Life / Babcia or Busha - any social class difference? [359]

In the USA older Polish ladies are famous for wearing a scarf on their heads, called a babuska. Maybe there is a connection?
:-)

Life / Babcia or Busha - any social class difference? [359]

Yes, I believe it is a common American thing to call a Polish grandmother Babci.

Probably because after time, the descendents take the basic root word and add the kind of ending that makes sense to American ears. The way we make English words informal and cute. Like Bobby instead of Bob. Puppy instead of dog.

But what is forgotten is that kind of ending does not do the same thing in Polish. Michal is Michalek. Kot is kotek.

So it is an adaptation and corruption. But that is what I called mine, too. I never knew it would sound strange to someone from Poland. And then I found out when my Polish bf laughed at me calling myself Babci.

Genealogy / Polish looks? [1410]

I am a second generation American, Polish/German ethnic mix. My German side all were born in Poland back to the 1700's. They were classified as Russian citizens. My true Polish ancesters were listed as being from German Poland, probably from Poznan area due to the name Bubacz. Anyway, I always wondered about my eyes and noticed my children and Aunt and Mom all had eyes that were almond, kind of slanting upwards on the bottom. One of the posters on the first page said that there tends to be regardless of coloring, heartshaped face, with almond-type eyes. I saw that on the first video clip.

I attached a picture of me that is from a few years ago, and I think it shows what I mean. So, all you experts, what do you think? :-)

• 
  Me
  

Genealogy / Polish looks? [1410]

Ebi, Ozzie Dan and Telefonitika! Giggling a bit! Wish I had the L O N G Polish legs of the females in the videos clips. I agree, that the rest of me is Germanic. As for the Bangles.....no. But I always wanted to be a singer in a band! Enjoyed looking at all the other pix posted by Summer. Lots of fun!

Genealogy / Polish looks? [1410]

On reflection, very accurate, Southern. My looks favor my Dad's side of the family for mouth and jaw, and they are the ones of German descent. My eyes and cheekbones favor my Mom's side of the family and they are Polish.

Just had my DNA matriarchal test done last month, so I will learn more of my Polish ancestry. I am pretty excited. -)

Genealogy / Need help with family history/surnames: Netzel, Petke, Gruzlewski [24]

I answered on your other thread with a few hopefully useful tips. Generally, German names ending in "ke" show they are from Eastern Germany and had a lot contact with Poland. Many German names eventually became completely Polonized as various migrations of German settlers became absorbed. Lasko often became Laskowski. Names like Rode (red) became Cerwinski, etc. Might have my Polish spelling wrong. Your name probably is from a later migration, not fully Polonized. My ethnic German grandmother's name was Witzke. My father was ethnic German and my mother was Polish.

To Bratwrust Boy....Lipno is in what was once called Dobriner Land. There were mostly ethnic German settlements there until after WWII. They were free villages that were established in the 1700's. Nobles invited them there to drain the marshes and they were rewarded with land and the abililty to continue to worship as Lutherans and speak German. Their langauge was the low German spoken now around Bremen

Genealogy / Need help with family history/surnames: Netzel, Petke, Gruzlewski [24]

You're welcome! And thanks Bratwrust Boy for the great links for Dobriner Land. Good luck RP, on finding out more of your ancestor's history.

Genealogy / Need help with family history/surnames: Netzel, Petke, Gruzlewski [24]

In case anyone needs the address of the main Polish Archive, this is probably still current:

Naczelna Dyrekcja
Archiwó Państwowych
Dział Współpracy z Zagranicą
ul. Długa 6
00-950 Warszawa

And I think the local archive for Lipno would be either Toruń or Włocławek. I have their email addresses, but it would be good to write and ask whether to request them directly, or send it through the Warsaw main archive.

Toruń: aptorun@poczta.onet.pl

Włocławek: apwloclawek@poczta.onet.pl

Genealogy / Need help with family history/surnames: Netzel, Petke, Gruzlewski [24]

Oh, I am happy to hear that! And you will tell us???

Maybe this is not the right place, but I want to say that inspite of all the clamor on some of the threads about Germans vs. Poles, and who is more at fault or guilty of what, that most of the ethnic Germans that I know personally really loved Poland, and still do. Yes there were Germans who got ugly when Hitler came into power and took control of Poland. They were wrong and deserved to be kicked out. But hopefully everyone knows that there are good and bad people in every country and nationality.

I do feel that Poland got a bad shake in most things with two very powerful and agressive neighbors and that the allies did not do enough to help her. My heart bleeds for the country of my ancestors, but is also proud that despite all the tragedy, Poland exists. It is a miracle that being divided into German, Austrian and Russian for so many years, the peoples could come together as a country.

And while Poland after WWII became a very homogenized country, it is also a credit to her that at one time she was very multinational and lead the way to tolerance and acceptance. I wish that rather than everyone getting ugly about history, we could educate people about what happened, but also let wounds heal. The past cannot be changed, but maybe a few lessons learned.

I am half Polish and half ethnic German from German colonists in Poland that were invited to be there at one time. It is sad to me they could not stay, but I understand.

I feel for all that Poland suffered and I love my heritage and I love Poland. I almost hyperventilated flying over the country for the first time and cannot wait to go back someday. I encourage you to embrace your family history, but love the land your ancestors chose to make their home, at one time.

Genealogy / Looking for grandfather and prior: Laskowski, Ostroleka Poland 1850+ / Witzke [12]

Merged:
I have a mixed heritage of Polish and ethnic Germans from before WWII. On my mother's side, her mother's parents are Polish from Gniezno. Her father's side is also from Poland, but were ethnic Germans. So she is half Polish, half ethnic German. They met in America after emigrating from Poland and had my Mom.

On my Dad's side, his mother appears to be half ethnic German and half Polish. But this marriage took place in the late 1800's. I am under the impression that mixed marriages were rare between Polish and Germans before WWII. My father's maternal grandfather was Witzke (ethnic German) and my father's maternal grandmother was Laskowska. I assume this to be Polish, but wonder if it was a case of Germans who had Polonized many years before. Any experts out there who know if Laskowski can be Polish and also German?

Genealogy / Looking for grandfather and prior: Laskowski, Ostroleka Poland 1850+ / Witzke [12]

Thank you Bratwurst Boy. I also have found a map that is searchable for current-day frequencies of names in Poland and one for Germany.

moikrewni.pl/mapa/
verwandt.de/karten/

Genealogy / Looking for grandfather and prior: Laskowski, Ostroleka Poland 1850+ / Witzke [12]

You're very welcome. I always learn a lot from your posts. :-)

Genealogy / The typical Polish look, or all Eastern Europeans [656]

Wład I believe was not saying you had to have 100% like you described Poles, but he did say that only a few fit the profile Harrisonmcmanus depicts as typical Pole.

What I wonder is, where does he get the idea that German/Scandanavians are so dark?

Somewhere on this board is a map of Europe showing the percentages of blonde/blue eye types and it is highest in Scandanavian countries and radiates out, possibly due to Vikings till you get to Spain and Italy with very few. There are dark Germans, of course. I've heard that some of the very dark descend from the Roman army times.

I do believe most Poles are fair, but more like dark blonde, medium brown and then there are those who are very blonde and very dark haired. All Poles.

Food / Healthy polish food? [134]

By the way, herring is very good for you! Lots of Omega 3's. The lady who just recently died after reaching 115 years of age, credited herring. :-)

Mushrooms are also good for you!

Life / Why there is always around a horrible smell of sweat in Poland [188]

I remember as a little girl, we took guests from England in for a convention in New York. My Mom was a clean nut, and they had only few shirts with them and it was summer. They did develop body odor. She went into their closets and washed all their things. They were grateful. But I doubt they knew that we felt they smelled badly.

And I have also had a Polish friend living here for many years, be asked to tell a newly arrived Polish lady that she might want to use some of this (deodorant)when they went shopping together. And she was fine after and nothing more was ever said.

My guess is that until recently, many Europeans were not brainwashed to believe that human beings smell bad. Americans grew up thinking if anything about us smelled, it had to be perfumed away. That's what all the commercials said. We equate clean with chemical fresh.

Fresh, sweat has pheromones in it, but more than a day, bateria get involved and then you have odor. I believe that it can be hotter in places that some settle than where they were from, too. And not be aware.

Just a few thoughts...

Genealogy / Mongolian the Golden Horde - do Poles have Mongolian ancestry? [256]

From what I know, Tykotski, for the above mentioned test, you would need to have one of your brothers take it. It is a Y DNA test.

As females we have no Y DNA to test. There are some tests that can look at general DNA inherited from both parents. This one is different and relates to the paternal line. Y DNA is specific to men. As females we have MtDNA which is passed down virtually unchanged from mother-to-mother. Sons receive it, and can be tested to see their maternal lineage, but they cannot pass their mother's MtDNA on to their own children. Any children they have would inherit their own Mom's MtDNA.

So, your best bet to take that Y DNA test would be to get a brother to volunteer. It is not necessary to test the person in the family who looks the most Mongolian.

Language / Nice Polish words to say to a girl [147]

You're good at English phonetics for Polish! It must look very weird to native speakers though!

Life / How far apart do Poles stand when they talk? [46]

I found an interesting article about personal space perceptions between cultures.

It is kind of funny to read although mainly about American and Russian misperceptions about each other due to cultural conditioning about how far away people stand, and other things such as voice volume and facial expressions. Towards the end of the article, it sums up the differences between Russians, Americans, and Northern Europeans:





friends-partners.org/partners/spbweb/lifestyl/122/how.html

Genealogy / The typical Polish look, or all Eastern Europeans [656]

I have those grey eyes, too. Never heard they were Baltic, before. I did a quick search and found that indeed this is so. Grey eyes are most common in Russia, Finland and the Baltic states.

Genealogy / The typical Polish look, or all Eastern Europeans [656]

Hi Calicoe,

Awwww....that is so cool you were thinking about me! Anything I can help you with, I'll be happy to do.

Getting ready though to go on a trip, and I am having to work up till the trip, so my time might be cramped till I get back. (Procrastinated doing my taxes...I'd rather do genealogy!)

I am going to visit NYC with my boyfriend (who is a southern self-proclaimed redneck, should be fun). We will go to Greenpoint, Brooklyn, and eat at The King's Feast. It is supposed to be one of the best Polish restaurants in NY.

My grandparents settled in Greenpoint when they were newly arrived in America, and it is neat to see the tradition continue.

Talk to you later!

Genealogy / Poland Genealogy Resources [130]

Looks like the post above yours might help you. There are two web sites listed that do research in Poland.

History / Kashubians are nation in Poland? [124]

Yes, they are a West Slavic ethnic group. They speak their own language which is closely related to Polish. They at one time were losing their identity, but are in touch with their folkroots, dress and crafts now.

If you go to Gdańsk, you can buy many things made by Kashubians.

Since Prussia occupied these areas before WWII, some Kashubians in the western part of the area, were assimilated with the Germans in the area, began speaking Low German, and became Lutheran. They were expelled after WWII.

Those in the eastern areas, remained Catholic and identified with the Slavic world, still speak their own language, and still live in Pomerelia.

I am Polish on my mother's side, but on my father's side, I have Kashubian roots. I only learned of this recently. I thought they were all Germanic on his side. So, their history is especially interesting to me.

History / Kashubians are nation in Poland? [124]

As far as I know, they do consider themselves to be Poles and part of the larger nation, but they also like to speak their language and remember their regional customs.

Travel / Poland wildlife and similar wild life where you live. [246]

Beautiful! I've always enjoyed seeing nature pictures of Poland. In addition to the beautiful landscapes and birds, I really liked the furry critters. Not sure what they are....fox pups? Otters? Hedgehogs?

When I was in Poland, I noticed that the squirrels are reddish and here in SC they are usually grey. We have smaller ones, too. Up north in NY they are about the same size.

In SC the insects are much larger, and the animals smaller. :-/

Off-Topic / What's your connection with Poland? Penpals. [574]

Three of my grandparents were born in Poland. The one that was born in America, was the baby of newly arrived Polish immigrants, and went to Polish school in Jersey City, NJ. She could read and write in Polish and my mother spoke Polish, but could not read it.

My aunt just gave me my grandmother's receipe for Chrusciki. :-)

Her parents were Josef Lewandowski and Elizbieta Bubacz from Poznan and Gneizno respectively.

Although all my grandparents have origins in Poland, I am about half Polish (some Kashubian), and half ethnic German/Dutch. I grew up eating a combination of Polish and German foods.

My father's mother, Emma Witzke, was born near Rypin, Poland and was born to a mixed Polish and German marriage. Her Dad was Andrzej Witzke and her Mom was Ludwika Laskowska. They spoke Low German (Platt) and Polish.

My father's Dad's family came from near Włocławek and have German-Kashubian origins from what was once West Prussia. Even after living in America, the US Census lists their native tongue and language spoken at home as Polish, but they also spoke Low German.

I love Poland. I've been there twice, once for three weeks, and other time for a week.
Met a Polish man in Gdańsk, and we were together for about three years and seriously considered marrying. We are friends to this day and he taught me a lot about Poland.

Genealogy / Are all Poles blue eyed and blonde? [450]

When I was a little kid, I had a set of encyclopedias that went into extensive detail about what different ethnicities looked like, and classified them. I know it is outdated due to genealogy and gene flow information, but it said that Poles as a rule were medium-fair, of medium stature, and mostly had light brown hair as adults.

I imagine that northern Poles would be more blonde as a result of gene mix from Scandanavian countries.

There is another thread which shows a chart of the blondness/blue eyes all over the world. The closer one lives to Scandanavian countries the more blond and blue-eyed people a country has.

Genealogy / Mongolian the Golden Horde - do Poles have Mongolian ancestry? [256]

You're welcome Tykotski. If you do have a brother tested, let us know the results.

Genealogy / Looking for grandfather and prior: Laskowski, Ostroleka Poland 1850+ / Witzke [12]

Hello gglbs,

Yes, you are correct. My father's maternal grandfather was Andreas Witzke. They lived in "Dobriner Land" which is located in Central Poland, in the Rypin-Lipno area. The furthest back I have on that line is 1790, and I am not sure where they came from before that. I am about to research it. I am going to see if I can find the death certificate which may name the place of origin. In general, I've heard that most were from either East or West Prussia and moved into Central Poland and then others into Ukraine.

My grandmother and her two sisters came first to Connecticut, and then later, Brooklyn, NY. She left two brothers and a sister in Poland.

I've come across a Richard Witzke, but not sure if this is the same one. There is another researcher, I believe her name is Gail. If you check ancestry.com you may find her by typing in Witzke.

Genealogy / Polish looks? [1410]

The navy must mean a very dark blue.

My mother had robin's egg blue eyes and while I called my own blue, they were much darker. I've come to learn that my color is widespread throughout central and eastern Europe. They can look dark blue, aqua or grey depending what I am wearing.

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

There are many German names in Poland. Most ethnic Germans were expelled, but some descendents of ethnic Germans who do genealogy have found they still have cousins in Poland carrying the ethnic German name. They have been some of the few who swore loyalty to Poland after WWII and were permitted to stay. They married Poles and the ethnic surname survived. Some have made it more Polish like Schultz being Szulc. Or Witzke being Wycke. However, BB....I believe the name Berlin is actually a Slavic name in origin. *ducks*