RE: [Cz-L] My Chile connection

I wonder whether the Czernowitz Po(l)a(c)ks are related to me?

Obviously, Polak, Polák. Pollak, Polack, Pollack, even the Swiss Bollag (a distinguished old Jewish family from St Gallen) are versions of the same name, meaning 'a Polish person'. Believe it or not, Hungarian Lengyel may be the same name as it means the same thing!

My father's family were all from in or near Prague, or else in or near Olomouc / Olmütz in central Moravia: all from the Czech Lands. However, other cousins lived in Vienna. My suspicion is that all Austro-Hungarian Polaks are related, descended from 15th-century Talmudist Yaakov Polak ('the SMA'), and through him (apparently) from Hai Gaon, last head of the Iraqi ('Babylonian') academies that compiled the Talmud, and through him (still more apparently) from King David. Russian-Empire Pol(l)aks, like actor and film director Kevin ('The Usual Suspects', grandfather from Minsk), are either more distant relatives or not relatives at all - but this reasoning may be invalid.

Charles Polák
mailto:charles.polak_at_bbc.co.uk

-----Original Message-----
From: bounce-118349707-3499287_at_list.cornell.edu [mailto:bounce-118349707-3499287_at_list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Hardy Breier
Sent: 4 November 2014 12:48
To: Czernowitz Genealogy and History
Subject: [Cz-L] My Chile connection

In 1946 I had a schoolmate Yossi Polack.
He lived on the Mehlplatz corner Hurmuzaki ,the big house.
He had a younger brother Dov.
 And an uncle Israel Polak who had textile factories in Chile.
 In 1960 Israeli Finance minister Pinchas Sapir invited Israel Polak to
Israel and drove him down to Kiriat Gat and told him:
 I want you to build here a textike factory, for the newcomers
They have no work.
  And Israel Polak founded Polgat ,one of the world- known
fashion brands.
   Dov Polak became manager.
Another Czernowitz story.

Hardy
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Received on 2014-11-05 07:14:04