Wikipedia
The Fernaine (alternate spellings include Fernainé, Ferneine, Ferneini, Fairneny, Fernainy) family is a prominent Christian Greek Orthodox Lebanese family. It is one of the original Beirut aristocratic families along with the Bustros, Fayad, Gebeili, Sursock, Tueni, and Trad families, who constituted the traditional high society of Beirut and Lebanon for a long time. These families were often referred to as the "7 Families" of Beirut. Estate holders and feudal lords by origin, today they are business owners, physicians, artists, and philanthropists in Lebanon and abroad.
The land formerly owned by the Fernaine family, along with the rest of the 7 Families, was concentrated in the district of Beirut known as Achrafieh. Under the French Mandate, the land was partitioned to build roads and highways during the 1930s, and eventually, the families were forced to sell vast amounts of their land.
The Greek Orthodox Annunciation Church (église de l'Annonciation) in Achrafieh was built by Negib Fernaine in 1927. Negib had been forced to emigrate to Egypt during WWI to escape the Ottomans, and upon his return he offered a piece of his land to have the church built. "Rue Ferneine" in Achrafieh is named after him.