my mother told me that my fathers family was from Poland and not Germany...but i have no documentation of this as a possibility since "kunkel" is polish and has been a last name used in many places..but she was quite firm that my fathers 'kunkel" family was from Poland my only question is if i am truly German then why am i enforced to be considered polish? there is no documentation that says kunkel is from Poland but there is alot of documentation with it being from Germany or other areas.
Kunkel is either a misspelt or Germanised form of the Polish surname Kąkol (meaning corncockle). The name is especially widespread in the Baltic region's Kashuby area. This only has to do with the origin of the name, not those using it. As a result of centuries of migration, intermarriage, invasions, partitions, border shifts and population transfers there are many Germans called Nowak as well as Poles who sign themselves Szulc and even Schulz.
I have done some geneology research into the name Lazaruk as it is my wifes maiden name .and as far as I can tell its a western Ukraine name and based in Kolumeia. If you do a world wide search you will find most Lazaruks in Alberta Canada, and they seem to be descendants of Ivan Lazaruk who arrived in Canada about 1870 from Kolumeia. I have met many in Ukraine and there are some in Belarus. I did find a Lazaruk in Belarus who was a senior member of a jewish organisation, so its possible there are jewish roots, but I contacted a jewish geneology site and they didnt seem to think so. I'm surprised to hear it was polonised froom Lazarus to Lazaruk as UK endings are predominantly Ukraine, though having said that Kolumeia is in Galicia, so its a bit blurred.
Naj. This looks weird to me! Is it a very rare surname?
Yes, it's rare - currently only one "Naj" is registered in Poland Check the map: moikrewni.pl/mapa/kompletny/naj.html You may also use above link to search the Czyż surname - it is in turn very popular name in Poland.
NAJ: Yiddish pronunciation of the German adjective neu (new; in German pronounced noy); Polish prefix naj- is used to indicate the superlative of adjectives the way the suffix- est is in English; e.g. najmądrzejszy = wisest.
I looked at that map at moikrewni.pl/mapa/kompletny/naj.html
I am confused now! There is only one person called NAJ in all Poland. So what happened to my grandfather's family? They lived in Zamosc or Lublin.
I see there are Czyz in that area, though.
The other curious thing in my family is that my auntie married in Lublin about 1937 to a man called PHELPS. This is a British name, and I am most curious to know what a Brit was doing in Poland in the 30s.
Anybody have information on the last name of Soberalski? Been looking up my last name for quite a while and still have no information on it. There are plenty of us in the US but not sure how we are related. My great great grandfather's last name was Soberalska before it was changed to Soberalski. Any help would be appreciated.
SOBIERALSKI: Soberalski is not used in Poland. It may have resulted from a mistranslation of the Russian Cyrillic or from a misspelling at Ellis Island or elsewhere. Your great great grandfather's last name could not have been Soberalska, because that is the feminine form. Sobieralski was probably derived from the first names Sobiesław or Sobiestian (an old form of Sebastian).
For more info on the name's origin, where your namesakes are from and whether a coat of arms goes with it, please contact me.
When an émigré has a Polish surname no longer used in Poland, that suggests that: 1) all its bearers have either died off or emigrated; 2) its users were stranded on the Soviet side of the border after 1920 and 1945. 3) In the case of an unusual-sounding name (and Naj certainly fits the bill), its users changed it to something else like perhaps Najlepszy (the best) or Najmanowicz (son of Najman, Yiddish pronunciation of German Neumann = newman, newcomer).
A little more data about this family would be helpful. First names, dates, timeframe, location? Where they are from in Poland? Maybe from Szczecin area? I ask because only 5 people with this name is registered in Poland, and all just in Szczecin:
Hi can any one help with a possible polish surname I have been given my great grandparents first names were Alexander and Yetta which I believe are polish. I have either Mizretsky or Riseretsky as possible surnames.
MIZERACKI: This surname exists in Poland. It comes from the Old Polish word mizera (poverty, misery, wretchedness). Mizretsky might have been a clumsy attempt to phonetically respell it.
Yetta is not a Polish female first name. She might have been called that after landing overseas, but not in Poland.
Hi, Would like to know if my Fathers Surname has a meaning - Polechonski. The Polish members of the family spell it Polichonski, but my Dad who moved to England after the war always spelled it with an e. The Polish Family are now in the Poznan area But my Father was born in the Ukraine
POLICHOŃSKI/POLECHOŃSKI: These are two variants of the same surname, Polechoński being the more common version. Its meaning is obscure but it might trace back to such first names as Leopold or Apoloniusz whose pet forms include Polek or Poldek. Hence Polechoński might have originated as a patronymic nickname indicating Polek's son.
What can anyone share on the name Bucia, my mothers maiden name. I have heard a couple of different translations; boot or shoe, and also tree. Is the name an archaic or old fashion word that has gone out of use in modern Polish? She was from South Eastern Poland, if that sheds any light on the translation. Thanks
BUCIA: it's a toss-up. Could be from but (boot), maybe a clipped form of buciar (big, old, worn-out boot) which in modern Polish is more commonly bucior. But also buta (extreme arrogance). Possibly even a topo nick from Bucze.
If a surname exists in Polonia but not in Poland that could mean the Old Country branch all emigrated or died off or maybe got stranded on the eastern side of the Soviet border in 1920 or 1945.
"Old Country"? Are you talking to Mana or Laskowo? That's part of how I know that I'm Jewish, by the way: my mom mention that my dad's paternal grandmother (OBM) would talk about her parents being from "the Old Country", etc..
LESMAN: German toponymic nick for someone from the German town of Leese. Incidentally, Bolesław Lesman (an assimilated Jew), one of the early 20th century's greatest Polish poets, changed his name to Leśmian to make it sound more Polish.
Old Country is the way Americans of different nationalities refer to the European country to which they trace their ancestral roots. It is used by the Irish, Italians, Poles, Czechs, Germans et al, so it's not surprising that Jewish Americans do likewise.
By Jews yes, but to each nationality old country refers to the land one's ethnic ancestors hailed from. With Jews the plural old countries might be more appropriate. Also, for Jews that term often has a negative connotation and is equated with "that horrible place". By contrast, Goyim often use it nostalgically to refer to one's native parts, childhood reminiscing, quaint old customs, favorite comfort foods and other such sentimental reverie.
Jews use it in a positive way, too, in certain contexts (though not many, I will say. Usually, the "native parts, childhood reminiscing, quaint old customs, favorite comfort foods and other such sentimental reverie" refers to what was going on in the safety of the shtetlach and/or before situations got out of hand.). Besides, Great-Grandma (OBM) was born here. Her parents were born in Vel'ka Frankova (or Kacwin, which he could've been) and £aspe Niżne.
Meanwhile, I should add that I just [at 2:54 PM EST] that it was actually the Foczko-Rusznaks talked about it at the family reunions (from what I was told) when, e.g., a visit or something was mentioned ("matter of fact", my mom recalls about the mentions at the reunions that she attended). Keep in mind, too, that they would talk about Andras and Juliana Foczkova being from "Czechoslovakia" from the reunions that I remember (So what does that say? Anyway...)
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