Lauv
Birth Name: Ari Staprans Leff
Place of Birth: San Francisco, California, United States
Date of Birth: August 8, 1994
Ethnicity:
*Ashkenazi Jewish (father)
*Latvian (mother)
Lauv is an American singer and songwriter.
Ari’s father, Stuart Leff, is Jewish American. Ari’s mother, Silvija (Staprāns), is Latvian.
His stage name derived from the word “lauve”, which means “lion” in Latvian.
Ari’s paternal grandfather was Sanford Leonard Leff (the son of Harry Leff and Sarah Kohn). Harry was a Polish Jewish emigrant, from Łomża, Podlaskie, and was the son of Daron Leff and Leah Grunstein. Sarah was a Czech Jewish emigrant, from Želnava, Prachatice District, South Bohemian Region, and was the daughter of Meyer Jacob Kohn and Zypa “Sadie” Feimehl (also known as Goldsmith).
Ari’s paternal grandmother was Seena Sylvia Glaser (the daughter of Nathan Lefo Glaser and Anna Ella Silverman). Seena was born in Washington, D.C. Nathan was the son of a Lithuanian Jewish immigrant, Mendel “Michael” Glaser, and of Latvian Jewish immigrant, Ida Sarah Fine. Anna was the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants, Samuel Silverman and Sarah Rappaport (also known as Drew).
Sources: Interview about Lauv’s ancestry – https://nyulocal.com
Marriage record of Lauv’s parents – https://familysearch.org
Birth record of Lauv’s paternal grandfather, Sanford Leonard Leff – http://birth-records.mooseroots.com
Marriage record of Lauv’s paternal great-grandparents, Harry Leff and Sarah Kohn – https://familysearch.org
Lauv’s paternal grandmother, Seena Sylvia Glaser, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Typo for Lauv’s father: Stuart