Sri Lanka Memon Family Genealogy

RAHILA - Family #292

The family named Rahila is evidently of Arab origin. It means Exodus or one who travels which aptly describes this family inspired by the strong urge to travel, known by the German term "Wanderlust", who have migrated far and wide. Haji Yoosuf Eshak Rahila, first arrived in Ceylon in 1938 and worked at H H Essa & Company, where he was later made a partner.

Jan Mohammed, eldest son of Yoosuf Rahila & Zulaikha, chose Accountancy as his profession and worked at S T R Salay Mohammed & Company as an Accountant, from 1948. The pioneer spirit of his ancestors, however, beckoned him to embark on a bigger adventure and a decade later, in 1958, he started Rahila & Company, a textile firm in Prince Street Pettah.

Mustafa, the younger son of Yoosuf Rahila, had his early education at Zahira College and in 1955, joined S T R Salay Mohammed as a Salesman before moving on to Rahila & Company to work under his brother. In 1961, he married Ibrahim Bawa Fatani's daughter, JebuBhai, and the following year was blessed with a son whom he named Yoosuf, and in 1969 another named Yaseen. Yoosuf went on to marry Zaida, a girl from the Chana family, while Yaseen married a girl from the Silat family. Both brothers are into garment manufacturing for the local market.

1 Rahila

    2  Haji Yoosuf Eshak Rahila + Zulaikha

3 Jan Mohammed Yoosuf Rahila

3 Mustafa Yoosuf Rahila + JebuBhai Ibrahim Bawa Fatani

4 Yoosuf Mustafa Rahila + Zaida Chana (279)

            4 Yaseen Mustafa Rahila + ? Silat (289)

Compiled by the Webmaster of the Sri Lanka Genealogy Website from available data in Sri Lankan archives together with data extracted from "Memons of Sri Lanka" - Men Memoirs Milestones, by Asiff Hussein & Hameed Karim Bhoja, May 2006, iSBN 955-1408-00-4, Published by The Memon Association of Sri Lanka