The Schiff family is a branch of the older Cahn family, which settled at the Schiff in 1600 and took the name of the new house as its family name. The Schiff family first achieved prominence among Frankfurt's Jews for its learning, for example the rabbi Meier Schiff (1605 1641), who was a celebrated Talmud scholar in his day. One of Frankfurt's leading Jewish booksellers, David Schiff (d. 1697), came from this family. After the end of the 17th century the Schiffs also engaged in business, for example as money lenders and bankers, and also in trade, and some became very wealthy. The tradition of scholarship in the family continued, appearing repeatedly in prominent rabbis and doctors. In the 19th century various members of the family emigrated to America, where they became highly successful as bankers. To mark their links with their city of origin, the New York Schiff family continued to set up foundations for Frankfurt in the 20th century, for example for its university.