UK, Ireland / Polish people in the UK using the English version of their name? [56]

I had the pleasure of meeting my Lemko cousin Irena earlier this year. I have no problem pronouncing her name properly, but some people do (including my wife who just can't trill her "r"s). I was a bit miffed when she introduced herself to some of my siblings as Irene. I quickly squashed that and taught them how to pronounce her name the way her parents do. On the other hand I knew it was fruitless to try to teach them how to say her father's name (Wladyslaw), so I just let them call him Walter. You gotta pick your battles.

Love / Can't get over "the Polish experience" [21]



Thank you.

Love / Can't get over "the Polish experience" [21]


What's this? I'm an American, so this is news to me.

Genealogy / Where are the Lemkos now? Do they still exist in Poland? [32]

Great post, USLemko - diakuju.


That is true for the Lemkos who still live in Poland. However, there are much larger Lemko populations in Ukraine, Slovakia, US and Canada these days. So if you're looking for descendants of Lemkos, be prepared to cast a wide net.


There is another skansen where one can view traditional Lemko homes and out-buildings in Nowy Sacz.


I attended that vatra last summer - it was much more Ukrainian than Lemko, but it was a great event nonetheless. True Lemkos just need to be tolerant of the political bs.


C'mon - tell the story! Tell the story!

Genealogy / The surname Celinski and resources for Galician roots [17]


Welcome to the Rusyn community!
If you'd like recommendations for the 3 genealogists I know who may be able to help you with your research, let me know. One is Polish, one is Rusyn, and one is American.

Celinski is not a far cry from the name of my grandfather's home village, Wola Cieklinska.

USA, Canada / American Polonia. Wisconsin - the most Polish state? [112]


Beer, mushrooms, and ???? What's that last one?

Life / Some People in Poland Drink Ether? [11]


and highly entertaining!

Life / Some People in Poland Drink Ether? [11]


That might shed some light on it, as the people with whom I've been discussing this are Rusyn Lemkos - many of whom were shipped to Silesia in 1947 as a result of Akcja Wisla. These folks are descended from Lemkos who were able to return to their ancestral homeland in 1957 and live there still (well, some of them, anyway).

I found a couple interesting tidbits on the Web:

"The attraction with ether was that it allowed drinkers to get drunk much quicker than with whiskey and its effects wore off fairly rapidly, thereby allowing them to get drunk several times within the one day. It was also much cheaper than whiskey."

"The effects of ether were like those of alcohol, but the drinker passed through the stages of intoxication to insensibility much more quickly. He also sobered up after only a few minutes with no hangover. One problem with drinking ether was that it turns into a gas at body temperature. To get around this, the usual technique was to drink a glass of cold water followed by a shot of ether. The water cooled the mouth and throat sufficiently to get the ether into the stomach in liquid form. A frequent side effect was violent belching of flammable gas. Since houses were lit by naked flames, ether drinkers sometimes set themselves and others alight."

Life / Reliable Weather Service In Poland? [25]


Yes, I know. Sometimes I wonder why I bother checking - often they can't even tell you with a high degree of accuracy how it's going to be tomorrow, much less 5 or 6 days from now. My biggest concern is for the 5 days from Wednesday the 16th through Sunday the 20th, as that's when I have the most outdoor activities on my agenda. The area we'll be in will be from Gorlice east to Pielgrzymka and south to Zdynia.

Life / Reliable Weather Service In Poland? [25]


Great idea - know of any in or around Gorlice, or south of there?
I found this site today - I hope it's correct, because I'm seeing a much better forecast here!

yr.no/place/Poland/Subcarpathia

Life / Reliable Weather Service In Poland? [25]

Does anyone have any other recommendations?
I'll be in Gorlice from the 17th to the 21st, and the current long range forecast for there and then is cool and wet. Daytime highs around 17-22 C (63-72 F) and nighttime lows in the 7-11 C (44-52 F) range. That’s a lot cooler than I would have guessed – and it’ll probably be even cooler when we move to Wysowa on the 21st, because it’s closer to the mountains.

Is this weather typical for these areas at this time of year? I would have thought it would be warmer.

News / The most important information and facts about Poland [27]

Thanks for the interesting information. Two questions for you:
What is a voivodeship?
How are the following differentiated?

News / The most important information and facts about Poland [27]


even more important - Jun 27, 07 - Wyspi joins PF!

Food / Mother of all hangovers....Polish Beer! [71]

What - weed? Name one.

Food / Mother of all hangovers....Polish Beer! [71]


And that's just ONE reason why it should be legal everywhere!
My worst hangover came from mixing many diffrent kinds of drinks at a New Year's Eve party. The hangover lasted two days. That was the last time I got drunk. Who needs it?

Language / Polish Lessons Units [189]

I just found this thread today, after reading a response to an introduction that directed that person here. SWEET! This is awesome! I can't wait to get home to try them out. I think this is going to be a major jump-start in my learning to speak the language of my forefathers - thank you so much, janusz!

Genealogy / The surname Celinski and resources for Galician roots [17]


You may be Carpatho-Rusyn on your mother's side. "White Russian" is a common way to refer to these people. Have you ever heard the term Lemko, Boyko or Hutsul used with regard to her? If so, she's certainly Carpatho-Rusyn. Galicia was full of them. For more info, start with c-rs.org and lemko.org.

Did they come in through Ellis Island? If so and you have not yet searched the Ellis Island records, do so. Try as many different spellings for your grandparents' names as you can think of. My grandfather's name was spelled differently in the old country, so it took a while to find it, but I eventually did.

Genealogy / Where are the Lemkos now? Do they still exist in Poland? [32]

The article accessed via the URL provided by krysia is not comprehensive. For a good deal more information regarding the Lemkos I recommend lemko.org and c-rs.org.