Mayim Bialik

Bialik in 2013, photo by PrPhotos

Birth Name: Mayim Hoya Bialik

Place of Birth: San Diego, California, United States

Date of Birth: December 12, 1975

Ethnicity: Ashkenazi Jewish

Mayim Bialik is an American actress, game show host, author, and neuroscientist. She is known for her roles as Blossom Russo on Blossom and Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler on The Big Bang Theory. She was a co-host of Jeopardy!

Mayim is the daughter of Barry and Beverly Bialik, and is a practicing Jew. She was raised in Reform Judaism, and now practices Conservative/Orthodox Judaism. Her great-great-grandfather’s uncle was poet Chaim Nachman Bialak.

Mayim has two children with her former husband Michael Stone. Michael is a convert to Judaism.

A 23andMe DNA test whose results Mayim displayed on YouTube stated that her genetic ancestry is:

*99.7% Ashkenazi Jewish
*0.2% British & Irish
*0.1% Broadly European

Mayim’s paternal grandfather was Michael Bialik (the son of Lesier Schmuel “Louis” Bialik and Rivka-Leja “Rebecca” Engelman/Engelmann). Michael was born in New York City, to parents from Ukraine; his father was born in Yampol and his mother was born in Tshipowitsh. Lesier was the son of Byumin Meyer Bialik and Sylvia Stowe. Rivka-Leja was the daughter of Ely Wolf Engelman/Engelmann and Chai Soura Wolodyrsky.

Mayim’s paternal grandmother was Jennie Dorothy Alexander (the daughter of Morris Alexander and Maryim Stolnicki). Jennie was born in Warsaw, Poland. Morris was the son of Labe Yitzhok Aleksander and Bailah. Maryim was the daughter of Wolf Stolnicki and Hannah.

Mayim’s maternal grandfather was named Frank Winkelman.

Mayim’s maternal grandmother was Sara Weisz/Weiss (the daughter of Moishe Eliyahu Weisz and Chaya Liba Katz). Moishe was the son of Yosef Volf Weisz.

Sources: http://www.chabad.org

Genealogy of Mayim Bialik – http://www.geni.com