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Position:Home>Genealogy> If somebody has a last name that goes back to the Sephardic Jews does that mean


Question:I just found out my last name though Italian goes back to the Spanish Jews. If true would that make us Jewish? Isn't there some kind of marker, a test?


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I just found out my last name though Italian goes back to the Spanish Jews. If true would that make us Jewish? Isn't there some kind of marker, a test?

Of course it MAY. If confirmed that this is a direct line, and you descend from a Jew, than you are part ethnic Jew. This is not a decision, this is about ethnic heritage.

If you are saying simply that your last name is similar/same as Sephardic Jews, you may or may not be ethnically Jewish - you won't know until you can confirm whether their is a direct line of descendency.

To an Orthodox Jew, if your mother is not Jewish, then you are not. But you would still be ethnically from Jewish heritage.

There are ethnic DNA tests. Ask how definitive they are in identifying subgroups and get a good understanding before you spend the money - there is a lot of overlap among peoples.

In 10 generations you have over 1000 grandparents. That's about 300 years ago, with 30 years per generation.

In 20 generations you have over 1 Million grandparents. You're pretty much related to everybody - because our mitochondrial DNA has already been found to show that all humans descend from the same Eve/mother.

No, there is no kind of marker or test for being jewish. However, if you choose there are some tests to take to become jewish. the best way to find out is through a family tree.

No, the last name of a person doesn't determine if you are Jewish or not. Being Jewish is a religion, that if you didn't grow up knowing it then that means YOU ARE NOT Jewish.

Being Jewish is past down from generation to generation. If your grandparents or parents didn't pass it down to you then YOU ARE NOT.

But if you wish to join the religion of Judaism, there are Synagogues where you can convert to Judaism.

My uncle married a Non-Jewish woman that had four kids and he gave them the Jewish last name. But they are not Jewish by heritage, it is just a last name. The last name doesn't make you Jewish. If you suspect of Jewish ancestry, you need more research than just a last name.

No because the last names are just given to people and we don't know how unless you have DNA of Jewish ancestry.