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SPIVAK Origin of surname

SPIVAK, SPIWAK, SPIEWAK, SPIVACK

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 Jewish communal functionaries or titles.

Spivak, Spiwak and Spiewak are Slavic equivalents of Cantor/Kantor ("singer"). Based on the Italian verb Cantare, that is "to sing", Cantor originally designated "the servant of the synagogue". Like Hazan (in Hebrew), in modern usage it is the title of the official who leads the congregation in prayer and song. As a Jewish family name it is an equivalent of the German and Yiddish Singer/Saenger and the Hebrew Meshorer, spotlighting the musical role of the Cantor/Hazan, whereas Bass describes the vocal quality of the singer. All these and similar terms have produced Jewish family names in several languages and spelling variants. One of the earliest documented forms is San(c)kmeister (from the German Singmeister, that is "song master"), recorded with Lezer Sankmeister in 1439 and Heinrich Sanckmeister in 1449. The Italian equivalent Cantarini was the name of a well-known 16th century Italian family. Cantori is mentioned in the 16th century, Isaak Ben Avigdor Bass in 1600, and Singer in 1676. Cantor is documented as a Jewish family name in 1679 with Burckhardt Cantor of Halberstadt, Germany, and Kanter in 1736 with Salamon Joseph Kanter; Senger in 1683, Bassista in the 17th century, Schulsinger in 1709, Sulsinger in 1724, and Vorsinger in 1784. Another variant is Kantur. Slavic equivalents include Solovej, literally "nightingale". A Romanian form is Dascal(u), literally "sexton". Abbreviations, particularly in German-speaking countries and regions, comprise Kant, Kand and Kandt. Frequent forms embody patronymic suffixes (indicating descent in the male line) in a variety of spellings ranging from Kantorovitz and Kantorowitz to Kantorowitsch. Illustrating the westward migration of many Jews of Eastern Europe, a Kantorowitsch family in France changed its name in 1957 to Cantaud. Jews sometimes translated their German or Yiddish surnames or adopted family names directly from the local spoken language. Slavic equivalents include Solovej, literally "nightingale". A Romanian form is Dascal(u), literally "sexton". In the Slavic speaking areas of Eastern Europe, the surname of Cantor/Kantor was sometimes translated into Spivak, Spiewak.

Distinguished bearers of the family name Spivak include the cantor and composer Nissan Spivak (1824-1906).

KANTOR

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 Jewish communal functionaries or titles.

Like Haz(z)an, Cantor/Kantor, based on the Italian verb Cantare, that is "to sing", is a term originally designating "the servant of the synagogue". In modern usage, it is the title of the official who leads the congregation in prayer and song. Singer/Saenger, the German and Yiddish equivalent of the Hebrew Meshorer, spotlights the musical role of the Hazan/Cantor, and Bass(o) describes the vocal quality of the singer. All these terms have produced Jewish family names in several languages and spelling variants. One of the earliest documented forms is San(c)kmeister, from the German Singmeister, (that is "song master"), recorded in 1449; Cantarini and Cantori are found in the 16th century, Isaak Ben Avigdor Bass in 1600, Singer in 1676; Cantor is documented in 1679 with Burckhardt Cantor of Halberstadt, Germany, and Kanter in 1736 with Salamon Joseph Kanter. Another variant is Kantur. Abbreviations, found particularly in German-speaking countries and regions, comprise Kant, Kand and Kandt. Frequent forms embody several patronymic suffixes (indicating descent in the male line) in a variety of spellings ranging from Kantorovitz to Kantorowitz, Kantorowitsch and Kantorovic. Illustrating the westward migration of many Jews from Eastern Europe, a Kantorovitsch family in France changed its name in 1957 to Cantaud.

Distinguished bearers of the Jewish family name Kantor include the Lithuanian-born writer and Hebrew and Russian journalist, Judah Leib Kantor (1849-1915), founder of 'HaYom', the first Hebrew daily newspaper; the American rabbi and philosopher, Bernard Kantor (1892-1920);and the 20th century American psychologist and author, Jacob Robert Kantor.

Nissan Spivak (also known as Nissi Beltzer, Nissi Kishinover, Nissi Berdichever) (1824-1906), cantor, conductor and composer, born in Novaya Mish (also Nova Mish; Mush), Belarus (then part of the Russian Empire). His talent and passion for music became evident already during the childhood. He travelled to Karlin, where he was a pupil of Cantor Baruch Karliner. Subsequently, he was a choir singer under the tutelage of the renowned Cantor Yeruham Blindman, also known as Yerucham the Little (1798-1891), who served as a cantor in Berdichev. At the age of 20, Spivak became a cantor in Balti in Bessarabia (now in Moldova), and many people continued to refer to him by that name for the rest of his life. Afterward, he worked in Kishinev (Chisinau) in Bessarabia (now in Moldova), and in 1877, he was elected as the cantor in Berdichev, serving in the synagogue of the old city for the rest of his life.

He was known for pioneering a distinctive style of singing that elevated the role of the choir, a departure from the traditional norms of the time. His choir attracted numerous famous singers, and his remarkable conducting skills earned him legendary status. He traveled throughout the Jewish Pale of Settlement within the Russian Empire with his choir. Many of his compositions gained fame across Eastern Europe and within various Hassidic communities. Spivak died in Sadagura (now part of Chernivtsi, Ukraine) during a concert tour with his choir in 1906.

ensembles - with solos and duets - reducing the role of the cantor. Spivak attracted many students to Berdichev and took his choirs to other centers, including Hasidic courts.

Wyszogrod

 

Yiddish: װישאגראד (Vishegrod)

Hebrew: וישוגרוד

Polish: Wyszogród

German: Wyszogród

Russian: Вышогруд (Vyshogrud)


Town in Masovian Voivodeship, east central Poland.

 

21st Century

After the Second World War a monument for victims of the Holocaust was set at the Jewish cemetery consecrated in the first half of the 19th century. Gravestones can be found near the monument. Last known Orthodox or Conservative burial was probably held first half of the 19th century. The cemetery was demolished during the war, gravestones serving as roads and sidewalks.

A commemorative plaque was unveiled in 2019 for the in March 1941, 2357 Jews who were deported from the market square of Wyszogrod. It was placed on the building of the Museum of the Central Vistula and Wyszogród Land. Earlier in 2005 the medal of Preserving Memory was awarded, which honors Poles for their effort in preserving Jewish heritage.

BMD information for the town of Wyszogrod, birth, marriage and death since the year 1826 until 1912 exists.

Also letters and postcards remain, in Yiddish and German from World War II years.

The new Jewish cemetery of the town of Wyszogrod is near Pokoju street with modern brick gate posts and two gravestones. There is also an obelisk monument with a star of David. The other unlandmarked cemetery probably dates from the 16th century.

 

Prominent Figure

Jewish resident of the town of Wyszogrod was Nahum Sokolow (1859-1936). He was head of the World Zionist Organization (1931-1935). He originated from an ancient Polish family of rabbis and was prominent for his writing in Jewish press in various languages including Hebrew. Editor of the Hebrew scientific weekly Ha-Zefirah (Warsaw) which became a daily paper, he also edited the literary and historic Ha-Asif and Sefer Ha-Shanah. Beginning of World War I he went to England and was part of the negotiations of the Balfour Declaration of November 2, 1917.

 

History

A Jewish settlement in Wyszogrod is mentioned for the first time in 1422, when Jews received authorization from Prince Ziemowit IV (c. 1352-1426) to engage in commerce and crafts and to establish their own institutions. During the 16th century Jews established workshops for weaving.

In the second half of the 18th century a synagogue was erected, built of stone in the late baroque style according to plans by the architect David Frydlender; it was destroyed by the Nazis in 1939. In 1765 the 684 Jews paid the poll tax and 1,410 Jews paid the poll tax in 208 surrounding villages. The community numbered 2,883 (90% of the total population) in 1808; 2,458 (73%) in 1827; and 2,841 (74%) in 1857.

From the mid-19th century many Jews moved from Wyszogrod to Plock and Warsaw; in 1897 there were 2,735 (66%) Jews in the town and in 1921, 2,465 (about 57%). During the 1920s eight of the 12 members of the municipal council were Jews.

 

The Holocaust Period

Because of the town's location on Poland's principal waterway, the Vistula river, Jews there engaged in interurban trade. Their position deteriorated, however, on the eve of World War II as a result of anti-semitic pressure and boycott propaganda. N. Sokolow was born in Wyszogrod. The last rabbis to hold office were David Bornstein (until 1922) and Naphtali Spivak, both of whom died in the Holocaust.

At the outbreak of World War II there were about 2,700 Jews in Wyszogrod. On November 19, 1942, the Jewish community was liquidated when the Jews were expelled to Czerwinsk and Nowy Dwor, and from there deported to the Treblinka death camp. After the war the Jewish community was not reconstituted.

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SPIVAK Origin of surname
SPIVAK, SPIWAK, SPIEWAK, SPIVACK

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 Jewish communal functionaries or titles.

Spivak, Spiwak and Spiewak are Slavic equivalents of Cantor/Kantor ("singer"). Based on the Italian verb Cantare, that is "to sing", Cantor originally designated "the servant of the synagogue". Like Hazan (in Hebrew), in modern usage it is the title of the official who leads the congregation in prayer and song. As a Jewish family name it is an equivalent of the German and Yiddish Singer/Saenger and the Hebrew Meshorer, spotlighting the musical role of the Cantor/Hazan, whereas Bass describes the vocal quality of the singer. All these and similar terms have produced Jewish family names in several languages and spelling variants. One of the earliest documented forms is San(c)kmeister (from the German Singmeister, that is "song master"), recorded with Lezer Sankmeister in 1439 and Heinrich Sanckmeister in 1449. The Italian equivalent Cantarini was the name of a well-known 16th century Italian family. Cantori is mentioned in the 16th century, Isaak Ben Avigdor Bass in 1600, and Singer in 1676. Cantor is documented as a Jewish family name in 1679 with Burckhardt Cantor of Halberstadt, Germany, and Kanter in 1736 with Salamon Joseph Kanter; Senger in 1683, Bassista in the 17th century, Schulsinger in 1709, Sulsinger in 1724, and Vorsinger in 1784. Another variant is Kantur. Slavic equivalents include Solovej, literally "nightingale". A Romanian form is Dascal(u), literally "sexton". Abbreviations, particularly in German-speaking countries and regions, comprise Kant, Kand and Kandt. Frequent forms embody patronymic suffixes (indicating descent in the male line) in a variety of spellings ranging from Kantorovitz and Kantorowitz to Kantorowitsch. Illustrating the westward migration of many Jews of Eastern Europe, a Kantorowitsch family in France changed its name in 1957 to Cantaud. Jews sometimes translated their German or Yiddish surnames or adopted family names directly from the local spoken language. Slavic equivalents include Solovej, literally "nightingale". A Romanian form is Dascal(u), literally "sexton". In the Slavic speaking areas of Eastern Europe, the surname of Cantor/Kantor was sometimes translated into Spivak, Spiewak.

Distinguished bearers of the family name Spivak include the cantor and composer Nissan Spivak (1824-1906).
Written by researchers of ANU Museum of the Jewish People
KANTOR
KANTOR

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 Jewish communal functionaries or titles.

Like Haz(z)an, Cantor/Kantor, based on the Italian verb Cantare, that is "to sing", is a term originally designating "the servant of the synagogue". In modern usage, it is the title of the official who leads the congregation in prayer and song. Singer/Saenger, the German and Yiddish equivalent of the Hebrew Meshorer, spotlights the musical role of the Hazan/Cantor, and Bass(o) describes the vocal quality of the singer. All these terms have produced Jewish family names in several languages and spelling variants. One of the earliest documented forms is San(c)kmeister, from the German Singmeister, (that is "song master"), recorded in 1449; Cantarini and Cantori are found in the 16th century, Isaak Ben Avigdor Bass in 1600, Singer in 1676; Cantor is documented in 1679 with Burckhardt Cantor of Halberstadt, Germany, and Kanter in 1736 with Salamon Joseph Kanter. Another variant is Kantur. Abbreviations, found particularly in German-speaking countries and regions, comprise Kant, Kand and Kandt. Frequent forms embody several patronymic suffixes (indicating descent in the male line) in a variety of spellings ranging from Kantorovitz to Kantorowitz, Kantorowitsch and Kantorovic. Illustrating the westward migration of many Jews from Eastern Europe, a Kantorovitsch family in France changed its name in 1957 to Cantaud.

Distinguished bearers of the Jewish family name Kantor include the Lithuanian-born writer and Hebrew and Russian journalist, Judah Leib Kantor (1849-1915), founder of 'HaYom', the first Hebrew daily newspaper; the American rabbi and philosopher, Bernard Kantor (1892-1920);and the 20th century American psychologist and author, Jacob Robert Kantor.
Nissan Spivak

Nissan Spivak (also known as Nissi Beltzer, Nissi Kishinover, Nissi Berdichever) (1824-1906), cantor, conductor and composer, born in Novaya Mish (also Nova Mish; Mush), Belarus (then part of the Russian Empire). His talent and passion for music became evident already during the childhood. He travelled to Karlin, where he was a pupil of Cantor Baruch Karliner. Subsequently, he was a choir singer under the tutelage of the renowned Cantor Yeruham Blindman, also known as Yerucham the Little (1798-1891), who served as a cantor in Berdichev. At the age of 20, Spivak became a cantor in Balti in Bessarabia (now in Moldova), and many people continued to refer to him by that name for the rest of his life. Afterward, he worked in Kishinev (Chisinau) in Bessarabia (now in Moldova), and in 1877, he was elected as the cantor in Berdichev, serving in the synagogue of the old city for the rest of his life.

He was known for pioneering a distinctive style of singing that elevated the role of the choir, a departure from the traditional norms of the time. His choir attracted numerous famous singers, and his remarkable conducting skills earned him legendary status. He traveled throughout the Jewish Pale of Settlement within the Russian Empire with his choir. Many of his compositions gained fame across Eastern Europe and within various Hassidic communities. Spivak died in Sadagura (now part of Chernivtsi, Ukraine) during a concert tour with his choir in 1906.

ensembles - with solos and duets - reducing the role of the cantor. Spivak attracted many students to Berdichev and took his choirs to other centers, including Hasidic courts.

Wyszogrod

Wyszogrod

 

Yiddish: װישאגראד (Vishegrod)

Hebrew: וישוגרוד

Polish: Wyszogród

German: Wyszogród

Russian: Вышогруд (Vyshogrud)


Town in Masovian Voivodeship, east central Poland.

 

21st Century

After the Second World War a monument for victims of the Holocaust was set at the Jewish cemetery consecrated in the first half of the 19th century. Gravestones can be found near the monument. Last known Orthodox or Conservative burial was probably held first half of the 19th century. The cemetery was demolished during the war, gravestones serving as roads and sidewalks.

A commemorative plaque was unveiled in 2019 for the in March 1941, 2357 Jews who were deported from the market square of Wyszogrod. It was placed on the building of the Museum of the Central Vistula and Wyszogród Land. Earlier in 2005 the medal of Preserving Memory was awarded, which honors Poles for their effort in preserving Jewish heritage.

BMD information for the town of Wyszogrod, birth, marriage and death since the year 1826 until 1912 exists.

Also letters and postcards remain, in Yiddish and German from World War II years.

The new Jewish cemetery of the town of Wyszogrod is near Pokoju street with modern brick gate posts and two gravestones. There is also an obelisk monument with a star of David. The other unlandmarked cemetery probably dates from the 16th century.

 

Prominent Figure

Jewish resident of the town of Wyszogrod was Nahum Sokolow (1859-1936). He was head of the World Zionist Organization (1931-1935). He originated from an ancient Polish family of rabbis and was prominent for his writing in Jewish press in various languages including Hebrew. Editor of the Hebrew scientific weekly Ha-Zefirah (Warsaw) which became a daily paper, he also edited the literary and historic Ha-Asif and Sefer Ha-Shanah. Beginning of World War I he went to England and was part of the negotiations of the Balfour Declaration of November 2, 1917.

 

History

A Jewish settlement in Wyszogrod is mentioned for the first time in 1422, when Jews received authorization from Prince Ziemowit IV (c. 1352-1426) to engage in commerce and crafts and to establish their own institutions. During the 16th century Jews established workshops for weaving.

In the second half of the 18th century a synagogue was erected, built of stone in the late baroque style according to plans by the architect David Frydlender; it was destroyed by the Nazis in 1939. In 1765 the 684 Jews paid the poll tax and 1,410 Jews paid the poll tax in 208 surrounding villages. The community numbered 2,883 (90% of the total population) in 1808; 2,458 (73%) in 1827; and 2,841 (74%) in 1857.

From the mid-19th century many Jews moved from Wyszogrod to Plock and Warsaw; in 1897 there were 2,735 (66%) Jews in the town and in 1921, 2,465 (about 57%). During the 1920s eight of the 12 members of the municipal council were Jews.

 

The Holocaust Period

Because of the town's location on Poland's principal waterway, the Vistula river, Jews there engaged in interurban trade. Their position deteriorated, however, on the eve of World War II as a result of anti-semitic pressure and boycott propaganda. N. Sokolow was born in Wyszogrod. The last rabbis to hold office were David Bornstein (until 1922) and Naphtali Spivak, both of whom died in the Holocaust.

At the outbreak of World War II there were about 2,700 Jews in Wyszogrod. On November 19, 1942, the Jewish community was liquidated when the Jews were expelled to Czerwinsk and Nowy Dwor, and from there deported to the Treblinka death camp. After the war the Jewish community was not reconstituted.