ROCHELLE IMBERS

KNIT KNIT KNIT

Fabulous Fall
Yarns
855-2114

grandmother named Fannie.
Most American Jews are
known by their secular
names. However, when a per-
son is called to the Ibrah or
in the recitation of certain
prayers, the use of a religious
name is preferred. The need to
give an individual a Hebrew
name derives from the belief
that in heaven a Jew can be
recognized only by the He-
brew name. Since Talmudic
times, male children have
been given a Hebrew name at
a circumcision ceremony (bris)
on the eighth day of life. For
females, there is no such
historic tradition. In recent
years, females are given a
Hebrew name in a ceremony
where the parents are called to
the Ibrah for a prayer for the
well-being of the child.
Tastes in names change rap-
idly. A sampling of names
among Jews who immigrated
to the United States includes
Bessie, Esther, Frieda, Fannie,
Goldie, Gussie, Ida, Lena, Min-
nie, Mollie, Mary Nettie, Pearl,
Rose, Rebecca (Becky), Sadie,
Sophie, Zelda, Abe, Benjamin,
Isadore, Hyman, Samuel, Har-
ry, Herman, Irving, Jack, Ja-
cob, Israel, Joseph, Julius and
Louis.
Girls born to the above were
likely to be called Arlene, Bet-
ty, Doris, Edith, Eleanor,
Evelyn, Gertrude, Harriet,
Helen, Jean, Mildred, Selma,
Shirley or Sylvia. Favorite
names for boys were Arnold,
Arthur, Bernard, Harold, Her- -
bert, Howard, Jerome, Jules,
Lawrence, Leon, Leonard, Mar-
tin, Milton, Morton, Norman,
Paul, Philip, Seymour, Sidney
Stanley and Walter.
The next generation of Jew-
ish children were named Ann,
Barbara, Beth, Carol, Diane,
Ellen, Gail, Jane, Joan, Joyce,
Judy, Karen, Leslie, Linda,
Lois, Michelle (Shelly), Lynn,
Sandra, Susan, Alan, Barry,
Eric, Gary Harvey, Jay, Jeffrey,
Mark (or Marc), Michael, Peter,
Richard, Robert, Stephen or
Stuart. This is the generation
into which I was born.
Following were Amy, Lori,
Jennifer, Nicole, Tracey, Stacey,
Lisa, Marci, Adam, Brian,
Craig, Evan., Matthew, and
Scott. lbday's parents are ad-
ding Anna, Alison, Alyssa,
Emily, Jessica, Laura, Molly,'
Sarah, Rachel, Rebecca, Aaron,
Benjamin, Daniel, Jason,
Jeremy, Jonathan, Joshua,
Justin, Michael and Peter.
The names Alexander and
Alexandra are also frequently
heard today, as evidenced by
announcements of recent births
in my college alumni news-
paper. Among 10 babies born
to parents with Jewish-sound-
ing surnames, two were named
Alexander and one was named
Alexandra The name Alex-
ander has been used by Jews
since ancient times. According

to legend, Alexander the Great,
before going off to war, ordered
that the Jews build a monu-
ment to him for inspection
upon his return years later. He
came back to find that no such
monument had been erected.
Angrily, he summoned the
rabbi, asking if he had not
shirked his responsibility. The
rabbi, with a host of children by
his side, is said to have replied,
"Sire, it is contrary to our
religion to make any graven im-
age. But look!" And he asked
each boy to state his name.
Each replied, 'Alexander." Con-
tinued the rabbi, "We have
fulfilled your command by
naming each boy, born in your
absence, Alexander, and as
your name will go down from
generation to generation, a liv-
ing monument will be better
than a cold stone one"
My great grandmother was
Amelia. Because I was not giv-
en a Hebrew name as a young
girl, I had the opportunity to
choose my. own. I selected
Amalyaw after her. Few girls in
recent years have been given
her lovely name. But names
tend to enjoy a period of popu-
larity followed by a lull of
several generations.
This is the case with Emily,
the English version of her
name; it began its comeback
about five years ago. Now we
hear of little girls named Anna,
Hannah and Rebecca, as well
as Emily. Perhaps the next
wave will bring Mildred, Bessie,
Eleanor or Elaine. ❑

i■i■

Imml NEWS

Draft Dodging
Causes Shock

Tel Aviv (JTA) — Shock
waves continued to
reverberate through the
military and civilian
establishments as authorities
searched for Israelis
suspected of complicity in the
illegal draft-dodging opera-
tion uncovered Monday.
Border police at all airports
and seaports were notified of
hundreds of names of people
suspected of paying bribes,
reportedly ranging from
$1,000 to $10,000, to get out
of army service. The military
and civilian police intend to
round these people up and
press charges against them.
Police on Monday arrested
16 civilians and army officers,
some of them holding high
rank in the Israel Defense
Force, in connection with the
bribery ring.
The newspaper Haaretz said
Tuesday that the number of
those arrested is actually far
higher than has been
reported and that at the pre-
sent time, there are more
than 200 people involved.

HAPPY
NEW YEAR
TO ALL OUR FRIENDS
& CUSTOMERS

ACCENTS IN
NEEDLEPOINT

626-3042

ORCHARD MALL
ORCHARD LAKE RD.
WEST BLOOMFIELD

WISHING ALL THEIR
FRIENDS AND CLIENTS
A MOST HAPPY & HEALTHY
NEW YEAR!
851.9390

Bloomfield Plaza • Maple at Telegraph

our

American Heart Association

Cholesterol and your heart

Many people know that too much
cholesterol in their blood is not good for
them, but they do not know how much
is too much. The number to keep in
mind is 200.
According. to the American Heart
Association, more than 50 percent of
American adult males have cholesterol
levels above 200, a level at which the
risk of heart disease begins to rise
sharply.
Approximately 27 million adults have
serum cholesterol levels higher than 26()
milligrams per deciliter of blood.
The 10-year Coronary Primary Preven-
tion Trials (CPPT) provided medical
scientists with reinforced evidence that
a high blood cholesterol level is a cause
of coronary artery disease. The study
also showed that people who lower their
cholesterol levels with diet and drugs
have fewer heart attacks and less heart
disease.
Cholesterol is a soft, fat-like substance
found among the fats in the blood-
stream. These fats are called lipids, and
a high level of lipids in the bloodstream
is called hyperlipidemia. Hyperlipidemia
is a major risk factor for coronary heart
disease.
Hyperlipidemia can affect your heart
in this way — cholesterol and other
lipids build up in the inner lining of
blood vessels like rust. in water pipes,
and over time vessels can close. This
narrowing of blood vessels, called
atherosclerosis, keeps oxygen-carrying
blood from getting to the heart. The
result can be severe chest pain and
eventually heart attack.
The body gets cholesterol from two
sources. Each day the liver produces
about 1,000 milligrams of cholesterol,
which is needed to produce certain hor-
mones and to construct cells. The re-
maining cholesterol in the body comes
from food sources. This dietary choles-
terol is the cholesterol that could be of
concern to many people.
According to the AHA, a person's
blood cholesterol level depends on his or
her age, sex, and other risk factors:
smoking, high blood pressure, excess
weight or a family history of heart disease.

Atherosclerosis

How do you find out what your
cholesterol level is and how can you
reduce it if it's too high? Your doctor can
measure the amount of cholesterol in
your blood with a simple test. Ideally,
everyone should have a cholesterol level
test done by age 30, and it is suggested
the test be repeated every five years. If
there is a history of heart disease in the
family, the cholesterol level could be
checked at age 20 and every five years
thereafter.
If your cholesterol level is high, your
doctor will want you to begin a long-
term program to lower the level. Diet is
a safe, practical and effective way to
reduce blood cholesterol for most peo-
ple. Reducing the intake of high-fat.
meats, whole-milk dairy products, egg
yolks and other foods high in saturated
fat and cholesterol is helpful, along with
eating more poultry, fish, fresh fruits
and vegetables, grains and cereals, and
low-fat dairy products.
If diet changes alone won't reduce a
person's blood cholesterol, his or her
doctor may prescribe one of the medica-
tions available to help keep within the
ideal range.

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

203