[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] Integration of Germans with Polish ethnicity

[Rachael Patterson]

Jerry...With response to Germans with Polish ethnicity...It seems inevitable
that the German colonies in Poland might integrate womewhat with the Polish
as my mother always said..."We were born in Poland, but we were not
'Polish'"....however...when I've researched the family lineage and records
indicate that my 3GGrandfather (my mother's mother Olga Schmeltzer's
grandfather) Wojciech Schmeltzer married a woman Terezja (my 3GGrandmother)
with the Polish maiden name of Witkoswka...thereby indicating that we have a
Polish/German mix. Interesting....That's the farthest I've been able to
trace on my Schmeltzer lineage.

Gilda in Calgary, AB, CANADA

>
> Message: 3
> Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 11:09:54 -0600
> From: Jerry Frank <FranklySpeaking at shaw.ca>
> Subject: Re: [Ger-Poland-Volhynia] Germans and Poland
> To: LEN GOLKE <lengolke at msn.com>
> Cc: ger-poland-volhynia at eclipse.sggee.org
> Message-ID: <f329c4572149.462f3702 at shaw.ca>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
> Sue,
>
> Bronwyn may have some suggestions for research in the Pila area as she has
> some experience in the Posen region.
>
> As for the ethnicity of a name - I'm not sure that we can always determine
> why a family with one type of ethnic name would insist that they are
> another.  In the case of my Girschewski ancestor, it would appear that the
> name evolved from the Germanic Gersch.  The family is known to be Lutheran
> German as far back as it can be traced.  It is also known from various
> sources that there were German Catholic Girschewskis and Polish Catholic
> Girschewskis with origins in the southeastern parts of Pomerania.  I have
> not been able to resolve with certainty how the ethnic variations in the
> name occurred or if there are any genealogical connections between the
> families.
>
> I have sometimes wondered if a dominant partner in a marriage might cause
> some of this diversity.  A Polish man with a Polish surname might marry a
> dominant German woman who ensures that her children are raised with German
> language, religion and culture as important parts of their lives or vice
> versa.
>
> Certainly name changes by similarity or definition are known to have
> occurred in both directions - German to Polish, and Polish to
> German.  Sometimes only one branch of the family makes the change.  Other
> times the change only shows up for a generation or two and then it reverts
> back.  There are times when a nobleman might bestow the right of a peasant
> to take his name (c/w von, or ski) in appreciation for some particularly
> meritous service.  All kinds of reason are possible.
>
> Ultimately the proof is in the record books where we might pick up clues
> at least to when a name may have been changed.
>
>
> Jerry