For the source text click/tap here: Bava Batra 161
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When witnesses sign legal documents, what must they write so that their signatures will be recognized and confirmed?
According to the Mishna in Massekhet Gittin (87b), a person can write ben ish ploni ed – “the son of so-and-so, witness” – and that will suffice to identify the person. Similarly according to that Mishna, someone who simply signs his first name will also be recognized as a witness.
We revisit the notion of patronymics and review the history of surnames among Jews and other cultures.