Why do I "look Jewish" only if I have a Jewish last name?

Question

Before I married my husband I had an obviously Jewish sounding last name and every one I met would always just assume I was Jewish once they heard my last name and would tell me I looked Jewish. But then after I married my husband who has a very non-Jewish sounding last name no one ever asks me if I'm Jewish anymore. Why does just the name seem to make all the difference? When you hear a Jewish sounding last name do you assume the person is Jewish?

Answer 1

I grew up with jews, lived and worked around them. Some jewish people have a very distinct look, the jewish look I call it. So yes it is easy to assume that if ur last name is Weinstein or Steinberg or Weiss. You are going to be jewish through at least ur father since we don't have our mother's last name. Your mom could be black or Italian but u have ur dad's last name. Some Israelis look Israeli. To determine if someone is Jewish I observe them, but I can't always assume that they are. If there is a mezzulah on their door they are definitely Jewish. Besides you could be a Christian, so therefore are u jewish anymore. It's a religion right?.

Answer 2

hehe yeah, I find it funny too. Actually, I was raised Jewish and I look nothing like your typical brown haired, brown eyed, tan with an extremity on my face that tends to be large in orgin (sorry guys! My family has the big noses too! My mom and I just wound up without one! hehe). I am dark blonde, very fair skinned, green eyed and I have a normal sized nose. And all my life, I had a maiden name that was very Irish...my father's side of the family stemming from my grandfather (who in fact is Prodestant. Dad just chose Judaism from his mom's side of the family). So I was never asked if I was Jewish, I was in fact never asked if I was anything. The only way people knew I was Jewish is if I opened my mouth and said something, or was wearing my Star of David. But oddly enough, I began to get caught up in this hype at Temple amdist my peers, and thier parents and everyone else there...yes they would ask if people were Jewish by thier last names or appearances alone. Sometimes they would be right, sometimes they would be wrong. I actually got off that bandwagon about the age of 16/17. I found it a waste of my time. But my mother still does that to this day. Actually she did it just the other day. Over the phone I was telling her about our new vet we take our cat to, and her last name happens to be a last name that many Jews have out there in the world. And my mother said, "Oh! How nice, a nice Jewish woman!" I giggled and replied to her, "Uh mom, she is not Jewish. She is Christian." She asked, "Well how do you know?" I responded to her, "Ummm, the cross she wears around her neck and her telling me in conversation." She was like, "Oh. Well maybe she is married to a Jewish man." I said, "No, she is not married either." LOL I found this hilarious, because she came back and just said, "Oh." LOL So I know what you are talking about, it is silly...but good fun.

Answer 3

Ummm Tara, how about you go f*** yourself.



But I don't really know what to tell you, I'm jewish and I don't have a very jewish last name, but when I tell people I'm Jewish, they say "Oh, you look and sound like it" but people only say that after I tell them I'm jewish.



sometimes people are just stereotypical.

Answer 4

if the person has a jewish sounding name..than obviously i wood assume that they are jewish. however based on the way you look you can't tell what religion someone is..unless the way they dress..however..just looking at the natural you ..you can't tell a person's religion..cuz soo many ppl convert and stuff.

Answer 5

Yes...Because usually if you have a last name that contains "Man" or "berg", i assume its jewish and it works 90% for me

Answer 6

Yes obviously...



You are over-thinking this.