Rachel Weisz

rachel weisz

Weisz in 2009, cinemafestival / Shutterstock.com

Birth Name: Rachel Hannah Weisz

Place of Birth: Westminster, London, England, U.K.

Date of Birth: 7 March, 1970

Ethnicity:
*father – Ashkenazi Jewish
*mother – Ashkenazi Jewish and Austrian-Italian

Rachel Weisz is a British actress and model. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Constant Gardener (2005). She has also starred in The Mummy (1999), Enemy at the Gates, and My Cousin Rachel. She is also known by her married name Rachel Weisz Craig.

Rachel is the daughter of Edith Ruth (Teich), a teacher and psychotherapist, and George Weisz, a mechanical engineer and inventor. Her sister, Minnie Weisz, is a photographic artist. Rachel is married to actor Daniel Craig. She has a son with her former partner, American director and filmmaker Darren Aronofsky; and a daughter with Daniel. Rachel has also become a U.S. citizen.

Rachel’s father was born in Hungary and her mother was from Vienna, Austria; both moved to the U.K. around 1938.

Rachel’s father was Jewish, and among his ancestors were Hungarian Jews, Austrian Jews, Polish Jews, Czech Jews, Slovak Jews, German Jews, and Lithuanian Jews.

Rachel’s maternal grandfather was an Austrian Jew. Rachel’s maternal grandmother was Catholic, and of Italian, and possibly non-Jewish Austrian, background. Rachel’s mother attended a Catholic school. Rachel’s mother later formally converted to Judaism when marrying Rachel’s father.

Scholar The Rev. James Parkes helped Rachel’s mother’s family leave for the U.K., as he did many Jews during the Holocaust.

Rachel’s paternal grandfather was named Joir/Yair/Yoir Weisz/Weiss (the son of Moshe Weisz/Weiss, and of a mother whose surname was Klein). Yair was born in Pressburg or Bratislava, Slovakia, to a Jewish family.

Rachel’s paternal grandmother was Kato/Katherine/Katherina Glickel Sternberg (the daughter of József Sternberg and Asenath/Osnat Nitzevet/Nina Hirschler). Katherine was born in Budapest, Hungary, to Jewish parents. József was the son of Rabbi Moshe Sternberg, whose own father was from Sighetu Marmatiei, Maramureș County, Romania. Asenath was born in Vienna, Austria, the daughter of Moshe Nahum/Nachum Hirschler and Glickel Kaethi/Katie Rivka Gins-Schlesinger, whose own father was a rabbi, from Rogasen, Poland.

Rachel’s maternal grandfather was Alexander Teich (the son of Pinkas Teich and Jochweda Wassermann). Alexander was a secretary of the World Union of Jewish Students.

Rachel’s maternal grandmother was possibly Anna Bassi.

Weisz in 2008, photo credit: christopherharte

Sources: Information about Rachel’s Jewish background – http://www.jewishjournal.com
http://www.magxone.com

Genealogy of Rachel Weisz – http://www.geni.com

ethnic

Curious about ethnicity

27 Responses

  1. stlucas says:

    Geni says her grandmother was born in Palermo. I have no access to MyHeritage but perhaps someone else here does. It also states that Pinkas was born in Moscow and Jochweda was born in Minsk.

    https://www.geni.com/people/Anna-Teich/6000000037003801961

  2. George25 says:

    Looks Gorgeous and has most unusual look, don’t get me weird but she might have Mongolian ancestry.

    • guzel says:

      Are you blind? She looks like common Jewish girls in Israel. Go there and prove it.

      • Smellybert says:

        Been To Israel on business 3 times.
        Very varied looks in the female population there.
        In fact Israel is one of the most diverse nations I have ever visited.
        To me I think she looks like a typical southern European from either Greece or central/southern Italy.

  3. madman says:

    75% Ashkenazi Jewish
    25% Italian

  4. phaedra says:

    What a gorgeous specimen.

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