Cohen (surname)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
|
Cohen (Hebrew: כֹּהֵן kōhēn', means: "A Priest") is a Jewish surname of biblical origins (see: Kohen). It is the most common Jewish surname, comparable to "Smith" in English-speaking societies.
Bearing the name in theory indicates that the ancestors of a person so named were priests in the Temple of Jerusalem. It is likely, however, that over the generations people claimed such a decent - which in some ways gives a privileged position in a traditional Jewish society - without a sufficient factual base.
Being a Cohen also imposes some disadvantages, however; specifically, by Jewish religious law a Cohen may not marry a divorced woman (since in principle a Priest should only marry a virgin).
An effort to trace whether or not people named "Cohen" actually have a common genetic origin is involved in the specific DNA signature associated with the name known as the Cohen Modal Haplotype.
Cohen may refer to:
[edit] People
Cohen, the surname of many people:
[edit] Scientists
- Albert K. Cohen (1918), an American sociologist
- Bernard Cohen, Professor Emeritus of Physics at the University of Pittsburgh
- Claude Cohen-Tannoudji, a French physicist working at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, Nobel Prize Laureate in physics.
- David B. Cohen (1941-2004), an American psychology professor
- Emil Cohen (1842-1905), a German mineralogist (see also cohenite)
- Ernst Julius Cohen (1869-1944), a Dutch chemist
- Henri Cohen (1932), a French mathematician who specializes in number theory.
- Irvin S. Cohen, a mathematician
- Jack Cohen (scientist), British biologist and special effects consultant
- Julius Berend Cohen (1859-1935), an English chemist
- Leon Cohen, developer of the Cohen's class of Time-frequency distributions of signals.
- Marvin L. Cohen, a Canadian-born American condensed-matter physicist at the University of California, Berkeley
- Paul Joseph Cohen, (1934-2007), an American mathematician who proved the independence of the continuum hypothesis
- Samuel Cohen, a physicist who is known for inventing the W70 warhead, the "enhanced neutron weapon" or neutron bomb
- Simon Baron-Cohen, a renowned British psychologist and director of the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge
- Stanley Cohen (neurologist) (born 1922), American Nobel Prize Laureate in Physiology and Medicine
- Stanley Norman Cohen (fl. 2000s), an American geneticist
- Yoseph Bar-Cohen, a physicist at the JPL who specializes in electroactive materials and ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation (NDE)
[edit] Educators
- Andrew Cohen (spiritual teacher), (1955-) an American guru, spiritual teacher, founder of the magazine What Is Enlightenment?, author, and musician
- Benjamin Cohen (professor), an American Professor
- I. Bernard Cohen, former professor of the history of science at Harvard University
- Brad Cohen, a motivational speaker and an award-winning teacher and author
- Eliot A. Cohen, a Professor of Strategic Studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, and currently serving as Counselor to the U.S. State Department
- Gerald Cohen, the Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory, All Souls College, Oxford
- Joanna Waley-Cohen, Professor of History at New York University, where she has taught since 1992
- Morris Cohen (scientist), (1911-) is an emeritus Institute Professor of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Rabbi Henry Cohen - leader of the Galveston kehilla
- Reuben Cohen, a Canadian businessman, lawyer, and the third Chancellor of Dalhousie University
- Richard I. Cohen, a professor of Jewish History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- Stanley Cohen (sociologist) (born c. 1940s), the Martin White Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics
- Stephen F. Cohen, a scholar of Russian studies in the USA
- William W. Cohen, a professor at the Machine Learning Department of Carnegie Mellon University
[edit] Writers
- Abraham Cohen de Herrera, a Spanish born philosopher, kabbalist, and professor. Works written in 17th century Amsterdam.
- Albert Cohen, a Greek-born Jewish Swiss novelist who wrote in French
- Allen Cohen, editor of the San Francisco Oracle.
- Claudia Cohen, an American gossip columnist, socialite and television maven
- Elie Aron Cohen (1909-1993), doctor, Auschwitz survivor, and author
- Georg Morris Cohen Brandes, a Danish critic and scholar who had great influence on Scandinavian literature from the 1870s through the turn of the 20th century
- Hermann Cohen, a German philosopher, one of the founders of the Marburg School of Neo-Kantianism
- Matt Cohen (1942-1999, known by the pseudonym Teddy Jam), a Canadian writer
- Nick Cohen, a British journalist, author, and political commentator
- Randy Cohen, an American writer and humorist best known as the author of The Ethicist column in The New York Times Magazine
- Octavus Roy Cohen (1891-1959), writer and author
- Richard Cohen (journalist), syndicated columnist for the Washington Post
- Richard E. Cohen (National Journal), the congressional correspondent for a political magazine in the United States
- Robert Cohen, a Canadian comedy writer
[edit] Musicians
- Allen Cohen, an American composer
- Avishai Cohen, an Israeli jazz bassist, composer and arranger
- Ellen Naomi Cohen, an American singer known as "Mama" Cass
- Harriet Cohen, a British pianist
- Jim Cohen, an American pedal steel guitarist
- Judy Kay Cohen, (1952-), an American singer known as Juice Newton
- Leonard Cohen, Canadian singer-songwriter, also best-selling author of Beautiful Losers and other novels
- Marc Cohn, American singer-songwriter
- Paul Cohen (saxophonist), American saxophonist
- Samuel Cohen (composer), composer of Hatikvah
- Sander Cohen, a fictional musician in the video game BioShock
- Stuart David Cohen (1941-1982), an American singer-songwriter known as David Blue
- Yaron Cohen (now Sharon Cohen), Israeli singer known as Dana International
[edit] Artists
- Ryosuke Cohen, an internationally known mail artist
- Leon Cohen - painted from Belgrade
- Lynne Cohen, a professional fine art photographer
[edit] Technologists
- Bram Cohen, an American computer programmer, best known as the author of the peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing program and protocol BitTorrent
[edit] Entertainment industry people
- Arthur Cohn, Swiss film producer
- Assi Cohen, an Israeli comedian and actor
- Bradford Cohen, a candidate on The Apprentice 2 television show
- Bruce Cohen, a film producer
- David X. Cohen, a writer and producer for television
- Emil Cohen (1911-2000), Jewish comedian and singer, in the tradition of Myron Cohen
- Emma Cohen, a Spanish actress whose real name is Emmanuela Beltran Rahola
- Herman Cohen, a producer of B-movies during the 1950s, who helped to popularize the teen horror movie genre
- Ira Cohen, filmmaker
- Jem Cohen, a filmmaker known for his blending of media formats and collaborations with music artists
- Jeff Cohen, a child actor whose claim to fame is appearing as Chunk in the 1985 classic Steven Spielberg production The Goonies
- Joel H. Cohen, a writer for The Simpsons
- Myron Cohen (1902-1986), an American comedian and raconteur
- Rob Cohen, an American film director, producer and writer
- Sacha Baron Cohen, English comedian famous for the persona of Ali G, Borat, and Bruno
- Sidney M. Cohen, a Canadian television director and program creator
- The Coen Brothers, filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen
- Rodney Dangerfield was born Jacob Cohen
- Sid James, actor, was born Joel Solomon Cohen
[edit] Sports and Athletics
- Alan N. Cohen, the former co-owner of the Boston Celtics and the New Jersey Nets
- Avi Cohen, a former Israeli footballer who was the first to play in England
- Andrew Cohen (Maltese footballer), a Maltese international footballer born in 1981.
- Ben Cohen (rugby player), a rugby union footballer who plays wing for Northampton Saints and England
- Eli Cohen (football manager), an Israeli football manager
- Gary Cohen, an American sportscaster, best known as a radio and television play-by-play announcer for the New York Mets
- Gary Cohen (footballer), a professional football player who joined Grimsby Town on a season-long loan deal from Scottish Second Division side Gretna
- George Cohen, the right back for England on the side which won the 1966 World Cup
- Harlan Cohen, an American volleyball coach
- Howard William Cohen (1918-1995), an American sportscaster known as Howard Cosell
- Liran Cohen, an Israeli footballer
- Ohad Cohen, an Israeli footballer
- Sasha Cohen, American figure skater
- Tamir Cohen, an Israeli footballer
- Tiffany Cohen, double gold champion in swimming at the 1984 Summer Olympics
- Zion Cohen, an Israeli footballer
[edit] Spies
- Eli Cohen, a celebrated Israeli spy who is recognized as one of the most successful spies of modern times
- Lona Cohen, an American member of the Communist Party USA who was recruited into Soviet espionage in 1939 by her husband
- Morris Cohen (Soviet spy) (1910-1995, also known as Peter Kroger), was a Soviet spy who helped pass Manhattan Project secrets to the USSR
[edit] Politicians
- Andrew Cohen (statesman), former Governor of Uganda
- Daniel Cohn-Bendit, a European politician who was a leader of the student protesters during the May 1968 riots in France
- David Cohen, an American politician, noted for his service in the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Erminie Cohen, a retired Canadian senator
- Harry Cohen, a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom
- Jay M. Cohen, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Science and Technology, USA
- Job Cohen, the mayor of Amsterdam
- Leon Cohen, a Serbian activist; current adviser of President of Serbia and one of the chief negotiators of Serbia in the Kosovo dispute
- Ran Cohen, an Israeli politician and Knesset member of the Meretz-Yachad party
- Shaughnessy Cohen, a Canadian politician, who represented the riding of Windsor—St. Clair for the Liberal Party from 1993 to 1998
- Stanley Cohen (politician) (1927-2004), a British Labour politician
- Steve Cohen, a member of the Tennessee State Senate from Memphis, recently elected to the United States House of Representatives for Tennessee's Ninth District
- William Cohen, an author and American politician from the U.S. state of Maine
[edit] Businesspeople
- Albert D. Cohen, a Canadian businessman who is the Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Gendis Incorporated
- Ben Cohen (ice cream), a co-founder of Ben & Jerry's ice cream
- Benjamin Cohen, a British internet entrepreneur and journalist
- Ben Cohen (television), one-time owner of Baltimore's WJZ-TV
- Evan Montvel Cohen, a co-founder and the first chairman of Air America Radio
- Henry Cohen, the director of Föhrenwald, the third largest Displaced Persons camp in the American sector of post-WWII Germany
- Jack Cohen (Tesco) (1898-1979), British businessman
- Jay Cohen, the former CEO of World Sports Exchange (WSEX), an online gambling company
- Stephen M. Cohen, owner of the Internet domain name Sex.com
- Steven A. Cohen, a billionaire hedge fund investor and founder of SAC Capital Partners
[edit] Lawyers
- Arthur Cohen, an English barrister and king's counsel
- Felix S. Cohen (1907-1953), a lawyer and legal scholar who developed an expertise in law concerning natural resources, statehood and economic development for American territories, Indian affairs, and immigration and minority problems
- Henry Cohen, Baron Cohen of Birkenhead
- Roy Cohn, an American lawyer who came to prominence during the investigations by Senator Joseph McCarthy into alleged Communism in the U.S. government
- Jerome A. Cohen, a professor of law at New York University School of Law and an expert in Chinese law
- Jonathan Cohen, QC, Deputy High Court Judge (Family Division), old Etonian, grandson of Lionel Leonard Cohen
- Lionel Leonard Cohen, Law Lord, one of "the three wise men"
[edit] Fictional people
- Aina Cohen, a fictional character, xueta, Majorcan converse Jew woman, and poet, of "Mort de dama” (The death of a lady) 1931, novel of Llorenç Villalonga.
- Brian Cohen, the main character in Monty Python's "Life of Brian", son of "Naughtius Maximus"
- Cohen the Barbarian, a fictional character in Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels
- Jenna Cohen, a fictional character in the Aliens universe.
- Kirsten Cohen, a fictional character on the FOX television series The OC
- Mark Cohen, a fictional character in the play Rent.
- Maximillian Cohen, a fictional character in Pi (film).
- Sandy Cohen, a fictional character on the FOX television series The O.C.
- Seth Cohen, a fictional character on FOX television series The O.C.
- Sander Cohen, a fictional character from the video game BioShock
[edit] People needing to be sorted
- Henry Cohen
- J. M. Cohen, a prolific translator (into English) of European literature
- Jeff Cohen (media critic), the founder of Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting, a media watchdog group in the US
- John Cohen, a founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers as well as a photographer and filmmaker
- Kalman J. Cohen, an American economist
- Liepmann Cohen (c. 1630-1714, also known as Leffmann Behrends), was the German financial agent of the dukes and princes of Hanover
- Lyor Cohen, CEO of Warner Music Group
- Mickey Cohen, a gangster in 1940s and 1950s
- Morris Cohen (adventurer), (1887-1970, also known as "Two-Gun"), a British-born adventurer who became a bodyguard for Sun Yat-sen
- Morris Raphael Cohen, (1880-1947), an American Jewish philosopher who united pragmatism with logical positivism and linguistic analysis
- Richard Cohen (lecturer), a lecturer on reparative therapy
- Richard Cohen, husband of Paula Zahn
[edit] See also
- Kohen, a direct male descendant of the Biblical Aaron, brother of Moses
- Cohn
- Benjamin Cohen (disambiguation)
- Bernard Cohen (disambiguation)
- Jack Cohen (disambiguation)
- Morris Cohen (disambiguation)
- Paul Cohen (disambiguation)
- Richard Cohen (disambiguation)
- Stanley Cohen (disambiguation)
- Miscegenation in Israel
[edit] External links
- “The Tribe: The Cohen-Levi Family Heritiage” cohen-levi.org
de:Cohen fr:Cohen he:כהן hu:Cohen nl:Cohen ja:コーヘン pl:Cohen ru:Коэн

