Cultural identity isn't always a question of precise geography. Take Jewish genealogy, for example. For millennia, Jewish communities have been uprooted and scattered across continents, making family lines notoriously difficult to trace. But as no family history is impossible to track, Ancestry.com has compiled the following list of tips for those just beginning their Jewish genealogy.1) Living Relatives
Before venturing into the unknown, it helps to know as much about your personal history as possible. Because older family members can answer many of your initial questions, you'll want to begin your research by interviewing living relations.
2) Nationality
Your family's nationality should be among your first key discoveries. Most Jewish-Americans can trace their ancestry to one of the following ethnicities - Dutch, German, Russian, Lithuanian, Polish, Rumanian, or Sephardic (Spanish and Portuguese Jews). Identifying your nationality comparatively early in the process will help in locating records from your ancestral homeland.
3) Religious Caste
Religious caste (or tribal lineage) is another important clue. The three Jewish castes, Cohanim, Leviim and Israelite, can help determine your surname origin. The surname Levy, for example, denotes that one descends from the Leviim caste. Often, information about your surname and tribal lineage will help you narrow your search to a particular cultural subset.
4) Vital Records
4) Vital Records
While birth, death and marriage certificates are helpful research tools, they are difficult to find because synagogues seldom keep them on file. As a result, it's important to locate alternative vital records such as obituaries, wedding announcements, social security applications, census records, ketubah (marriage) contracts, family bibles, and prayer books.
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5) Cemetery Research
Jewish tombstones traditionally incorporate a Hebrew "sacred name" called the shem ha'kodesh. This inscription reveals the name of the deceased as well as the deceased person's father, thus providing the identity of yet another paternal ancestor. Similar to a tombstone is a yahrzeit, or memorial plaque, used to commemorate an ancestor's death. Housed in synagogues and yeshivas, a yahrzeit will typically include a date of death, descendents, and the shem ha'kodesh.
6) Landsmanshaft Societies
Social organizations called "landsmanshaft" became commonplace in America owing to the tide of Jewish immigration beginning in the 19th Century. Membership in a landsmanshaft was based on the immigrant's town of origin. Because cemeteries were often organized into landsmanshaft plots, one can pinpoint an ancestor's town of origin through the location of his or her burial site.
7) Migration
Jewish citizenship records and ships' passenger lists exist in family history libraries and the National Archives in Washington D.C. Even without these records, an ancestor's approximate arrival time can be traced according to Jewish migration patterns. The first Jewish settlers in America were Dutch, arriving in the mid-17th Century. Sephardic Jews arrived in the 18th Century with German, Eastern European, and Russian Jews immigrating between the mid-19th and early 20th centuries.
8) Naming Patterns
When naming children, many Jewish-Americans adhere to either the Ashkenazic or Sephardic tradition. According to the Ashkenazic tradition, children are named for deceased relatives. Sephardic custom dictates that children be named for specific relatives (typically grandparents) who are still living. These names can provide a direct map to the earlier generations of your family.
9) The Holocaust
Organizations like the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the American Red Cross can help you trace entire family lines that have been lost. Yad Vashem's Hall of Names in Jerusalem offers a database of more than 3 million names - representing half of the 6 million Jews who were killed during the Holocaust.
For more information on these organizations, visit the following websites:
-- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
-- American Red Cross Holocaust and War Victims Tracing and Information Center
-- Yad Vashem's Hall of Names
10) Additional Resources
JewishGen is one of the largest online Jewish Genealogy networks. The website incorporates extensive databases, discussion groups and the latest genealogical research. Similarly, the "Avotaynu" is the foremost publication among serious Jewish genealogists.
For more information, visit the following links:
-- www.JewishGen.org
-- www.Avotaynu.com
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