Muchas veces había escuchado sobre cómo los judíos fueron incorporados como "ciudadanos franceses de religión judía" (algo completamente novedoso para la época) en tiempos de Napoleón, y parte de ese proceso fue adoptar apellidos (antes eras por ej. Isaac Ben Abraham, o sea Isaac el hijo de Abraham). Pero nunca había leído el decreto:
Imperial decree of 20 July, 1808, concerning Jews with no fixed first or family names
Bayonne, 20 July, 1808
ART. 1
Those amongst our subjects who follow the Hebrew religion, and who, up to the present, have not had fixed surname or first names, shall be ordered to adopt one in the three months following the publication of this our present decree, and to make a declaration of the fact before the civil status officer in the commune where they live.
ART. 2
Non-French Jews who come to live in the Empire and who are in the situation described in article 1 are ordered to complete the same formalities in the three months following their entry into France.
ART. 3
Names from the Old Testament and names of towns are expressly forbidden. The only names permitted are those authorised by the law of 11 Germinal, An XI.
(seguir leyendo)
