The meaning of names among Mediterranean Jews
Marc Eliany �
ALMOS
(Moses, Moshei, Moise,
Moissis)
ALMOSNINO
ELMOZNINO
MOZO
The root of the name may be 'Mos' from
the Hebrew name Moses or a transformation of 'masri,' Arabic for Egyptian.
The name may have a Spanish/Moore meaning, i.e.,
philantropist or a charitable person or a kind/good person (from the North African
Arabic dialect 'mezian.')
Prefixes attached
to the root name such as (aben, iben, abi, avi, ben, bin, abou, a, aj,
al, bel, i, la, lel, me, m, o, wi, vi, ) denotes usually a relation to a person,
i.e., the father of or the son of X, a place, i.e., a person from X, an
occupation, i.e., a person who practices a specific occupation, a characteristic
of a person, i.e., beautiful... The prefixes al, el are equivalent to 'the'
in English or the article 'le' in French. In the Moroccan Berbers tradition,
prefixes such as 'wi' 'vi' 'i' means usually a family relationship to X, the
equivalent of Abu in Arabic, i.e., 'the father of', 'son of' a man, a tribal
affiliation and so forth.In
the Hebrew tradition, the prefix ‘M ‘ is an abbreviation of
the word 'from.'
Suffixes such as
ALMOSNINO Hasda� (?-1728). Morocco. Chief Rabbi of Tetouan. Author of Michm�rot
hakodech (Gards of holiness).
ALMOSNINO Moch� (XVIIe-XVIIIes.). Morocco. Chief Rabbi of Tetouan. Author of
B�ourim batanakh (Biblical interpretations).
ALMOSNINO Moch� ben Baroukh (1518?-1579?). Turkey. Rabbi, philosopher, astronomer,
g�ographer, prolific author. Author of P�n� Moch� (Perspectives of Moses)
on Aristotelian philosophy.
ALMOSNINO Yossef (?-1689). Yougoslavia. Chief Rabbi of Belgrade. Author of Edout
l�yossef (Joseph's testimony).
ALMOSNINO Yossef (1530-1600). Morocco. Rabbi. Doctor.
Community leader. Author of S�f�r chor�ch hamitsvot (The roots of the
commandments).
ALMOSNINO Yossef Ben Itshak (XVIIe-XVIIIes.). Turkey.
Rabbi.
ELMOSNINO Ch�lomo (XIXes.). Morocco. Prayer
leader at the Portuguese synagogue in London.
ELMOZNINO Hasda� (1933-).
Morocco. Educator and Artist, Painter and sculptor.
Elmoznino Roger (1938-).
Morocco. Journalist. Educator. Illustrator of Marriage contracts.
MOZO
Luis (El) (?-1596). Spain. One of the first writers in the New World. Originaire
d�Espagne.
MOSSERI Jacques
(1884-1934). Egypt. Linguist. Philologue. Contributor to the study of the Cairo
G�nizah documents. Founder of Zionist organizations in Egypt.
References:
Azoulay, Hayim Yossef Shem Hagdolim (the names of the great)
AZOULAY Ha�m Yossef David (Hida) (1724-1807) Ch�m hagu�dolim va�ad lahakhamim (The names of the Great Council of Sages).
Levi, J et. al. 2000 Dictionnaire biographique du monde Juif Sepharade et Mediteranean, Editions Elysee, Montreal.
Toledano, J. 1983 La saga des familles, Les juifs du Maroc et leurs noms, Editions Stavit, Tel Aviv
Laredo A. 1978 Les noms des juifs au Maroc (Madrid, 1978)