More
than 60 Polish-language documents and extracts from American
and European sources, analyzed and translated; they include extracts
from birth, death, and marriage records of various formats; gazetteer
entries; revision lists; obituaries; population registers; military
service records; passports; etc..
* sections on Polish grammar,
phonetics, and spelling
* information on how to locate records
in America and Europe, including
contact information for various archives in Poland and neighboring
countries
* a chapter on gazetteers and how to
use them, with 12 maps showing
Poland's changing borders and administrative subdivisions
* a vocabulary list with over 2,500
entries, featuring terms most
likely to be found in records, including many overlooked by most
dictionaries
* a 14-page index to facilitate looking
up specific items.
8½" x 11" 388 pp. softcover $45.00
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TABLE OF CONTENTS (Click here for PDF Version)
Introduction vii
I. Phonetics and Spelling Rules 1
Polish Sounds and Orthography 1
Vowels 2
Consonants 3
Phonetic Miscellanea 3
Devoicing and Assimilation 4
Possible Common Errors 5
Dialect and Regional Considerations 7
Suffixes 7
Handwriting 8
Alphabetical Order 8
Linguistic Interference from Languages Other Than English 9
II. Structure: Grammar & Vocabulary 12
Nouns and Adjectives 12
Sample Paradigms 14
The “Chopping Block” 15
Dropping the Kreska 16
Vowel Shifts and Alternations 17
Consonant Alternations 17
Endings and Compound Names 17
Verbs 17
Date and Time Expressions 18
Time 18
Dates and Numerals 19
Months 19
Numbers 20
Days of the Week 21
Terms for Family Relationships 21
Terms for Occupations 24
III. Locating Records in America That Lead Back to Europe 29
A. Church Records 29
B. Civil Vital Records 30
C. Naturalization Records 30
D. Passenger Lists 31
E. Social Security 33
F. Probate Records 33
G. Polish Fraternal Organizations 33
H. Parish & Organizational Histories 33
I. Obituaries and Cemetery Inscriptions 34
J. Consular Records: Passport Applications 34
K. Military Records 34
L. Insurance and Fraternal Organization Death Claim Records 34
IV. Polish-Language Records Originating in America 35
A. Records of Polish Organizations 35
1. Document IV-1: Membership Roster of a National Fraternal Insurance Organization 35
2. Document IV-2: Receipt for Membership 37
Document IV-3: Organizational Constitution 38
3. Document IV-4: Parish and Organization Histories 39
A Sampling of Saints’ Names and Religious Events Often Used in Church Names 40
B. Obituaries 41
Document IV-5: Obituary from the Przewodnik Katolicki, New Britain, CT 41
Document IV-6: Obituary from the Dziennik Chicagoski, Chicago, IL 44
A Few Points About Obituaries 47
C. Cemetery Inscriptions 48
Cemetery Vocabulary 48
Introductory Phrases 48
Phrases Referring to Death 48
Phrases Referring to Age 49
Phrases Referring to Birthplace and Origins 50
Phrases Referring to Relationships 50
Phrases Referring to Priests and Nuns 51
Phrases Referring to Military Men 51
Miscellaneous Phrases 52
Sample Inscriptions 52
Translations of the Sample Inscriptions 55
Booklets with Information on Grave Sites, Document IV-7 56
D. Consular Record—Passport Application, Document IV-8 57
E. Polish Army in America Registration Documents 63
Document IV-9: Form C of the Haller’s Army Registration Papers 64
Document IV-10: Form A of the Haller’s Army Registration Papers 67
F. Insurance and Fraternal Organization Death Claim Records 69
Document IV-11: Death Report from a PRCUA Death Claim File 70
Document IV-12: Local Pastor’s Certificate from a PRCUA Death Claim File 72
V. Finding the Right Place, and Writing the Found Place 73
A. Gazetteers: “Now That I’ve Found It, Where Is It?” 73
Document V-1: Sample from Skorowidz miejscowosci Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej 73
Document V-2: Sample from Spis miejscowosci PRL 74
Document V-3: Sample from Wykaz urzedowych nazw miejscowosci w Polsce 75
The Slownik Geograficzny (Geographical Dictionary) 75
Adjectival Forms vs. Noun Forms Seen on Maps 76
A Sampling of Abbreviations and Vocabulary in the Slownik Geograficzny 80
Measures of Area 83
Measures of Length or Distance 84
Sample Slownik Geograficzny Entries: Document V-4: Dobrzyjalowo 84
Document V-5: Kloniczno 85
Other Polish-Language Sources 86
Document V-6: Statistics from the 1921 Polish Census 86
Document V-7: Sample from Jan Bigo’s Gazetteer of Galicia 87
Document V-8: Alphabetisches Orts- und Gemeindelexikon … Warschau 88
Document V-9: Nazwy Miejscowe Polski 88
Guidebooks and Church Directories 89
Document V-10: Guidebook for Jedwabne 89
Document V-11: Entry from Church Directory 90
Document V-12: List of Localities from a Book on Polish Folk Customs 90
German-Language Gazetteers 91
Document V-13: Sample from Meyers Orts- und Verkehrslexikon des Deutschen Reichs 91
Document V-14: Sample from the Gemeindelexikon für das Königreich Preußen 93
Document V-15: Sample from Barthel’s Gazetteer of East and West Prussia 97
Gazetteers for Former Austrian Territory 98
Gemeindelexikon der im Reichsrate vertretenen Königreicher und Länder 98
Document V-16: Sample from Genealogical Gazetteer of Galicia, Brian J. Lenius 99
Gazetteers for Former Russian Territory 99
Document V-17: Belarusian Toponymic Dictionary 99
Document V-18: Dictionary of the Names of Settlements in the Province of Minsk 101
Indeks alfabetyczny miejscowosci dawnego Wielkiego Ksiestwa Litewskiego 101
Document V-19: Sample from the Poltava Directory of Populated Places 103
Selected Maps of Poland’s Changing Borders 104
Map One: Poland Before and After the Partitions 104
Map Two: The German Partition 105
Map Three: The Russian Partition in the Mid 19th-Century 106
Map Four: Grodno gubernia 106
Map Five: Wilno gubernia 106
Map Six: Galicia 107
Map Seven: Poland, 1921-1939 108
Map Eight: Poland, 1945-1975 109
Map Nine: Poland, 1975-1998 110
Map Ten: Poland, 1999- 111
Map Eleven: Podlaskie Province, 1999- 112
Map Twelve: Major Regions of Poland 113
B. Writing to Institutions in Poland 114
Parish Archives 114
Diocesan Archives 115
Vital Records Offices (USC’s) 115
Polish State Archives 115
C. The Polish State Archives System 117
Regional Archives: Mailing Addresses, Websites and E-mail 118
D. Ecclesiastical Archives 130
E. Other Polish Archives of Interest 134
F. Archives in Other Countries 134
G. Addresses of Polish Genealogical Societies in America 137
H. International Societies 138
I. Guide to Writing Letters in Polish 138
J. Guide to Reading Letters from Archives in Polish 142
Document V-20: Sample Letter from the Polish State Archives 143
Selected Expressions Likely to Appear in Archiwum Panstwowe Letters 144
VI. Polish-Language Records Originating in Europe 151
A. Guides to Archival Holdings; Document VI-1: Excerpt, Bialystok State Archives Guidebook 151
B. Indices to Vital Records 152
Document VI-2: Birth Index, Parish of Jedwabne, Province of Lomza, 1860 153
Document VI-3: Marriage Index, Parish of Jedwabne, Province of Lomza, 1860 153
Document VI-4: Marriage Index, Parish of Kobylin, Province of Lomza, 1870 154
Document VI-5: Death Register, Parish of Umierzyz, 1864 154
C. Birth and Baptismal Records 155
1. Pre-1826 Birth Records, Russian Partition 155
Keywords for pre-1826 Birth Records 155
Document VI-6: Sample Paragraph-Form Birth Record, Pre-1826 155
Document VI-7: Another Sample Paragraph-Form Record 160
Administrative Divisions of Russian Poland 161
2. Post-1826 Birth Records, Paragraph Form 166
Document VI-8: Extract of a 1921 Birth Paragraph-Form Record 166
Document VI-9: Another Paragraph-Form Birth Record 169
Document VI-10: Attestation-Type Birth Record 171
Document VI-11: Birth Certificate with Later Marginal Notations 174
3. Columnar Format Birth Registration — Galicia 175
Document VI-12: Birth Register of a Jewish Vital Statistics District 175
4. Post-World War II Birth Records 178
Document VI-13: A Replacement Birth Certificate 178
Document VI-14: A Modern Short-Form Civil Birth Certificate 181
Document VI-15: A Modern Short-Form Church Baptismal Certificate 182
Document VI-16: An Alternative Short-Form Civil Birth Certificate 183
D. Marriage Records 184
1. Premarital Announcements and Examinations 185
Document VI-17: A Wedding Announcement 185
[Translation of Document VI-16 on page 184] 186
Document VI-18: A Premarital Examination 189
2. Pre-1826 Paragraph-Form Marriage Records 195
Keywords 196
3. Document VI-19: A Sample Pre-1826 Paragraph-Form Marriage Record 196
Document VI-20: Another Sample Pre-1826 Paragraph-Form Marriage Record 206
4. Post-1826 Paragraph-Form Marriage Records and Keywords 215
Document VI-21: Sample Post-1826 Paragraph-Form Marriage Record 216
5. Jewish Paragraph-Form Marriage Records: Document VI-22, Jewish Marriage Record 220
6. Columnar Marriage Records— Document VI-23: Columnar-Form Marriage Record 226
7. Modern Short-Form Civil Marriage Records: Document VI-24 231
8. Modern Short-Form Church Marriage Record: Document VI-25 232
E. Death Records 234
1. Components of Pre-1826 Paragraph-Form Death Records and Keywords 234
2. Pre-1826 Russian Partition Paragraph-Form Death Record: Document VI-26 234
Document VI-27: Another Sample Paragraph Form Death Record 238
3. Post-1826 Russian Partition Paragraph-Form Death Record: Document VI-28 241
Keywords 242
4. Post-1826 Russian Partition Paragraph-Form Death Records: Jewish Records, Document VI-29 244
5. Columnar Records: Document VI-30 247
A Tip on Adjectival Forms of Place Names 249
Document VI-31, A Bilingual Galician Death Record 250
6. 20th-Century Military Death Record: Document VI-32 254
7. Modern Short-Form Civil Death Records: Document VI-33 257
Document VI-34, A Short-Form Transcript 257
8. Modern Short-Form Church Death Records: Document VI-35 259
9. Terms Found in Death Records as Causes of Death 260
F. Other Documents 263
1. Revision Tax Lists (Revizhskie Skazki): Document VI-36 263
2. Population Registers: Document VI-37, A List of Residents of Brzeziny 268
3. A School Diploma: Document VI-38 272
4. A Military Information Sheet: Document VI-39 274
5. A Passport Application: Document VI-40 276
6. A 1923 Republic of Poland Passport: Document VI-41 279
7. A Certificate of Guild Membership: Document VI-42 283
8. Miscellaneous 284
Document VI-43: An Address Book 284
Document VI-44: A Permit to Own and Carry a Gun 285
Document VI-45: An Excerpt from a Tarnow Telephone Directory 285
Document VI-46: An Excerpt from an 1869 Warsaw City Directory 286
Document VI-47: An Excerpt from a 1920s Bialystok Province Business Directory 287
Document VI-48: A Page from a Parish Census for Kornik, near Poznan 288
Document VI-49: A Sample Page from a Personal Letter 290
Document VI-50: A Court Order Recognizing a Widow’s Inheritance 291
VII. Polish Vocabulary 293
Titles Indicating Noble or Commoner Status, and for Clergy 293
Nouns Differentiating Various Classes of Commoners 294
Symbols and Abbreviations 294
Vocabulary List 295
VIII. An Index of First Names 340
IX. Acknowledgements and Bibliography 360
X. Index 363
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