Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Well, I made just a quick research and there might be a sudden twist. Bernatowicz was a surname of one of the oldest merchant families of Armenian roots, who primarily were living in the Red Ruthenia region wiki - they were nobilitated for some kind of wartime achievements(?), it is described in this bulletin on p.18: otk.armenia.pl/new/biuletyn-pdf/Biuletyn-11.pdf [in Polish - how well do you know the language?]

Here's the coat of arms they received, in color [bulletin has only b&w version]:
pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernatowicz_galicyjski
And for example another coat of arms, given in 1768 to Jakub Bernatowicz who, according to the bulletin, was a mayor and the last director of the Armenian courts in Lviv/Lwów:

pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernatowicz_-_odmiana_Tr%C4%85b_(herb_szlachecki)

There's never a 100% certainty but I thought this might be interesting to you - the surname might have some mixed Armenian/Ukrainian origins, of course Polonized.

Language / Polish Phrase from Grandma - Pic kawe? [5]

It may have sth to do with the word "pućki" - that means cute chubby cheeks children usually have.

Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

No, it's of Armenian origins. I made a little research for somebody who was asking about that surname before, more in that thread: https://polishforums.com/genealogy/bernatowicz-surname-starting-wonder-family-68564/

merged

Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Well - sources?
It could be "Czech" if some of them moved to Bohemia at some point.

Most reliable sources show that Bernatowicz was the surname of one of the oldest merchant clans that lived in the area that is western Ukraine now - they moved there from Armenia in the medieval times and "polonized" their surname with time. The source I found before dates it back even to the year 1400 (when two brothers of Bernatowicz surname funded a chapel in Lviv).

Genealogy / Was my moms family (Kowalsky) Russian or Polish? [35]

Ah well, it's really simple. Poland was under occupation then, but people were cultivating the language and traditions of their ancestors. Russian was forced as official language, Polish and languages of other minorities were banned and discriminated, but people were still using their mother tongue at home. You have to remember that the territory of Poland was a real melting pot back then, full of different cultures and minorities. All have somehow survived.

In your case, you have to think whether your family was using Polish on a daily basis? Did they pass down Polish traditions, habits, cuisine etc.? Did they define themselves as Polish?

Look at Tibet (I don't know - is it a good example?). It officially belongs to the territory of China (as Tibet Autonomous Region), but no Tibetan would call him/herself Chinese.

Life / Does Poland have any particular artistic style in regard to paintings/drawings? [4]

It's really an interesting question. I've been thinking for a while and can't give you one defined answer. Polish art is really diverse, although there are a few different styles that are quite characteristic for Poland or begun here.

One is a style emerged from the "Ruch" ("Movement") art group, inspired by the traditional Slavic folklore art (I believe it's sometimes called "naive"?), especially from the Podhale region. Artists were simplyfying the shapes and using geometrical forms.

Władysław Skoczylas:



Zofia Stryjeńska:



The artists Tamara £empicka, who emmigrated to USA, was very close with some members of that movement and that could be seen in her art:



The fantastic artist Stanisław Szukalskiwas also inspired by folklore art:

Other than that, the surreal and/or symbolical movements became pretty popular here, at first thanks to the Young Poland (Młoda Polska) movement and then mostly thanks to the so-called Polish School of Posters (Polska szkoła plakatu) - google them for hundreds of examples.

Here's a great article about the Polish School of Posters, full of examples:

The Legacy Of Polish Poster Design
smashingmagazine.com/2010/01/17/the-legacy-of-polish-poster-design

My personal favourites are those leaning towards the more "realistic"/soft style of drawing (by that I mean - less geometrical), for example:

Wiesław Wałkuski:



Franciszek Starowieyski:

Those surreal, sometimes disturbing tendencies were very common, just look at the more modern artists like:

Zdzisław Beksiński:



Tomasz Alen Kopera:

Dariusz Zawadzki:

Daniel Pielucha:

But going a bit back in time, I just have to mention the very popular scenes with horses - either with riders or harnessed to carriages. The dynamics of lines and shapes was very important in them, regardless of the style!!!

Zygmunt Ajdukiewicz:
Józef Chełmoński:
Stanisław Kaczor-Batowski:
Wojciech Kossak:
Tadeusz Rybkowski:
Czesław Wasilewski (Zygmuntowicz):
Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski:

I could think of a few other typologies, if you're interested (I was studying art), but it's hard to focus on the drawing style only. Maybe some other users noticed any other interesting tendencies.

Genealogy / Was my moms family (Kowalsky) Russian or Polish? [35]

Oh, I didn't know the context before these topics were merged-_-
It's almost certain that they were Polish Jews then. It's quite clear when I look at the spelling. Russified would be e.g. Kovalsky (Poland is quite unique as it comes to using "w"). Similar with Manischewitz. The "y" at the end of Kowalsky was probably changed from "i" by the American officials when your family arrived in States - it was quite common because Polish people wanted to make their names easier to spell for the Americans.

Also: you wrote that they converted to Roman Catholicism [main religion in Poland] - while main religion of Russia is [Russian] Orthodox. This is another point in favor of their Polish ancestry.

Language / -ski/-ska, -scy/ski, -wicz - Polish surnames help [185]


Nope. The endings "-ski", "-cki" or "-dzki" were traditionally given to Polish noblemen since early middle ages, first example of it was written down in 1282. It was later used by Ukrainian or Latvian people who were polonizing their surnames.

"-ski" and the others above are equivalent of German "von" or French "de"

Travel / Palm trees in Poland [19]

In huge pots and they are moved to glasshouses for the colder months;) In nature - they don't.

Genealogy / Bernatowicz surname? (I am starting to wonder if anyone in my family was American?) [85]

Yes, seems that the origins of that name are Armenian. Here's one text in English according to which the original form was Peŕnat'enc: lehahayer.com/uploads/Lehahayer%20en.pdf (on p.4)

I only found other sources in Polish (but I suppose you could write to any Polish-Armenian community for more documents if you're interested).

Here's a bulletin from 1998, a whole page there is dedicated to the Bernatowicz coat of arms:
otk.armenia.pl/new/biuletyn-pdf/Biuletyn-11.pdf[/url] (on p.18)

Besides that I stumbled across an article (two-part) from a "Kurier Galicyjski" newspaper, where Bernatowicz surname is mentioned among funders of some Armenian churches in Lviv/Lwów:

part 1: dziedzictwo.ormianie.pl/images/stories/KG_14_2010_koscioly_orm.pdf
part 2: dziedzictwo.ormianie.pl/images/stories/KG_15_2010_24-25.pdf (there's an old inscription with Bernatowicz surname in the stone!)

edit: the inscription in better quality:
dziennikpolski24.pl/files/common/filesone/gmer_Bernatowicza.jpg

Language / Children's Songs in Polish [66]

It's "Kosi, kosi łapki" (depending on a region could also go as "Koci, koci łapci" or sth like that, yours is clearly the first one) and it has uncountable number of versions. I don't recognize the second verse of yours, but it might go for example like:

Kosi, kosi łapki (kosi-kosi is apparently a diminutive for clap-clap sound, łapki for hands)
Pojedziem do babki (we'll go to grandma)
Babcia da nam mleczka (grandma will give us some milk)
dziadek cukiereczka (grandpa [will give us] candies)

Language / Children's Songs in Polish [66]

Your spelling is good, you only missed a letter here and there:
Kosi kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, a od babci do dziadka, po gruszki i jabłka:)

"Kosi kosi łapci" is translated rather as "clap clap your hands":)

Yours can later go on for example like that:
A od dziadka do mamy, mama da nam śmietany,
Od mamy do taty, jest tam piesek kudłaty,
Leży pod łóżkiem, przykryty kożuszkiem.

Another option:
Chociaż gruszki i jabłuszka zawsze w domu mamy,
Jedziemy do babci, bo babcię kochamy.

As I wrote before, it can have hundreds of versions, people can easily be creative and make up new verses.
Quick google search and I have records like:
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Babcia da nam mączki, upieczemy pączki.
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Babcia da nam kaszki, a dziadzio okraszki.
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Babcia da nam cukru na baranka z lukru.
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Babcia da pierożka i tabaczki z rożka.
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Od babci do dziadka, dziadek da dwa jabłka.
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Od babci do cioci, ciocia da łakoci.
Kosi, kosi łapci, pojedziem do babci, Dziadek babcię schowa, ciocia nie da nic;)

Genealogy / Do I look Polish? (my picture) [375]


Strong South European genes, if I may say so. There are a few Polish-Greek families in my home city and you could easily pass as their cousin, but in fact Portugal was the first thing that came to my mind - my former university had a few exchange students from there and you definitely have something similar about your appearance (at first glance).

Just reminding everyone that e.g. southern Poland has a relative majority of dark-haired people, a lot of them with dark eyes too (ethnic Górale Podhalańscy for example).

In general, the most common hair color is something girls call "mysi" ("mousy"?) unhappily - it's something between dark blonde and light brown with a greyish twist. A lot of women hate it and dye them lighter, as Magdalena wrote (one can always guess by the slightly darker color of their eyebrows). Poland being a "blonde" country is a myth, although you'd meet quite a lot of light-haired people around.

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

Giera - colloquial word for leg
Gawron - rook (bird)

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

Wójcik is one of the oldest andmost popular Polish surnames, I found out it's nicely explained on the wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C3%B3jcik

"Wójcik as a toponymic surname is derived from villages Wójcia, Wójciki, as a patronymic surname from popular in medieval Central Europe, as a first name Wojciech (Adalbert), as a cognominal surname from the word wojak ("warrior"), as from the word wójt, chief officer of a municipality (gmina)."

Wójcik is also a name of a bird (I suppose it's called Greenish Warbler in English).

Life / Do Polish people have a problem saying "I don't know" or "no"? [13]


That's what I wanted to write. Most of the Polish people (not all) would rather die than admit they don't know something ;) It's definitely a cultural thing and I experienced it in many ways throughout my life as well.

As it comes to larger cities, a lot of people you pass by might be not locals, but newcomers, students etc. - people who often don't know the surroundings well themselves (not yet), so they just guess on the basis of their own experience. It's definitely NOT a case of intentional misleading, but people guessing/assuming in order to actually help someone. The problem is, they often guess wrongly.

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

It's in the group of names derived from the base "siej-", old-Polish "siejać" - to sow; or "sieja" - a kind of freshwater whitefish.

History / What Hitler really thought about Poles? Hitler's letter to Himmler 1944 [111]

You're forgetting that in the beginning of the war Slavs were targeted as an ethnic group. Read more about the concepts of Lebensraum / Drang nach Osten / Heim ins Reich and the Generalplan Ost. From wikipedia:

"The Generalplan Ost (English: Master Plan East) was a secret Nazi German plan for the colonization of Central and Eastern Europe. Implementation would have necessitated genocide and ethnic cleansing on a vast scale (...). It would have included the enslavement, expulsion and extermination of most Slavic peoples in Europe. The plan, prepared in the years 1939-1942, was part of Adolf Hitler's and the Nazi movement's Lebensraum policy and a fulfillment of the Drang nach Osten (English: Drive towards the East) ideology of German expansion to the east, both of them part of the larger plan to establish the New Order." source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generalplan_Ost

Later on Hitler changed his mind in the favor of assimilation and germanisation plans - and here we're coming back to the article OP provided to see why.

History / What Hitler really thought about Poles? Hitler's letter to Himmler 1944 [111]

Trying to put it short: academics (inteligencja) were seen as the continuators of so-called "higher culture", knowledge, awareness. Remember that there was no universal education as we know it at that time and they would be first to start protests or secretly educate people about their past.

It was more like 'life-wise' clever [smart? agile? resourceful?] - trait he discovered among common people after a few years of close research and observations.

That's all I know / read about so far.

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

The spelling seems legit, Macioszek surname exists. There are 1966 people with that surname living in Poland now moikrewni.pl/mapa/kompletny/macioszek.html

It's in a group of surnames derived from the name Maciej - "son of Maciej" in a loose translation.

History / What Hitler really thought about Poles? Hitler's letter to Himmler 1944 [111]


Yes, Slavs areabout 300 million now, what does it have to do with the topic? Numbers of population grew rapidly after the 40s all over the world.

I think you completely missed the point.

Read again about the Nazi (National Socialism) concept of Lebensraumand how it affected Poland. It was "Drive towards the East" - mostly to the Polish territories, that were adjacent to the lands populated by Germans - and were to be inhabited by the German settlers (Volksgruppen) from the Baltic countries, Lithuania/Belarus and former Galicia (Ukraine and Romania), like in this German map:



South Slavs and Russia have nothing to do with that, so there's no point in reminding basic facts everyone knows.

I'd advise you also to read about Poles that were exterminated in Auschwitz: auschwitz.org/en/history/

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


The original spelling is Piaścik. Derived probably from:
- piasta (n.) - hub/head of the wheel
- piastować(v.) - to nurse, hold, take care of
- Piast Kołodziej en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piast_the_Wheelwright

Language / Polish was chosen the HARDEST LANGUAGE in the world to learn... :D [1558]

Do you also have forms of participles like napisawszy / zrobiwszy / zapytawszy in Czech?

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

It was, most likely, slightly deformed (for pronunciation reasons). Google shows me a lot of Jarneskis in the States but none in Poland.
Original spelling would be: Jarnecki.

Either way, it's derived from:
- jary(adj.) - spring/vernal, young, strong
- jar(n.) - ravine (landform)

Genealogy / Russian Poland-what general area would this be? [30]

The maps jon posted are great, however they don't put the partitions in context. Second map shows only the situation in 1795, after the 3rd partition.

For some reason I couldn't find any good maps showing the partitions on the outlines of present-day borders (by "good" I also mean the resolution).

A bit of google search and I only have those:

1. Phases of partitions and the situation in 1795. As you can see, none of the present-day Poland was under the Russian rule:



Here's a good map (in Polish) with names of the most important locations:



2. Then the Duchy of Warsaw was established (1807-1815), created by Napoleon Bonaparte:



en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchy_of_Warsaw

Duchy of Warsaw (Księstwo Warszawskie) again:



3. After 1815 it lost a significant territiorial area to Prussia as shown in the German map below (it became the Grand Duchy of Posen)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Duchy_of_Posen
and turned into a Russian protectorate. In this phase it was also a duchy but to differ it from the previous phase it was called Congress Poland

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congress_Poland
and was meant to be an autonomy state, but de facto was functioning as a puppet state and later was oficially annexed by the Russian Empire (after the 1863 uprising):



After 1867 it was usually called 'Vistula Land'
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vistula_Land
and (from the link) "in the 1880s, the official language was changed to Russian, and Polish was banned both from official use and education".

Here are maps that show the situation in relation to the present-day borders and a map of Polish borders after the 1st World War:



There's much more to that and yes - the borders were kind of always changing in the 19th century. That period of time was well described by Norman Davies in the volume II of his 'God's Playground' book (a huge publication but strongly recommended to anyone who wants to learn about Polish history!)

Genealogy / Do I look Polish? (my picture) [375]


I'd say a mix of both. I actually have a friend who looks a bit similar to you and 'smirks' in the same way. Was you mother's Polish branch from the south / south-eastern Poland perhaps? Just curious.

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


I explained the meaning of that surname earlier in this thread, Wójcik is a very popular name in Poland:


One possibility that comes to my mind is "Chrząszcz" (which means beetle), currently there are over 3,5k people of that surname living in Poland: moikrewni.pl/mapa/kompletny/chrz%25C4%2585szcz.html - I might be wrong so maybe someone has a better suggestion?