fieraru. Feraru (Bacău, Buhuşi; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Fălticeni) Occupational surname: see Fieraru. Ferdinaru* (Bucecea, Suceava; w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: see Ferederu. Feredaru* (Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Jassy; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Ferederu. Feredeanu* (w.p. Botoşani) Toponymic: from the village of ​Feredeni dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . Fereder* (w.p. Roman) Occupational surname: see Ferederu. Ferederu* (Câmpulung, Hârlău, Jassy) Occupational surname: from undocumented n. fereder [Rom.] ( Jewish) bath attendant derived from n. feredeu [Rom.] (public) bath {Feredaru, Fereder, Ferdinaru}. Ficleru* (Botoşani, Burdujeni) Occupational surname: see Făclieru; Secondary surname: from Primary surname Ficler . Fieraru (w.p. Bucharest, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ; Roman) Occupational surname: from n. fierar [Rom.] blacksmith {Ferariu, Feraru}. Filipăuceanu* (Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Pilipăuceanu. Filorcanu* (no specific place) uncertain etymon . Finchelescu (Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Finkel or Finkelstein . Firoiu (w.p. Bucharest paired with Feinstein) Borrowed surname: from surname Firoiu used by Romanian Christians. Flandra* (Târgu Neamţ) Toponymic: from n. Flandra [Rom.] the Flandres region.

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Flavianu^ uncertain etymon ; The surname Flavian is very rare and is documented in Romania, Israel, France, and the United States. Florea (w.p. Bucharest, Kishinev, Râmnicu Sărat) Artificial surname: from n. floare [Rom.] flower, probably calque translation of surname Blum ; Borrowed surname: from surname Florea, used by Romanian Christians. Florescu (Ploieşti; p.r. Bucharest paired with Blumenfeld) Artificial surname: from n. floare [Rom.] flower, probably calque translation of surname Blum ; Borrowed surname: from surname Florescu, used by Romanian Christians. Focşan (Hârlău; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the town of ​ Focşani in Moldavia . Focşăneanu (Bucharest, Jassy, Sadagura; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the town of ​Focşani in Moldavia {Focşeneanu, Focşineanu}. Focşeneanu (Bucharest, Caracal) Toponymic: see Focşăneanu. Focşineanu (Botoşani; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: see Focşăneanu. Foleşteanu (w.p. Botoşani) Toponymic: from the village of ​Foleşti dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Fonargi (Mărculeşti dist. Soroca, Soroca; w.p. Bucharest, Orhei) Occupational surname: see Fanargi. Fonea ( Jassy, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani, Kishinev, Roman) Nickname-​based: from n. fonye [Yiddish] Russian (usually, pejorative); Artificial: from n. funie or funia [Rom.] rope, cord; archaic unit of ​length, equivalent to a “chain,” used to measure land {Fonia, Fonie, Foni}. The surname Fonea is very rare and is documented in Romania, Israel, France, and the United States. Foni (Dorohoi, Siret, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Foni, used by Romanian Christians; Nickname-​based: see Fonea. Fonia (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Jassy) Nickname-​based: see Fonea. Fonie (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: see Fonea. Foreanu* (Craiova) uncertain etymon . Formagiu (Săveni, Târgu Frumos; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. formagiu [Rom.] baker . Francea^ uncertain etymon ; see Frâncu. Frâncu (no specific place) Nickname-​based: from n. and adj. Frânc [Rom. arch.] French {Francea}. Frângheru* (Herţa; w.p. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Frânghieru. Frânghieru* (Dorohoi, Herţa; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. frânghier [Rom.] rope maker {Frângheru, Fringhieru}. Franţuz ( Jassy) Nickname-​based: see Franţuzu. Franţuzu ( Jassy) Nickname-​based: from n. franţuz [Rom. pop.] French {Franţuz}.

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Freumiciu^ Patronymic: from male given name Freum, distortion of ​Froim, from Yiddish Efroyem, from biblical Ephraim and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Frime* (Bender, Moghilev) Matronymic: see Afrimei. Fringhieru* (Bălţi, Herţa) Occupational surname: see Frânghieru. Friptu (w.p. Botoşani) Nickname-​based: from adj. fript [Rom.] burned, roasted . Friţcu* (p.r. Darabani, Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Friţ or Fritz, hypocoristic form of ​Friedrich, used by both German-​speaking Christians and Jews . Froimescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Froim, from Yiddish Efroyem, from biblical Ephraim and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Froimulici* ( Jassy, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ, Vânători dist. Neamţ) Patronymic: from male given name Froim, from Yiddish Efroyem, derived from biblical Ephraim and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Froimulitz}. Froimulitz* ( Jassy, dist. Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ) Patronymic: see Froimulici. Fruckt* ( Jassy) Artificial surname: see Fruct. Fruct* (Dorohoi, Siret) Artificial surname: from n. fruct [Rom.] fruit {Fruckt}; Foreign surname: Frucht. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Frunză (Rădăuţi, Storojineţ) Artificial surname: from n. frunză [Rom.] leaf. Frunzeanu ( Jassy) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Frunzeni dist. Bacău and dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Fudea* (p.r. Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Fudulu (no specific place, paired with Feder) Nickname-​based: from adj. fudul [Rom.] proud, arrogant . Fundeanu ( Jassy) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Fundeni dist. Bacău and dist. Tecuci (Moldavia) . Fundeianu (no specific place) Toponymic: see Fundoianu. Fundoianu (Bârlad, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Herţa; w.p. Jassy) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Fundoaia dist. Baia, dist. Dorohoi and dist. Tecuci (Moldavia), dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) {Fundeianu, Funduianu}. Funduianu (Chernovitz, Herţa) Toponymic: see Fundoianu. Furtună# Nickname-​based: from n. furtună [Rom.] storm. Gadovnicu* (w.p. Dorohoi) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Gadovnic, probably distortion of Godovinik . Găină (w.p. Bălţi) Artificial surname: from n. găină [Rom.] hen. Gălăţeanu (Bessarabia, Bucharest) Toponymic: from the town of Galaţi in Moldavia .

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Galaţi# Toponymic: from the town of Galaţi in Moldavia. Galizeanu* (no specific place) Toponymic: from Galizia region in the former Austro-​Hungarian Empire ; There is documentation of a surname Găliceanu, used by Romanian Christians. Gângu (Chernovitz, Ghidigeni, Jassy, Rădăuţi Prut; w.p. Dorohoi) Borrowed surname: from surname Gângu, used by Romanian Christians. Garcea (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Garcea, used by Romanian Christians. Gărcineanu* (Piatra Neamţ, Roman; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Gârcina dist. Piatra Neamţ or Gârceni dist. Vaslui (Moldavia) . Gârdea (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from rare surname Gârdea, used by Romanian Christians. Gărniceanu* (Bacău, Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Gărniceni dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Gavrilă (w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Gavrilă, from biblical Gabriel, used by both Christians and Jews. Gavriloaia*: see Gavriloia. Gavriloia* [Romanian spelling: Gavriloaia] (w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: from male given name Gavrilă, from biblical Gabriel, used by both Christians and Jews . Gavrilo(a)ia, derived from Gavrilă, means Gavrilă’s wife/ daughter. Geambaşu (Bucharest, Darabani, Dorohoi, Săveni) Occupational surname: from n. geambaş [Rom.] horse dealer . Georgescu (p.r. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Georgescu, used by Romanian Christians. Ghebosu* (Piatra Neamţ; w.p. Mediaş) Nickname-​based: from adj. ghebos [Rom.] humpback / Gheorghel* (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Gheorghe, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Gheorghiu ( Jassy; w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Gheorghe, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Gherşu* (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Gerş, Russian rendering of ​Herş, derived from Yiddish Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Ghetea* or perhaps Gheţea (no specific place) Artificial surname: from n. gheată [Rom.] type of shoe, or from gheaţă [Rom.] ice ; Borrowed surname: from surname Ghetea documented in Romania, the United States, and Israel.

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Ghidionescu (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Ghidion, derived from biblical Gideon, used by both Christians and Jews . Ghika (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Ghika or Ghica used by Romanian Christians. Giosanu (Botoşani, Bucharest) Toponymic: from Gioseni dist. Bacău (Moldavia) . Giroveanu#* Toponymic: from the village of Girov dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Glodianu^ [Romanian spelling Glodeanu] Toponymic: from the villages of Glodeni dist. Vaslui (Moldavia) and dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) . Godeanu (w.p. Bucharest, Târgu Jiu) Toponymic: from the villages of Godeni dist. Dolj (Oltenia) and dist. Muscel (Muntenia) . Goldeanu* (w.p. Chernovitz) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Gold . Goleşteanu^ Toponymic: from the villages of Goleşti dist. Muscel and dist. Râmnicu Sărat (Muntenia) . Gologan (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. gologan [Rom.] coin, dime. Gorescu* (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Gorescu, used by Romanian Christians. Gorodiştean* (Huşi, Orhei) Toponymic: from the villages of Gorodiştea or Horodiştea dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia), dist. Dorohoi and dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . See also Horodişteanu. Grădinaru (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. grădinar [Rom.] gardener . Graur (Adjud, Botoşani, Bukovina paired with Grauer, Burdujeni, Chernovitz paired with Grauer, Corneşti dist. Bălţi, Darabani, Galaţi, Rădăuţi, Sadagura paired with Groier; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Artificial surname: from n. graur [Rom.] starling, probably by association with surname Grauer. Grecu (Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from n. grec [Rom.] Greek . Gredeanu* (w.p. Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Grigore (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Grigore, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Grigoriu (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Grigore, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Grigoriu, used by Romanian Christians. Grindea (w.p. Bucharest, paired with Grimberg) Artificial surname: from n. grindă [Rom.] beam . Grisar (Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Occupational surname: see Grisaru. Grisariu (Rădăuţi, w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Grisaru.

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Grisaru (Botoşani, Bucharest, Darabani, Dorohoi, Focşani, Frumuşica dist. Botoşani, Huşi, Milianca, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Săveni, Ştefăneşti, Vaslui; p.r. dist. Baia; w.p. Bacău, Chernovitz, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. grisar [Rom.] grinder/miller {Grisar, Grisariu}. Groparu* (Darabani, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Mihăileni dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. gropar [Rom.] mazut / crude oil well worker; gravedigger . See also Gruparu. Gropeanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Gropi dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) or Gropeni dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina) . Grosu (dist. Baia, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Craiova, Jassy, dist. Neamţ, Plopana dist. Tutova; w.p. Bălţi, Chernovitz, dist. Covurlui, Ismail) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Gros {Grosul}; Borrowed surname: from surname Grosu, used by Romanian Christians. Grosul (w.p. Chernovitz) Secondary surname: see Grosu. Grubea* (p.r. Bucharest) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Grube or Gruber . Gruia (p.r. Ploieşti) Borrowed surname: from surname Gruia, used by Romanian Christians. Grupăriţă* (no specific place) Occupational surname: from n. gropăriţă [Rom.] female mazut / crude oil well worker; gravedigger; Occupational surname: derived from surname Gruparu . See also Groparu and Gruparu. Gruparu* (Bucharest, Darabani, Galaţi, Herţa, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: probably from n. crupar [Rom.] grinder/ miller by association with grup/grojpen [Yid.] groats . See also Groparu and Cruparu. Gurăndeanu* (Drăgăşani) Toponymic: from the village of Guranda dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Guţu (w.p. Bălţi) Borrowed surname: from surname Guţu, hypocoristic form of Grigore used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century {Guţul}. Guţul (Feteşti, Hotin) Patronymic: see Guţu. Habat* (Mamorniţa dist. Dorohoi, Ploieşti, Văculeşti dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Braşov) Nickname-​based: see Habot. Habot* (Bucharest, Dorohoi; w.p. Bacău) Nickname-​based: from n. habotnic, shortened to habot [Rom.] person who respects religious precepts scrupulously, bigot {Habat}. Haham* (Bălceşti dist. Tutova, Briceva, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Burdujeni, Cahul, Cetatea Albă, Chernovitz, Cleja dist. Bacău, Dorohoi, Focşani, Galaţi, Jassy, Ismail, Mihăileni, Ploieşti, Săveni, Scorţeni, Soroca, Tecuci, Vaslui; w.p. Lespezi) Occupational surname: see Hahamu.

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Hahamovschi* (Kishinev, Fălticeni) Occupational surname: from n. haham [Rom. from Heb.] ritual slaughterer; rabbi . Hahamu* (Bârlad, Bivolari, Burdujeni, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Galaţi, Hangu, Hânceşti, Herţa, Lespezi, Mihăileni, Moineşti, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Răsboeni dist. Neamţ, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Târgu Neamţ, Tupilaţi dist. Roman, Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia, Botoşani, Dorobanţi, Jassy, Roman) Occupational surname: from n. haham [Rom. from Heb.] ritual slaughterer; rabbi {Haham, Hahamul}. Hahamul* (w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: see Hahamu. Haichea* (Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Haica, derived from Yiddish Khaye and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Hăilananu* (w.p. Fălticeni) Toponymic: probably from the village of ​Hăineala dist. Bacău (Moldavia) . Haimu* (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Haim, derived from Yiddish Khayem and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Hamalu* (w.p. Hârlău) Occupational surname: from n. hamal [Rom.] porter . Hancu (Kishinev paired with Hinculov) Borrowed surname: from surname Hancu or Hâncu, used by Romanian Christians. Hanea (p.r. Bucharest) Matronymic: from female given name Hana, derived from Yiddish Khane and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Hanea, documented in Romania. Hangiu (Dorohoi, Ungheni; w.p. Bacău, Bucharest, Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. hangiu [Rom.] innkeeper. Hănţişteanu* (Burdujeni, Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of ​Hănţeşti dist. Tecuci or Hânţeşti dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) . Harabagiu (Bacău, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Edineţi, Focşani, Galaţi, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Ploieşti, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Răducăneni, Săveni, Suliţa, Ştefăneşti, Vaslui; w.p. Botoşani, Hârlău, Kishinev, Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. harabagiu [Rom.] wagoner {Arabagiu}. Haradenciu* (Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Horodniceni dist. Baia (Moldavia) or Horodnicul dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina) . Harea (w.p. Kishinev) Borrowed surname: from surname Harea, used by Romanian Christians. Hărtopeanu (Lespezi dist. Baia, Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Hârtop dist. Baia and dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) and dist. Hotin (Bessarabia) or Hârtopi dist. Cahul (Bessarabia) or Hârtoape dist. Baia and dist. Cahul .

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Hascalaş* (w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Hascal, from Yiddish Ikheskl, derived from biblical Ezekiel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Herescu (Panciu, Tazlău dist. Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Piatra Neamţ paired with Herşcovici) Toponymic: from the village of ​Hereşti dist. Baia (Moldavia); Patronymic: probably from male given name Her(ş), derived from Yiddish Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Erescu}; Borrowed surname: from surname Herescu, documented in Romania. Herişeanu (Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the village of ​Herişani dist. Argeş (Muntenia) . Herivan* (p.r. Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Herşcu* (Bacău, Bârlad, Bivolari dist. Jassy, Bogzeşti dist. Roman, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Buzău, Chernovitz, Dămieneşti dist. Roman, Dorna dist. Suceava, Dorohoi, Drăgăşani dist. Baia, Drânceni dist. Fălciu, Fălticeni, Focşani, Frumuşica dist. Botoşani, Galbeni dist. Roman, Galu dist. Neamţ, Giuleşti dist. Baia, Gloduri dist. Bacău, Jassy, Lespezi, Nămoloasa dist. Putna, Odobeşti, Orbeni dist. Putna, Panciu, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Roman, Suceava, Şarul Dornei dist. Suceava, Şipote dist. Jassy, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Tazlău dist. Neamţ, Târgu Frumos, Târgu Neamţ, Târgu Ocna, Tecuci, Vama dist. Câmpulung, Vaslui, Zvorâştea dist. Dorohoi; w.p. dist. Baia, Bălţi, Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Galaţi, Sadagura) Patronymic: from male given name Herşc(o), derived from Yiddish Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Herţan (Bucharest, Chernovitz, Herţa, Mihăileni, Siret; w.p. Sadagura) Toponymic: see Herţanu. Herţanu (Botoşani, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Faraoani dist. Bacău, Herţa, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Roman) Toponymic: from the town of ​Herţa in Moldavia {Herţan, Herţeanu}. Herţeanu (Dorohoi, Mihăileni; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Herţanu. Hilişanu* (Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the village of ​Hilişău dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) . Hoinaru^ Nickname-​based: from n. hoinar [Rom.] wanderer, vagrant . Hoişie (Botoşani, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Jassy) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Hoişie, locally derived from Yiddish Hosheye, from biblical Hosea or from Hoyshie, Yiddish Yoshue, from biblical Joshua, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Oişie}. Homişteanu* (no specific place) Toponymic: from the village of ​Homeşti dist. Râmnicu Sărat (Muntenia) . Horescu (w.p. Bucharest paired with Hornatz) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Hor(natz), also by association with n. horă

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[Rom.] popular dance ; Borrowed surname: from very rare surname Horescu, documented in Romania, the United States, and Canada. Horodişteanu* (Darabani, Dorohoi, Movila Ruptă dist. Botoşani, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Horodiştea dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia), dist. Dorohoi and dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . See also Gorodişteanu. Horodniceanu* (Botoşani, Burdujeni, Comândăreşti dist. Botoşani, Păuşeşti dist. Jassy, Ploieşti, Roman; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bârlad) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Horodniceni dist. Baia (Moldavia) or Horodnicul dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina) . Hotinescu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the town of ​Hotin in Bessarabia . Iacobescu (Chernovitz, Târgovişte; w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Iacob, biblical name used by both Christians and Jews . Iamandstein* (no specific place) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Iamandi, used by Romanian Christians . Ianconescu* (Focşani, Galaţi, dist. Putna) Patronymic: from male given name Iancu, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from Io(a)n, biblical John, and Jews, derived from Yanke(l), Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob [Heb. Yaʾakov], sometimes documented as Yanko in Slavic areas, and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Iancovici (Băneşti dist. Putna, Bârlad, Bordoşani dist. Buzău, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Burdujeni, Buzău, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Fântânele dist. Bacău, Focşani, Galaţi, Huşi, Jassy, Lespezi, Mărgineni dist. Bacău, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Roman, Suliţa dist. Hotin, Tecuci, Teţcani dist. Bacău; w.p. dist. Bacău, dist. Baia, Râmnicu Sărat) Patronymic: from male given name Iancu, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from Io(a)n, biblical John, and Jews, derived from Yanke(l), Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob [Heb. Yaʾakov], sometimes documented as Yanko in Slavic areas, and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Jancovici, Jankowicz}. The Polish spelling Jankowicz is also documented in Riga and Vilna, as a toponymic derived from Yankovichi dist. Oshmyany. However, the forms Iancovici and Jancovici must have been created and adopted locally. Iancu (Bacău, dist. Baia, Bârlad, Bodeşti Precista dist. Neamţ, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Călugăreni dist. Dorohoi, Chernovitz, Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Craiova, dist. Dâmboviţa, Darabani, Dorohoi, Făleşti dist. Bălţi, Fălticeni, Focşani, Galaţi, Gloduri dist. Bacău, Hârlău, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, Moineşti, dist. Neamţ, Noua Suliţa, Onişcani, Paşcani, Pănceşti dist. Bacău, Ploieşti, Plopana dist. Tutova, Podu Iloaei, Podu Turcului, dist. Prahova, Rădăuţi, Roman, Ruginoasa dist. Baia, Săveni, Serbeşti dist. Neamţ, Sineşti

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dist. Bălţi, Stolniceni dist. Suceava, Târgovişte, Târgu Neamţ, Tecuci, Vaslui, Vatra Dornei, Zamostea dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Bălţi, Constanţa, Piatra Neamţ, Suceava) Patronymic: from male given name Iancu, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from Io(a)n, biblical John, and Jews, derived from Yanke(l), Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob [Heb. Yaʾakov], sometimes documented as Yanko in Slavic areas, and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Ianculovici* (Bârlad, Jassy, Moineşti, Negreşti dist. Vaslui, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Tecuci; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Roman) Patronymic: from male given name Iancu(l), used by both Romanian Christians, derived from Io(a)n, biblical John, and Jews, derived from Yanke(l), Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob [Heb. Yaʾakov], sometimes documented as Yanko in Slavic areas, and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Janculovici, Janculevici}. Iancuţ (Edineţi) Patronymic: from male given name Iancu, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from Io(a)n, biblical John, and Jews, derived from Yanke(l), Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob [Heb. Yaʾakov], sometimes documented as Yanko in Slavic areas, and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Iepure: see Epure. Ieşan (Soroca) Toponymic: see Ieşanu. Ieşanu (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz, Soroca) Toponymic: from the city of ​Jassy or Ieşi, capital of ​Moldavia region {Ieşan, Eşanu, Eşeanu}. Ifrim (Roman, dist. Vaslui; p.r. dist. Prahova; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Ifrim, from biblical Ephraim, used by both Christians and Jews. Ilie (Bacău, Bârlad, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Coloneşti dist. Tecuci, Galaţi, Odorhei, Piatra Neamţ, Podu Iloaei, Roman, Târgu Neamţ; p.r. Jassy; w.p. Suceava) Patronymic: from male given name Ilie, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from the same biblical Elijah (Elias). Iliescu (Bacău, Bucharest, Jassy, Ploieşti; w.p. Roman) Patronymic: from male given name Ilie, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from the same biblical Elijah (Elias) ; Borrowed surname: from surname Iliescu, used by Romanian Christians. Iliesohn* (w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Patronymic: from male given name Ilie, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from the same biblical Elijah (Elias) .

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Iliovici* ( Jassy, Focşani, Babadag) Patronymic: from male given name Ilie, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from the same biblical Elijah (Elias) . Iliuţ (p.r. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Ilie, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from the same biblical Elijah (Elias) {Iliuţă}. Iliuţă (p.r. Covurlui dist. Cahul) Patronymic: see Iliuţ. Ioanichie* (no specific place) Patronymic: from very rare male given name Ioanichie documented in Romania. Ion (w.p. Constanţa) Patronymic: from male given name Ion, biblical John, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Ionaşcu (Bucharest paired with Iosefsohn; w.p. Kishinev) Patronymic: from male given name Ionaşcu; Borrowed surname: from surname Ionaşcu, used by Romanian Christians. Ionescu (Bucharest, no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Ion, biblical John, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Ionescu, used by Romanian Christians. Iosifescu (Tecuci) Patronymic: from male given name Iosif, from biblical Joseph and used by both Christians and Jews ; Borrowed surname: from surname Iosifescu, used by Romanian Christians. Iosub (Bârlad, Bordoşani dist. Buzău, Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Burdujeni, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Drăguşeni in Moldova, Drăneşti dist. Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Frumuşica, Ghidigeni, Hârlău, Herţa, Jassy, Lucăceşti dist. Bacău, Mărgineni, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Negreşti dist. Vaslui, Odobeşti, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Podu Iloaei, Pueşti dist. Tutova, Roman, Ruginoasa dist. Baia, Săuceşti dist. Bacău, Săveni, Suceava, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Târgu Frumos, Târgu Neamţ, Vaslui; w.p. dist. Baia, Bălţi) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Iosub, locally derived from Yiddish Yoysef, from biblical Joseph, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Iosup}. Iosubaş (Bucharest, Odobeşti, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Bacău) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Iosub, locally derived from Yiddish Yoysef, from biblical Joseph, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Iosubaşu}. Iosubaşu (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: see Iosubaş. Iosubovici* (Târgu Neamţ; w.p. dist. Baia, Dorohoi) Patronymic: from Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Iosub, locally derived from Yiddish Yoysef, from

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biblical Joseph, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Iosupovici}. Iosubsohn* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Iosub, locally derived from Yiddish Yoysef, from biblical Joseph, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Iosubson}. Iosubson* (Vaslui) Patronymic: see Iosubsohn. Iosup (Bucharest, Jassy, Târgu Frumos, Vaslui) Patronymic: see Iosub. Iosupovici (Bucharest, Hangu dist. Neamţ, Jassy, Mihăileni, Podu Iloaei, Sculeni dist. Jassy, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Bârlad) Patronymic: see Iosubovici; Foreign surname: Iosupovitz. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Ipcar* (Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Isăcescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Isac, biblical Isaac, used by both Christians and Jews . Iscovescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Isco or Iţco, from Yiddish Itskhok, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Israiliţeanu (Râmnicu Sărat; w.p. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: probably from n. israilitean [Rom.] Israelite . Istrate (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Istrate, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Istrate used by Romanian Christians. Isvoreanu (Bacău, Piatra Neamţ) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Isvor dist. Chernovitz and dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina), dist. Roman (Moldavia) or Isvorul dist. Neamţ or Isvoare dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Iţcanu* (no specific place) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Iţcani dist. Suceava (Bukovina) and dist. Tutova (Moldavia) . Iţcar* (Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Iţcaru. Iţcaru* (Darabani, Herţa; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: probably from iţar [Rom.] a specific piece of the loom or the person who makes it; possibly by association with male given name Iţic, from Yiddish Itskhok, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Iţcar}; A similar form Iţicaru was documented in Romania. Iţcu (Bucharest, Darabani, Ghidigeni; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Iţco, from Yiddish Itskhok, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Iţcu, documented in Romania. Iţescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Iţe, from Yiddish Itskhok, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Iţescu, documented in Romania.

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Iţicescu* (Botoşani, Bucharest, Hȃrlău) Patronymic: from male given name Iţic, from Yiddish Itskhok, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Iţicesei* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: see A Iţicesei. Iuclea* (p.r. Darabani, Dorohoi, Jassy) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Iukler or Jukler {Juclea}. Iuftariu* (Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Noua Suliţa dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: see Iuftaru. Iuftaru* (Botoşani, Dorohoi; w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. iuftar [Rom.] tanner of shoe’s upper leather {Iuftariu}. Iurea (w.p. Fălciu) Borrowed surname: from surname Iurea, used by Romanian Christians. Iurgaru* (Gura Humorului; p.r. Rădăuţi) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Jurgrau . Jancovici (Bârlad, Bivolari, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Jassy, Ploieşti, Suhărău dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Kishinev, Roman) Patronymic: see Iancovici. Janculevici* (Săveni dist. Dorohoi) Patronymic: see Ianculovici. Janculovici* (Chernovitz, Jassy, Tecuci) Patronymic: see Ianculovici. Jankowicz (Bacău, Băbuţa dist. Tutova, Botoşani, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Hârlău, Herţa, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Râmnicu Sărat) Patronymic: see Iancovici. Jepure (no specific place) Artificial surname: see Epure. Jerea#* uncertain etymon . Jucica* (Bȃrlad) Toponymic: from the village of ​Jucica Nouă or Jucica Veche dist. Chernovitz (Bukovina). Juclea* (Darabani, Ghidigeni; p.r. Dorohoi ) Secondary surname: see Iuclea. Jupitaru* (w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. jupitar or jupitor [Rom.] skinner . Jurescu (Bucharest, Chernovitz) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Jur or Jurman ; Borrowed surname: from surname Jurescu or Jurăscu, used by Romanian Christians. Kaciabulea* [Romanian spelling: Caciabulea] (Dorohoi) uncertain etymon {Cacibulea}. Kalkutza* [Romanian spelling: Calcuţa] (Săveni) uncertain etymon . Kantar* (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: see Cȃntar; Foreign surname: Kantar. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Kantargiu [Romanian spelling: Cantargiu] (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. cantaragiu and cantargiu [Rom.] merchandise weigher, based on [Turk.] kantargi {Cantargi, Catargi, Kantarzhi}. Kantarzhi (Cosăuţi dist. Soroca, Coşuleni in Bessarabia, Hotin, Kishinev, Leova, Storojineţ) Occupational surname: see Cantargiu.

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Karaush [Romanian spelling: Cărăuş] (Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. cărăuş [Rom.] carrier. Karlig [Romanian spelling: Cȃrlig] (w.p. Chernovitz) Artificial surname: from n. cȃrlig [Rom.] hook. Karpen [Romanian spelling: Carpen] (Piatra Neamţ; w.p. Botoşani, Piatra Neamţ) Artificial surname: possibly from n. carpen [Rom.] hornbeam; Foreign surname: Karpen. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Kasap (Kishinev) Occupational surname: see Casapu. Kautshuk ( Jassy) Artificial surname: see Cauciuc. Klopot [Romanian spelling: Clopot] (Botoşani, Buhuşi, Căpreşti dist. Soroca; p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. clopot [Rom.] bell; Foreign surname: Klopot. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Kolderar (Kishinev) Occupational surname: see Căldăraru. Kolţun* (Bessarabia, Chernovitz; p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: see Colţun; Foreign surname: Koltun. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Koniac (Sculeni dist. Bălţi) Artificial surname: see Coniac; Foreign surname: Koniac. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Kosharu [Romanian spelling: Coşaru] (no specific place) Occupational surname: from n. coşar(ar) [Rom.] basket maker . Kozsmari* (Herţa) Occupational surname: see Cuşmaru. Kreditor* (Soroca) Occupational surname: see Creditoru; Foreign surname: Kreditor. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Krupari (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Cruparu. Kunia (Ceadâr Lunga) Secondary surname: see Cunea; Foreign surname: Kunya. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Lăcătuşu^ Occupational surname: from n. lăcătuş [Rom.] locksmith . Lalescu (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Lalescu, documented in Romania. Lânaru# Occupational surname: from n. lânar [Rom.] wool merchant or dealer . Lascăr (Brăila, w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Lascăr, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Lascăr, used by Romanian Christians; Foreign surname: Lascar. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Lascarino* (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Lascăr, used by Romanian Christians . Lasneanu* (w.p. dist. Baia) uncertain etymon . Laurian (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Laurian, used by Romanian Christians.

Dictionary of Surnames

239

Lăzăreanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Lăzăreni dist. Bihor (Transylvania); Patronymic: from male given name Lazăr, biblical Lazarus, used by Christians, and by Jews as an equivalent to Leizer, from Yiddish Elieyzer, derived from biblical Eliezer and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Lăzărescu (Bogdăneşti dist. Bacău, Bucharest, Piatra Neamţ, Râmnicu Sărat, Roman) Patronymic: from male given name Lazăr, biblical Lazarus, used by Christians, and by Jews as an equivalent to Leizer, from Yiddish Elieyzer, derived from biblical Eliezer and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Leahu (Rădăuţi; w.p. Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: from n. leah [Rom.] Pole . Leibu* (Bacău, Banca dist. Tutova, Bârlad, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Drăguşeni dist. Covurlui, Fălticeni, Iveşti, Jassy, Letea Veche dist. Bacău paired with Leibovici, Moineşti, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Podu Iloaei, Râmnicu Sărat paired with Leibovici, Secureni, Târgu Ocna, Ţibăneşti dist. Vaslui, Vatra Dornei; p.r. Hodărăuţi dist. Hotin; w.p. Hotin, Kishinev) Patronymic: from male given name Leib, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Leibul}. Leibul* (Chernovitz, Milie dist. Storojineţ) Patronymic: see Leibu. Leibuşer* (no specific place) Patronymic: see Leibuşor. Leibuşor* (Bucharest, Piatra Neamţ) Patronymic: from male given name Leib, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Leibuşer}. Leoneanu (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Leon used by both Christians and Jews . Leonescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Leon, used by both Christians and Jews . Leonida (Bucharest; p.r. Ploieşti) Patronymic: from male given name Leonida, used by Romanian Christians. Leonte (Bucharest; p.r. Moreni dist. Prahova, w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Leonte, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Leonte, used by Romanian Christians. Lerescu ( Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. Le(h)rer [Germ​.​/Yid.] teacher; Secondary surname: from Primary surname Le(h)rer ; Toponymic: from the villages of ​Lereşti dist. Olt (Oltenia) and dist. Muscel (Muntenia). Lespezeanu (Bacău; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Lespezi dist. Baia, dist. Bacău, and dist. Tecuci (Moldavia) . Leteanu^ Toponymic: from the village of ​Letea Veche dist. Bacău (Moldavia) . Leu (Feteşti dist. Hotin) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Leu, from n. leu [Rom.] lion, local calque translation of ​Leib, Yiddish Leyb,

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kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania; Borrowed surname: from rare surname Leu, used by Romanian Christians. Leuleanu* (no specific place) Toponymic: from the village of ​Leu dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia); Patronymic: from male given name Leu, from n. leu [Rom.] lion, local calque translation of ​Leib, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Libeanu* (Bucharest, Chernovitz; w.p. Roman) Patronymic: probably from male given name L(e)ib or Löb, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Lobeanu}. Librescu (Ploieşti, Târgu Neamţ; w.p.s Bucharest, Roman) Nickname-​based: possibly from adj. liber [Rom.] free, perhaps calque translation of surname Frei ; Borrowed surname: from surname Librescu documented in Romania. Lichior* (no specific place) Artificial surname: from n. lichior [Rom.] liqueur. Lipscanu* (Lespezi; w.p. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. lipscan [Rom.] merchant of manufactured goods . Litorescu#* uncertain etymon . Livădaru (Albeşti, Botoşani, Hârlău, Jassy; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. livădar [Rom.] orchard attendant . Liveanu (w.p. Bucharest paired with Leibovici) Toponymic: from the village of ​ Liveni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Livianu}. Livianu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Liveanu. Lobeanu* (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: see Libeanu. Lozneanu* (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Jassy, Târgu Frumos) Toponymic: from the village of ​Lozna dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) . Luca (Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Luca, used by Romanian Christians; Foreign surname: Luka. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Lucăcescu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Lucăceşti dist. Bacău (Moldavia) and dist. Suceava (Bukovina) . Lucescu (Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Luca, used by Romanian Christians ; Borrowed surname: from surname Lucescu, used by Romanian Christians. Lucianu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Lucieni dist. Dâmboviţa and dist. Muscel (Muntenia); Patronymic: from male given name Lucian, used by Romanian Christians . Lumânare^ Artificial surname: from n. lumânare [Rom.] candle. Lungu (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Herţa, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut; w.p. Chernovitz, Jassy) Nickname-​based: from adj. lung [Rom.] tall, long . Lupaşcu (p.r. Dorohoi; w.p. Braşov) Patronymic: from male given name Lupaşcu, used by Romanian Christians; Borrowed surname: from surname Lupaşcu, used by Romanian Christians.

Dictionary of Surnames

241

Lupescu (Bacău, Bucharest, Buzău, Ploieşti; w.p. Buzău) Patronymic: from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania ; Borrowed surname: from surname Lupescu, used by Romanian Christians. Lupoaia^ Matronymic: from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​ Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Lupoi^ Patronymic: from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Luponiu#* Patronymic: from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​ Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Lupovici* (Bacău, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucecea, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Herţa, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Negreşti dist. Vaslui, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Târgu Copou dist. Jassy; w.p. Chernovitz, Roman) Patronymic: from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​ Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Lupowicz}. Lupowicz* (Bănila dist. Storojineţ, Bivolari, Dorohoi, Jassy) Patronymic: see Lupovici. Lupu (Ardeşeni, Bacău, Băceşti dist. Roman, Bereşti dist. Covurlui, Botoşani, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Enăcheşti, dist. Fălciu, Focşani, Galaţi, Hârlău, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, Iveşti dist. Tecuci, Kishinev, Odobeşti, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Podu Iloaei, Podu Turcului, Rădăuţi, Roman, Săveni, Scânteia dist. Vaslui, Sulina, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti, Târgu Frumos, Târgu Neamţ, Tecuci, Valea Rea dist. Bacău, Vaslui, Vatra Dornei; p.r. Brăila; w.p. dist. Baia, Bălţi, Fălticeni, Slatina) Patronymic: from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Lupul}; Borrowed surname: from surname Lupu, used by Romanian Christians. Lupul (p.r. Bucharest, Suceava) Patronymic: see Lupu. Lupuşoru^ Patronymic: diminutive from male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania .

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Macarescu (Răducăneni dist. Fălciu; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Măcăreşti dist. Jassy (Moldavia) and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) . Măgură (w.p. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. măgură [Rom.] hillock. Mahal (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: see Mahalu. Mahalu (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Mihăileni dist. Hotin; w.p. Bucharest, Hârlău) Occupational surname: from n. mahal [Rom.] porter of ​barrels {Mahal}. Mahulea (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from very rare surname Mahulea, documented in Romania. Maicu# Borrowed surname: from very rare surname Maicu, documented in Romania. Mălăeru (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. mălăer [Rom.] corn flour dealer . Malcaş (Darabani, Dorohoi; w.p. Chernovitz) Matronymic: from female given name Malca, variant of postbiblical Malka, of common use among Jews . Mălineanu# Toponymic: from the village of ​Mălini dist. Baia (Moldavia) . Manaşcu (Bacău, Buhuşi, Fălticeni, Piatra Neamţ, Roman; p.r. Bucharest, Chernovitz; w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from male given name Manaş, Yiddish Menashe, derived from biblical Manasseh, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Manaşcu, documented in Romania. Mancaş (Fălticeni; p.r. Gordineşti dist. Hotin) Borrowed surname: from surname Mancaş, used by Romanian Christians. Manciu (p.r. Râmnicu Vâlcea; w.p. Storojineţ) Borrowed surname: from surname Manciu, used by Romanian Christians. Manea (Iţcani dist. Suceava) from female given name Mania, from Yiddish Miryem, derived from biblical Mary and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe; Borrowed surname: from surname Manea, used by Romanian Christians. Mănescu (Moineşti dist. Bacău; w.p. Rădăuţi) Matronymic: from female given name Mania, from Yiddish Miryem, derived from biblical Mary and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Mănescu, used by Romanian Christians. Manole (Bacău, dist. Baia, Bucharest, Edineţi, Lespezi, Moineşti, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Manole, derived from biblical Emmanuel and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania due to similarity to Manuel or Manul, derived from the same biblical Emmanuel.

Dictionary of Surnames

243

Manolescu (Bucharest, Ploieşti, Turnu Severin, Urziceni) Patronymic: from male given name Manole, derived from biblical Emmanuel and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania due to similarity to Manuel or Manul, derived from the same biblical Emmanuel ; Borrowed surname: from surname Manolescu, used by Romanian Christians. Manoliu (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Manole, derived from biblical Emmanuel and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania due to similarity to Manuel or Manul, derived from the same biblical Emmanuel ; Borrowed surname: from surname Manoliu, used by Romanian Christians. Manolovici* (Bucharest, Focşani) Patronymic: from male given name Manole, derived from biblical Emmanuel and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania due to similarity to Manuel or Manul, derived from the same biblical Emmanuel . Manu* (Bălţi) Borrowed surname: from surname Manu, used by Romanian Christians; Foreign surname: less probable, Sephardic surname Mano. Mararu (Dorohoi, Jassy) Occupational surname: see Meraru. Marcianu* (w.p. Chernovitz) from Marcea dist. Vâlcea or Mărceşti dist. Bacău and dist. Dâmboviţa . Marcoveanu* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Marcu, used by Romanian Christians and adopted by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania as kinnui for biblical Mordechai . Marcu (Bacău, Băceşti dist. Roman, Bârlad, Bivolari dist. Jassy, Botoşani, Bordoşani dist. Buzău, Burdujeni, Brăila, Broscăuţi dist. Storojineţ, Bucecea, Bucium, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Călugareni, Codăeşti dist. Cetatea Albă, Craiova, Darabani, Dorohoi, Drăgăşani, Floreşti dist. Tutova, Galaţi, Ghidigeni, Hameiuş, Huşi, Jassy, Jevreni dist. Bacău, Kishinev, Lespezi, Mărăşeşti, Moldova Suliţa, Murgeni, Oşeşti dist. Vaslui, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Podu Iloaei, Podu Turcului, dist. Prahova, Râmnicu Sărat, Roman, dist. Romanaţi, Săveni, Scheia dist. Vaslui, Suceava, Suliţa, Ştefăneşti, Târgu Neamţ, Tecuci, Văleni dist. Baia; w.p. dist. Baia, Chernovitz, Fălticeni) Patronymic: from male given name Marcu, used by Romanian Christians and adopted by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania as kinnui for biblical Mordechai; Borrowed surname: from surname Marcu, used by Romanian Christians. Mărculescu (Piteşti; p.r. Bucharest, Vatra Dornei) Patronymic: from male given name Marcu, used by Romanian Christians and adopted by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania as kinnui for biblical Mordechai; Toponymic: from the villages of ​Mărculeşti Sat and Mărculeşti Târg dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) . Marcusian* (no specific place) Toponymic: see Marcuzian.

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Marcuzan* (Chilia) Toponymic: see Marcuzian. Marcuzian* (Chilia) Toponymic: probably from the villages of ​Marcăuţi dist. Hotin and Orhei (Bessarabia) {Marcuzan, Marcusian}. Margaritescu* (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Mărgăriteşti dist. Râmnicu Sărat (Muntenia) and dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia); Matronymic: from female given name Margareta or Margarita . Marin (Chernovitz, Iţcani dist. Suceava; w.p. Bucharest, Kishinev) Borrowed surname: from surname Marin, used by Romanian Christians; Foreign surname: Marin. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Marinescu (Bucharest, Roman paired with Maier; w.p. Chernovitz, Kishinev) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Marineşti dist. Bălţi and dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) ; Borrowed surname: from surname Marinescu, used by Romanian Christians. Marţapariu* (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Marţaparu. Marţaparu* (Dorohoi, Săveni) Occupational surname: according to phone interview with family member in Israel, from marţipan [Rom.] marzipan {Marţapariu}. Mascatu* (w.p. Botoşani) Nickname-​based: from adj. mascat [Rom.] wearing a mask . Maşcăuţan* (Kishinev, Orhei) Toponymic: from the village of ​Maşcăuţi dist. Orhei (Bessarabia) . Mătăsar (Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Mătăsaru. Mătăsaru (Dorohoi, Jassy; w.p. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. mătăsar [Rom.] silk weaver {Mătăsar}. Mateescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Matei, derived from biblical Matthias and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Mates, derived from the same biblical Matthias ; Borrowed surname: from surname Mateescu, used by Romanian Christians. Matei (w.p. Râmnicu Sărat) Patronymic: from male given name Matei, derived from biblical Matthias and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Mates, derived from the same biblical Matthias. Mateiaş (w.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: see Mateiaşu. Mateiaşu (Buzău, Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Matei, derived from biblical Matthias and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Mates, derived from the same biblical Matthias {Mateiaş}; Borrowed surname: from surname Mateiaşu, used by Romanian Christians. Maziliu (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Mazilu.

Dictionary of Surnames

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Mazilu (Dorohoi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca) Occupational surname: from n. mazil [Rom.] former dignitary; gentry; tax collector {Maziliu}. Meeraş* (Săveni) Patronymic: see Meieraş. Meerovici* Patronymic: see Merovici. Meieraş* (w.p. Săveni) Patronymic: from male given name Meyer, derived from Talmudic Meir, of common use among Jews {Meeraş}. See also Miraşu. Merariu (Darabani, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Meraru. Meraru (Dorohoi, Herţa, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Suliţa; w.p. Botoşani, Bucharest, Hârlău, Jassy, Roman) Occupational surname: from n. merar [Rom.] apple orchard attendant {Merariu, Mieraru, Miraru, Mararu}. Merovici* (Bucharest, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ) Patronymic: from male given name Me(i)r or Me(e)r, derived from Talmudic Meir, of common use among Jews {Meerovici}. Merticaru (w.p. dist. Baia) Occupational surname: from n. merticar [Rom.] cereals weigher . Meşter (Dorohoi; w.p. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from n. meşter [Rom.] master professional. Micu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Micu, hypocoristic form of ​Jewish names such as Avram, Meir, Moise by association with adj. mic [Rom.] little and perhaps its foreign equivalent Klein ; Borrowed surname: from surname Micu, used by Romanian Christians. Mieraru (Suliţa; w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: see Meraru. Mietreanu* (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: perhaps from the village of ​Mitreni dist. Ilfov (Muntenia) . Mihăileanu (p.r. Bucharest paired with Michelsohn) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia), dist. Bălţi, dist. Chilia, and dist. Hotin (Bessarabia) . Mihaileşteanu (Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Mihailişteanu. Mihailişteanu (Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Mihăileşti dist. Buzău and dist. Vlaşca (Muntenia), dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) {Mihaileşteanu}. Miletineanu# Toponymic: from the village of ​Miletin dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Militeanu* (Bivolari dist. Jassy, Galaţi, Jassy, Suliţa; w.p. Brăila, Kishinev) Toponymic: from the village of ​Milie dist. Storojineţ (Bukovina) {Militianu}. See also Miletineanu. Militianu* (Suliţa; w.p. Kishinev) Toponymic: see Militeanu. Mindelei* [Romanian spelling: Amindelei] (no specific place) Matronymic: from female given name Mindla, derived from Yiddish Mine and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe .

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Mindirigiu (Darabani, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Herţa; w.p. dist. Baia, Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. mindirigiu [Rom.] mattress maker. Miraru (Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Meraru. Miraşu* (Dorohoi) Patronymic: from Talmudic male given name Meir, of common use among Jews . See also Meieraş. Mircea (w.p. Bucharest, Dorohoi, Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Mircea, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Mirea# (paired with Maier) Borrowed surname: from surname Mirea, used by Romanian Christians. Mişilim* (Bucharest, Ploieşti; w.p. Buzău, Dorohoi) Patronymic: from Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Mişilim, from Yiddish Meshulem, derived from biblical Meshulam and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Mişu (Bârlad; p.r. Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Mişu, hypocoristic form of ​Mihai(l) used by Christians, and by Jews as a diminutive for Moshe or Michael. Mocanu (w.p. Tighina) Occupational surname: from n. mocan [Rom.] shepherd; Toponymic: from the village of ​Mocani dist. Râmnicu Sărat (Muntenia) . Mochiu* (Ploieşti) uncertain etymon . Mogileanu* (Orhei) Toponymic: from the village of ​Movileni or Mogileni dist. Baia, dist. Covurlui, and dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . Mohoeanu* (w.p. Akerman) uncertain etymon . Moise (Bacău, Botoşani, Bucharest, Burdujeni, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Huşi, Jassy, Paşcani, Podul Turcului, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Roman) Patronymic: from male given name Moise, derived from biblical Moses and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania as kinnui for biblical Moshe and Yiddish Moyshe; Borrowed surname: from surname Moise, used by Romanian Christians. Moisescu (Bacău, Bucharest, dist. Covurlui, Ploieşti, dist. Prahova, Rȃmnicu Sărat, Vaslui) Patronymic: from male given name Moise, derived from biblical Moses and used by both Romanian Christians and Jews ; Borrowed surname: from surname Moisescu, used by Romanian Christians. Moldovan (Bălţi, Raşcov, Secureni, Sighet; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Kishinev) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Moldoveni dist. Cetatea Albă (Bessarabia) and dist. Ialomiţa (Muntenia) or from the Moldova region . Moneanu* (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from very rare surname Moneanu, used by Romanian Christians. Monteoreanu* (Bucharest, Galaţi) Toponymic: from the village of Sărata Monteoru dist. Buzău (Muntenia) . Morar (Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Moraru. Morariu (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Moraru.

Dictionary of Surnames

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Moraru (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Jassy, Rădăuţi Prut, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Săveni, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Roman, Suceava) Occupational surname: from n. morar [Rom.] miller {Morar, Morariu}. Moroşanu (Bucharest, Galaţi; w.p. Hotin, Storojineţ) Toponymic: from the village of ​Moroşeni dist. Suceava (Bukovina) . Moşcu* (Brăila, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Hăneşti paired with Moscovici, Herţa, Hotin, Jassy, Lespezi, Manoleasa dist. Dorohoi, Piatra Neamţ paired with Moscovici, Săveni, Suceava) Patronymic: from male given name Moshke or Moshko, Yiddish Moyshe, derived from biblical Moses and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Mungiu (Ismail; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. mungiu [Rom.] candlemaker. Munişor* (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Munye, from Yiddish Shloyme, derived from biblical Solomon and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Munte (Botoşani paired with Bergman) Artificial surname: from n. munte [Rom.] mountain, probably calque translation of surname Berg(man). Muntean (Isacova dist. Orhei, Orhei) Toponymic: see Munteanu. Munteanu (Fălticeni, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest, Buhuşi, Chernovitz; w.p. Hotin, Orhei) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Munteni dist. Jassy, dist. Roman, dist. Tecuci and dist. Vaslui (Moldavia) or derived from the Muntenia region {Muntean}. Munterescu* (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. munte [Rom.] mountain . Murgu (w.p. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from adj. murg [Rom.] dark brown; n. horse . Muscel* (w.p. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. muscel [Rom.] hillock; Toponymic: from Muscel dist. (Muntenia). Muzicantu* (Dorohoi, Frumuşica dist. Botoşani, Mihăileni dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. muzicant [Rom.] musician . Năbădaru^ uncertain etymon . Naie (p.r. Bacău) Patronymic: from male given name Naie, hypocoristic form of ​Nicolae, biblical Nicholas, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Naumescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Naum, derived from biblical Nahum and used by both Romanian Christians and Jews . Neamţ (no specific place) Nickname-​based: see Neamţu. Neamţu (Mihăileni; p.r. Grinăuţi, Jassy, Soroca) Nickname-​based: from n. neamţ [Rom.] German {Neamţ, Niamţ}; Secondary surname: calque translation of German Primary surname Deutsch.

248

Appendix 3

Nedeleanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Nedelea dist. Prahova (Muntenia) . Nedrea* (w.p. Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Negrea (Bucharest) Artificial surname: from adj. negru [Rom.] black . Negreanu (Bucharest sometimes paired with Şvartz) Toponymic: from the village of ​Negrea dist. Covurlui (Moldavia) and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) or Negreni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) and dist. Hotin (Bessarabia); Artificial surname: from adj. negru [Rom.] black . Negrescu (Ploieşti paired with Schwartz; p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from adj. negru [Rom.] black . Negru (dist. Baia, Botoşani, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi dist. Dorohoi, Roşiori dist. Neamţ; w.p. Roman) Artificial surname: calque translation from adj. negru [Rom.] black. Negruş (w.p. Kishinev) Artificial surname: from adj. negru . Nehemne* (Bucecea dist. Botoşani, Darabani, Dorohoi, Roman; w.p. Chernovitz, Jassy) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Nehemne, Yiddish Nekhemye, derived from biblical Nehemiah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Neimanu^ Secondary surname: from Primary surname Neiman . Nemţeanu (Grozeşti dist. Bacău, Ploieşti, Târgu Neamţ, Tighina; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Nemţeni dist. Baia (Moldavia) and dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) . Niamţ (no specific place) Nickname-​based: see Neamţu. Nicoreşti#* Toponymic: from the village of ​Nicoreşti dist. Covurlui (Moldavia). Nicu (no specific place) Patronymic: from male given name Nicu, hypocoristic form of ​Nicolae, biblical Nicholas, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Niţescu (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Niţescu, used by Romanian Christians. Nuţă (Broşteni, Dorohoi, Leova, Lespezi in Moldavia, Paşcani, Podu Iloaei, Redeni dist. Orhei, Tudora dist. Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bacău, Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Botoşani, Jassy, Roman) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Nuţă, from Nuta, variant of ​Yiddish Nosn, derived from biblical Nathan and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania.; Matronymic: from female given name Nuţa, hypocoristic form of Ana used by both Romanian Christians and Jews; Borrowed surname: from surname Nuţă, used by Romanian Christians. Because diacritics are not always marked, it is difficult to distinguish between the spellings Nuţă, Nută, and Nuta {Nută}. Nută Patronymic: see Nuţă. Foreign surname: Nuta.

Dictionary of Surnames

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Obreanu* (w.p. Bucharest) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Obrea, used by Romanian Christians . Obrejan (dist. Bălţi, Chernovitz, Făleşti dist. Bălţi, Lipcani, Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the villages of Obreja Nouă and Obreja Veche dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) or Obrijeni dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . Ocneanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Ocna dist. Chernovitz (Bukovina) or Ocnele Mari dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Oculist*: Occupational surname: see Okulist. Ofiţeru* (w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. ofiţer [Rom.] military officer . Oieru (Darabani, Jassy; w.p. Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. oier [Rom.] shepherd . Oisceanu^ [probable Romanian spelling Oişteanu] Toponymic: probably from the villages of ​Hoiseşti dist. Jassi and dist. Neamţ (Moldavia); Artificial surname: from n. oişte [Rom.] cart shaft . Oişie* (Darabani, Dorohoi, Jassy, Movila dist. Dorohoi, Suliţa dist. Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: see Hoişie. Oişiovici* (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca) Patronymic: from Jewish-​Romanian male given name Hoişie, locally derived from Yiddish Hosheye, from biblical Hosea, or from Hoyshie, Yiddish Yoshue, from biblical Joshua, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Oişteanu: see Oisceanu. Okulist* [Romanian spelling: Oculist] (Galaţi, dist. Tighina) Occupational surname: from n. oculist [Rom.] eye doctor; Foreign surname: Okulist. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Olari (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Olaru. Olaru (Chernovitz, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Botoşani, Jassy, Kishinev) from n. olar [Rom.] potter {Olari}. Olteanu^ Toponymic: from the Olt River ; Borrowed surname: from surname Olteanu, used by Romanian Christians. Onciu (w.p. Jassy) Borrowed surname: from surname Onciu, used by Romanian Christians {Onciul}. Onciul (w.p. Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: see Onciu. Onescu (Bacău) Toponymic: from the villages of Oneşti dist. Bacău and dist. Jassy (Moldavia), dist. Orhei (Bessarabia) . Opincar (Mălini dist. Baia; w.p. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Opincaru. Opincaru (Bucharest, Cristeşti dist. Baia, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Vatra Dornei; w.p. dist. Baia, Chernovitz, dist. Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. opincar [Rom.] laced-​moccasin maker {Opincar}.

250

Appendix 3

Oprişan# Toponymic: from the villages of Oprişeni dist. Jassy (Moldavia) and dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina) . Orendaru* (no specific place) Occupational surname: from n. orândar [Rom. arch.] lessee of an inn or tavern; innkeeper . Ostriceanu (w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the village of Ostriţa dist. Chernovitz (Bukovina); Artificial surname: from n. ostreţ [Rom.] fence . Ostrovanu (no specific place) Toponymic: from the villages of Ostroveni dist. Argeş and dist. Dolj or Ostrovu dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia) . Oţetaru* ( Jassy, Târgu Frumos) Occupational surname: from n. oţetar [Rom.] vinegar maker . Ottoiu^ Patronymic: from male given name Otto, used by German-​speaking Christians and Jews . Păduraru (w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. pădurar [Rom.] forester . Pădureţu (no specific place) Nickname-​based: from adj. pădureţ [Rom.] related to the forest . Pajiște* (p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. pajiște [Rom.] meadow. Pălăria (Mărculeşti dist. Soroca; p.r. Bălţi; w.p. Răuţel dist. Bălţi) Artificial surname: see Pălărie. Pălărie (Bacău, Bălţi) Artificial surname: from n. pălărie [Rom.] hat {Pălăria}. Pălărieru (p.r. Jassy, Roman, Târgu Frumos) Occupational surname: from n. pălărier [Rom.] hatmaker . Palicu#* Patronymic: from Palik, possibly derived from Falik, Yiddish Falk, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Pană (p.r. Storojineţ) Artificial surname: from n. pană [Rom.] feather Pantazi (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Pantazi, of Greek origin, used by Romanian Christians. Pantofaru (Botoşani, Hârlău; w.p. Brăila, Râmnicu Sărat) Occupational surname: from n. pantofar [Rom.] shoemaker . Pânzar (w.p. Suceava) Occupational surname: see Pânzaru. Pânzariu (Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Pânzaru. Pânzaru (Bacău, Bănila, Botoşani, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca; w.p. Jassy, Suceava) Occupational surname: from n. pânzar [Rom.] fabric maker, weaver {Pânzar, Pânzariu}. Papadopol (Bălţi; w.p. Kishinev) Borrowed surname: from surname Papadopol, of Greek origin, used by Romanian Christians. Papaghiorghiu (p.r. Galaţi) Borrowed surname: from surname Papaghiorghiu, of Greek origin, used by Romanian Christians. Păpucaru* (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. păpucar [Rom.] slipper or mule maker; shoemaker .

Dictionary of Surnames

251

Pârcălabu (w.p. Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. pârcălab [Rom. arch.] local governor; administrator; tax collector . Pârgaru (w.p. Dorohoi ) Occupational surname: from n. pârgar [Rom. arch.] municipal council member; municipality clerk; watchman . Parola* (Chernovitz, Rădăuţi) Artificial surname: from n. parolă [Rom.] password. Partnea* (no specific place) uncertain etymon . Pârvu (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Pârvu, used by Romanian Christians. Păsăteanu* (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the village of ​ Păsăteni dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Pascal (Bacău, Bucharest, Dărmăneşti dist. Bacău, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Fântânele dist. Bacău, Galaţi, Hârlău, Herţa, Jassy, Lespezi, Lucăceşti dist. Bacău, Moineşti, Murgeni dist. Tutova, Panciu, Piatra Neamţ, Poienile de Jos dist. Roman, Roman, Stănişeşti dist. Tecuci, Târgu Ocna dist. Bacău; w.p. dist. Baia, Bârlad, Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Pascal, used among Romanian Christians in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and later extinct; now present as a surname. As given name, Pascal was adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Peske, Yiddish Peysekh, derived from Pesach. Pascalov*: see Paskalov. Pascalovici (Bucharest, Galaţi, Ploieşti, Văleni dist. Prahova) Patronymic: from male given name Pascal, used among Romanian Christians in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and later extinct; now present as a surname. As given name, Pascal was adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Peske, Yiddish Peysekh, derived from Pesach . Paşcanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the town of ​Paşcani in Moldavia . Păscar (Bessarabia, Bălţi, Dorohoi, Kishinev, Vărzăreşti dist. Lăpuşna; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia, Răuţel dist. Bălţi, Tighina) Occupational surname: see Păscaru. Păscari (no specific place) Occupational surname: see Păscaru. Păscariu (Dorohoi; p.r. Botoşani, Roman) Occupational surname: see Păscaru. Păscaru (Botoşani, Bucharest, Codăeşti, Dorohoi, Huşi, Jassy, Lespezi, Răducăneni, Săveni, Sculeni dist. Bălţi; w.p. Orhei) Occupational surname: from n. păscar, regional variant of pescar [Rom.] fisherman or fishpond attendant; Occupational surname: probably from n. păscar [Rom.] Passover matzo maker {Păscar, Păscari, Păscariu}. See also Pescaru. Pascu* (Brăila, Bucharest, Jassy, Măcin, Ploieşti) Patronymic: from male given name Pascu, used by Romanian Christians, and also by Jews as an equivalent to Peske, Yiddish Peysekh, derived from Pesach {Pascul}.

252

Appendix 3

Pascul* (w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: see Pascu. Pasculescu* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Pascu(l), used by Romanian Christians, and also by Jews as an equivalent to Peske, Yiddish Peysekh, derived from Pesach ; Borrowed surname: from surname Pasculescu, used by Romanian Christians. Paskalov* [Romanian spelling: Pascalov] (Kishinev; p.r. Odessa) Patronymic: from male given name Pascal, used among Romanian Christians in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and later extinct; now present as a surname. As given name, Pascal was adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Peske, Yiddish Peysekh, derived from Pesach . Pătatu* (Botoşani, Burdujeni; p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from adj. pătat [Rom.] stained, freckled . Pătrăşcanu# Toponymic: from the villages of Pătrăşcani dist. Bacău, dist. Putna and dist. Tutova (Moldavia). Patroniu* (p.r. Bucharest) uncertain etymon . Păunel (w.p. Chernovitz) Artificial surname: from n. păun [Rom.] peacock ; Borrowed surname: from surname Păunel, used by Romanian Christians. Păunescu (no specific place paired with Pollack) Artificial surname: from n. păun [Rom.] peacock ; Borrowed surname: from surname Păunescu, used by Romanian Christians. Penciu# Borrowed surname: from surname Penciu, used by Romanian Christians. Pentelescu (w.p. Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: from surname Pentelescu, used by Romanian Christians. Perieţeanu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Perieţi dist. Ialomiţa (Muntenia) or Perieţi de Jos and Perieţi de Sus dist. Olt (Oltenia) . Perlea (w.p. Răuţel dist. Bălţi) Matronymic: from female given name Perla, Yiddish Perl(e), used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Perlea, documented in Romania. Pescaru (Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ, Silistra, Vaslui; w.p. Bucharest, Caracal) Occupational surname: from n. pescar [Rom.] fisherman or fishpond attendant . See also Păscaru. Petrar (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Petraru. Petrariu (p.r. Botoşani, Dorohoi, Jassy, Roman) Occupational surname: see Petraru. Petraru (Darabani, Dorohoi, Drujineni dist. Bălţi, Herţa, Lipcani, Mihăileni dist. Bălţi, Suceava, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Vaslui; w.p. Botoşani, Chernovitz, Hârlău, Jassy, Roman, Siret, Tecuci) Occupational surname: from n. petrar, regional variant of pietrar [Rom.] stonecutter {Petrar, Petrariu, Petrarul, Pietrar, Pietraru}. Petrarul (no specific place) Occupational surname: see Petraru.

Dictionary of Surnames

253

Petreanu (Bucharest, Buhuşi, Galaţi, Ploieşti, Roman, Seliştea dist. Roman) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Petreni dist. Hunedoara (Transylvania) and dist. Soroca (Bessarabia); Patronymic: from male given name Petre, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century {Pietreanu}; Borrowed surname: from surname Petreanu, used by Romanian Christians. Petrescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Petre, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Petrescu, used by Romanian Christians. Petroianu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Pietroaia dist. Dolj (Oltenia) or Pătroaia dist. Dâmboviţa (Muntenia) . Petrovan (Adâncata dist. Prahova) Toponymic: see Petroveanu. Petroveanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Petrova dist. Maramureş (Transylvania) {Petrovan}. Petru (Darabani, Târgu Neamţ; p.r. Bălţi, Ploieşti) Patronymic: from male given name Petru, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century; Foreign surname: Petru. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Pietrar (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Urziceni) Occupational surname: see Petraru. Pietraru (Darabani, Dorohoi, Hârlău, Jassy, Rădăuţi; p.r. Siret) Occupational surname: see Petraru. Pietreanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Petreanu. Pifamei* [Romanian spelling: Apifamei] (Bălţi) Matronymic: from undocumented female given name or nickname Pifama . Pilipăuceanu* (Bucharest, Dorohoi; w.p. dist. Botoşani, Piatra Neamţ) Toponymic: from the village of ​Pilipăuţi dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Filipăuceanu}. Pincu (Bacău, Bivolari dist. Jassy, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucharest, Cordun dist. Roman, Dolhasca dist. Baia, Dorohoi, Focşani, Hârlău, Jassy, Panciu, Paşcani, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Roman, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. dist. Baia, Bodeşti dist. Neamţ, Fălticeni, Kishinev) Patronymic: Jewish-​Romanian male given name Pincu, locally derived from Yiddish Pinkhes, from biblical Phineas and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania . Pîndaru (Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. pândar [Rom.] watchman . Pinei* [Romanian spelling: (a) Pinei] (Botoşani, Dorohoi) Matronymic: from female given name Pine, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Pipergaliopol* (w.p. Bacău) uncertain etymon. Pitar (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Pitaru.

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Appendix 3

Pităraşu* (Darabani, Dorohoi, Galaţi) Occupational surname: from n. pităraş [Rom.] little baker; arch. dignitary rank . Pitariu ( Jassy, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Bucharest, Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Pitaru. Pitaru (Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Folteşti, Jassy, Mihăileni, Piatra Neamţ, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Roman, Săveni, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Botoşani, Brăila, Lespezi) Occupational surname: from n. pitar [Rom.] baker; arch. dignitary rank {Pitar, Pitariu}. Plăeşu (Buzău) Occupational surname: from n. plăeş or plăieş [Rom.] border guard; watchman . Ploeşteanu (Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the town of ​Ploieşti in Muntenia . Plop (w.p. Jassy) Artificial surname: from n. plop [Rom.] poplar. Podeanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Podeni dist. Bacău (Moldavia), dist. Mehedinţi (Oltenia), and dist. Suceava (Bukovina) . Podgoreanu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Podgoria dist. Jassy (Moldavia) . Poenaru (no specific place) Nickname-​based: from adj. po(i)enar, derived from poiană [Rom.] clearing in the forest . Poilici* (Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Vaslui; w.p. Bucharest, Roman) uncertain etymon . Polonic (w.p. Storojineţ) Artificial surname: from n. polonic [Rom.] ladle. Pomârleanu (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Mihăileni) Toponymic: from the village of ​ Pomârla dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Pomerleanu, Pomarlianu}. Pomarlianu (no specific place) Toponymic: see Pomărleanu. Pomerleanu (Herţa, Jassy) Toponymic: see Pomărleanu. Postelnicu (Belceşti dist. Jassy, Jassy, dist. Neamţ, Păstrăveni dist. Neamţ, Răsboieni dist. Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. postelnic [Rom. arch.] dignitary rank; Secondary surname: from Primary surname Postelnik or Postilnik . Potcovaru (Focşani) Occupational surname: from n. potcovar [Rom.] horseshoer or blacksmith . Precupeţ (p.r. Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. precupeţ [Rom.] merchant of vegetables, poultry, and dairy {Prikupetz, Prokupetz}. Prelipceanu (Dorohoi; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of ​Prelipcea dist. Chernovitz (Bukovina) or Prelipca dist. Botoşani and dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Prilipceanu}. Prepeliţa (Bălţi) Toponymic: from the village of ​Prepeliţa dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia). Pribeagu#* Nickname-​based: from n. pribeag [Rom.] wanderer, foreigner . Prikupetz (Kishinev) Occupational surname: see Precupeţ.

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Prilipceanu (Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Prelipceanu. Pripa* (w.p. Hotin) Nickname-​based: from n. pripă [Rom.] hurry. Pripas (Lipcani, Rezina dist. Bălţi; w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from adj. (de) pripas [Rom.] stray, wanderer; Foreign surname: Pripas. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Prokupetz (Kishinev, Tighina) Occupational surname: see Precupeţ, Protopopescu (Focşani, p.r. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Protopopescu, used by Romanian Christians. Prusian* (Cuhureşti dist. Soroca, Kishinev, Lublin dist. Soroca) Nickname-​ based: from n. prusian [Rom.] Prussian. Prut (Tecuci, w.p. Râmnicu Sărat) Toponymic: see Prutu. Pruteanu# Toponymic: from the Prut River . Prutu (Brăila) Toponymic: from the Prut river {Prut}. Psalt (Bârlad, Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. psalt [Rom.] cantor. Puiu (p.r. Roman) Patronymic: from diminutive Puiu, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Puiuş* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from diminutive Puiu, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Puşcari (Buzoviţa dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: see Puşcariu. Puşcariu ( Jassy; w.p. Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. puşcar, variant of puşcaş [Rom.] gunner; rifleman {Puşcari}. Puţintelu (w.p. Botoşani) Nickname-​based: from adj. puţintel [Rom.] a little bit, small . Rabinului* (Gura Humorului) Nickname-​based: see Arabinului. Răcăciuni# Toponymic: from the village of ​R ăcăciuni dist. Bacău (Moldavia). Răchier (Kishinev; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Răchieru. Răchieru (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. răchier [Rom.] liquor distiller {Răchier, Rakier, Rakir}. Rădeanu (Rădăuţi Prut; w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​R ădeni dist. Botoşani, dist. Jassy and dist. Neamţ (Moldavia), dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) {Radianu}. Rădescu (p.r. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Rădescu, used by Romanian Christians . Radianu (Herţa, Rădăuţi Prut, Săveni; w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Rădeanu; Borrowed surname: from surname Radianu, documented in Romania. Radu (Bucharest, Kishinev, Soroca, Zastavna; w.p. Cahul, Chernovitz, Dorohoi, Hotin) Patronymic: from male given name Radu, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Rădulescu (w.p. Chernovitz, Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Radu(l), used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century .

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Rahoveanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​R ahova dist. Prahova (Muntenia) . Răileanu (w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the villages of ​R ăileni dist. Cetatea Albă and dist. Tighina (Bessarabia) . Rakier* (Odessa) Occupational surname: see Răchieru. Rakir* (Zguriţa dist. Soroca) Occupational surname: see Răchieru. Ralea (p.r. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Ralea, used by Romanian Christians. Raliu* (no specific place) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Ralea, used by Romanian Christians . Rămureanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​R ămureni dist. Sibiu (Transylvania) ; Borrowed surname: from surname Rămureanu, used by Romanian Christians. Rănişteanu* (no specific place) uncertain etymon . Râpeanu# Toponymic: from the villages of ​R âpile dist. Bacău (Moldavia) and dist. Buzău (Muntenia) . Răşcanu (Putila dist. Rădăuţi) Toponymic: from the villages of ​R ăşcani dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia), dist. Tutova and dist. Vaslui (Moldavia) . Raşcovan* (Alcedar dist. Orhei, Cobilnia dist. Soroca, Kishinev, Orhei, Petreni dist. Soroca, Rezina dist. Bălţi, Vadu Raşcov dist. Soroca) Toponymic: from the village of ​Vadu Raşcu or Vadu Raşcov dist. Soroca (Bessarabia) . Rasfel* (Rădăuţi, Vijniţa) Artificial surname: see Rașpel. Rașpel* (Chernovitz, Lăpuşna, Hotin, Moineşti, Vijniţa) Artificial surname: from n. rașpel [Rom.] rasp {Rașpil, Rasfel}. Rașpil* (w.p. Chernovitz) Artificial surname: see Rașpel. Răsvan#* Patronymic: from male given name Răsvan, used by Romanian Christians. Raţei* (w.p. Soroca) Matronymic: see Araţei. Rateș* (w.p. Chernovitz) Artificial surname: from n. rateș [Rom.] inn, khan. Foreign surname: Rates. Because diacritics are not always marked, it is difficult to distinguish between the spellings Rates and Rateș. Riveanu (w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: from female given name Rive, Yiddish Rifke, derived from biblical Rebecca and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Rizescu# Patronymic: from female given name Riza or Reiza, derived from Yiddish Royze, from Rosa, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe; Toponymic: from the Rizeasca estate dist. Ialomiţa (Muntenia) . Rodescu (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Rodescu, used by Romanian Christians. Romanescu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the town of ​Roman in Moldavia; Nickname-​based: from n. romȃn [Rom.] Romanian .

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Romaşcanu (Bacău, Balta, Botoşani, Lespezi dist. Suceava; w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Toponymic: from adj. Romaşcan, derived from the town of ​Roman in Moldavia. Ronea# Matronymic: from Yiddish female given name Rone used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe ; Borrowed surname: from surname Ronea, used in Romania {Runea}. Roşca (Boiucani in Bessarabia; w.p. Jassy, Kishinev, Storojineţ) Nickname-​ based: see Roşcu. Roşco* (Hâncesti dist. Lăpuşna, Kishinev, Orhei, Pecestea dist. Orhei, Petrovca dist. Tighina) Nickname-​based: see Roşcu. Roşcovan (Floreşti in Bessarabia, Rezina dist. Bălţi, Sculeni dist. Bălţi; w.p. Răuţel dist. Bălţi) Nickname-​based: see Roşcovanu. Roşcovanu (Sculeni dist. Bălţi) Nickname-​based: from n. roşcovan [Rom.] red-​ haired {Roşcovan}. Roşcu* (no specific place) Nickname-​based: from adj. roş [Rom.] reddish, red-​ haired {Roşco, Roşca}. Roşculeţ (Rădăuţi) Nickname-​based: from adj. roş(cu) [Rom.] red-​haired] . Roşianu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Roşieni dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia) or Roşia dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Roșiu (no specific place) Artificial surname: see Roșu. Roşoaie* [Romanian spelling: Aroşoaiei] (w.p. Jassy) Nickname-​based: from adj. roşu [Rom.] red. Roşoaia, derived from roşu, means the red one (female); Matronymic: from surname Roşu. Roşoaia, derived from Roşu, means Roşu’s wife/daughter . Roșu (Botoşani, Bucharest, Craiova, Fălticeni, Huşi, Jassy, Lespezi, dist. Neamţ, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Raşcov paired with Rosen, Tulcea; w.p. Arad, Bacău, Bălţi, Fălciu, Tecuci) Artificial surname: from adj. roșu [Rom.] red {Roșiu}; Secondary surname: calque translation of German Primary surname Roth. Rotar (Săveni) Occupational surname: see Rotaru. Rotari (Pătrăuţii de Jos dist. Storojineţ) Occupational surname: see Rotaru. Rotariu (Dorohoi, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Occupational surname: see Rotaru. Rotaru (Brăila, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Hăneşti dist. Dorohoi, Săveni, Suliţa dist. Botoşani, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Bălţi, Botoşani, Hârlău, Hotin, Kishinev, Storojineţ) Occupational surname: from n. rotar [Rom.] wheelwright or cartwright {Rotar, Rotariu, Rotari}. Rozeanu* (p.r. Bucharest) Matronymic: from female given name Roza, used by Christians and by Jews, from Yiddish Royze, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe; Secondary surname: from Primary surname Rozen . Rozescu (no specific place) Matronymic: from female given name Roza, used by Christians and by Jews, from Yiddish Royze, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe .

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Rudinescu# Patronymic: probably from male given name Rudi, hypocoristic form of ​Rudolf, used by both Christians and Jews . Ruhlei* [Romanian spelling: (a) Ruhlei] (Botoşani) Matronymic: from female given name Rukhl, Yiddish Rokhl, derived from biblical Rachel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Runea (no specific place) Matronymic: see Ronea. Rusu (Dorohoi, Galaţi; w.p. Bârlad, Botoşani, Kishinev, Vama Câmpulung) Nickname-​based: from n. rus [Rom.] Russian . Săbăoneanu* (Dorohoi, Roman) Toponymic: from the village of Săbăoani dist. Sibiu (Transylvania) {Săbăuneanu}. Săbăuneanu* (Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Săbăoneanu. Sacagiţei* [Romanian spelling: Asacagiţei] (Darabani) Nickname-​based: from n. sacagiţă [Rom.] female water seller . Sacagiu (Bacău, Burdujeni, Botoşani, Buhuşi, Chernovitz, Codăeşti, Craiova, Darabani, Dorohoi, Ghidigeni, Hârlău, Herţa, Jassy, Kishinev, Odobeşti, Paşcani, Prelipcea dist. Chernovitz, Săveni, Sculeni dist. Bălţi, Suceava, Ştefăneşti, Truşeşti; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia, Fălticeni, Roman, Tecuci) Occupational surname: from n. sacagiu [Rom.] water carrier. Sacaleţ^ (no specific place) Artificial surname: see Săculeţ. Sachleanu (w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the villages of Sihlea dist. Râmnicu Sărat and Sihleanu dist. Brăila (Muntenia) . Săculeţ (Bivol dist. Dorohoi, Botoşani, Darabani, Dorohoi, Ştefăneşti) Artificial surname: from n. săculeţ [Rom.] pouch {Sacaleţ}. A relatively similar-​sounding surname with the spelling Sokolets is documented in other countries. Șafaru* ( Jassy; w.p. dist. Baia) Occupational surname: from n. şafar, variant şufar [Rom.] administrator, supervisor; also cattle/horse herder {Șufaru, Șufăr}. Safianu* (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. safian [Rom.] morocco leather . Şaim* (Adjud, Avrămeşti dist. Tutova, Bârlad, Drânceni dist. Fălciu, Iveşti dist. Tecuci, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ, Ploieşti, Răducăneni dist. Fălciu, Roman, Târgu Neamţ, Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Tecuci) Patronymic: from Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Şaim, locally derived most probably from Shaye, from Yiddish Ishaye, derived from biblical Isaiah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Şăineanu# Secondary surname: from Primary surname Schein . Salnea* (no specific place) uncertain etymon . Sămsuleasa* (Lespezi) Matronymic: from male given name Samsa, Yiddish Shimshn, derived from biblical Samson and used by Ashkenazic Jews in

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Eastern Europe . Sămsuleasa, derived from Samsa, means Samsa’s wife/daughter. Sanda (w.p. Kishinev, Răuţel dist. Bălţi, Soroca, ) Matronymic: from female given name Sanda, hypocoristic form of Alexandra, used by both Romanian Christians and Jews. Sandu (w.p. Bucharest, Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Sandu, hypocoristic form of Alexandru, used by both Romanian Christians and Jews. Sandulovici (Galaţi; p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Sandu(l), hypocoristic form of Alexandru, used by both Romanian Christians and Jews . Șanţ* (Botoşani) Artificial surname: from n. șanţ [Rom.] ditch. Șapcar* (Bălţi, Botoşani, Chilia) Occupational surname: see Șepcaru. Șapcariu* (w.p. Roman) Occupational surname: see Șepcaru. Șapcaru* (Piatra Neamţ, Ştefăneşti; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Șepcaru. Şaptebani* (p.r. Catranâc dist. Bălţi, Gordineşti dist. Hotin, Kishinev) Toponymic: from the village of Şapte Bani dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia). Săpunar (Cunicea dist. Soroca, Fuzovca dist. Orhei, Jassy, Orhei, Peresecina dist. Orhei, Răspopeni dist. Orhei, Teleneşti dist. Orhei) Occupational surname: see Săpunaru. Săpunariu (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Săpunaru. Săpunaru (Bordoşani Coiteasca dist. Buzău, Bucecea, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Dorohoi, Humuleşti dist. Neamţ, Jassy, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ, Vertujeni dist. Soroca; p.r. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. săpunar [Rom.] soap maker {Săpunar, Săpunariu}. Sărăcuţ (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: see Sărăcuţu. Sărăcuţu (Dorohoi) Nickname-​based: from adj. sărac [Rom.] poor, destitute {Sărăcuţ}. Saragea# Occupational surname: from n. saragea [Rom.] light cavalry soldier. Sărăţeanu (no specific place) Toponymic: from the village of Sărăţeni dist. Ialomiţa (Muntenia) . Sârbu (w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from n. sârb [Rom.] Serbian . Sauţu* (p.r. Feteşti dist. Hotin) uncertain etymon . Săvulescu# Patronymic: from male given name Sava or Savu, used by Romanian Christians ; Borrowed surname: from surname Săvulescu, used by Romanian Christians. Scȃntei (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Tighina) Artificial surname: from n. scȃnteie [Rom.] spark. Schileru# Occup.ational surname: from n. schiler [Rom.] arch. dignitary rank, customs officer .

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Şchiopu (Bucharest, Darabani) Nickname-​based: from n. şchiop [Rom.] lame . Schiţaru* (Săveni) Occupational surname: probably from n. schiţă [Rom.] sketch . Schloimaru* [Romanian spelling: Șloimaru] (Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Shloim, from Yiddish Shloyme, derived from biblical Solomon and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe, probably by association with n. şoimar [Rom.] falconer . Scorţaru (Alexandria, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Huşi, Parincea dist. Bacău, Paşcani, Săveni, Suliţa; w.p. dist. Baia, Botoşani, Hârlău, Galaţi) Occupational surname: from n. scorţar [Rom.] carpet weaver . Scorţeanu (Paşcani; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Scorţeni dist. Bacău (Moldavia), dist. Orhei (Bessarabia) and dist. Prahova (Muntenia) . Scurtu# Nickname-​based: from adj. scurt [Rom.] short . Securianu (Rădăuţi) Toponymic: from the village of Secureni dist. Hotin (Bukovina) . Segalescu* (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Segal {Sigalescu}. Seleanu* (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: probably from the village of Silea dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Seleştean (Căpreşti dist. Soroca) Toponymic: probably from the villages of Seliştea dist. Chernovitz (Bukovina) and dist. Orhei or Seliştea Veche dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) . Șepcaru* (Dorohoi, Galaţi) Occupational surname: from n. şepcar [Rom.] cap maker {Șapcaru, Șapcar, Șapcariu}. Şeptelici (no specific place) Toponymic: from the village of Şeptelici dist. Soroca (Bessarabia). Şerbeanu* (Buzău, Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the village of Şerbeni dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) . Şerbu* (Braşov, Piatra Neamţ) Nickname-​based: from n. şerb [Rom.] serf, indentured servant . Seriţeanu (Bucharest) Toponymic: see Sireţeanu. Seveanu* (Bacău; w.p. Bucharest, Fălticeni) Toponymic: from the village of Săveni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Zaveanu}. Sevileanu* (Bucharest) Secondary surname: probably from Sephardic Primary surname Sevilia . Sfanţ^ Artificial surname: from n. sfanţ [Rom.] old Austrian coin, dime; could be also Nickname-​based. Şiac* (Briceni, Edineţi, Jassy, Lipcani, Noua Suliţa dist. Hotin) Artificial surname: from n. şiac [Rom.] a type of cloth, fabric.

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Sigalea# Secondary surname: from Primary surname Sigal . Sigalescu* (w.p. dist. Baia) Secondary surname: see Segalescu. Silianu# Toponymic: probably from the village of Sileni dist. Vâlcea (Muntenia) . Silişteanu^ Toponymic: from a number of villages of Siliştea in the regions of ​ Muntenia and Moldavia . Silistraru* (Galaţi) Occupational surname: from silitră [Rom.] gunpowder, probably by association with toponym Silistra (Dobruja) . Silvianu (Buhuşi) Patronymic: from male given name Silvian or Silviu, used by both Romanian Christians and Jews . Simca* (Bereşti dist. Bălţi, Botoşani, Jassy, Roman; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Piatra Neamţ) Patronymic: from Romanian-​Jewish male given name Simca, derived either from Yiddish Shimen, biblical Simon, or from Yiddish Simkhe and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Simfalik* [Romanian spelling: Sin Falic] ( Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Falik, Yiddish Falk, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Simion (Bacău, Bucharest; w.p. Braşov, Brăila) Patronymic: from male given name Simion, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century; Foreign surname: Simion. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Simionescu (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Simion, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Sin Aceba* (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and uncertain etymon, perhaps Akiva, derived fom Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Aizic* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Aizic, Yiddish Itsik, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Alter* (Botoşani, Fălticeni; p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Alter, created from Yiddish n. alter (old man) and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Aron* (Botoşani, Frumuşica, Herţa, Paşcani; p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and biblical male given name Aron, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Avraham* (Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Patronymic: see Sin Avram. Sin Avram* (Botoşani, Bucharest, Dorohoi, Galaţi; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Hârlău, Roman) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Avram, used by both Romanian Christians, derived from biblical Avraam through double vowel reduction, and Jews, derived from Yiddish Avrom,

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from biblical Abraham [Heb. Avraham], and very common among Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Sin Avraham}. Sin Baba* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Babe, Yiddish Bobe, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe, or from n. babă [Rom.] old woman. Sin Beila* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Beila, Yiddish Beyle, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Bela}. Sin Bela* (w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: see Sin Beila. Sin Benţin* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Benţin, Yiddish Bentsiyen, Hebrew Ben Zion, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Bercu* (Botoşani paired with Bercovici, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Mitoc dist. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Bercu, from Berk, derived from Yiddish Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Blima* (no specific place) Matronymic: see Sin Bluma. Sin Bluma* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and Yiddish female given name Blume {Sin Blima}. Sin Braha* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Braha, Yiddish Brokhe, of common use among Jews {Sin Bruha}. Sin Brana* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Brana, derived from Yiddish Brayne and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Bruha* (Piteşti) Matronymic: see Sin Braha. Sin Buium* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and Jewish-​Romanian male given name Buium, locally derived from Yiddish Benyomen, biblical Benjamin, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Sin Burach* (w.p. Roşiorii de Vede dist. Teleorman) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Burach, from Yiddish Borekh, derived from biblical Baruch and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Calman* (Darabani, Suliţa dist. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Calman, Yiddish Kalmen, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Coina* (w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Coina or Koyne, from Yiddish Kune, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Copel* (w.p. Chernovitz, Cluj, Dorohoi, Roşiorii de Vede dist. Teleorman) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Copel, derived fom Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe.

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Sin David* (Botoşani, Podu Iloaei; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and biblical male given name David, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Devora* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Devora, Yiddish Dvoyre, derived from biblical Deborah, of common use among Jews {Sin Dvoira}. Sin Dvoira* (w.p. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Matronymic: see Sin Devora. Sin Eli* (Ştefăneşti; w.p. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias), of common use among Jews. Sin Enta* (w.p. Botoşani, Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name (Y)Enta, from Yiddish Yentl, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Estera* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Estera, from biblical Ester, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Eta* (no specific place) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Eta or Ete, from biblical Ester, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Etla}. Sin Etla* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: see Sin Eta. Sin Faibiş* (p.r. Botoşani, w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Faibiş or Faybish, from Yiddish Fayvush, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Falic*: see Simfalik. Sin Fani* (Botoşani 1; w.p. Jassy) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Fani or Fania, Yiddish Fanye, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe, or from female given name Fani, hyopcoristic form of Stefania, used by both Romanian Christians and Jews. Sin Feiga* (Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani, Bucharest, Hârlău, Jassy) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Feiga, from Yiddish Feyge, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Freida* (Botoşani; w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Freida, Yiddish Freyde, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Frima* (Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Frima, from Yiddish Frime, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Froim* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Froim, from Yiddish Efroyem, derived from biblical Ephraim and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Fruchman* (p.r. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and surname Fruchman.

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Sin Gavril* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Gavril, from biblical Gabriel, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Gerşin* (Botoşani; w.p. Hârlău) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Gerşin, from Yiddish Gershn, derived from biblical Gershon, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ghidale* (p.r. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Ghidale, from Yiddish Gdalye, derived from biblical Godolia, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Ghidla}. Sin Ghidla* (no specific place) Patronymic: see Sin Ghidale. Sin Golda* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Golda, from Yiddish Golde, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Gotesman* (Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Gotesman, from Yiddish Gotsman, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe, or surname Gotesman. Sin Hachia* (Botoşani) Matronymic: see Sin Haiche. Sin Haia* (Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani, Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Haia, Yiddish Khaye, of common use among Jews. Sin Haiche* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Haiche, from Yiddish Khaye, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Hachia}. Sin Haim* (Botoşani, Bucecea, Dorohoi, Hârlău, Liteni, Negreşti, Ştefăneşti; p.r. Bucharest; w.p Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Haim, from Yiddish Khayem, of common use among Jews. Sin Hana* (dist. Prahova, Sinaia; w.p. Botoşani, Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Hana, derived from Yiddish Khane, of common use among Jews. Sin Hanţa* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Hanţa, derived from Yiddish Khane and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Hinţa}. Sin Hascal* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Hascal, from Yiddish Ikheskl, derived from biblical Ezekiel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Hava* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Hava, Yiddish Khave, derived from biblical Eve, of common use among Jews. Sin Herman* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Herman, used by both Romanian Christians and Jews. Sin Herş* (Botoşani, Bucecea; w.p. dist. Covurlui, Hârlău) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Herş, Yiddish Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe.

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Sin Herşcu* (Belceşti dist. Jassy, Botoşani, Burdujeni, Fălticeni, Forăşti dist. Baia, Târgu Frumos; p.r. Hârlău; w.p. Bucharest, Roman) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and Jewish-​Romanian male given name Herşcu, from Yiddish Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Herţ*: see Sin Hertz. Sin Hertz* [Romanian spelling: Sin Herţ] (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Herţ, from Yiddish Hirsh, kinnui for biblical Naphtali, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Hinţa* (p.r. Baia dist.) Matronymic: see Sin Hanţa. Sin Hună* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Hârlău) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Hună or Khune, Yiddish Elkhonen, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Iahat* (w.p. Roman) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Iahat or Yakhet, from Yiddish Yokhved, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Iancu* (Balta, Botoşani, Dorohoi, Liteni dist. Baia; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Iancu, used by both Christians, derived from Io(a)n, biblical John, and Jews, derived from Yanke, Yiddish Yakef, from biblical Jacob, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Sin Idel* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Idel, from Yiddish Yude, derived from biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ides* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Ides, from Yiddish Yudes, derived from biblical Judith and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ihil* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Ihil or Ikhiel, Yiddish Yekhiel, derived from biblical Jehiel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ilie* (Podu Turcului, Pueşti dist. Tutova, Vaslui) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Ilie, derived from biblical Elijah (Elias) and used by Romanian Christians; adopted by Jews in Romania and used as an equivalent to Eli, Yiddish Elye, derived from the same biblical Elijah (Elias). Sin Iosub* (Botoşani, Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Hârlău) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and Jewish-​Romanian male given name Iosub, locally derived from Yiddish Yoysef, from biblical Joseph and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Sin Ita* (p.r. Botoşani, Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Ita, from Yiddish Yudes, derived from biblical Judith and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe.

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Sin Iţic* (Botoşani, Fălticeni; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. dist. Baia, Hârlău, Jassy, Roman, Tecuci) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Iţic, from Yiddish Itsik, derived from biblical Isaac and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Janeta* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Janeta, French Jeannette, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Joil* (no specific place) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Joil or Ioil, from Yiddish Yoyel, derived from biblical Joel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Leia* (Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani, Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Leia, from Yiddish Leye, derived from biblical Leah, of common use among Jews. Sin Leib* (Botoşani, Săveni) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Leib, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Leibu}. Sin Leiba* (Botoşani, Fălticeni; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Leiba, Yiddish Leyb, kinnui for biblical Judah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Leibu* (Tecuci) Patronymic: see Sin Leib. Sin Leivi* (w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Leivi, from Yiddish Leyve, derived from biblical Levi and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Leizer* (Botoşani paired with Lazarovici), Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Leizer, from Yiddish Elieyzer, derived from biblical Eliezer and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Lupu* (Bârlad, Botoşani, Dorohoi, Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Lupu, from n. lup [Rom.] wolf, used by Romanian Christians and by Jews, as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Volf, kinnui for biblical Benjamin, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Sin Malca* (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani, Jassy) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Malca, variant of postbiblical Malka, of common use among Jews. Sin Malia* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Malia, from Yiddish Malke, derived from postbiblical Malka and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Marcu* (Botoşani, Burdujeni, Dorohoi, Paşcani; w.p. Hârlău, Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Marcu, used by Romanian Christians and adopted by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania as kinnui for biblical Mordechai. Sin Maria* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Maria, biblical Mary, used by both Christians and Jews.

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Sin Mariem* (Botoşani; w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Mariem, Yiddish Miryem, derived from biblical Miriam and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Meer* (Botoşani) Patronymic: see Sin Meier. Sin Meier* (Botoşani, Reni) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Meier, from Talmudic Meir of common use among Jews {Sin Meer}. Sin Mendel* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Hârlău, Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Mendel, from Yiddish Man, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Moisă* (Botoşani) Patronymic: see Sin Moise. Sin Moise* (Botoşani, Bucecea, Fălticeni, Huşi; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Hârlău, Jassy, Predeal) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Moise, derived from biblical Moses and used by both Jews and Romanian Christians {Sin Moisă, Sin Moişe}. Sin Moişe* (w.p. Botoşani, Dorohoi) Patronymic: see Sin Moise. Sin Naftule* (Botoşani; w.p. Roman) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Naftule, from Yiddish Naftole, derived from biblical Naphtali and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Nata* (no specific place) Patronymic: see Sin Nuta. Sin Nathan* (Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and biblical male given name Nathan, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Nina* (Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Nina, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Nisel* (dist. Neamţ) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Nisel, from Yiddish Nisn, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Nuhăm* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Nuhăm, from Yiddish Nokhum, derived from biblical Nahum and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Nusem* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: see Sin Nusen. Sin Nusen* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Nusen, from Yiddish Nosn, derived from biblical Nathan and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Nusem}. Sin Nuta* (w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Nuta, from Yiddish Nosn, derived from biblical Nathan and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Nata}. Sin Oişie* (Zvorâştea dist. Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani, Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and from Jewish-​Romanian male given name (H)Oişie, locally derived from Yiddish Hosheye, from biblical Hosea, or from Hoyshie, Yiddish Yoshue, from biblical Joshua, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania.

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Sin Peisa* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: see Pesa. Sin Perla* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Perla, Yiddish Perl(e), used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Pesa* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Pesa, from Yiddish Basheve, derived from biblical Batsheva and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Peisa}. Sin Pincu* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Pincu, locally derived from Yiddish Pinkhes, from biblical Phineas and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Sin Rahmil* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Rahmil or Rakhmil, from Yiddish Irakhmiel, derived from biblical Ierakhmel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Reiza* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Reiza or Reize, derived from Yiddish Royze, from Rosa, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Reizla, Sin Riza}. Sin Reizla* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: see Sin Reiza. Sin Rifca* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Fălticeni, Jassy) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Rifca, from Yiddish Rifke, derived from biblical Rebecca and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Riva* (Botoşani; p.r. Roman) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Riva, from Yiddish Rifke, derived from biblical Rebecca and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Riven* (Botoşani; w.p. Jassy) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Riven, from Yiddish Ruvn, derived from biblical Reuben and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Riza* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest) Matronymic: see Sin Reiza. Sin Ronia* (no specific place) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Ronia, from Yiddish Rone, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Rosa* (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Rosa, used by both Christians and Jews {Sin Roza}. Sin Roza* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: see Sin Rosa. Sin Ruhla* (Botoşani, Darabani; w.p. Bucharest, Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Ruhla, from Yiddish Rokhl, derived from biblical Rachel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Şaia* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şaia or Shaye, from Yiddish Ishaye, derived from biblical Isaias and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe.

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Sin Şapsă* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şapsă, from Yiddish Shapse, derived from biblical Shabbethai and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Schutz* (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: probably from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and surname Schutz. Sin Şeindla* (Darabani; w.p. Botoşani, Hârlău) Matronymic: Sin Şeine. Sin Şeine* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Şeine, from Yiddish Sheine, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Şeindla}. Sin Şeiva* (w.p. Hârlău) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Şeiva or Sheve, from Yiddish Basheve, derived from biblical Batsheva and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Simon* (Botoşani, Hănţeşti dist. Dorohoi, Hârlău; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Simon, used by both Christians and Jews or male given name Şimon, from Yiddish Shimen, derived from biblical Simon and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Because diacritics are not always marked, it is difficult to distinguish between the spellings Simon and Şimon. Sin Simson* (Botoşani) Patronymic: probably Sin Şimşon, from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şimşon or Shimshon, from Yiddish Shimshn, derived from biblical Samson and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Şlima* (Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şlima, from Yiddish Shloyme, derived from biblical Solomon and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Şloim* (Botoşani; w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şloim, from Yiddish Shloyme, derived from biblical Solomon and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Şmaia* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şmaia or Shmaia, from Yiddish Shmaye, derived from biblical Shemaiah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Şmiel* (w.p. Kishinev) Patronymic: see Sin Şmil. Sin Şmil* (Botoşani; w.p. Dorohoi, Fălticeni) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şmil or Shmil, Yiddish Shmuel, derived from biblical Samuel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Şmiel}. Sin Solomon* (w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Solomon, used by both Christians and Jews. Sin Şoşe* (w.p. Dorohoi) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Şoşe or Shoshe, Yiddish Shoshane, derived from biblical Susan and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe.

270

Appendix 3

Sin Sosia* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Sosia, from Yiddish Sore, derived from biblical Sara and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ştrul* (Botoşani, Bucharest, Huşi, Podu Iloaei, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Fălticeni) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Ştrul or Shtrul, from Yiddish Isroel, derived from biblical Israel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Sucher* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest paired with Suharovici) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Sucher, from Yiddish Isokher, derived from biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Suhar}. Sin Suhar* (Botoşani) Patronymic: see Sin Sucher. Sin Şulim* (Botoşani; w.p. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Şulim or Shulim, from Yiddish Sholem, derived from Shalom and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Sura* (Botoşani, Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Sura, from Yiddish Sore, derived from biblical Sara and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ţalic* (p.r. Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Ţalic, from Yiddish Betsalel, biblical Bezalel, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Tauba* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Tauba, from Yiddish Toybe, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ţilea* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Ţilea or Tsilea, Yiddish Tsile, derived from biblical Zillah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Ţivia* (Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Ţivia or Tsivia, Yiddish Tsivye, derived from biblical Zibiah and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Toba* (w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Toba, from Yiddish Toybe, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Uşer* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Uşer or Usher, Yiddish Osher, derived from biblical Asher and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Zalman* (Botoşani; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Hârlău) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Zalman, kinnui for Yiddish Shloyme, derived from biblical Solomon and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Zeida* (Botoşani; w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and n. zeida/zeide [Yid.] grandfather; Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom.

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arch.] son and male given name Zeida, from Yiddish Zeyde, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Zeilig* (Botoşani, Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Suceava) Patronymic: see Sin Zelig. Sin Zelig* (Dorohoi; p.r. Darabani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and male given name Zelig, from Yiddish Zelikman, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Zeilig}. Sin Zisla* (w.p. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Zisla, Yiddish Zisl, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. Sin Zisu* (Botoşani) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Zisu, locally derived from Zis, Yiddish Zusman, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania. Sin Zlata* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son and female given name Zlata, Yiddish Zlate, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sin Zlota}. Sin Zlota* (p.r. Botoşani) Matronymic: see Sin Zlata. Sin* (Botoşani, Burdujeni, Jassy; p.r. Bălţi, Dorohoi) Patronymic: from n. sin [Rom. arch.] son. Șindelaru (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. şindilar, variant of şindrilar [Rom.] wood-​tile maker . Şipoteanu (no specific place) Toponymic: from the villages of Şipote dist. Covurlui or Şipoteni dist. Bacău and dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia), dist. Lăpuşna (Bessarabia) . Şiret* (no specific place) Nickname-​based: see Şiretu. Sireţeanu (Fălticeni; w.p. Chernovitz, Jassy) Toponymic: from the town of Siret in Moldavia {Seriţeanu} . Şiretu* (Dorohoi, Săveni, Suceava; p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from adj. şiret [Rom.] astute, sly. Alternate form, Siret(u) Toponymic: from the Siret River {Şiret}. Sitar (Fălticeni; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Sitaru. Sitaru (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. sitar [Rom.] flour sifter {Sitar}. Șloimaru*: see Schloimaru. Sobaru (w.p. Kishinev) Occupational surname: from n. sobar [Rom.] stove maker . Soboceanu* (w.p. Chernovitz) uncertain etymon . Soceanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the villages of Soci dist. Bacău, dist. Baia, and dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) or Soci Noi and Soci Vechi dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia) {Socianu}. Socianu (no specific place) Toponymic: see Soceanu. Socor#* uncertain etymon.

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Appendix 3

Şoimulescu (Calafat) Artificial surname: from n. șoim [Rom.] hawk . Solomoneanu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Solomon, used by both Christians and Jews; Toponymic: from the village of Solomoneşti dist. Bacău (Moldavia) . Solomonescu^ Patronymic: from male given name Solomon, used by both Christians and Jews . Solomonică* ( Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Solomon, used by both Christians and Jews . Soreanu (Ploieşti; p.r. Bucharest paired with Schor) Toponymic: from the village of Soreni dist. Romanaţi (Oltenia); Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Schor . Soru* or perhaps Şoru (Bucharest, Soroca) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Schor . Sosea* ( Jassy) Matronymic: see Sosia. Sosia* (Bucharest, Rădăuţi) Matronymic: from female given name Sosia, from Yiddish Sore, derived from biblical Sara and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Sosea}. See also Sosnea. Sosnea* (Bălţi) Matronymic: probably from female given name Sosia, from Yiddish Sore, derived from biblical Sara and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe. See also Sosia. Sotirescu (no specific place) Borrowed surname: from surname Sotirescu, used by Romanian Christians. Spaniol* (Galaţi, Ploieşti; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Câmpulung) Nickname-​based: from n. spaniol [Rom.] Spanish; Foreign surname: Spaniol. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Spătar (Vijniţa dist. Sorojineţ; p.r. Hotin) Occupational surname: see Spătaru. Spătaru (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. spătar [Rom. arch.] army or police commander {Spătar} . Speculant* (Suliţa dist. Hotin; w.p. Chernovitz, Edineţi, Răuţel dist. Bălţi) Occupational surname: from n. speculant [Rom.] tradesman, speculator {Spekulant}. The surname is documented with the alternate spelling Szpekulant in other countries. Spekulant* (Făleşti) Occupational surname: see Speculant; Foreign surname: Spekulant. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Sperlea^ Secondary surname: from Primary surname Sperl ; Borrowed surname: from surname Sperlea, used by Romanian Christians. Spirea (p.r. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Spirea, used by Romanian Christians. Spiţer ( Jassy; w.p. Focşani, Piatra Neamţ, Putna dist. Rădăuţi, Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: see Spiţeru; Foreign surname: Spitzer.

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Spiţeru (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. spiţer [Rom.] pharmacist {Spiţer}. Stamadici* (w.p. Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: from surname Stamadici of Greek origin, used by Romanian Christians. Stâncă#* Secondary surname: calque translation of ​Primary surname Stein. Stanciu (Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from surname Stanciu, used by Romanian Christians. Stănescu (Bacău, Jassy; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the villages of Stăneşti dist. Bacău and dist. Botoşani (Moldavia); Borrowed surname: from surname Stănescu, used by Romanian Christians. Stareţ (w.p. Soroca) Occupational surname: from n. stareţ [Rom.] guild president; senior monk in a monastery {Staretz}. Staretz (Cetatea Albă; w.p. Soroca) Occupational surname: see Stareţ; Foreign surname: Staretz. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Starosta* (Bălţi, Frasin dist. Câmpulung, Olişcani dist. Orhei, Orhei, Pecestea dist. Orhei, Saharna dist. Orhei, Ungheni dist. Bălţi, Vadu Raşcu dist. Soroca; p.r. Bravicea dist. Orhei, Kishinev, Răşcani dist. Bălţi; w.p. Chernovitz, Răuţel dist. Soroca, Soroca) Occupational surname: see Staroste. Staroste* (p.r. Botoşani, Gura Humorului, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. staroste [Rom.] guild president {Starosta}. Stăureanu#* uncertain etymon . Ștefănescu (Secureni; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Cetatea Albă, Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Ștefan, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Stelaru (p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. stelar [Rom. arch.] astrologer . Stere (p.r. Kishinev) Patronymic: from male given name Stere, used by Romanian Christians. Sterian^ Borrowed surname: from surname Sterian, used by Romanian Christians. Sticlariu (dist. Baia) Occupational surname: see Sticlaru. Sticlaru (Botoşani, Brăila, Coşeşti dist. Vaslui, Darabani, Fălticeni, Galaţi, Jassy, Ivăneşti dist. Vaslui, Orhei, Poeneşti dist. Vaslui, Sculeni dist. Bălţi, Vaslui) Occupational surname: from n. sticlar [Rom.] glassblower {Sticlariu}. Ştirbu ( Jassy, Răducăneni) Nickname-​based: from n. ştirb [Rom.] gap-​toothed . Stoica (w.p. Chernovitz) Borrowed surname: from surname Stoica, used by Romanian Christians. Stoler (Bender, Hotin; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Stoleru.

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Stoleriu (Dorohoi, Săveni; Ştefăneşti; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Stoleru. Stoleru (Băceşti dist. Roman, Băiceni, Botoşani, Bucecea, Bucharest, Chernovitz, Darabani, Dorohoi, Focşani, Galaţi, Hârlău, Herţa, Huşi, Jassy, Moineşti, Odobeşti, Pungeşti, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Roman, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca, Suceava, Suliţa, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Bacău, dist. Baia, Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. stoler [Rom.] cabinetmaker {Stoler, Stoleriu}. Stopar* [Romanian spelling: Stupar] (Fălticeni) Occupational surname: from n. stupar [Rom.] beekeeper. Storişteanu* (Frumuşica dist. Botoşani; w.p. Galaţi) Toponymic: from the village of Storeşti dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Strahotineanu* ( Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of Strahotin dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) . Straja# Toponymic: from the village of Straja dist. Bacău and dist. Neamţ (Moldavia), dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina); Occupational surname: from n. strajă [Rom.] guard {Streja}. Străjeru (no specific place) Occupational surname: from n. străjer [Rom.] guardsman . Streja# Occupational surname: see Straja. Strimban* (Cuizovca dist. Orhei) Toponymic: from the villages of Strâmba dist. Bălţi (Bessarabia), dist. Roman, dist. Tecuci, and dist. Tutova (Moldavia). Stritineanu* (Botoşani) uncertain etymon . Perhaps deformation of Strahotineanu. Stroe (w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Stroe, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century. Stroescu (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Stroe, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Strugariu* (p.r. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Strugaru. Strugaru* (Suceava) Occupational surname: from n. stru(n)gar [Rom.] shepherd {Strugariu}. Ştrulea* (p.r. Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Strul, from Yiddish Isroel, derived from biblical Israel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Strulsohn* (Bujor dist. Lăpuşna, Cucova dist. Putna, Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. Covurlui dist.) Patronymic: from male given name Strul, from Yiddish Isroel, derived from biblical Israel and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe {Strulson}. Strulson* (p.r. Covurlui dist.) Patronymic: see Strulsohn.

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275

Stuleanu* (Răducăneni dist. Fălciu; w.p. Jassy) uncertain etymon . Stupar: see Stopar. Sturza (Teleneşti dist. Orhei; p.r. Jucica Veche dist. Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of Sturza dist. Roman (Moldavia); Borrowed surname: from surname Sturza, of Greek origin, used by Romanian Christians. Suceveanu (Bucharest, Chernovitz, Galaţi; w.p. dist. Baia, Fălticeni) Toponymic: from the town of Suceava in Bukovina . Sudit (Bender, Leova, Rezina; p.r. Bucharest) Nickname-​based: from n. sudit [Rom.] subject, citizen. Șufăr (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Șafaru. Șufaru (Dorohoi, Hârlău, Roman; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: see Șafaru. Suhăreanu (Botoşani, Dorohoi, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut) Toponymic: from the village of Suhărău dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Suhărianu}. Suharescu* (Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Suhar, from Yiddish Isokher, derived from biblical Issachar and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Suhărianu (Mihăileni, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut) Toponymic: see Suhăreanu. Sulea (no specific place) Borrowed surname: from surname Sulea, used by Romanian Christians. Sulescu^ Borrowed surname: from rare surname Sulescu, used by Romanian Christians. Suliţeanu (Bârlad, Bucharest, Ploieşti, Ştefăneşti; w.p. Bârlad, Fierbinţi) Toponymic: from the villages of Suliţa dist. Botoşani (Moldavia) and dist. Hotin (Bessarabia) . Supusu* (Botoşani) Nickname-​based: from n. supus [Rom.] subject, citizen . Șuraru (Răducăneni dist. Fălciu) Occupational surname: from n. şurar [Rom.] watchman . Surdu (Deleni dist. Botoşani, Dorohoi, Târgu Neamţ; w.p. dist. Baia) Nickname-​based: from n. surd [Rom.] deaf . Surei* (w.p. Bucharest) Matronymic: see Asurei. Şurghe* (w.p. Dorohoi) Borrowed surname: from surname Şurghe or Şurghie, used by Romanian Christians {Şurghi}. Şurghi* (Hulub dist. Botoşani, Rădăuţi, Săveni, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Borrowed surname: see Şurghe. Surugiu (Vancicăuţi dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. surugiu [Rom.] coach driver . Svorişteanu* (Barineşti dist. Rădăuţi; w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Zvorişteanu. Tăbăcaru: see Tabakaru.

276

Appendix 3

Tabacu* (no specific place) Occupational surname: from n. tabac [Rom.] tobacco . Tabakaru [Romanian spelling: Tăbăcaru] (Târgu Neamţ) Occupational surname: from n. tăbăcar [Rom.] tanner . Tacsier* (Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. tacsier [Rom.] tax collector {Taxier, Taksir}. Taină^ Artificial surname: from n. taină [Rom.] mystery, secret. Taingiu* (Bucharest; w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: from n. taingiu [Rom.] administrator, supervisor . Taksir* (Tighina; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Tacsier; Foreign surname: Taksir. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported. Talal* (p.r. Chernovitz, Hotin, Kishinev, Pârliţa dist. Bălţi, Sculeni dist. Bălţi) Occupational surname: from n. telal [Rom.] broker, dealer in old clothing; announcer, town crier. Tălmaciu (Botoşani, Darabani, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Gidigeni, Piteşti, Rădăuţi, Rădăuţi Prut, Soroca; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. tălmaci [Rom.] interpreter, translator . Tălpălar* (Edineţi, Făleşti, Kishinev, Orhei, Teleşeu dist. Orhei) Occupational surname: see Tălpălaru. Tălpălariu* (Dorohoi; w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Tălpălaru. Tălpălaru* (Dorohoi, Herţa, Noua Suliţa dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. tălpălar [Rom.] shoe-​sole maker {Tălpălar, Tălpălariu}. Tampescu (Fălticeni; w.p. dist. Baia, Chernovitz) Toponymic: from the village of ​Tȃmpeşti dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Ţapu (Piatra Neamţ, Târgu Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest) Artificial surname: from n. ţap [Rom.] he goat {Ţapul}. Ţapul (no specific place) Artificial surname: see Ţapu. Ţăran (w.p. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: see Ţăranu. Ţăranu (Botoşani, Ştefăneşti dist. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. ţăran [Rom.] peasant, farmer {Ţăran}. Tărcăoanu* (Tarcău) Toponymic: from the village of ​Tarcău dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Tarcovanu*: see Tarkovanu. Tarkovanu* [Romanian spelling: Tarcovanu] (Piatra Neamţ, Tarcău dist. Neamţ; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Tarcău dist. Neamţ (Moldavia) . Tărnăuceanu (Dorohoi; p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​ Tărnăuca dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Ternăucenu}. Tatar [Romanian spelling: Tătar] (Briceni, Câmpulung, Lipcani; p.r. Kishinev) Nickname-​based: from n. tătar [Rom.] Tatar; Foreign surname: Tatar. It is difficult to ascertain if it was adopted locally or imported.

Dictionary of Surnames

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Tătar: see Tatar. Taubei* [Romanian spelling: Ataubei] ( Jassy) Matronymic: from given name Tauba, from Yiddish Toybe, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe . Tăuşanu (Negreşti, Roman) Toponymic: from the village of ​Tăuşeanca dist. Ilfov (Muntenia) {Tăuşianu}. See also Teișanu. Tăuşianu (no specific place) Toponymic: see Tăuşanu. Taxier* (Botoşani, Dimca dist. Rădăuţi, Jassy) Occupational surname: see Tacsier. Tecleanu^ uncertain etymon . Tecuceanu (Bucharest, Dorohoi, Mihăileni) Toponymic: from the town of ​ Tecuci in Moldavia {Tecucianu}. Tecucianu (p.r. Bucharest 1) Toponymic: see Tecuceanu. Teișan (no specific place) Toponymic: see Teișanu. Teișanu (Darabani) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Teișoara dist. Botoșani or Teiuș dist. Bacău and dist. Putna (Moldavia) {Teușanu, Teișan, Tioșanu}. See also Tăuşanu. Teișeanu (Darabani) Toponymic: see Teișanu. Tejghetaru* (Săveni; p.r. Roman) Occupational surname: from n. tejghetar [Rom.] store clerk . Teodorescu (w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Teodor, used by Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Ternăucenu (w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Tărnăuceanu. Teslaru (Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. teslar [Rom.] carpenter . Teușanu (Bucharest, Dorohoi) Toponymic: see Teișanu. Theodorașcu (Galaţi) Patronymic: from male given name Theodor, used by Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Theodorson* (Galaţi) Patronymic: from male given name Theodor, used by Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century . Ţighelnicu* (Burdujeni; p.r. dist. Baia, Fălticeni, Paşcani) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Tsigelnik {Ţighelnicul}. Ţighelnicul* (p.r. dist. Baia) Secondary surname: see Ţighelnicu. Tighinean*: see Tiginyan. Tiginyan* [Romanian spelling: Tighinean] (Orhei) Toponymic: from the town of ​Tighina in Bessarabia . Ţimbălaru* (Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. ţimbălar [Rom.] cimbalom player . Tinichigiu* (Buhuşi, Codăeşti, Dorohoi, Galaţi, Huşi, Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Botoşani, Chernovitz, Jassy, Roman) Occupational surname: from n. ti­ni­chigiu [Rom.] tinsmith.

278

Appendix 3

Tioșanu* (Darabani) Toponymic: see Teișanu. Tismăneanu# Toponymic: from the villages of ​Tismana dist. Gorj and dist. Mehedinţi (Oltenia) . Tocilaru^ Occupational surname: from n. tocilar [Rom.] sharpener . Todiraş: see Todirasch. Todirasch [Romanian spelling: Todiraş] ( Jassy) Patronymic: from male given name Todiraş, used by Romanian Christians {Todiriş}. Todiriş (Boian dist. Chernovitz; w.p. Bucharest) Patronymic: see Todirasch. Tremurici* (Lespezi) Nickname-​based: from n. tremurici [Rom. derisively] trembling, coward. Trestianu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Trestia dist. Buzău (Muntenia) . Tripăduş (no specific place) Occupational surname: from n. trepăduş [Rom.] agent, errand boy. Tudor# Patronymic: from male given name, also surname, Tudor, used by Romanian Christians. Tulbure (w.p. Bârlad) Nickname-​based: from adj. tulbure [Rom.] troubled, uncertain. Tulceanu (Focşani, Ploieşti) Toponymic: from the town of ​Tulcea in Dobruja . Tulpan (Botoşani, Chernovitz, Suceava) Artificial surname: from n. tulpan [Rom.] muslin, shawl. Ţurcanu (w.p. Chernovitz) Artificial surname: from ţurcă [Rom.] large cap of ţurcan race sheep . Turcu (Călugăreni dist. Vaslui, Malinţi dist. Hotin, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Piatra Neamţ; w.p. Dorohoi, Jassy) Nickname-​based: from n. turc [Rom.] Turk . See also Turcuş. Turcuş (w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: from n. turc [Rom.] Turk . See also Turcu. Tureanu (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Turea dist. Cluj (Transylvania) . Tutungiu* (Chernovitz, Edineţi, Lipcani, Trinca dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: from n. tutungiu [Rom.] tobacconist. Ungurean (w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: see Ungureanu. Ungureanu (Bucharest, Mihăileni; w.p. Botoşani, Rădăuţi) Nickname-​based: from n. ungur [Rom.] Hungarian and adj. ungurean [Rom.] from the Hungarian vicinity or from Transylvania {Ungurianu, Ungurean}. Ungurianu (Dorohoi, Mihăileni; w.p. Chernovitz) Nickname-​based: see Ungureanu. Urseanu (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of Ursa Motoşeni dist. Tecuci .

Dictionary of Surnames

279

Ursu (p.r. Bender, Feteşti dist. Hotin, dist. Neamţ) Patronymic: from male given name Ursu, from n. urs [Rom.] bear, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania ; Borrowed surname: from surname Ursu, used by Romanian Christians. Ursulean (w.p. Storojineţ) Patronymic: see Ursuleanu. Ursuleanu (w.p. Chernovitz) Patronymic: from male given name Ursu(l) from n. urs [Rom.] bear, used by Romanian Christians, and by Jews as a local calque translation of ​Yiddish Ber, kinnui for biblical Issachar, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Ursulean}; Borrowed surname: from surname Ursuleanu, used by Romanian Christians. Urzică (Dorohoi) Artificial surname: from n. urzică [Rom.] nettle. Uscatu (Bogdăneşti dist. Baia) Nickname-​based: from adj. uscat [Rom.] dry . Uşieru* ( Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. uşier [Rom.] doorman, clerk . Vădana (Dorohoi, Fălticeni, Târgu Neamţ) Nickname-​based: from n. vădană [Rom.] widow . Vădrar* (Kishinev) Occupational surname: see Vădraru. Vădrariu* (w.p. Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Vădraru. Vădraru* (Dorohoi; w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. vădrar [Rom.] wine weigher {Vădrariu, Vedraru, Vădrar}. Valdeanu* (w.p. Bucharest) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname Wald; Toponymic: from the villages of Valeni-​Podgoria or Valdeni-​ Podgoria dist. Argeş (Muntenia) . Vălean (Bacău; p.r. Bucharest paired with Weiner) Toponymic: see Văleanu. Văleanu (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of ​Văleni dist. Vaslui (Moldavia) {Vălean, Veleanu}. Vanetic* (no specific places) Nickname-​based: see Venetic. Văraru (Bacău, Hârlău, Pânceşti dist. Putna; w.p. Botoşani) Occupational surname: from n. vărar [Rom.] limeburner . Vascanu (w.p. Storojineţ) Toponymic: from the village of ​Vascani dist. Baia (Moldavia) . Vasilescu (Bucharest) Patronymic: from male given name Vasile, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Vasilescu, used by Romanian Christians. Vasiliu (Bălţi; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: from male given name Vasile, used by Romanian Christians and documented among Jews in the twentieth century ; Borrowed surname: from surname Vasiliu, used by Romanian Christians.

280

Appendix 3

Vătafu (p.r. Chernovitz) Occupational surname: from n. vătaf [Rom.] administrator, supervisor {Vătavu}. Vătar* (Bacău) Occupational surname: see Vătaru. Vatarescu (Bacău) Occupational surname: from n. vătar [Rom.] wadding maker . Vătaru (Dorohoi, Herţa; w.p. Bacău, Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. vătar [Rom.] wadding maker {Vătar}. Vătavu ( Jassy) Occupational surname: see Vătafu. Vedraru* (Dorohoi) Occupational surname: see Vădraru. Veisu* (w.p. Kishinev) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Veis or Weis . Veleanu^ Toponymic: see Văleanu. Velescu (Oraviţa) Borrowed surname: from surname Velescu, used by Romanian Christians. Velniceru* (Vaslui; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. velnicer [Rom.] liquor distiller . Venetic* (no specific places) Nickname-​based: from n. venetic [Rom.] wanderer, foreigner {Vanetic}. A surname spelled Venetyk is documented in other countries with the etymon veynendik(er) [Yid.] whining. I see no relation with Venetic here, however. Verea (Bucharest, Jassy) Borrowed surname: from surname Verea, used by Romanian Christians. Vieru (p.r. Kishinev, Jassy) Occupational surname: from n. vier [Rom.] vine grower . Vişan (Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Vişan dist. Jassy (Moldavia); Borrowed surname: from surname Vişan, used by Romanian Christians. Vişcauţan (Kishinev, Orhei) Toponymic: from the villages of ​Văşcăuţi dist. Orhei (Bessarabia) and dist. Rădăuţi (Bukovina), or the town of ​Văşcăuţi pe Ceremuş in Bukovina . Viţeanu* (p.r. Bucharest; w.p. Bukovina paired with Ohrenstein) Artificial surname: probably from n. viţă [Rom.] vine . Vizitiu (Dorohoi; p.r. dist. Baia) Occupational surname: from n. vizitiu [Rom.] coach driver. Vlad (p.r. Focşani, dist. Prahova) Patronymic: from male given name, also surname, Vlad, used by Romanian Christians. Vlăsănișteanu* (Săveni) Toponymic: see Vlăsinișteanu. Vlăsinișteanu* (Botoşani, Săveni; w.p. Dorohoi) Toponymic: from the village of ​V lăsinești dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Vlăsănișteanu}. Voicu# Borrowed surname: from surname Voicu, used by Romanian Christians. Voinea (w.p. Mihăileanca dist. Hotin) Borrowed surname: from surname Voinea, used by Romanian Christians.

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Volintiru^ Occupational surname: from n. volintir, regional variant of voluntar [Rom.] volunteer, especially to the army . Westineanu* (w.p. Bucharest paired with Ostfeld) Secondary surname: probably from Primary surname West . Wurmbrescu* (no specific place) Secondary surname: from Primary surname Wurmbrand . Zahareanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: from the village of ​Zahoreni dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) and dist. Orhei (Bessarabia), probably by association with the male given name Zahar ; Borrowed surname: from surname Zahareanu, used by Romanian Christians. Zambilovici (p.r. Bucharest) Matronymic: possibly from female given name Zambila, used by Romanian Christians {Zanbilovici}. Zamfir (Piatra Neamţ) Borrowed surname: from surname Zamfir, used by Romanian Christians. Zamfirescu (w.p. Bucharest) Borrowed surname: from Romanian Zamfirescu, used by Romanian Christians. Zamosteanu (Bacău) Toponymic: from the village of ​Zamostea dist. Storojineţ (Bukovina) . Zanbilovici* (Huşi) Matronymic: see Zambilovici. Zaraf (Baimaclia dist. Cahul, Briceni dist. Hotin, Ianăuţi dist. Hotin, Jassy, Leova dist. Cahul; p.r. Bucharest) Occupational surname: from n. zaraf [Rom.] money changer {Zarav}. Zarav* (Briceni dist. Soroca, Ianăuţi dist. Hotin) Occupational surname: see Zaraf. Zaveanu* (w.p. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Seveanu. Zeilicu* (Roman paired with Zeilicovici) Patronymic: from male given name Zeilic, from Yiddish Zelikman, used by Ashkenazic Jews in Eastern Europe [derived from Zelig] . Zeleanu ( Jassy) Toponymic: from the village of ​Zelena dist. Hotin (Bessarabia) {Zelianu}; Borrowed surname: from surname Zeleanu, used by Romanian Christians. Zelianu ( Jassy): see Zeleanu. Ziscu* (Săveni; w.p. Dorohoi) Patronymic: see Zisu. Zisu (Bacău, Bârlad, Botoşani, Brăila, Bucecea, Bucharest, Buhuşi, Codăeşti dist. Vaslui, Galaţi, Ghidigeni, Gohor dist. Tecuci, Hârlău, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Dorohoi, Panciu, Ploieşti, Rădăuţi, Râmnicu Sărat, Roman, Sascut, Săveni, Ştefăneşti, Tărnăuca dist. Dorohoi, Târgovişte, Târgu Frumos, Târgu Neamţ, Tecuci; w.p. dist. Baia, Dorohoi, Fălticeni) Patronymic: Jewish-​ Romanian male given name Zisu, locally derived from Zis, Yiddish Zusman, and used by Ashkenazic Jews in Romania {Ziscu}. Zugrav (Leova dist. Cahul) Occupational surname: see Zugravu.

282

Appendix 3

Zugravu (Bucharest, Galaţi) Occupational surname: from n. zugrav [Rom.] house painter {Zugrav}. Zuzescu* (p.r. Chernovitz) uncertain etymon . Zvoreşteanu (p.r. Bucharest) Toponymic: see Zvorişteanu. Zvorişteanu (Barineşti dist. Rădăuţi, Botoşani, Bucharest, Jassy, Mihăileni dist. Hotin, Ştefăneşti dist. Soroca) Toponymic: from the village of ​Zvorâştea dist. Dorohoi (Moldavia) {Svorişteanu, Zvoreşteanu}.

Glossary

Romanian Terms aba  a type of rough woolen inexpensive cloth destined for a low-​income market; from Turkish aba (derived from Arabic abā). baci  shepherd in charge of a sheepfold; senior shepherd. birjă  horse-​drawn cab, hackney carriage; from Russian birzha. catagrafie, pl. catagrafii  inventory, census; from Modern Greek kataghrafí. cărăuşie  transportation of merchandise or passengers with animal-​drawn vehicle. condică  register, roll, book; from Modern Greek kódik. cotigă  small cart with two wheels; from Ukrainian kotyha. cuşerar, pl. cuşerari  Jewish shepherd. Named after the “kosher cheese” produced by Jewish shepherds (cuşer in Romanian). Cuzism  the Christian-​Nationalist doctrine or Cuzism, theorized by A. C. Cuza, appeared in Romanian political life at the end of the nineteenth century. Cuzism represented a radical form of the anti-​Semitic tendency in Romanian political life, which included racial, religious, social, economic, and political components. The final purpose of the Christian-​Nationalist doctrine was to eliminate Jews from all spheres of social, economic, military, cultural, and political life in Romania and in Europe. epitropie  churchwardens council; synagogue wardens council; from Modern Greek epítropos. fiu  son; particle used in early Romanian naming patterns. habotnic  person who respects scrupulously religious precepts, bigot; from Russian khabadnik, a follower of the Jewish religious group Chabad. haraba  large wagon designed for the transport of grains and other merchandise; sometimes also for passengers; from Turkish araba. harabagiu  driver of a haraba; from Turkish arabaci. 283

284

Glossary

horilcă  strong alcoholic beverage made by distilling fermented sweet fruit or grape juices; low-​quality brandy; from Ukrainian horilka. hrisov  in the Romanian Principalities, princely charter granting specific privileges and temporary tax exemptions as well as proprietary rights; from Modern Greek hrisóvuilon. hrisovelit, pl. hrisoveliţi or hrisovoliţi  beneficiary, holder of a hrisov; ( Jewish) immigrant who came to the Romanian lands on the basis of a hrisov. isnaf  guild, confraternity of craftsmen; from Turkish esnaf (derived from Arabic asnāf class). mălai  maize, corn flour. moşie  rural estate, property (large) including arable land; inherited landed property. oierit, oieritul  sheepherding. pământean, pl. pământeni  born in a certain country, native. Poreclă  nickname, sometimes mocking or derisive, given to a person on the basis of a peculiar personal feature (physical, mental, or related to one’s occupation); surname; from Slavic poreklo. raia, pl. raiale  subject of a government or sovereign; member of the taxpaying lower class of Ottoman society; a generic name for the non-​Muslim subjects of the Ottoman Empire and vassal countries, such as the Romanian Principalities; from Turkish rāyā (derived from Arabic re`aya). Românism  Romanian cultural movement (literally “Romanianism”) that emerged at the end of the nineteenth century, promoting common spiritual identity among Romanians and fervent patriotism and nationalism. In the 1920s and 1930s, it was adopted and radicalized by the extreme right political factions, stressing Christian orthodox spirituality, popular traditions, and biologic-​ethnic specificity of the Romanian people, to the exclusion of its Jewish element. saca  water transport and distribution cart; from Turkish saka. sama visteriei  treasury census that established the size of the duties to be paid by the taxpayers; from Hungarian szám. sin  son (archaic); particle used in early Romanian naming patterns; from Slavic synŭ. sudit  inhabitant of the Romanian Principalities enjoying the protection of a foreign power, which entitled him/her to a special jurisdiction and fiscal privileges not available to the native population; from Italian suddito. târg, pl. târguri  market, fair; small market town; from Slavic trŭgŭ. tescovină  alcoholic beverage obtained from the fermentation and distillation of the residues left after the pressing of grapes; marc. ţuică  brandy obtained from the fermentation and distillation of plums or other fruit.

Glossary

285

vadră  old measuring unit used for liquids; wooden or metal container for preserving or transporting liquids; from Slavic vĕdro. velniţă, pl. velniţe  rudimentary installation for the distillation of ​brandy and other alcoholic beverages; from Ukrainian vynnycja. venetic  Venetian; foreigner, alien—mostly pejorative; from Modern Greek venétikos and Turkish venedik. zaherea  food supply (cereals, cattle, sheep) that the Romanian lands had to provide to the Ottoman army; from Turkish zahire. zaraf, pl. zarafi  money changer; by extension moneylender; from Turkish sarraf (derived from Arabic sarrāf).

Hebrew and Aramaic Terms aliyah (Hebrew ‫  )עליה‬immigration of ​Jews to the Land of ​Israel. bar (Aramaic ‫  )בר‬son; particle used in Hebrew and Jewish naming patterns. ben (Hebrew ‫  )בן‬son; particle used in Hebrew and Jewish naming patterns. cahal see kahal Chevra Kadisha (Hebrew ‫  )חברה קדישא‬a Jewish burial society, usually composed of unpaid volunteers who provide services preparing the body for burial, for members of their congregation or community. hakham, pl. hakhamim (Hebrew ‫  )חכם‬a Hebrew title of respect for a wise and highly educated man. In the Sephardic communities, spiritual leader, rabbi. At a lower level, hakham was popularly used by Ashkenazi Jews instead of shokhet, thus implying that the person performing this function had to be extremely well versed in the Jewish law. hakham bashi  see terms under “Other Languages.” heder (or cheder, Hebrew ‫  )חדר‬a traditional Jewish elementary school, literally “a room.” ish (Hebrew ‫  )איש‬man; particle used sometimes in Hebrew and Jewish naming patterns. kahal (Hebrew ‫  )קהל‬the traditional local governing body of a European Jewish community administering religious, legal, and communal affairs; a community. kinnui, pl. kinnuim (Hebrew ‫  )כינוי‬in the Jewish naming tradition, a secular name, or a nickname, different in meaning from the sacred name but closely associated with it. kilayim (Hebrew ‫“  )כלאיים‬of two sorts” or “heterogeneous.” Name of a treatise of the Mishnah, Tosefta, and the Palestinian Talmud, dealing with the exact definition of the Pentateuchal prohibitions (Lev. 19.19; Deut. 22.9–11) which forbid the mingling of different kinds of seeds, the pairing of different kinds of animals, or the mixture of wool and flax in the same garment.

286

Glossary

Kohen Tzedek or Cohen Zedek (Hebrew ‫  )כהן צדק‬rightful or authentic high priest (Kohen); more commonly used in the shortened version Katz (‫)כ״ץ‬. pinkas, pl. pinkasim (Hebrew ‫  )פנקס‬notebook. Traditionally, the Pinkasim were the communal minute books of the Jewish synagogues and communities; the ledgers registering the local community administration’s decisions, rulings, and dispositions. sephardi tahor (Hebrew ‫“  )ספרדי טהור‬pure-​bred Sephardi”; reference to “pure Spanish” Jews who kept apart from and did not marry Ashkenazi Jews. S’gan Levi (Hebrew ‫  )סגן לוי‬Levitic deputy or member of the Levites; assistant to the priests (Kohanim) in the Temple. shatnez (Hebrew ‫  )שעטנז‬the prohibition against wearing garments made from both wool and linen (see kilayim). shem kodesh (Hebrew ‫“  )שם קודש‬sacred name” or religious name. It is, with few exceptions, a Hebrew or Aramaic name that is used in religious practice. shokhet (Hebrew ‫  )שוחט‬a person who has been specially trained and licensed to slaughter cattle and poultry in the manner prescribed by Jewish law; ritual slaughterer. shokhet-u-bodek (Hebrew ‫  )שוחט ובודק‬a ritual slaughterer and examiner of meat according to the prescriptions of ​Jewish law; shortened to shub, which became the surname Shub (compare: Katz above). sofer stam (Hebrew ‫ )סופר סתם‬a sofer is a Jewish scribe and calligrapher whose religious role in Judaism is to copy Torah scrolls, tefillin (phylacteries), and mezuzot (parchments inscribed with Deuteronomic passages to be placed on the doorposts). This occupational name was abbreviated to sass, which became the surname Sass. tallit (Hebrew ‫  )טלית‬a prayer shawl with fringes tied to the corners and worn over the shoulders by Jewish males during religious services. Talmud Torah (Hebrew ‫  )תלמוד תורה‬a communal religious school for instruction of children in Hebrew, Scriptures, Talmud, and Jewish history. tzitzit (Hebrew ‫  )ציצית‬the specially knotted ritual fringes worn by observant Jews. Tzitzit are attached to the four corners of the tallit.

Other Terms boyar, pl. boyars  a member of the higher old nobility of ​Russia (boyarin) before the reforms of ​Peter the Great; in the Romanian lands (boier), a member of the privileged aristocracy; from Slavic boljarinŭ. calque (from French)  copy; calque translation: a word or phrase in one language formed by word-​for-​word or morpheme-​by-​morpheme translation of a word in another language.

Glossary

287

Hakham Bashi (Turkish haham başi, from Hebrew hakham and Turkish başi)  chief rabbi in the Ottoman Empire. In the Romanian lands, a Hakham Bashi was appointed as supreme leader of all the Jewish communities in the territories of ​both Moldavia and Walachia. hypocorism or hypocoristic form  a shorter or diminutive form of a word or a given name; from Greek hypokorizesthai. numerus clausus (Latin)  “closed number.” It is one of many methods used to limit the number of students who may study at a university; in many cases, the goal is simply to limit the number of students to the maximum feasible in some particularly sought-​after areas of studies. Historically, however, in some cases, numerus clausus policies were, in effect, religious or racial quotas. As a discriminatory measure against Jews, it was also extended to the practice of different professions, membership in organizations or associations, and so on. In Romania it was also known as numerus vallachicus (“Valach” meaning Romanian). numerus nullus (Latin)  from nullus, none, meaning total restriction, interdiction. Ostjude (German)  East European Jew. The Ostjude figure became a stereotyped image of the Jew as uncultured and disruptive, dirty and living on the margins of society yet nevertheless shrewd. He was described as wearing black, having a large family, speaking Yiddish, and not mixing in well. Phanariots  members of the prominent Greek families residing in Phanar (modern Fener), the chief Greek quarter of Constantinople, where the Ecumenical Patriarchate is situated. After the Turkish conquest they became powerful in clerical and other offices under Turkish patronage and went on to exercise great influence in the administration of the Ottoman Empire’s Balkan domains. Between the years 1711–16 and 1821, a number of them were appointed princes in Moldavia and Walachia, usually as a promotion from diplomatic offices; that period is usually termed the Phanariot epoch in Romanian history.

Bibliogr aphy

Primary Sources Archival Material Yad Vashem Archives, Jerusalem JM.11155–JM.11221 (microfilms 4015185–4015190) and JM.11462–JM.11464 (microfilms 4015422–4015424): Odessa District State Archive, Odessa (institutional correspondence, money transfer receipts, deportation, and forced-​labor lists). JM.11290–JM.11347 (microfilms 4015251–4015309): documents of the General Directorate of the Romanian Police, the Government of the Province of ​Bukovina, and the Jewish Community in Chernovtsy preserved in the Ukraine Security Service Archive, Chernovtsy (deportation and forced-​labor lists). JM.13417–JM.13534: Archives of the Romanian Ministry of ​National Defense, Bucharest (forced-​labor, deportation, and ghetto/camp lists). JM.3966: Archives of the Central Jewish Community in Romania (Centrala evreilor), Bucharest (forced-​labor, repatriation, and money-​transfer lists). M​.52​/718–721 (microfilm 2749–99): Vinnitsa District State Archive, Vinnitsa (deportation and forced-​labor lists). M.71: Archives in Romania (microfilms of documents pertinent to the Holocaust from different Romanian archives, as compiled by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum). O.11: “Romania” collection (miscellaneous documents). O.37.1: “Sheʾerith Hapleita” collection (survivors’ lists). Yad Vashem Hall of ​Names, Jerusalem: Pages of ​Testimony Names Memorial Collection (personal documentation about victims of the Holocaust). Center for the Study of the History of ​Romanian Jewry, Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania, Bucharest Societatea Ezra Betzaroth din Bucureşti. Albumul membrilor decedaţi, 1917–1925 [Ezra Betzaroth Society of ​Bucharest. Register of deceased members]. Tabele Bărbaţilor [Census of ​Jewish Men in Romania]. Fond #: III 400 E/1942. Published Sources and Internet Resources Abonaţii S.A.R. de Telefoane Bucureşti şi jud. Ilfov, August 1937 [Phone Directory for Bucharest and the Ilfov district]. http://​lcweb2​.loc​.gov​/cgibin​/ampage​?collId​=​gdc3​ &​fileName​=​scd0001​_20078205001abpage​.db. Accessed 24 January 2012. 289

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