Dear Genners:
My grandfather was born in Mir, Belarus. The Hebrew name on his
grave is tzade, dalet, vav, he. The family always pronounced this Tzdok. I
thought a tzodk was the term for a learned, righteous man, not a name. Has
anyone heard of this as a name? How should it be pronounced?
Thank you for your help.

Ellen GOTTFRIED

Looking for: LIFSHITZ and ROZANSKY, Belarus

Zadok was /is a well known name, especilly amongs the Yemenites, but we have
ashkenazi friends with such a name.

If I'm not mistaken the "original" Zadok was a high-priest in the temple in
Jerusalem.

Yoni Ben-Ari, Efrat, Israel

The last letter is not "He", it is sure "Kof" (you should just prolong down
the left line of it).
The first Tsadok was a cohen during the time of the King David. (look the
second book of Samuil, 15,24)
Dr Josef Ash

In a message dated 1/30/2007 10:09:54 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
en@... writes:

<< My grandfather was born in Mir, Belarus. The Hebrew name on his
grave is tzade, dalet, vav, he. The family always pronounced this Tzdok. I
thought a tzodk was the term for a learned, righteous man, not a name. Has
anyone heard of this as a name? How should it be pronounced? >>

The name is Tsadok; (a priest at the time of David and Solomon. I Sam.
15:34-37; I Kings 1:7, 8.). Pronounced Tsodek in Yiddish. The last letter of
his name, perhaps eroded, perhaps badly engraved, perhaps misread, perhaps
misspelled should be a kof.

The heh-at-the-end spelling may arise >from a confusion with
Tseydeh/Seydeh for "grandfather"

Tsadok and Tsadik are >from the same Hebrew root. Only the former is a
personal name, relatively rare among Ashkenasim. The Sadducees took their name

from Tsadok.

Michael Bernet, New York