Birth Name: Joseph Jacob Totah
Place of Birth: Sacramento, California
Date of Birth: August 5, 2001
Ethnicity:
*50% Palestinian Arab
*25% Lebanese Arab
*12.5% Italian
*6.25% Irish
*6.25% German
J.J. Totah is an American actor, comedian, and singer.
J.J.’s father is of Arab Palestinian (Christian) descent. J.J.’s mother is of half Lebanese Arab, one quarter Italian, one eighth Irish, and one eighth German, ancestry.
J.J.’s paternal grandfather was Mansur Isa Totah (the son of Esa Totah and Hilweh Shatara). Mansur’s family was from Ramallah, Palestine. Esa was the son of Ghannam Totah and Hanneh Balat. Hilweh was the daughter of Elias Shatara and Nimeh Araj.
J.J.’s paternal grandmother was Naimeh Muhawieh (the daughter of Issa Muhawieh and Nazeera/Nazira Tarazi). Naimeh was born in 1937 in Ramallah, Palestine. Issa was the son of Ibrahim Muhawieh and Martha Balat.
J.J.’s maternal grandfather was Joseph Charles Jacobs (the son of Joseph G. Jacobs and Sadie “Sally” Samaha). J.J.’s great-grandfather Joseph was born in California, the son of Lebanese parents, Mike Joseph Jacobs and Sarah Nemee. Sadie was born in California, the daughter of Lebanese parents, Ayoub “Joe” Samaha and Mamie J. Shehady.
J.J.’s maternal grandmother is Mary Frances Riley (the daughter of Harold Edwin Riley and Loretta Cleon DiCresce). Harold was born in Ohio, the son of Lancelot Vernill/Vernell Riley, who had Irish ancestry, and of Mary Ella/Ellen Fisher, whose parents were German. Loretta was born in Ohio, to Italian parents, Santo Alexander DiCresce and Francis D’Alphonso.
Sources: Genealogy of J.J. Totah (focusing on his father’s side) – http://worldconnect.rootsweb.ancestry.com
Obituary of J.J.’s paternal grandmother, Naimeh (Muhawieh) Totah – http://www.legacy.com
J.J.’s maternal great-grandfather, Harold Edwin Riley, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
J.J.’s maternal great-grandmother, Loretta Cleon DiCresce, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Obituary of J.J.’s maternal great-grandmother, Loretta Cleon (DiCresce) Riley – http://www.recordnet.com
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