Leah Aharoni wrote about Ashkenazi families with Sefardi origins:
"The best example is in the introduction to Tora Temima (a Tora
commentary) Written by Rabbi EPSTEIN in Poland in the late 1800's.
There he wrote that his family is originally >from Spain.
Epstein Sephardic?? Turns out yes."

The Epstein family and the Horowitz family, both Leviim, are descended

from the Spanish Benveniste family, which, after the expulsion of the

Jews >from Spain in 1492, fled to Saloniki. Further movements took
branches of the family to many places in Europe and two distinct
sub-families arose which took the surnames Epstein and Horowitz. It
should be noted that these families, as others of Sefardi origin, merged
with the local Ashkenazi communities and did not retain their Sefardi
customs of prayer, etc.


Chaim Freedman
Petah Tikvah, Israel
email: chaimjan@zahav.net.il
http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2002/02/17/JewishWorld/JewishWorld.43575.html