1. CHAIM ZE-EB WOLF1 SHALLER was born 1780 in Linsk/Lisko/Lesko, Western Galicia (Poland), Austrian Empire, and died 1873.
Notes for CHAIM ZE-EB WOLF SHALLER:
I. He was known as the "Linsker".
ABOUT LINSK/LISKO/LESKO:
[Oh darn, there are two Liskos. One is in Western Galicia, part of modern day Poland, and one is in Eastern Galicia, part of modern day Ukraine. The one in Western Galicia is a main administrative district, and I am almost positive that that is our ancestral shtetl. The one in Ukraine is in the subdistrict of Busk, in the district of Kamionka (also Kamionka Strumilowa, now Kamenka Bugskaya) The following notes describe Linsk/Lisko/Lesko, but I am not sure which of the two Liskos is being referred to in each reference!!!].
II. According to the "Shtetl Finder Gazetteer", Page 48:
Linsk (Lesko, Lisko) is southwest of Lvov (Lemberg), in Western Galicia, formerly part of the Austrian Empire, presently part of Poland. "Linsk" is the Yiddish pronunciation of the town. Linsk is not very far from Gorlice, Galicia, our next home town.
Located southeast of and close to Sanok. Birthplace of Moses Orenstein, born 1839, a Hebrew author and editor. Memorial Book "Sefer Yizkor...... Linsk, Estrik, Boligrod, Litovisk, approx. 1965. Also an Encyclopedia Judaica article exists on Lesko.
II. According to "Finding Your Roots in Galicia: A Resource Guide" by Suzan Wynne, Page 33:
Lisko/Lesko District is in Western Galicia (Poland). The spelling is as they were under Austrian rule. Lisko was a main administrative district in Galicia. The archives in Przemysl have birth records 1882-1884.
On Page 75, it is noted that the Polish National Tourist Office has a publication "They lived among us: Jewish Heritage in Poland" which notes that the synagogue in Lisko, which was built in the 18th century, is now an exhibition hall.
On Page 83, Lesko is noted as being included in "Pinkas Haskehillot" (Encyclopedia of Towns) published by Yad Vashem. The articles focus on Jewish life. It is in Volume 2 which covers Eastern Galicia (Ukraine).
On Page 128, Lesko/Lisko is listed as being in Poland (Western Galicia), as being a main administrative district, and as having 5 subdistricts under it. [I am almost certain that this is our shtetl.] The five subdistricts are:
Baligrod
Lisko/Lesko
Lutowiska
Ustzyki Dolne
Wola Michowa
On Page 153, the dreaded two Liskos are mentioned. One is a main district. The other is a shtetl in the subdistrict of Busk, in the main district of Kam. Stumilowa, in Eastern Galicia in what is now Ukraine. [I am almost certain that this shtetl is not ours.]
IV. From the Rumanian newsletter, VOLUME 5, NUMBER 1 - FALL 1996 (http://www.jewishgen.org/romsig/newsletter/vol5/):
Second of a series
Sephardic Surnames in Romania
by Dr. Marcel Bratu
The Sephardim (Spharad means Spain, in Hebrew) are mentioned as inhabitants of the Iberian
peninsula during the Visigothic kingdom of Spain (466-711 A D.). Most likely, they reached Spain
from everywhere around the Mediterranean rim: Judea, Babylon, Alexandria, Turkey, the north rim
of Africa, the southern rim of Europe. In the Moorish invasion of the 8th century, Islamic tribes from
northern Africa drove the Visigoths from Spain. However, the Jews were allowed to stay and other
Jews from Africa were even encouraged to come, to fill needs for artisans and for other occupations.
In the ensuing 500 years of Moorish occupation (711-1212), the Sephardim had a prosperous life,
reaching 300,000 souls. This era is known as the "Golden Age," when the Spanish Jews succeeded at
more than just survival; they became philosophers, physicians, diplomats, polyglots, scientists, etc.
They spoke Arabic (which is very close to Hebrew), and they dressed like the Moors; only the
clergymen dressed differently. Their standard names were still 'x ben y' or 'x ibn y' (ibn means son, in
Arabic).
In the 11th century the Moors were troubled by nests of Christian Spaniards organized in small
kingdoms, principalities and dukedoms encouraged by the Vatica to take power and to drive away the
Moors. Little by little the Moors were defeated in Malaga, Algeciras,Cordoba, Granada, Toledo,
Valencia, Saragossa and later in Castile. The battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212 was a major
Moorish defeat, pushing them back into Africa through the Strait of Gibraltar. Although the Moors
did retain some territory in Spain until 1492, the Christians now controlled most of the peninsula.
The Christians, like the Moors before them, kept the Jews because they were useful, and this period
under the Christians lasted for another 300 years. Under the Christians the Jews spoke a new
language, Ladino, a mixture of Spanish and Hebrew. A surname became a necessity for identification
of the individual, not for the authorities but among themselves. The big towns were crowded with
Jews and the x ben y or x ibn y was not enough for them to know each other. The history of the
Sephardim is different from that of the Ashkenazi Jews, originating in central Europe, living in small
settlements, knowing each other and only being obliged by authorities to have a surnarne 400 years
later than the Sephardim. For instance, in the 14th century there were 12,000 Jews in Toledo in Spain,
while in Frankfurt-a-Main in Germany there were only 700 Ashkenazim. In the 16th century, Seviglia
(Seville) had 12,000 Sephardim while Prague had only 1,200 Ashkenazim. Thus, Sephardic surnames
appeared as early as the 14th and 15th centuries, as a concoction of Hebrew, Arabic, and Spanish. The
first name was Hebrew, the surname was Arabic or, more often, Spanish.
-Symbolic Surnames-
The father of the famous philosopher Maimonides (1135-1204) was named Asher ("fortunate"), and
was also known as Maimon (the Arabic for "fortunate"). The son was first known as Moshe ben
Maimon, and then as Maimonides (son of Maimon, using the Greek ending -ides for "son of"). Other
cases: Shalom means "peace" or "greetings" in Hebrew, and became Benveniste or Benvenisti in
Spanish. Haviv means "dear" in Hebrew, and Habib means "dear" in Arabic. This surname became
Caro ("dear") in Spanish.
-Profession or Occupation-
Many surnames reflected the occupation of the individual. Some examples: Hazan (cantor), Alfakar
(potter in Arabic), Gabbai (synagogue official).
-Birthplace-
A long list: Alcalay (from Alcola), Spinoza or Espinoza (from Spinoza), Bejerano (Bejar), Ghirondi or
Gheron (Gherona), Cordovero (Cordoba), Saragossi (Saragossa) and others like Montefiore,
Montalban, Alfandari, Aftalion, and Barzilai which also matched birth places.
-Patronyms-
Directly from the father's first name, we see names like Halevi [that's us, folks], Nachmanides and Davidon (this last surname is Davisohn or Davidson in Yiddish).
Sephardic Jews were living in Italy and France by the year 1300. The Spanish Hazan became
Cantorini in Italy. Rofe was a common surname originating in physician (Hebrew, rofeh) families. In
France: Dayan (rabbinical judge), Sassoon and others. Professor Lavoslav Glesinger published a list
of the Sephardi surnames in Yugoslavia. Many of the patronymic names in his list resemble
Ashkenazi names: Aserovic (Ashkenazi: Usherovici), Abramovic (Abramovici),Samuelovic
(Smilovici), Kahanovic (Kahanovici). But because these are not truly Yiddish surnames (see my next
article, on the later influx of Ashkenazi Jews into Romania), there is proof for their Sephardic origin.
Professor Glesinger mentions other Sephardic surnames from Yugoslavia like Levi, Albahari, Ruben,
Papo, Farchi, Semo, Gaon, Koen, Alfandari, Albala, Almosnino, Almuli, Finci or Finti, Pijade,
Demayo or Mayo, Musafia, Eskenazi, Ben Zion and others...all very common surnames also among
the Sephardim in Romania.
To return to the 300,000 Sephardi Jews in Spain: They had a good life until the 14th century when the
anti-Semitic terror became a real threat to their wealth and life. The terror reached its peak in 1492
when Ferdinand and Isabella, the Christian Castilian royal couple, incited by the Vatican, ruled that
the Jews and the Moorish remnants must convert to Catholicism or leave Spain. About 100,000 Jews
converted to Catholicism to remain in Spain and to save their wealth. These were the Marranos, or
Conversos, who did not get what they hoped for: 30,000 of them died on the stake, burned as heretics
during the Inquisition. Many of the remaining Conversos fled to other European nations, especially to
the Netherlands.
But 200,000 Jews preferred to leave Spain rather than become Catholics and they spread through
Europe, Africa and the Middle East. They reached the Balkan penininsula,and then -through
Yugoslavia, Turkey, and Greece- they reached Vallachia and Dobrodgea, Romanian territories. The
Ottomans, ruler of these territories, accepted the Sephardim without hate, seeing no contradiction
between Islam and the Jewish Bible. The main Sephardic centers in the Ottoman Empire, points of
migration to the north, were Istanbul (now in European Turkey), Salonika (in Greece) and Izmir (or
Smyma), a port on the Mediterranean Sea in Asiatic Turkey. They reached these Romanian territories
in the 17th century, requiring at least a hundred years for the move from Spain to the Balkans, a long
journey through Europe, with many detours and sacrifices. But, at least they had a surname, while the
Ashkenazim living in Romania wore only the standard >names of x ben y or x sin y. Ten thousand
Sephardi Jews settled down in Vallachia, Transylvania and Dobrodgea.
However, many Sephardi Jews left Spain before they were forced to. Intellectuals were in demand
everywhere; seeking better financial revenue and more fame, they travelled all the continents. For
instance, even in Moldavia during the reign of Stefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great), 1457- 1504, a
Sephardi Jew came to the court on a diplomatic mission. He was Dr. Isac Beg, physician and
diplomat, sent by King Uzum of Persia. Dr. Beg also visited Ioan Corvin, the Voivod of Transylvania.
Jozsef Schweitzer, of the University of Cluj-Napoca, also describes Sephardi Jews in Hungary and
Transylvania during the 14th century.
A few words about Dobrodgea, a territory between the Black Sea and the Danube, with an artificial
boundary only to the south. This land was part of the Roman province of Inferior Moesia. When the
Ottomans became the main power in the Balkans, they conquered this land, calling it Dobruja. When
the Ottoman Empire declined in power around 1800, this territory was disputed between the
Romanians and Bulgaria, especially the southern part named Cadrilater, which changed hands a few
times between these two countries. Today, the Cadrilater is in Bulgaria. During the long Ottoman
occupation, Sephardi Jews settled in what is today Romanian Dobrodgea, mainly in Constanza (a
Black Sea port), in Tulcea (a Danubian port), Medgidia and other small towns. Their number did not
surpass 1,000, most of these in Constanza.
Historians mention that these Jews crossed the Danube delta to the north, reaching Bessarabia and
founding the first Jewish settlements there. It is interesting to learn of this Sephardi presence around
1600, because later this territory was crowded by Ashkenazim. Don't be surprised to find Sephardi
Jews born in Bessarabia!
Speaking of surprises, the Sephardim were even found in the European ghettos filled with Ashkenazi
Jews, speaking Yiddish and not Spanish or Ladino. Entering this melting pot of the ghettos, some of
them received Ashkenazi surnames, creating ambiguities concerning their origin. When the
Ashkenazim later emigrated to Romania, among them were some Sephardi Jews, dressed in
Ashkenazi surnames. Finally, the wild Jewish imagination in changing surnames is unpredictable,
causing trouble in the field of onomastics.
