Azoulay

Azoulay, sometimes spelled Azoulai, Azulai or Azulay (Hebrew: אזולאי), etc. is a Sephardic Jewish surname common among Jews of Moroccan descent.

It is assumed that the family name Azulai is a Hebrew abbreviation of the beginning of the biblical restriction on whom a priest may marry according to Leviticus 21:7, אזול״י and thus indicates priestly descent: Biblical Hebrew: אִשָּׁ֨ה זֹנָ֤ה וַחֲלָלָה֙ לֹ֣א יִקָּ֔חוּ, romanized: iššā zōnā waḥlālā lōʾ yiqqāḥu, lit. 'They shall not marry a woman defiled by prostitution'.[citation needed].

Despite this long-standing tradition, a member of the family Abraham Azoulay of Marrakesh (not to be confused with the Kabbalist, Abraham Azulai of Hebron) protested this association vehemently, going so far as to excommunicate those who propagated that acronym..

According to Mohamed Chafik, "Azoulay" (Arabic: أزولاي, Berber languages: ⴰⵣⵓⵍⴰⵢ) is a common Moroccan Jewish family name, and has the straightforward meaning "hairy, whose body is full of hair" in Berber languages.

People

Azoulay family of Fez

Azoulay, is the name of a notable Jewish family descended from Spanish exiles who, after the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492[citation needed] and following decades, settled in the city of Fez, Morocco. The family includes:

Others

See also

This page lists people with the surname Azoulay.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.

References

  1. ↑ minus the Aleph before the Yud, which is how Chaim Yosef David Azulai spelled it
  2. ↑ See Shem HaGedolim by Chaim Yosef David Azulai), Aleph 16.
  3. ↑ Posner, Menachem. "What Does the Jewish Last Name Azoulay Mean?". Chabad. Retrieved January 22, 2026.
  4. ↑ Chafik, Mohamed (1999). الدارجة المغربية مجال توارد بين الأمازيغية والعربية (PDF) (in Arabic and Moroccan Arabic). Rabat: Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco. p. 47. Archived from the original on 2023-06-17. Retrieved 2025-10-03.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ↑ Mindel, Nissan (1 July 2004). "Rabbi Chaim Joseph David Azulai — The Chida (circa 5484-5567; 1724-1807)". Chabad.org. Retrieved 26 September 2023.