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32 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE There are many similar-sounding names in our community that are actually different fami- lies – but there are also some names that may sound completely different but are actually the same families. For example, the Suttons and Settons – both pronounced Site’hon in Hebrew and Arabic – actually hail from the same group of families – Menashe Site’hon and Dabbah Site’hon; there were also two other families known as Azrak Site’hon and Site’hon Rabia, which seem to have been smaller branches, and perhaps offshoots of the two original families. It is also possible that there were actually four distinct families. KOHANIM AND YISRAELIM The Sutton and Setton families are mostly Yisraelim. There are, however, some Settons who are Kohanim. These Settons were actually members of the Sitt family (who are Kohanim) who changed their name to Setton. Among the Harari families also, some are Kohanim and some are Yisraelim. The fami- lies that spell their name in Hebrew   are Yisraelim, while those that spell their name  are Kohanim. Obviously, therefore, though their names may have similar spellings in English, the two are completely different families. There is also a third family which bears the Harari name – Harari-Raful (Yisraelim). DUAL NAMES Like the Sutton and Setton families, many families in the old country were known by two (or more) names. Over the years, most of these fami- lies eventually chose to drop one of the names. The Shayo family was originally known as Shayo Abadi. There were actually two other Abadi families – plain Abadi and Abadi Dahab. The latter may have been ascribed because the family was involved in the gold trade, since dahab means gold in Arabic. The Maslaton family was originally known as Maslaton Tarrab HaCohen. Today’s Maslaton, Maslaton Tarrab, and Tarrab families all share a common ancestry. There are three branches of the Hamway family – Hamway, Hamway Beyda and Hamway Habbaz. These are three distinct families of which only the Hamway Beyda family are Kohanim while the other two are Yisraelim. There are three branches of the Dweck family – Dweck, Dweck Khalousi and Dweck Kassab. All Dwecks are Kohanim. The Hanono family is actually a branch of the Dayan family and is known as Hanono Dayan. The Hanonos and the Dayans are Yisraelim. The Mamiyes are all one family and the original family name was Mamiye Dabbah, yet they are not related to any of the Dabbahs. The Hidarys were originally known as Abboud Hidary or Hidary Abboud. The Hidarys are all Yisraelim. The Antebi Ades family also went by the name Tabbush, and some are known as Antebi Ades Tabbush, while others just as Ades, Antebi, or Tabbush. The Hedayas are also all one family which was known as “Abdelwahed – Servant of the One.” Most of the Ashkenazi families, though the names sound the same, are not related. The Ashkenazi name was actually a name given to the families who moved from Spain to Turkey and from Turkey to Halab. Once they came to Halab, they were given the name “Ashkenazi” (which is now spelled in a variety of ways). All Ashkenazis seem to be from Turkey. The Laniado family, which moved from Spain to Halab after the expul- sion of 1492 1 , expanded, and many branches developed. Variations such as Laniado-Malki Shuba, Laniado–Somech, and Laniado Sojir were adopted to distinguish between branches of the family. 2 NAME REVISIONS Some names became shortened versions of the originals. For example, the Saff family was originally Safdieh, and changed their name in the 30’s or 40’s; the Ash family was originally Ashkenazi. As mentioned earlier, some of the Settons (those that are Kohanim) are actually part of the Sitt family. The Cabasso family was originally the “Ben Yichyeh” family. They were known as “Ben Yichyeh HaMechuneh Cabasso,” and eventually just became the Cabasso family. Most of the Marcus families (Yisraelim) were originally the Marcus Lala family. The Arking family name is a shortened ver- sion of Arakanchi. The Sardel l family is originally from the Sardar family. The Shamula family was originally Mizrahi. Some now go by the Shamula name, others by the Mizrahi name. The Shasho family and the Shasha family which may sound almost the same, are actually two distinct families. The Shashos are Yisraelim and the Shashas are Kohanim. The Esses and Assis families (both pro- nounced Assis in Hebrew and Arabic) are actu- ally the same family. The Haddad family was known as the Alfia family in Syria, and is from the same family as the Alfias. Mostly, it is the Cohen families who have more than one name, as it was the only means to distinguish between them. Of course, there are also those names that sound the same yet are spelled differently, but are nevertheless originally all from the same family (i.e., Beda, Beyda, Dweck, Doueck, etc.). Many names were also changed when our ancestors came to Ellis Island, due to the language barrier. One thing that has remained over the genera- tions and is common among all the fine families of our community, is that we all feel a deep sense of pride for our family names and the tradition behind them. 1  “ Aleppo, City of Scholars,” Rabbi David Sutton, Copyright 2005 by Mesorah Publica- tions, p . 246. 2  Ibid, p. 247. KOHANIM: LEVIIM: Arakanchi Gindi Aini Arking Greenberg Betesh Arazi Harari (some) Chabbott (some) Ashear Kassab Elo Azar Maslaton Goldman Anzaroot Rahmey Hara (some from Halab) Balasiano Saban Hara (fromDamascus) Beyda Sabin (some) Heiney Bildirici Setton (some) Lati Boka’i (Kain) Sitt Mahana Chalouh Tarrab Sabbagh Cheney Tawil Sardar Churba Toussie Sardell Cohen Shamah (some) Didia Yedid Dweck Zalta Faham Zirdok Making a Name for Yourself Same Names, Different Families PART IV: Family Branches EVA KAIREY DWE C K F R A N C O t a w i l i n d i l e vy