The family name is an acronym stating that they are Kohanim: MiZera Aharon Hacohen (from the seed of Aaron the Priest).
Born 1859 in Mogilev, Belarus, Mazeh was raised by his maternal grandfather following the early passing of his father.
His son Saadiah (Sadi in the U.S.) was imprisoned 4 years after Rabbi Mazeh's passing for attending Zionist meetings but, due to outside pressure, was released with permission to leave Russia along with his wife Vera and their children.
[4][5] Rabbi Mazeh was called by the defense in the Beilis Blood Libel as an expert witness, and was quite thorough in his 1913 testimony.
[9] Aside from his journalistic works, in both Hebrew and Yiddish,[a] he left (published posthumously in 1936) a four volume set, Zikhronos.