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MORENO Origin of surname

MORENO

Surnames derive from one of many different origins. Sometimes there may be more than one explanation for the same name. This family name derives from a personal or physical characteristic.

Moreno is Spanish for "brown". like other nicknames, it indicates personal characteristics, such as brown eyes, hair or skin.

The Jewish family name Moreno is also a toponymic (derived from a geographic name of a town, city, region or country). Surnames that are based on place names do not always testify to direct origin from that place, but may indicate an indirect relation between the name-bearer or his ancestors and the place, such as birth place, temporary residence, trade, or family-relatives. It is associated with Moreno, a locality in the province of Almeria, Spain.

Moreno is documented as a Jewish surname in 1646 with Geronimo Moreno in Mexico.

The form Morenu is a Hebrew word which means "our teacher", "our rabbi". Thus the name may indicate a rabbi or a teacher, or a name of honor. Many Jews were known by the title of their function in the Jewish community and numerous family names can be traced to such titles, producing names which are common to Sephardim and Ashkenazim alike. In the 17th century, Moreno is recorded as a Jewish name in documents of the French consulate in Tunis, with Joseph Israel Moreno. In the 18th century the name is recorded in a 'ketubbah' from Tunis dated November 16, 1796, of Esther, daughter of Abraham Moreno, and her husband Solomon, son of Abraham Israel Enriques. In the 19th century the name is recorded in a list dated 1848 of Jews from Tuscany who settled in Tunis. Distinguished bearers of the Jewish family name Moreno include the 17th century Dutch physician, Jacob Isaac Moreno, the 20th century Romanian-born American social scientist and author, Jacob L. Moreno, the 20th century Casablanca community leader Jacques Moreno, and the 20th century Yugoslav historian Armando Moreno.

Jacob Levy Moreno (born Iacob Levy) (1889-1974), psychiatrist, psychosociologist, creator of psychodrama, sociometry, and one of the founders of group psychotherapy, born in Bucharest, Romania, the son of Moreno Nisim Levi (1856 - 1925), a Sephardi merchant who immigrated from Turkey to Romania. At the age of 4 years, Moreno received the first Torah lessons from Rabbi Behor Haim Bejerano, the chief rabbi of the Sephardi community of Bucharest. In 1895, Moreno's family moved to Vienna, Austria. After spending some time in Berlin and Chemnitz, Germany, Moreno returned to Vienna where he continued his studies attending the University of Vienna from 1911 to 1917. In 1912 he met Sigmund Freud. Moreno frequented literary cafés in Vienna, such as the Herrenhof café and met many of the intellectuals of the period. Together with Franz Werfel, Max Brod, Arthur Schnitzler, Fritz Lampel and Alfred Adler, he took part in the creation of the expressionist journal Der Daimon. Contributers to this periodical included Martin Buber, Jakob Wassermann, Oskar Kokoschka, and Heinrich Mann. In 1918 Moreno along Franz Werfel and Peter Altenberg  edited a new version of the magazine under the name "Der Neue Daimon" (1919). In 1921, with the financial support of his brother William, Moreno founded in Vienna the  Stegreiftheater ("Theater of Spontaneity"), based on improvisation. Despite lacking success, the theater was active until 1925.

Following a stagnation, both artistically and as a medical pioneer, Moreno moved to the USA in 1925. He struggled hard for the first five years until he finally received help from the child psychologist Beatrice Beecher, whom he married in 1928 in order to get a residence permit. However, his work with children, sociometry studies with inmates at Sing Sing Prison and girls in an educational home soon found resonance. His early experiences in America flowed into his main work Who Shall Survive? He later held positions at Columbia University and the New School for Social Research. In 1936 he took over a small psychiatric clinic in Beacon, NY, where he further developed his therapeutic approach to psychodrama. Moreno died in New York and his ashes are buried in Vienna.

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MORENO Origin of surname
MORENO

Surnames derive from one of many different origins. Sometimes there may be more than one explanation for the same name. This family name derives from a personal or physical characteristic.

Moreno is Spanish for "brown". like other nicknames, it indicates personal characteristics, such as brown eyes, hair or skin.

The Jewish family name Moreno is also a toponymic (derived from a geographic name of a town, city, region or country). Surnames that are based on place names do not always testify to direct origin from that place, but may indicate an indirect relation between the name-bearer or his ancestors and the place, such as birth place, temporary residence, trade, or family-relatives. It is associated with Moreno, a locality in the province of Almeria, Spain.

Moreno is documented as a Jewish surname in 1646 with Geronimo Moreno in Mexico.

The form Morenu is a Hebrew word which means "our teacher", "our rabbi". Thus the name may indicate a rabbi or a teacher, or a name of honor. Many Jews were known by the title of their function in the Jewish community and numerous family names can be traced to such titles, producing names which are common to Sephardim and Ashkenazim alike. In the 17th century, Moreno is recorded as a Jewish name in documents of the French consulate in Tunis, with Joseph Israel Moreno. In the 18th century the name is recorded in a 'ketubbah' from Tunis dated November 16, 1796, of Esther, daughter of Abraham Moreno, and her husband Solomon, son of Abraham Israel Enriques. In the 19th century the name is recorded in a list dated 1848 of Jews from Tuscany who settled in Tunis. Distinguished bearers of the Jewish family name Moreno include the 17th century Dutch physician, Jacob Isaac Moreno, the 20th century Romanian-born American social scientist and author, Jacob L. Moreno, the 20th century Casablanca community leader Jacques Moreno, and the 20th century Yugoslav historian Armando Moreno.
Written by researchers of ANU Museum of the Jewish People
Jacob Levy Moreno

Jacob Levy Moreno (born Iacob Levy) (1889-1974), psychiatrist, psychosociologist, creator of psychodrama, sociometry, and one of the founders of group psychotherapy, born in Bucharest, Romania, the son of Moreno Nisim Levi (1856 - 1925), a Sephardi merchant who immigrated from Turkey to Romania. At the age of 4 years, Moreno received the first Torah lessons from Rabbi Behor Haim Bejerano, the chief rabbi of the Sephardi community of Bucharest. In 1895, Moreno's family moved to Vienna, Austria. After spending some time in Berlin and Chemnitz, Germany, Moreno returned to Vienna where he continued his studies attending the University of Vienna from 1911 to 1917. In 1912 he met Sigmund Freud. Moreno frequented literary cafés in Vienna, such as the Herrenhof café and met many of the intellectuals of the period. Together with Franz Werfel, Max Brod, Arthur Schnitzler, Fritz Lampel and Alfred Adler, he took part in the creation of the expressionist journal Der Daimon. Contributers to this periodical included Martin Buber, Jakob Wassermann, Oskar Kokoschka, and Heinrich Mann. In 1918 Moreno along Franz Werfel and Peter Altenberg  edited a new version of the magazine under the name "Der Neue Daimon" (1919). In 1921, with the financial support of his brother William, Moreno founded in Vienna the  Stegreiftheater ("Theater of Spontaneity"), based on improvisation. Despite lacking success, the theater was active until 1925.

Following a stagnation, both artistically and as a medical pioneer, Moreno moved to the USA in 1925. He struggled hard for the first five years until he finally received help from the child psychologist Beatrice Beecher, whom he married in 1928 in order to get a residence permit. However, his work with children, sociometry studies with inmates at Sing Sing Prison and girls in an educational home soon found resonance. His early experiences in America flowed into his main work Who Shall Survive? He later held positions at Columbia University and the New School for Social Research. In 1936 he took over a small psychiatric clinic in Beacon, NY, where he further developed his therapeutic approach to psychodrama. Moreno died in New York and his ashes are buried in Vienna.