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Posts by Veles  

Joined: 14 Nov 2014 / Male ♂ 		Last Post: 4 Aug 2022
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Posts: Total: 197 / Live: 94 / Archived: 103 		From: Poland
Speaks Polish?: Yes

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Veles   
10 Mar 2015
Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

1. Surname with suffix -ec is suggesting that the surname comes from "father's name". Something like "Petersen" in Scandinavian surnames. I don't know how English surnames are created, so I can't tell if it is a good equivalent, but Jakub is Jacob/James. So if suffix "-s" is an equivalent of suffix "-ec" it may make sense.

2. Not necessarily Jewish, what makes you think so? As far as I know, surnames with this suffix may be of Ukrainian origin.
Veles   
6 Jan 2015
Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Cybert and Bumber are not Polish surnames.

There are 4 people in Poland with surname Cybert, and all of them live in £ask (£ódź Voivodeship).
And there are none of people with surname Bumber.

Maybe you should check also a first names, or surnames were changed (made to sound/look more English) but formerly they were different.
Veles   
6 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Comes from names starting with "Sta-", for example "Stanisław" (in fact, the most probably, like 95%). Suffix "-ak" suggest partonymic character of the surname, so as in Bernatowicz was Bernat, here in Stasiak is Stanisław. Tendencies to create a surname with using suffix "-ak" were most common in western parts of Poland (Greater Poland).
Veles   
5 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

And when you stated that the prefix Bernat- is Czech, Lesser Polish and Silesian does that mean one of my ancestors could have been from that country?

I said about Slovak and Hungarian. But yes, if the name was used in these countries it may mean that your ancestor ethnically belonged to mentioned nation.

And also is it possible that my ancestors surname was Bernat?

First name.
Veles   
5 Jan 2015
Life / Being a Jew in modern-day Poland; Israeli Jew who is of Polish descent [269]

Of Germanic origin there are 2 I have in mind, and quite common:

1) Eryk (Scandinavian) - it means a person who has "much of honor/glory".
2) Waldemar - a person who is "famous/glorious due to his reign".

Of Latin origin I know only 1 which is quite common:

1) Wiktor - means glorious, victorious.

I don't know of Greek origin, and of Hebrew origin I think every single name refer to Jahwe.

Maruspial, finding fitting name in different languages may be simply a curiousity, not obligatory.
Veles   
5 Jan 2015
Life / Being a Jew in modern-day Poland; Israeli Jew who is of Polish descent [269]

There is old-Polish name "Sławosław" that consists of same root and suffix. But I never met anyone with this name.
There is also "Stanisław", quite popular and means "to become glorious" or "to gain glory". Something like that.

These are of Slavic origin. I need to think also about Roman, Greek, Hebrew and Germanic. Give me a moment ;)
Veles   
5 Jan 2015
Life / Being a Jew in modern-day Poland; Israeli Jew who is of Polish descent [269]

Yes. There are many names with this suffixes. And one main question, you're male or female?

I wanted to mention Sławomir either :) It means "Sławo-" (glory) and "-mir" (peace). However, there are also many names with suffix "-sław", there are some options. For example, Mirosław means the same as Sławomir.
Veles   
4 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

1. Polish coat of arms "Bernatowicz" was granted in 1676 (also with the surname Bernacki) to Bernard Krzysztof Bernatowicz for military merits.
2. Polish coat of arms "Bernatowicz, variation Trąb" was granted in 1768 to Jakub Bernatowicz, a secretary of Michał Radziwiłł and Karol Radziwiłł. Radziwiłł family members have given to Bernatowicz their own scheme of the coat of arms.

3. Polish coat of arms "Bernatowicz galicyjski" was granted in 1789 to Grzegorz Bernatowicz in Galicia (under Austrian partition).
4. Polish coat of arms "Bernatowicz-Gieysztoff" - no data.

On other site there information that Bernatowicz families used coat of arms:

1. Białynia - used by the families who were living mostly on lands of £ęczyca, Kraków, Sandomierz, Sieradz. First mentioned data about existance of this coat of arms comes from 1388. Used by 86 families. It is quite similar to "Bernatowicz-Gieysztoff" but not the same.

2. Leliwa - due to Długosz it came to Poland from Germany. Other experts in heraldry claims that it is native to Poland. First information about it comes from 12th century (then it was used by saint Bertold von Garsten). Used by 831 families.

3. Ostoja - used on many territories of PLC, also in Red Ruthenia and Ducal Prussia. First mentioned information comes from 14th century. Used by 770 families.

4. Prawdzic - existed on many names. Its decent is controversial. Used by 538 families.

It suggest that Bernatowicz family, was a part of "szlachta" - Polish gentry. There is a chance that your ancestor was one of them, no matter if he was Armenian, Slovak, Polish or what. In this information Bernatowicz are Polish - different ethnicity is hypothetical, as in the past Bernatowicz surname was also held by Armenians.

For now, good night. Need to sleep :)
Veles   
4 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Bernat may be a surname, but in Slovakia and Hungary it is also a first name.

It is possible that your ancestor was just "Bernat" without surname, and his son was named... for example Sviatoslav Bernatowicz. The suffix "-icz" is common in Eastern Slavic countries, as patronymic. So I assume, that simply your surname comes from the name of first Bernatowicz father - Bernat.
Veles   
4 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Yes. Bernat is actually the equivalent of Bernard (used in Poland). Suffixes -icz or -uk (as in my case) are mostly meaning something like "Petersen" or "Palsdottir" in Scandinavia. "Petersen" means "son of Peter" and "Palsdottir" means "daughter of Pals". Your surname may simply mean "son of Bernat".
Veles   
4 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Could be. But you need to have in mind, that Armenians were never Muslims - as Christians they were able to be involved in mixed marriages. They settled in Western Ukraine and most probably they were marrying Ruthenians and Poles. So it is difficult to admit that you have more than 20% of Armenian blood. This surname however, was used not only by the Armenians. Its "scheme" suggest... or at least suffix... Ruthenian influence. The root "Bernat-" was mostly present in Czechia, Silesia and Lesser Poland. Bernat is a name.
Veles   
4 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Surnames, HolyDuck. Surnames. Now you act like someone who says: "My ancestors were from Bergen, Norway. Perhaps, my family does originate from Greenland?". If you know geography and demography of Ukraine during Habsburg's reign, you should know the possibility. Do you have ancestors with surname's suffix "-an"?
Veles   
4 Jan 2015
Genealogy / Common surnames in Poland NOT of Polish origin ? [87]

Fox is English. Polish translation is Lis, and German would be Fuchs.

There are also Szmidt (Schmitt), or Weiss. Too many to make a list. Many surnames were created by using foreign characteristics, for example the surname "Makaruk" is present both - in Poland and Ukraine. So is it Polish or Ukrainian?
Veles   
29 Dec 2014
History / Origins of Polish Slavs [138]

Early Slavs lived in the area of northern Ukraine - it is from there they have expanded

You mean Nestor's writings, for example? Well, yes, he mentioned Slavs, but he didn't said from where they came and who were their ancestors.

In Roman records, it is certain that slavs came from the north east.

Could be. We are definitely related to the Balts, even pre-Christian beliefs have much in common.

We need to have in mind sociological aspect. Many people were nomads, were moving from less "good" areas to better ones. Some researches shown that Slavs are similiar somehow to native people from Afganistan (don't remember in which case), so it is possible to me, that they moved from there and settled here. Maybe they also mixed with other tribes or nations we know from history. But I really doubt that this is a native land to Slavs. What I think is that they moved here, some tribes gone east, other west, et cetera. I'm just guessing. In the past people were moving and mixing with each other, assimiliating... They couldn't just disappear - for example Scythia was a huge land. But Scythians weren't a nation - they could have mixed with Sarmatians, Roxolani, Iazyges, and many others "creating new" tribes.

And to be honest, Romans were present here. In the nearest town some archaelogical researches discovered some Roman coins, so Romans had to be present on eastern Poland. I do not mean military actions, but some merchants, etc. :)

Ofcourse, no body knew details, but it was known that slavs did expand into poland.

They did. In fact, "Slavic territory" was located to Elbe river, though these tribes were conquered by Germans, unfortunately. Only Lusatian Sorbs are still aware of their heritage.
Veles   
29 Dec 2014
History / Origins of Polish Slavs [138]

Ok, in shortern way: you shouldn't ask anyone from where did Slavs came and where they originated. There are only theories and no one truly knows, how they emerged.

In general what we know is that Slavic people are divided on three groups: Western Slavs (Czechs, Poles, Slovaks, Sorbs), Eastern Slavs (Belorussians, Russians, Rusyns, Ukrainians) and Southern Slavs (Bosniaks, Bulgarians, Croats, Macedonians, Montenegrins, Serbs, Slovenes). Of course, there were more Slavs in the past, but they distinct before they created nations. In the past, in times when we can consider the legend, there was no nations, but tribes, so even speaking about the origins of "Polish Slavs" is not truly logical, when you talk about Lech, Czech and Rus. During Mieszko's I reign, when he created Poland, he have done this by conquering and uniting other Western Slavic tribes. He led the tribe of [Western] Polans (there were also Eastern Polans located in present-day Ukraine) and conquered e.g. Mazovians, Vistulans and Lendians. So there was no Polish Slavs, but the tribes that united with each other and created the nation (it took more time). Just let's think about... let's say... Volhynians - they lived on the area of present borderline between Poland, Ukraine and Belarus (probably). So are they Polish Slavs? Or maybe Ukrainian or Belorussian?

What I can understand in this legend is not one person, but whole group of people. Lech would be a personification of lechitic tribes that settled on modern Polish lands. Czech would be a personification of Czechs, Moravians and Slovaks, while Rus would be a general people settled on the area later known as Kievan Rus'.

Southern Slavs are not mentioned there, as we know from where they came to the Balkans. Formerly, they were living among Western and Eastern Slavs, for example Serbs on the borderline of present-day Poland and Germany, and Croats near Poland, Ukraine and maybe Slovakia. They were not indigenous inhabitants of Balkans and were not related to ancient Celts or Greeks who were living there. However, from where Slavs came in general? No one knows. Some say that Slavs are related to Scythians, other that Slavs are related somehow to Germanics, Sarmathians, Goths etc. Everything is just speculation.

Ancient Romans were literated people, however as we know they were not present in the territory of modern Poland. It was still Germania for them with Scythia and Sarmatia further on east. Local people were not that literated to leave any information about their past, so I think we will never know how we came here.
Veles   
11 Dec 2014
Language / Why is the Polish language so difficult? [309]

I'm a native speaker of this language and I don't think it's hard to learn polish.

Because you are a native speaker.

Grammar is much more complicated than ortography. Too many forms, too many rules.
Veles   
4 Dec 2014
Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

"Poland, Krywenki"

It is Krzyweńkie in Polish, and Кривеньке (Kryvenhke) in Ukrainian. It is a village located in Ukraine -> parish Sidoriv -> Kopychyntsi county -> Chortkiv Raion -> Ternopil Oblast .