The Genealogy of the Geadah Family
History
The following is what we know of the history of some of the Geadah families. While the existence of the family has been documented only as far back as 1720, it is believed that the family had been on the scene long before. It is common knowledge within the Geadah family that one of our ancestors, a Naimeh, emigrated from Lebanon to the city of Haifa, Palestine, circa the 1700s. Much information about the family was transmitted by word of mouth. In spite of that, it was unerasable.
Be that as it may, this particular ancestor belonged to the distinguished Lebanese Naimeh family of Baskinta, Lebanon, whose members boast, among other accomplishments, of several men of letters. To wit, we can mention Mikhail Naimeh (1889-1988), thinker, poet, philosopher and personal friend of Khalil Gibran as well as Nadim Naimeh, professor and writer. Mikhail Naimeh was part of a plethora of literati such as Khalil Gibran, Amin Rihani, Maroun Abboud, Fouad Ephrem Boustani, Khalil Takiedine etc., whose literature blossomed during World War I after the liberation of the country from the Ottoman Empire’s rule. One of Mikhail Naimeh’s famous dicta to his fellow country men was: “If you want the power and evolution of this century, you should work on their conditions or else get out of this road and decide what you want and what you are looking for.”
In that same vein, our parents related to us a couple of tales, which they had heard from their own parents, to explain how our name was changed from Naimeh to Geadah. One of these tales is mentioned in the first Directory of the Geadah family by Michel Moussa Geadah and repeated in the updated Directory compiled by Lina Kamal Geadah. It would seem that over 240 years ago, a commercial vessel was on the verge of getting shipwrecked close to the port of Haifa, Palestine. Among the inhabitants who ran to help was our ancestor, of the Naimeh family. Apparently, he demonstrated such valor and personal risk that the reputation of his prowess soon reached other cities and personalities including the Governor of Saint John of Acre (Acca) who summoned him to congratulate him on his success at rescuing the ship.
Desiring to see him in action, the Governor asked him to wrestle one of his slaves who, prior to that time, had never been beaten in a wrestling match. Our ancestor attempted to decline politely saying he was no wrestler but the Governor insisted (3). Indubitably, the wrestling match culminated in a victory for our ancestor, and the Governor tapped him on the shoulder saying: “Bravo, ya geadah.” Geadah in Arabic means valiant, brave, courageous.
Another version was often told to me by my father and has it that an Egyptian Pasha used to tour the Arab peninsula with a Mamlouk. Wrestling matches were held under his auspices everywhere he went, while the attendees would bet money on the wrestler of their choice. When the Pasha reached Haifa, he asked to meet the strongest man in the city and was directed to our Naimeh ancestor whom he bade wrestle his Mamlouk. The story has it that our ancestor won and the Pasha gave him an accolade saying: “Bravo, ya geadah” (1). (The Arabic letter G is normally pronounced J in Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria etc., but in Egypt, it is pronounced G). The community started labeling the Naimeh household the “family of the Geadah”, meaning the “family of the valiant one.” As can be surmised, with time, the Egyptian pronunciation of G reverted to the J of the area and the Naimeh family became known as the Geadah family.
Lina Kamal Geadah mentions another verbally transmitted story relative to our great ancestor, Francis Ibn (Son of) Mikhail who was the representative of the Greek Catholic (Melkite) Community when Napoleon Bonaparte, who was a General at the time, embarked upon the siege of Saint John of Acre. It is believed that he spent a few days at the residence of our ancestor, Francis Ibn Mihail (2).
The Geadah family is one of the largest (close to a thousand individuals) and the oldest of the five most prominent Christian families of Haifa. In fact, the family created its own club, “The Geadah Family Club” and the Presidency rotated among its well-to-do members including Adib Basila Geadah, until their forced exodus from Palestine in 1947-8 during the Israeli-Palestinian war (1).
Some of the Geadahs settled all over. Others went back to their country of origin, Lebanon. After settling in, a group of notables among them paid a courtesy call on the eminent Mikhail Naimeh who received them saying: “Welcome back, O cousins (1).”
The Geadah family has always believed in a high level of education, even in those days when few people went to college. A case in point is the late Soubhi Michel Geadah who had lost his sight and yet could help you find a city on a map by giving verbal directions. In fact, most of the Geadahs are erudite, had and have a command of more than two languages.
Some Geadah family members held high positions during the Ottoman Empire’s rule and also the British Mandate. Others distinguished themselves in many professions. Evidently, we cannot enumerate the accomplishments of all. However, we will content ourselves with mentioning a few.
In the judicial world, the late Ayoub Ibn Mikhail Geadah and Ishak Ibn Geryes Geadah were members of the Court of Law during the Ottoman Empire’s rule (2). In addition, Michel Ibn Youssef Geadah held a top post in the Municipality of Haifa for about fifty years during both the Ottoman Empire’s rule and the British Mandate (2). In the business field, the late Wadih Ibn Yacoub Geadah was a well-known trader in Haifa. His sons, Adib and Charles, took after him and became known throughout the Middle East, parts of Europe and the U.S. Zakiah Francis Geadah owned the Water Company of Haifa. The late Adib Basila Geadah was a very successful banker and man of letters. Philippe Basila Geadah held high business positions in the Sudan. Alice Jad Haddad Geadah published cultural articles in newspapers. In medicine, Fouad Adib Geadah, M.D., is an otorino-laryngologist and facial plastic surgeon. In fact, he is the first physician in the family and also the first equestrian and accordeon player. Mona Adib Geadah St.Leger is a published poetess. The late Georges Michel Geadah was a highly-reputed oil businessman in the Middle East and parts of Europe. His children. Michel, Sami and Gabriel, excelled, respectively , in business, banking and insurance. In the music profession, Habib Geadah Kayaleh, son of the lovely Lola and Dr. Jean Kayaleh, grandson of Georges Michel Geadah, is a phenomenal virtuoso violinist. He has his own conservatory in Switzerland, conducts the Kayaleh orchestra all over Europe and is sponsored by the Deutsche Bank. He is a violin virtuoso consultant for the Moscow Conservatory as well as the Tokyo Conservatory. His wife and daughter are also violinists. In fact, his daughter Laurence, performs violin concerti in Europe, the U.S. and Canada. Her first public performance was at the age of ten and she has still not reached her thirtieth birthday. As for the theatre, the leader of one of the “chansonniers” groups in Lebanon is Andre Geadah who, with his group of “chansonniers”, appears on stage poking fun and satire at Lebanese politics. Chebli Khalil Geadah is a successful investment banker. Kamel Ibn Yacoub Geadah and his son Raja Geadah, were artists in the field of hand-carved furniture and jewelry. In the Foreign Service, Nawal Khalil Geadah Kafati became an Ambassadress etc…
To mention a few additional words about the world of literature and letters, Adib Basila Geadah combined a great love for literature with his profound knowledge of banking. He had a command of five languages: Arabic, English, French, Italian and Turkish. He and his family’s social activities included many evenings of poetry and literary discussions, reminiscent of the salons of Mesdames de Recamier and de Maintenon…
Furthermore, when he was 96 years old, he was living in the US. The well-known radio anchor, Nahida Fadli Dajani, interviewed him for the Arabic radio station of Washington, DC, and had a delightful exchange of Arabic poetry with him totally by heart. A week or so later, two young poets of the metropolitan area’s US Arab community heard the interview on the radio and requested a meeting with him. The evening between the four of them was memorable. Adib Basila Geadah died less than a year later, and Mrs. Dajani played his tape of poetry on the radio one year after his demise, as a celebration of his life and to commemorate his poetry recital at that advanced age. Adib Basila Geadah was so well regarded in his community that he was often asked to mediate in litigious matters for persons who could not afford the courts. In addition, he was often requested to give speeches at major events including those of Muslim organizations as he enjoyed most cordial relations with their executive boards. He was also a distinguished member of Lujnet Al-Yateem, a prestigious organization whose main goal was the improvement of the welfare of orphans. He was received by many eminent political figures including the late King Hussein of the Royal Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
The Geadahs had their share of the political upheaval of the area. Many of them, believed in the necessity of strengthening the national psyche and playing a galvanizing role by dint of political involvement. It cost some of them their lives or major hardships.
In the field of religion, many members of the family became Catholic priests and nuns. Among them is Father Raphael Ibn Mikhail Geadah, Canonist, who died in 1903 (2). Evelyne Wadih Geadah was a nun with the “Couvent des Soeurs Reparatrices.” When she passed away in 2003, she was an active member of their order in their Convent in Nocera, Umbria, Italy. Nathalia and Theodosia Mikhail Francis Geadah were nuns in Deir (Convent) El Moukhalles in Lebanon. There were and are others.
This blog owes much to Michel Moussa Geadah who was the first to compile the Geadah Genealogy. Since the communications technology was inadequate at the time, it was a Herculean effort for him to get in touch with the members of the family who had settled abroad, mainly in the Arab countries. Regardless, he succeeded against these great odds and reconstructed a most edifying genealogy from 1720 to 1968 when he published it. 1976 was the start of the Lebanese Civil War which created yet another unfettered exodus from Lebanon, and an unavoidable malaise which ensued and afflicted not only Lebanon but also the Middle East. Moussa Semaan Geadah, Michel Moussa’s nephew, felt it imperative to exert additional efforts to continue with the genealogy before its members disappeared in the spectrum of the diaspora, and their lineage in the embers of oblivion. He resuscitated the family’s history, documenting it until 1998 (2). Motivated by the same determinants, Lina Kamal Geadah updated this perennial topic until 2003 with the help of excellently kept files by Leila Wakim Andraos Geadah, Moussa’s wife. She also went beyond as she got in touch with members of the family who had left Lebanon during the Civil War of 1976-94 and emigrated to Europe, the US, Australia and Africa etc. To all of them, this blog also owes much.
Anyone desiring further information about the family should refer to the Directory of the Geadah Family, 1920-2003, compiled and updated by Lina Kamal Geadah.
Families related to the Geadah Family
There are close to 250 families related to the Geadah Family through marriage (See Lina Geadah’s Directory for additional details).
The Diaspora:
Members of the Geadah Family can now be found in the following countries:
Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cuba, Egypt, France, Germany, Honduras, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Palestine, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Switzerland, Syria, the UAE, the UK, the USA and Venezuela.
Bibliography
- Geadah, Adib Basila, Unpublished Memoirs, USA, 1993.
- Geadah, Lina Kamal, Directory of the Geadah Family. Beirut, Lebanon, 2003.
- Geadah, Michel Moussa, Directory of the Geadah Family. Beirut, Lebanon, 1968.
