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Sharing the same last name, are Danny Kaye and Mel Brooks related?

Question #106026. Asked by zbeckabee.

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Datsmeharse
Answer has 5 votes
Currently Best Answer
Datsmeharse
15 year member
855 replies avatar

Answer has 5 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.
Apparently not, at least not on the paternal side.
link http://www.brooklyneagle.com/categories/category.php?category_id=12&id=26476

Brooks' paternal family was from Danzig.
link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mel_Brooks#Early_life
Kaye's from Ukraine.
link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Kaye#Early_years

It's interesting that they both were born in Brooklyn and attended (different) high schools there.

Kaminsky, from kamien which means "stone" in Polish (Ukrainian êàìåíü) is a fairly common surname.
link http://genealogy.about.com/library/surnames/k/bl_name-KAMINSKI.htm

Hebrew culture uses a patronymic naming system, so many surnames of European origin were adopted fairly recently in order to comply with contemporary custom, often without regard to actual bloodlines.
link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_surnames


Jun 01 2009, 10:16 PM
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