Mendes (Mendiz)
MENDES (Mendiz)
MENDES (Mendiz ), family of rabbis and merchants in *Morocco and *Algeria of Spanish-Portuguese origin. joseph mendes (mid-16th century) was rabbi of the community of Spanish exiles (Heb., megorashim) in *Fez and a signatory of its takkanot. gideon (late 17–early 18th century), a merchant of *Amsterdam, served as consul of the Netherlands in Salé from 1703 and was active in promoting commerce and negotiating treaties with Morocco. His son joshua was a merchant in Salé and in Amsterdam. A contemporary r. isaac was a rabbi and an international merchant in *Agadir and spent time in London trading with European countries. His son jacob remained in Agadir and one of his daughters married the rabbi and thinker Khalifa b. *Malca.
bibliography:
Hirschberg, Afrikah, 2 (1965), 268–72; J. Ben-Naim, Malkhei Rabbanan (1931), 107; sihm, index.