LIFSHITS Origin of surname
LIFSHITS, LIFSHITZ
Surnames derive from one of many different origins. Sometimes there may be more than one explanation for the same name. This family name is 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. The surname Lifshits is associated with several place names: a small town in Thuringer Wald called Libschutz (pronounced Lipshitz), next to the town of Schleiz; a town in Weimar Germany called Lipshitz, next to Leipzig; and a town called Loebschuetz (Lubcezyce in Czech and Polish), in Silesia. A great number of variants of Jewish family names derived from these towns are documented since the 16th century, including Luebschuetz and Lipschuetz, and Liebeschuetz which is recorded in Prague in 1686. Other spellings are Luepschitz, Lefschetz, Liboschutz and the Polish Lipszyc.
Distinguished bearers of the Jewish family name Lifshits include the pioneering lexicographer, author and theoretician of the 19th century 'Yiddishist Movement', Shiye-Mordkhe Lifshits, also known as Joshua Mordechaj Lifshitz (1829-1878), and the 20th century Israeli historian Chaia Lifshits.
Surnames derive from one of many different origins. Sometimes there may be more than one explanation for the same name. This family name is 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. The surname Lifshits is associated with several place names: a small town in Thuringer Wald called Libschutz (pronounced Lipshitz), next to the town of Schleiz; a town in Weimar Germany called Lipshitz, next to Leipzig; and a town called Loebschuetz (Lubcezyce in Czech and Polish), in Silesia. A great number of variants of Jewish family names derived from these towns are documented since the 16th century, including Luebschuetz and Lipschuetz, and Liebeschuetz which is recorded in Prague in 1686. Other spellings are Luepschitz, Lefschetz, Liboschutz and the Polish Lipszyc.
Distinguished bearers of the Jewish family name Lifshits include the pioneering lexicographer, author and theoretician of the 19th century 'Yiddishist Movement', Shiye-Mordkhe Lifshits, also known as Joshua Mordechaj Lifshitz (1829-1878), and the 20th century Israeli historian Chaia Lifshits.