''Brevda (, "Truth Teller" or "Justice Deliverer").'' It is a

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

given to Jewish leaders who were ''Kohanim'' (plural of

Kohen Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic Priest#Judaism, priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakha, halakhically required, to ...

) in Russia during the Middle Ages. This surname was a modification of

Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, 'Truth') is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most in ...

, the Russian word for 'Truth' and 'Justice'.'

Kohanim

families claim direct descent from

Aaron According to the Old Testament of the Bible, Aaron ( or ) was an Israelite prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of Moses. Information about Aaron comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament ...

, the brother of

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

and many share a common DNA haplogroup.

Kohanim Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakhically required, to be of direct patriline ...

occupy an elevated status in Judaism. Their priestly leadership duties date back to the year 600 BC.

Brevda Family

Chaim Noach HaCohen Brevda

Rabbi Chaim Noach HaCohen Brevda (1914-1999) was an illustrious and eminent

Rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

in the 20th century. He was born in Baranovitch, Poland, (Lithuania). He studied in various Rabbinical seminaries in

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

and he also taught in the Yeshivah in Raduń (also known as Radin). He received his Rabbinical ordination from the

Chofetz Chaim The ''Sefer'' ''Chofetz Chaim'' (or ''Chafetz Chaim'' or ''Hafetz Hayim'') (, trans. "Pursuer of Life") is a book by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, who is also called "the Chofetz Chaim" after it. The book deals with the Jewish laws of speech. The ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he escaped to

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and later to

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, where he studied with the Mir Yeshiva. After the war was over, he entered the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and ultimately settled in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, first in

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

and then in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. Upon his arrival in New York City, Rabbi Brevda taught in the Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim on the Westside of NYC. After World War II, Rabbi

Mendel Zaks Menachem Mendel Yosef Zaks (; 1898–1974) (commonly known as Rabbi Mendel Zaks) was an Orthodox Jewish rabbi in Belarus and the United States, best known for being the ''Rosh Yeshiva'' of the Raduń Yeshiva and being the son-in-law to Yisrael Mei ...

, the son - in- law of the Chofetz Chaim, had re-established the yeshivah in the United States. Rabbi Brevda was well known among the survivors of the Rabbinical institutions of Europe, for his knowledge of the oral and written law. He was the Rabbinical leader of Congregation Ahavas Achim of Brownsville and then later of Congregation Bais Avrohum in Brighton Beach. He also established the Yeshivah and Mesifta Tiffereth Avrohum, a post-high school Rabbinical seminary. Rabbi Brevda served as the American liaison for the Yeshivah Shaarai Shamayim, in Jerusalem, Israel. Rabbi Brevda died on September 14, 1999, the 4th of

Tishrei Tishrei () or Tishri (; ''tīšrē'' or ''tīšrī''; from Akkadian ''tašrītu'' "beginning", from ''šurrû'' "to begin") is the first month of the civil year (which starts on 1 Tishrei) and the seventh month of the ecclesiastical year (wh ...

5760. He is buried in Mount Hebron Cemetery in New York.

Levi Brevda

Levi Brevda was part of an underground Zionist organization in

Nesvizh Nyasvizh or Nesvizh is a town in Minsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative centre of Nyasvizh District. Nyasvizh is the site of Nesvizh Castle, a World Heritage Site. In 2009, its population was 14,300. As of 2025, it has a population ...

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

in the early 1900s. Brevda relocated

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

settlers from

Lyakhovichi Lyakhavichy or Lyakhovichi is a town in Brest Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Lyakhavichy District. As of 2025, it has a population of 10,537. History Known since the 15th century in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as t ...

and

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

out of Eastern Europe to

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

, which later became

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. Levi Brevda made

aliyah ''Aliyah'' (, ; ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel or the Palestine (region), Palestine region, which is today chiefly represented by the Israel ...

(then known as the British Mandate) in the 1920s and elected to

hebraize Hebraization may refer to: *Hebraization of Palestinian place names *Hebraization of surnames *Hebraization of English The Hebraization of English (or Hebraicization) is the use of the Hebrew alphabet to write English. Because Hebrew uses an a ...

his name to Levi Ben Amitai. Once in

, Brevda founded the

Degania Bet Degania Bet () is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located to the south of the Sea of Galilee adjacent to Degania Alef, it falls under the jurisdiction of Emek HaYarden Regional Council. Degania Bet was established in 1920. As of it had a populati ...

kibbutz, south of the

Sea of Galilee The Sea of Galilee (, Judeo-Aramaic languages, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, ), also called Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth ...

, which still exists today. Brevda's kibbutz was integral in defending the Galilee region from the invading Syrian army during the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...

. "The heroic resistance of the Degania defenders against a regular army f Syriagave the people of the young state

f Israel F, or f, is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet and many modern alphabets influenced by it, including the modern English alphabet and the alphabets of all other modern western European languages. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounc ...

a large morale boost." Zionist-Pioneers-Early-Pre-Israel-Kibbutz

Shlomo Brevda

References

{{reflist Jewish Russian and Soviet history Surnames of Jewish origin Kohenitic surnames