ossnhughiePO Top Contributor & Patron
Joined: 19 Sep 2010
Replies: 359
Location: Massachusetts, USABack to top |
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:45 pm
Post subject: Romanowicz or Romanowska?? huh??
This is a pretty straightforward question about Polish surnames. My 4th great grandmother is listed on her daughters baptism record from 1833 as Aniela Romanowska (which I understand is Romanowski). Yet on her daughters marriage record from 1859 is listed as Aniela Romanowicz. Has anyone seen this before? Are the meanings of the names somewhat similar?
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Litwo! Ojczyzno moja! ty jesteś jak zdrowie;
Ile cię trzeba cenić, ten tylko się dowie, Kto cię stracił.
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SophiaPO Top Contributor
Joined: 05 Oct 2014
Replies: 1533
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 10:26 am
Post subject:
Hi,
I understand the dilemma. You have one document saying Aniela Romanowska, another saying Aniela Romanowicz. What does it mean? It seems like there are three possibilities:
1. These are two different women. Well, I kind of doubt this. Don't you?
2. The surname was evolving. That did happen.
3. The priest who recorded the baptism made an error, or the priest recording the marriage made an error.
Let's ignore situation #1. For situations #2 and #3, your only recourse is to find additional records. If you can find other Roman.... family members' baptism, marriage and death records and look at them chronogically, you can see whether the name was changing over time. Or you may find that all other records in that parish are for Romanowski and you can decide if you want to discard Romanowicz as the error (or vice versa). In my opinion, if you want to know your 4x-gr-grandmother's REAL surname at birth, you need her baptismal record. Even if the surname changed later on, this is how she was named when she was born, and this is how I would put her in my family tree. If I could not find any other records, I would put both surnames in the tree next to her name. This is my personal approach. You can set your own rules for your own tree, of course.
To answer your direct question about the meanings of the names, I think you will enjoy Fred Hoffman's essay on surname endings: http://www.polishroots.org/Research/SurnameSearch/Surnamesendings/tabid/118/Default.aspx In this essay, he does explain what the -ski ending means and what the -wicz ending means.
When I look on http://herby.com.pl/ it shows that, in 1990, about 2,700 people used the spelling Romanowicz and about 17,000 used the spelling Romanowski. So, in today's terms, these are two different surnames. However, in the timeframe in which Aniela lived, things may have been somewhat more fluid.
You have to reach your own conclusion. In my mind, the only proof can come from additional documents.
Best of luck in resolving your puzzle!
Sophia
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ossnhughiePO Top Contributor & Patron
Joined: 19 Sep 2010
Replies: 359
Location: Massachusetts, USABack to top |
Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 4:34 pm
Post subject: Thank You
Sophia,
Thank you very much, option one is definitely of the table, the husband is the same for sure and the children also. I am currently having the archives in Vilnius search for he marriage record and also the baptism records of her other 3 children. If they find her marriage record in the Mejszagola registers I will have them look for her birth record also. On the 1840 parish census she is listed as 38 year old, born abt 1801/1802, if they find her marriage record this could help potentially narrow down her approx DOB and facilitate a search for her baptism record.
I will keep you appraised as to what I find and I much like you will write both names until I have a more iron-clad understanding.
Hugh
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Litwo! Ojczyzno moja! ty jesteś jak zdrowie;
Ile cię trzeba cenić, ten tylko się dowie, Kto cię stracił.
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