{geni:about_me} Leopold had the Hebrew name of "Yehuda Aryeh Leib Kohn", meaning "Lion". As an adult, he was known as "Leib" or as "Leopold". His family was "kohane", meaning they were descendants of Aaron, the first high priestand the older brother of the patriarch Moses from Biblical times. Kohanes were entitled to recite the priestly blessing, also known as the "Kohanite blessing" or "Aaron's blessing". In the book "Jewish Budapest" (1999), pp. 142-143, the following passage is found: "Passed down from father to son and preserved also in certain surnames (Cohen, Kahana, Kohn...), the tradition of Kohanite lineage is still strong, and indicated also on tombstones; in deeplyreligious circles, this tradition is mostly maintained by the Priestly Blessing and certain prohibitions."

According to the biography of a prominent descendant [inventor Oscar Zerk (1878-1968) of Kenosha, Wisconsin], an early Zerkowitz ancestor was knighted in 1555 by Emperor Charles V of Germany supposedly for capturing two highway lords on the River Rhine and bringing them as prisoners to the emperor. Research is ongoing to confirm this.

Juda Lobl Kohn-Zerkowitz was still alive in 1765 but was deceased by 1774 when a grandson was named in his honor. It appears that he and his family left Zverkovice (South Moravia) in the early 1760s, and moved to Mahr. Weisskirchen, Moravia [near Leipnik and Olomouc]. His widow Fradl spent her last years there, in the home of her son, Michael. She died in Mahr. Weisskirchen on 15 November 1809, age 83.

Familianten records of Prague indicate that Salomon Zerkowitz was the son of "Löw (also known as Leib) aus Zerkowitz" [Löw/Leib from Zerkowitz]. The gravestone of Simon Zerkowitz states that he was the son of "Leib HaKohen".

According to his descendant Emil Zerk, Juda Lobl Kohn-Zerkowitz "had six sons and three daughters. Of those sons, "one son went to Prague, one went to Trebitsch, one went to Budapest, and two went to Trencin..." That was close to accurate -- genealogical research has surfaced the following:

1. Salomon (c1743-1809), lived in Prague
2. [son] (b. c1745) -- unidentified -- according to family lore, he retained the surname Kohn
3. Michael Lobl (1748-1822), lived in Mahr. Weisskirchen, then in Leipnik, Moravia
4. Rozalia (b. c1751)
5. Simon Lobl (c1754-1817), had residences in Trebitsch and Brtnice
6. Eleazer, aka Lazar (c1756-c1825), lived in Trencin
7. Anna (b. 1758)
8. Jacob (b. c1761), lived in Trencin, then in Pozsony
9. Malka (b. 1763)
10. Mayer Jonas, aka Jonathan, aka Markus (1765-1821), lived in Trebic, Novy Bydzov, Mahr. Weisskirchen, then in Budapest

Letter written by descendant Emil Zerk [born Zerkowitz] (1892-1988) in January 1964:

"Zerkowitz -- in the German spelling -- is a town in Moravia (Maehren), former province of Austria, later on became Czechoslovakia. Our forefathers had their home there, and according to family tradition, all of them were 'Kohanim', so, one branch called themselves 'Cohen' (or perhaps 'Kohn', but we never knew this branch), and the other ones called themselves after this town Zerkowitz. The family was very prominent in this small Moravian town and maybeone of just two or three Jewish families there. For a period of time, they had great influence and substantial wealth, but eventually they left. They may have been forced to leave because of problems with their Catholic neighbors. One branch went to Prague, another went to northeastern Moravia, another to Trebitsch, and eventually, others of the family moved across the nearby frontier into northern Hungary, the northern part -- now Slovakia. Most of them kept the name, in German spelled 'Zerkowitz', in Hungarian 'Czerkowicz' (or better would be 'Czerkovicz'). We had also relatives in Budapest and Vienna.... The birthplace of my father was this northern Hungarian town where they came to from Moravia, the name of this place is Trencsen in Hungarian, Trencin in Slovakia. My grandfather was Nethane'el (Nathaniel), my great-grandfather was a name I don't recall (even though I was told it by my uncle manyyears ago). My Uncle Philip, upon my inquiry as a child, told me about our being "Cohen", and that the great-grandfather was a jeweler in the town of Trencsen (Hungary). He had to go to the Leipzig fair for business, and finally,on his return from Leipzig, was murdered and robbed... I don't know if you can locate a Moravian town named Zerkowitz, but if you can, then you have found the place..."