[1][2] He married at the age of 15 before moving to Petrovice, where after three years he became an assistant to the local rabbi.

[4][5][6] While serving in this role he tried to expand the curriculum of the yeshiva to include Arabic on the recommendation of his associate Sir Moses Montefiore.

Although he was forced to concede that the course should be dropped, because of pressures from traditionalists, Kahanov still pushed for the expansion of the Old Yishuv community, encouraging others to build homes outside of the Old City, like his which was located in Nahalat Shiv'a, and promoting the growth of industrial enterprise.

[2][3] His apparent alignment with progressive thinkers resulted in some people accusing him of secretly being a supporter of the Haskalah movement.

His grandson, son of his son, Rabbi Avraham Yaakov Kahanov, is Fayvel Kahanov, founder of neighborhoods in Tel Aviv, Neveh Tzedek neighborhood.