What is "halberstam"

Halberstam (‎, ‎) is a Jewish surname, used by several branches of the Halberstadt family.

Halberstam, meaningless in its current form, is altered from an older name, Halberstadt, used by many descendants of Rabbi Tzvi Hirsh (died 1748), the rabbi of Halberstadt.

The change of Halberstadt to Halberstam is often thought to have been implemented by Rabbi Chaim Halberstam of Sanz ( Nowy Sącz), as implied by Rabbi Yechezkel Michelsohn of Płońsk, in his biography of Rabbi Tzvi Hirsh Halberstadt and his descendants, who records the rabbi of Sanz's displeasure at bearing the name of a non-Jewish settlement as his motive. However, even first and second cousins of the rabbi of Sanz are known to have borne the modified name, implying that that the change was made at least two generations before him. Joseph Kwadrat believes that Halberstadt was modified to Halberstam (or, in one branch, to Halberthal) by members of the family then residing in Galicia to conform with the surname adoption laws of the Austrian Empire.