ROM-SIGNEWS - JewishGen Fall...ROM-SIGNEWS, Vol.5, No. 1, Fall 1996 A Weekin Jassy (Ia i) by Linda Hugle In 1902, the Steinfeld family emigrated from Jassy, Romania, to Philadelphia

ROM-SIG NEWSA Special Interest Group Journal for

ROMANIAN JEWISH GENEALOGY

On a trip to Ia$i, Linda Huglefinds:A bookofcemeteryinscriptions

AL. ANDRONIC EUGENIA NEAMJUSTELA CHEPTEA

INSCRIPTU MEDIEVALE§1

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In this issue. . .

...but first a word from your editor 2"§tefane§ti: Portrait of a Shtetl" 2A Week in Jassy (Ia§i) 3New Kielce-Radom SIG 7

The Sudits of Romania (part 3 of 3) 8FROM OUR READERS: Jews of the U.S. and

Canada; Report on Carol Marcusohn; Schoroflasj; Leibovici of Czernowitz; Vadaschete?... 17

Volume 5, Number 1

and Thestory ofRomanians who emigrated to America

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Translators Needed for ROM-SIG 181997: Paris and Beyond (to Romania?) 18Georghe Mireuta, Galati Researcher 19Anton Valdine, Moscow-based Researcher 19Sephardic Surnames in Romania 21Romanian FAMILY FINDER Supplement:

80 more researchers 23Batya Unterschatz, Israeli Researcher 28

Fall 1996

ROM-SIG NEWS, Vol.5, No. 1, Fall 1996

Friends,

Many times before, I have commented on the dilemmas that arise with theassembly of each issue. A few such dilemmas arose as we prepared thisissue. We had more lengthy, in-depth material than we had short articles.In order to maintain balance, some ofthe longer articles were put on holdfor the next issue. This includes the second installment of Monica

Talmor's extract of names from the second Dorohoi Yizkor Book, whichhad been scheduled for publication in this issue. We apologize to those ofyou who might be waiting for the second installment. Please contact us ifyou would like to gain access to that information prior to the next issue.We do expect to publish it in the Winter 1996-97 issue.

Almost on a weekly basis, we receive information about new and littleknown researchers in Romania, who are producing good results for ourmembers. While we believe that it is the role of ROM-SIG to pass thatinformation on to you, we are careful to inform, not endorse. We hope itis clear that we pass along to you testimonials from satisfied customers,but do not endorse, recommend or otherwise promote any particularresearcher. In fact, I would suggest that the situation in Romania today,as well as erroneous storage and lack of information on the existence ofarchival materials, make it highly unlikely that any one researcher willalways be successful. We do hope that you continue to inform us ofyoursuccesses, and we will pass them along to our readers.

In this issue, we are pleased to thank our new and old contributors,including Adina Gertz, Bruce Bertram, Dr. Marcel Bratu, Stu Cooper,Arlene Edwards, Linda Hugle, Melvin Lubin, Stela Marie§, HaroldRhode, Bruno Segal, and Gene Starn (former editor of ROM-SIGNEWS). Keep those articles coming!

MarCene

"§te&ne§ti: Portrait of a Shtetl"

This book, a memoir of life in §tefane§ti, Romania, has been out of print,and unavailable through the publisher, Pergamon Press. We have learnedthat the author, Mrs. Ghitta Sternberg, still has some copies and is willingto sell up to ten of these. If you are interested, telephone the"DoubleHook Book Store in Montreal, Canada, at 514-932-5093. They willprocess your order and send the book by surface mail anywhere in theU.S. or Canada. You must use a credit card for the order, and theprice—including shipping and other charges—will be approximately$24.60 in U.S. currency (that's $33.20 Canadian). Mrs. Sternberg hasalso written a book of short stories about Romanian shtetl life, The One

With the Amber Beads. This is a paperback, which can also be orderedfrom Double Hook, for approx. $14.48 U.S.

ROM-SIG NEWSA Special Interest Group Journal for

ROMANIAN JEWISH GENEALOGY

(ISSN 1084-3221) is published quarterlyby the Romanian Special InterestGroup, a volunteer organization.

The purpose of ROM-SIG NEWS is toenlighten, encourage and entertainresearch in Romanian Jewish genealogy.

Annual dues are $20.00 (U.S.). Paymentcan be made in foreign currency for theequivalent of $22.00 (U.S.). Back ordersare $ 15 per year, or $40 for three years.

ROM-SIG NEWS is governed byan editorial board consisting of

Sam Elpcrn, Paul Pascal,Gene Starn and Marlene Zakai.

Editor— MARLENE ZAKAI

All communication regarding subscriptions, checks, receipt of issues,and family finders should be sent to:

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submitted written clearly or printed, preferably typewritten, double-spaced, or onIBM or MAC compatible disk. Pleasedo not send original photographs ordocuments; send copies. Any materialsubmitted will be returned upon request.

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January 25,1997December 25,1996


A Week in Jassy (Ia§i)by Linda Hugle

In 1902, the Steinfeld family emigrated from Jassy,Romania, to Philadelphia. Ninety-four years later, my21-year old daughter Brandy and I returned to Iasi/Jassy in pursuit of whatever history and records theymight have left behind. This trip had been her idea, acollege graduation gift.

Our research expectations were fairly low for severalreasons. Neither of us spoke Romanian nor could weread or understand Hebrew. Despite the advice ofprevious travelers (reported in ROM-SIG NEWS), wehad neglected to contact the state archives in Bucharestin advance to request research permission in Iasi. Wewere also, aware that most of Romania's Jews hademigrated in the 1970s to Israel so who would remain toguide us in our research? Nevertheless, we would besatisfied just to see this place, perhaps to feel the"ancestral pull" other heritage travelers had reported, andto learn a littleof its history.

Gaining Research Permission in Bucharest

Our trip began in Bucharest, two days of gettingacclimated and wandering by foot. We were unimpressed by Ceaucescu's architecture and the touristsites, particularly since nearly all the museums andconcert halls were closed for the summer season. We

did visit the Arhivelor Statului (state archives) atB-dul Gheorgui-Dej #29. The non-English-speakingguard sent us away, pointing next door to the Ministryof Justice, a scary place we walked into and quicklyout of. Returning to #29, we scrawled a note inEnglish and handed it to the guard, who then foundsomeone to translate it. Mrs. Gabriela Birceanu then

emerged and shepherded us through the process, evenproviding us with paper and pen (see how unpreparedwe were!) so that we could write a letter requestingpermission to use the Iasi archives for genealogicalresearch. This was on Wednesday morning, but shesaid we could not research there until the followingMonday. The letter had to include our researchpurpose and time period. Fortunately, I left this fairlybroad (1800s), because I later learned they wouldenforce this limitation.

A Lucky Encounter

On Thursday, we took the IC (Intercity) train to Iasj.I was impressed by how comfortable and clean thetrain was, especially since I had been told Romaniantrains were miserable and dirty. We had the old-styletickets, with some mystery numbers on the backs, sowe just found a compartment and hoisted ourtoo-heavy suitcases up onto the luggage racks. Itquickly became apparent we were in the wrong cabin,but not before we met a true gem, a young womanreturning to Iasi who heard our English andintroduced herself. Nicoleta accompanied us theentire five-hour trip, helping us find our cabin andjoining us there. If I could give one piece ofimpossible advice to others heading to Romaniantowns for research, it would be this: meet someonewonderful on the train on your way there. Nicoletawas our ticket to great success and a wonderfulimpression of Iasi. Translating, and navigating bytram, she accompanied us nearly everywhere we wentduring our week in Iasi. We ate several wonderfulmeals, prepared by her loving but non-Englishspeaking mother, in her apartment.

Impressions of Iasi

Ia§i is indeed a spectacular city. Nestled in a valley ofseven hills, Romania's "Rome," Iasi sports some ofthe "communist architecture" seen in Bucharest, butunlike Bucharest still retains its own flavor.The

people we met were well-educated and multilingual.We were told that the university is Romania's oldestand Europe's third oldest. Certainly it holds greatinfluence over this town of poets and scientists. Oneof the town's pleasant surprises was the proliferationof statues of poets and writers and the dearth ofsimilar honors for warriors. A disappointment wasCeaucescu's demolition of Iasi's and the world's first

Yiddish theatre.

We could not research at the archives until Monday,a blessing according to Nicoleta as, she assured us,workers are far more helpful on Mondays than onFridays. Therefore, we spent some time taking in thecity. The Botanical Gardens, the university frescoes,an orphanage where Nicoleta has committed to the


support of a troubled 15-month old girl, the palacemuseums, handicraft shops, and the forests nearbyoccupied us.

Part of my mission was to find some local historybooks and maps, a mission I failed, unfortunately.However, in its pursuit I chanced upon another luckyencounter. At the Galleriile Anticariat on LapusneanuStreet #24, I met the owner, Maestro DumitruGrumazescu. Mr. Grumazescu was wonderfullyhospitable and interested in local Jewish history. Fromhim, I received a copy of a 1926 book, Romanii inAmerica [see newsletter cover], which includes achapter about the Kvreii (Jews) who emigrated.Obviously a key figure in last's intelligentsia, heintroduced us to poets and to his fabulous postcardcollection of old Iasi. His antique bookstore had beenstripped of local history and Judaica by an Israelifriend recently, but he promised to locate more andship them to me. Two fond memories of Iasi aredrinking Romanian wine with Mr. Grumazescu andtwo noted poets in the anticariat and eating a gourmetmeal prepared by his chemical engineer wife. Anotherfeature much appreciated was the Vivaldi playing inhis store, a treasured break from the bad Americanrock and roll heard everywhere else.

The Jewish Community Center

We planned to visit the Jewish cemetery, but had readthat the Chevra Kadisha records at the Jewish

Community Center would provide a guide to burialsites. With this and the purchase of Mr. Kara'smuch-awaited book about the (now destroyed) oldcemetery in mind, we visited the Jewish Communitywith our friend Nicoleta as translator. We were

welcomed by three older gentlemen, none of whomspoke English. Since I had no death dates for myancestors, they could not look them up for me;apparently the books are chronological only and anapproximate year could mean a records search ofseveral days. Iasi's Jewish community had been quitelarge, after all. Besides, when I gave the year ofemigration, the men laughed and one commented,"We have only two times here, pre-regime andpost-regime." A year as ancient as 1902 was tooremote for them. This was disappointing, but inquiries

about Mr. Kara were more productive. We were toldhe comes to the Center about 11:00 a.m. daily andwe could find him Monday morning.

We returned as scheduled and Mr. Kara introduced

himself in perfect English. Kara is his pen name, heexplained; his real name is Schwartz. I asked about thegravestone inscriptions book Paul Pascal hadmentionedand he located a copy for us [see newsletter cover/. Hehas written over 100 mostly unpublished manuscripts,many about local history. I mentioned the village ofCodaesti (Koh-duh-yesht) and, yes, he had about a10-page manuscript he had written about that village aswell. It was in Romanian and he offered to have it

translated for us. The translator would charge about$3.00 per page. I was to call him the next day toconfirm, but was unable to reach him before our trainleft. I gave our friend Nicoleta the money plus anadditional donation and she went to pick it up. Giventhe slow state of mail from Romania, I am still awaitingthis treasure's arrival.

Mishnocheh

One of the gentlemen at the Jewish CommunityCenter on our first visit had asked mygrandmother's name and recognized the unusualsurname. Before I knew what was happening, hewas on the phone to Mr. Leon Steinfeld, a retiredlawyer, and we were given directions to Mr.Steinfeld's apartment. We visited Mr. Steinfeld andhis wife, Rosalie, twice. On our first visit, we werewarmly greeted by this distinguished and well-readgentleman in his eighties. We shared family historiesand didn't see any immediate connections exceptone: both Steinfeld families had come to Iasi from the

little village of Codaesfi. On our second visit, webrought good news from the archives—hisgrandfather and my grandmother's grandfather werebrothers! I had never heard of family remaining inRomania and he had never heard of family inAmerica, but there we were.

Leon showed me a most amazing document: hisfather's Romanian citizenship papers. I madephotocopies but am still stunned. Here was a manwho was at least third generation Romanian, whose


grandfather had come to Romania in 1810, yet who wasgranted citizenship only in 1932. Various stamps wereaffixed to the certificate, showing that even in 1932 Jewshad to pay for the privilege of citizenship. Included weretestimonials including birth records, addresses and a copyof his parents' marriage certificate. Presumably, suchdocuments would be available at the Iasi MunicipalArchives (a different building, housing documents lessthan 100 years old) for interested researchers.

Leon's brothers, sisters, and aunts had all emigrated toIsrael and their descendants were all there. Only heand his wife remained in Romania. He shared manystories, including the tragedy of the 1941 pogrom inIasi The Nazis had searched apartment houses,forcing all Jews they found to board a train where theywere suffocated as the train traveled back and forth

between Iasi and Podu Turcului, The Nazis thendumped the bodies in the village of Roman. They alsotold of the woman, Agaviche, whose brave act savedthe lives of the few survivors. The Steinfeld family hadbeen living in an Armenian apartment building thatwasn't searched. Rosalie, a Dorohoi native, told us ofa massacre there when a Russian officer had ordered

the execution of a Romanian and a Jewish soldier had

protested and prevented it. In anger, the Russianofficer shot the brave Jewish soldier. Yet when his

Jewish friends and family came to mourn at hisfuneral, Romanians arrived and slaughtered them. Thehorrors of Jewish history in this region were hiddenjust beneath the surface, often only in the memories ofits oldest citizens. This did temper my enchantmentwith the Iasi of 1996. Nicoleta, a product of localeducation and the University of Iasi, seemed evenmore shocked by these tragic stories than we.

The Iasi State Archives on B-dul Copou

Our visit to the Archives began badly. First of all, wehad a Ceaucescu-era street name, now changed, andhad some trouble finding it. Then when we arrived, anotice on the door announced that the archives wereclosed for two weeks. A guard explained thateveryone was on holiday. That would have ended ourexcursion and my story if not for dear Nicoleta. Sheexplained to the guard that we were here all the wayfrom America and had permission to research from

Bucharest. We were admitted to the bustling,obviously quite open. State Archives of lasj.

We were directed upstairs to a small salon where awoman archivist and three researchers were working.Nicoleta translated and we asked first for the

marriage record index, Registrtii Tarii Civile (has:1865-1899, for 1892, the date I had for the marriageof Morris Steinfeld and Pauline Loebelsohn. The

index, an original ledger book, arrived almostinstantaneously and we began scanning. The recordswere by year, but not alphabetical so all names andpages for each year had to be skimmed. In 1889, wefound them: "Steinfeld, Moise Avram cu Dra.Leihilson, Paulina" Nothing here will describe theexcitement of that discovery. I had been seeking theSteinfelds since my grandmother's death in 1981 andfound little. But here they were, real people! TheLeibilson name was a surprise since I had been toldLoebelsohn, but in the actual records it was repeatedseveral times, though mostly spelled Leibelzon orLeibelson (why not Leibovici?).

Rodica Anghel, the archivist who became a valuablehelp to us, returned quickly with the actual marriagepapers. They were about 20 pages long, including anapplication, notices for posting at the city hall andsynagogue, the certificate itself ("Certificat deCasatorie"), and affidavits of the births of both brideand groom. I developed a deep affection for theRomanian bureaucracy at that instant. Mygreat-grandparents may have found it burdensome andunnecessary, but oh what a boon for me! From thisdocument, I learned my great-great grand-parents' fullnames and addresses, my great-grand-parents' correctbirthdates and birthplaces, and the location of thesynagogue where they were married (I later learnedfrom Mr. Steinfeld that this synagogue was bulldozed toput in a highway). Naturally, we requested copies ofthese documents and were told we could pick upphotocopies the next day, our day of departure fromIasi. Both Brandy and I sensed that these photocopieswere not part of the regular archives services and maynot be normally available.

We next requested an earlier marriage index, listingmarriages from 1809-1865, hoping to find the

•VJM-SIG NEWS, Vol.5, No. 1, Fall 1996

marriages of Moise's or Paulina's parents. This indexwas much better organized (no explanation given orrequested), arranged alphabetically by first initial oflast name and then by church. At the end of eachletter's section was a listing of "Israelite" marriages,though an incomplete one as Jews in this period oftendid not register their marriages with the stateAlthough I didn't find the Steinfelds or Leibelsons, Iasked if I could buy photocopies of each of theIsraelite lists. This request was denied with theexplanation that the state held "copyright" to thesebooks and I might publish this information and sell it.Besides, I had only been granted permission toresearch my own family for genealogical purposes.Perhaps some other researcher reading this will find avalid purpose to obtain this information?

My third request was for the catagraphy (census) ofSudits in 1859 that I had read about in ROM-SIG

NEWS. Ms. Anghel said there was none for 1859, butthere was one for 1851. However, they were all inCyrillic, even the indices. I asked for clarification here,as l had read the indices were not Cyrillic, but sherepeated that they were. Since I had forgotten to bringmy transliteration guide, I thought I would have aserious problem. Fortunately, the archivist asked formy family names and again remembered the Steinfeldname from some research she had been doing in the1836 Catagraphy (are you following this incredibleseries of lucky breaks?). She ushered us into a smallerprivate room, where she located and read to us froman ancient book. The story of Avraim Steinfeld, age66, a Sudit from Galicia under Turkish protectionbegan to unfold. From his white hair, tall stature, and"usual nose" to his wife's birthing history, the censustakers had kept meticulous records. Here I learnedthe relationship between my daughter and me and Mr.Leon Steinfeld of Iasi. I regret that 1 did not ask for acopy of this entry.

Rodica Anghel was both knowledgeable and helpfuland we developed a friendship. She expressedfrustration with the limitations imposed on archivalresearch and was well-versed in both archival holdingsand Jewish history and culture. I was surprised tolearn we were only the fourth Americans to visit theIa^i Archives. Others planning to visit who might

request Ms AnghePs help should brush up on theirFrench or bring a translator: she speaks no English.I asked whether she would be interested in presentinginformation at the 1997 Paris International Seminar

and she indicated she would, if the costs of attendingcould be covered. This decision, of course, will rest

with the convention organizers, but I wouldrecommend her. Only recently are archivists allowedto travel, as the archives fall under the Security

Department's jurisdiction.

Whatever frustrations you may have encounteredseeking your immigrant ancestors, like the Steinfelds,it is almost certain they too were caught in theRomanian bureaucracy's net and their secrets awaityou in the old country.

For Future Travelers

Those planning Jewish heritage travel in Romaniawill find Romanians welcoming and interested inJewish people. Unlike before World War II, Jews arenow a rarity and therefore higher in Romanianesteem. Today's resented minority are the Gypsieswho are both more visible and more numerous.

In less than a week, we met 14 people whobefriended us or went out of their way to help. UntilIa^i and similar towns become accustomed to andresentful of tourists, expect friendly interest in yourquest and be prepared with small gifts. Several youngpeople we met were interested in studying in the U.S.and after returning home we shipped several TOEFLstudy books and college guides for foreignapplicants.

Several we met indicated an interest in emigrating,whether to America or other places. While Jews wereinvited by Israel, others have not had the opportunitybut take great interest in the outside world. Perhaps thishas been fed by the repression of the Ceaucescu regimeor by the mandatory television in each apartmentbroadcasting American shows. Pictures of our familyand home were ofgreat interest to those we met.

Certainly our task would have been more difficultwithout our new Romanian friend; future travelers


may want to consider hiring a student from theuniversity to help them. A search for "Iasi" inSavvysearch on the Internet brought up numerousuniversity sites and might be a worthwhile place tostart looking for student guides.

Finally, recognize that Romanians do not earn muchmoney and what they have has been eroded byinflation. Do not flaunt your money and insult yourhosts. In most cases, people who helped us did notwant money and the few times we tried to paysomeone for some small service it was refused. The

exceptions would of course include taxi drivers andothers in the "tourist trade," but those who offered tohelp freely seemed offended by cash offers.

Above: LindaHugle and Professor Kara.

To the right: shoppingfor watermelons in the lap marketplace

KIELCE-RADOM SIG FORMED

A new Polish special interest group has beenformed. Itcovers two Kingdom of Poland provinces—ruled byRussia between 1815 to 1917—of Kielce (Kee-'ELS-a)and Radom (Rah-dahm). Three well-known genealogists, viz., Warren Blatt, Lauren Davis and GeneStarn, comprise the advisory council of this new SIG.

The SIG will be a contributory group, meaning itsmembers will share in their findings. They will publishtheirmaterial in a voluminous quarterlyjournal and willhave a presence on the Internet. The journal willinclude extracts from archival records now available,indexes from various sources, personal research experiences, photographs, and other materials not availableelsewhere.

The SIG is open to all who are researching those areas,whether veteran or novice genealogists. Membership$24 per publication year for U.S., Canadian and Mexican members; $30 for all others due to additionalpostage. For more information about joining, contactGene Starn, who is acting as coordinator, at:

Gene Starn (eMail: [email protected])P.O. Box 520583, Longwood, FL 32752Phone: (407)788-3898

8 ROM-SIG NEWS, Vol. 5, No. 1, Fall 1996

Final details of their special status and history

The Sudits of Romania: Invited and Privileged Guests?by Stela Maries, tn nslated and edited by Bruno Segal

Prologue: Mainly foreigners but including somenatives, the Sudits were people living on Romanian soilin the 19th century who were given certain specialeconomic privileges by the Romanian government, andwho hadthe diplomatic andlegal protection ofa foreignpower. Thefirst twoparts ofthis essay appearedin ourprevious issues. Ihis final installment, which originallywas a separate article byProf. Matie^finishes the story.

Prof. M$frie$ who has authorized our translation ofherarticles, tells us that the original Romanian version waspublished in lap, and the Hebrew version will bepublishedbytheDiaspora ResearchInstitute in TelAviv.However, that version will not include the details of theSudit censuses, translated here as our third installment.

And now we continue:

Social and economic conditions of the Jewish Sudits of

Moldavia. Their numbers, occupations, privileges anddemographics in the first half of the 19th century.

This paper is based on First-hand documentation sources, generallyunpublished, such as: the catagraphies (fiscal censuses) of 1803.1808. and 1820; special statistical data of the Sudits collected in1824-25: statistics from the period when Russia administered theprincipalities [Moldavia and WalachiaJ in 1828-1834; specialcensusesfor foreign subjects in 1845, 1851 and 1859-60. This datais corroborated and supplemented by published narratives of thetimes, official internal state documents, diplomatic correspondence,and stories relatedbyforeigntravelers.

In the period prior to the application of the Organic Laws,catagraphies were conductedsporadically and by chance. Theiromissions and errors cause them to be regarded and viewedtoday with understandable reservations. However, even with alltheir imperfections, for the pre-rcgulaled period they are theonly official documented material containing statisticalinformation. With the introduction of the Organic Laws, specificlaws dealing with population censuses were then introduced.They were to be held every seven years, they were for the mostpart methodical and systematical, and their details can beseriouslyconsidered by researchers.

Belonging to an urban privilegedclass from a financial point ofview, the Sudits seem to have been registered apart from the restof the taxable population in every known catagraphy of thetimes. Further classification was applied between non-Jewish

and Jewish Sudits. For fiscal reasons, the Jewish Sudits were

registered separately in these catagraphies because they werepaying for their fiscal obligations together with the nativeJews, in the taxation system or gahelei. For this reason,special registers for Jews from the larger towns in Moldaviawere created especially for fiscal censuses, as is the case in1844 in Iasi when the Jews. Sudits and natives were registeredtogether and classified according to the professional guild towhich they belonged.

Details from the 1803 census

The first official fiscal census conducted in all of Moldavia in

which Sudits were included was in 1803. The results are

registered in the Condica a humor. In the category of guildswithout taxes, there were in Iasi 532 Sudit heads of household

of whom 334 were non-Jews and 198 were Jews, further

subdivided into two categories based on which foreignprotection they enjoyed. Specifically, 141 were under Austrianprotection and 57 were under Russian protection.Additionally, another 8 heads of household were registered inthe Suceava region. Yet. these numbers could not represent thetotal number of foreign subjects in Moldavia or even justJewish Sudits. whose number must have been higher.Seemingly omitted are small towns in northern Moldaviawhere it is documented in 180184 that—in §tefanc§ti alone—there were 71 Jews with shops, 49 without shops, and 11without a listing. The total population of Iasi in 1803 was3,199 heads of household, totalling 15.995 people. Thisindicates that the Sudits accounted for 16.6 percent of the totalpopulation of Iasi, with the Jewish Sudits forming 6.1 percentof the population.


Another source even more rich in statistical information than

Condica Liuzilor is Condica scrierii sufletelorsi afamiliilora start de gios din Targul Esii. from 1808.85 This registerincludes those liable for taxes as well as those exempt fromtaxes (except the landowners and other privileged categories).Among those exempt from taxes were the Sudits, with 522registered families comprising 2,487 people. Of those, 14?[about 140] were Austrian Jewish families comprising 682people and 53 were Russian Jewish families. They practicedvarious trades such as those of jewelers, silversmiths, tailors,watchmakers and so on. For example, the register mentions acertain lancu. a shoemaker and possibly the holder of aprominent shop, who had 20 servants, all of them AustrianSudits. The register also mentions a certain Rappaport whowas a "Jidovu" [Jew| with 14 servants, a certain MoisheCasapul with 12 servants, and a Doctor Schmetlz who was an


Austrian Sudit and lived on Ulita Mare with 5 servants. Alsolisted are Moishe Sitian (and his wife Sura) who had 3journeymen, and Volvol Leiba who was a tailor andan AustrianSudit and had 4 journeymen and 6 apprentices. Generally, thetrades and the commerce practiced by the Sudits as listed in thestatistics of 1808 are very detailed specializations. ° The Suditsfrom the capital fof Moldavia], in other words from Iasi, wereregistered as follows: 307 families (1,469 people) were underAustrian protection, 206 families (261 people [author's mistake,probably 1261]) were under Russian protection and 9 families(61 people) were under French protection. Of the 307 AustrianSudit families, the Jews comprised the largest group: 147families. The registering of the Sudits from Iasi was made bystreets, indicating the nameof the headof household, the numberofpeople in thefamily, under what foreign power they belonged,their ethnic origin, (sometimes) their occupation, and thenumber of journeymen or apprentices they had. However, theplace oforigin of the Sudits is not mentioned. In 1808 the totalpopulation of Iasi (without landowners) was 16,410. Thisreflected 3,307 heads of household, of which 522 families (2,487people) were Sudits. Of the Sudits, 200 families (943 people)were Jews.


An official statistical document which offers for the first time apicture of the entire Suditcomposition of Moldavia is the generalcatagraphy of the people in 1820,87 which counted a total of1,935 Sudit heads of household, of which 1,451 arc Christiansand 484 are Jews. Since the beginning of the 19th century, thenumber of Jewish Sudits had doubled. Generally, a significantgrowth had occurred in the number of Sudits, explained by theinflux of tradesmen and merchants attracted by the promise ofprosperity. Additionally, there was an increase in the numberofnative elements of various nationalities entering the category offoreign subjects. In Iasi. in a total population of 21.130 people.Sudits accounted for 1,145 heads of household representing 24percentof the population. Of these, 705 heads of householdwereChristian and 440 were Jews. The Jewish Sudits of Iasi were

subdivided as follows: 296 heads of household were Austriansubjects, 141 heads of household were under Russian protection,and 50 heads of household were Prussian subjects. The Austriansubjects were more numerous in Iasi, Roman, Bacau andBolosani, while the Russian subjects were more numerous in Iasiand the surroundings.

In addition to the 440 Jewish heads of household who were

Sudits, there were 664 native Jewish families in the town of Iasi.They were mostly engaged in commerce and the trades, workingas: brass smiths, silversmiths, tinsmiths, manufacturers of glass,butchers, stone masons, painters, dealers in old clothes, moneybrokers. Also well represented were tailors, bootmakers,watchmakers, furriers, potters, druggists and civil servants.

DO

There were also a good many teachers and instructors. In all,there were 76 branches of trade and commerce in which the Jews

were engaged. Jewish merchants were also prominent in therabbit fur trade which they dominated from the end of theeighteen century. In those times, according to stories byforeign travelers, the Jewish artisans were preferred over theGermans, especially as watchmakers and tailors. As in thecatagraphy of 1808, this census shows that the Jewish Sudittradesmen had more journeymen at their disposal than didother tradesmen. Even though this meant that they wereproducing more, the term fabricant (manufacturer, or factoryowner) used in the catagraphies was improper. In the regionalcatagraphies in 1820, the occupations of the Jewish Suditswere not written down as in the one from Iasi. If theoccupation appeared at all, it appeared sporadically, listingwhether or not the individual had a shop. In some cases, as inthe catagraphy ofthe region of Roman,90 the type oftrade orcommerce practiced by Jews was identified as rank I, II or III,which attested to a certain social class structure among the Sudits.

Details from the 1824-1825 census

Four years later, the richest and most complete source ofstatistical information about the Sudits in Moldavia in the firsthalf of the 19th century was compiled. These statistics from1824-25 are very important, because they represent a specialcensus with political as well as demographic data, full and richin a variety of details about Sudits in general and Jews inparticular. This information merited a special study, recentlypublished.91 From the 1824-25 catagraphy, a detailed analysisof the social, economic, and demographic structures of theJews in the Moldavian towns under foreign protection emerges.In a total of 2,031 Sudit heads of household. 844 heads ofhousehold were Jewish: 41.5 percent of the Sudits and 18percent of the total Jewishpopulation of Moldavia. Comparingthis figure with the one from 1820 when 440 heads ofhousehold were registered, we notice an almost doubling of theJewish Sudits. This significant growth can be explained by theimmigration of Jews from Galicia, Bessarabia and Bukovina aswell as native Jews obtaining "foreign subject" status fromAustria, Russia, and France. On this last point the JewishSudits were subdivided as follows: 566 heads of householdwere under Austrian protection, 195 heads of household wereRussian subjects, 78 heads of household were under Frenchprotection and 5 heads of household were Prussian. Most ofthe Austrian subjects (448 heads of household) were originallyfrom Galicia. subdivided as follows: 58 from Snialyn, 54 fromTismcnita, 37 from Brody. 20 from Stanislau, 13 fromHorodcnca and 286 from other places. The Russian Suditswere from Bessarabia or Transnistria, except for one fromOdessa. Most Jewish Sudits were concentrated in Iasi (432heads of household), followed by Botosani with 303 heads ofhousehold and the town of Roman with 89 heads of household.

Most Jewish Sudits lived in urban centers. Their largepresence in the cities and towns of northern Moldavia such asBotosani, Dorohoi, and Her\a is explained by their desire to beclose to Galicia and Bukovina from where many Jewish Sudits

10 ROM-SIG NEWS, Vol.5, No. 1, Fall 1996

came. There they traded domestically, as well as exportingoutside Moldavia such commodities as spirits and timber amongothers. They also leased from landowners or monasteriesgrazing grounds, plots of estates, taverns, and mills.

The majority of the Jewish Sudits were engaged in commerce(655 heads of household). One is impressed by thediversification and variety of trades and branches of commerce

.that the Jews were engaged in. Among the 62 branches ofcommerce in which they were reported, some of the moreprominent ones were: producers and sellers of spirits,haberdashery merchants (precupeti), cattle merchants, fur andleather merchants, rabbit fur merchants (mostly from northernMoldavia), lessors of commons, estates and plots, merchants ofpharmaceuticals, hardware merchants, horse dealers, grainmerchants, merchants who traded with "goods from Vienna,"merchants who dealt in salt, wax, honey, fish, crude oil, timber,glassware, pots, wines, apples and fruits, supplies for the army,tobacco, jewelry and cosmetics, sweets and so on. The JewishSudits who occupied themselves with commerce, domestically aswell as internationally (cattle export, leather and furs) wereconcentrated in the traditional centers of commerce of Moldavia:

Iasi, Botosani (which was the second most importantcommercial town of Moldavia), Roman. Dorohoi and Galau.

The Jewish Sudit merchants from Moldavia were also dealing inforeign goods. They brought goods from the famous fairs ofLeipzig (the New Year, Easter, Fall and Saint Michael fairs)which included linens, luxury items, various manufacturedgoods, etc. They also imported goods from the German states,from Austria, England. Poland. Russia and France. Aftercommerce, in the socio-economic hierarchy of the Jewishpopulation, the trades figured second. The 1824-25 catagraphyshows 167 Jewish Sudit heads of household who were

tradesmen. The most frequent occupation was tailor. TheSudits were also involved in many other trades: as brass smiths,silversmiths, furriers, dyers, cooks, bootmakers (including somethat specialized in the German style), watchmakers, lace makers,belt makers, hat makers, jewelers, flour makers, torch makers,silk weavers, potters, stone masons, monument makers, clothmanufacturers, bread makers, pastry makers, tanners, "cutters oftobacco," tin workers, painters, seal engravers, and glassmanufacturers, in all over 40 trades.

The catagraphy of 1824-25 mentions a few "manufacturers."92In reality, these were small shop manufacturers or smallproducers of goods. Of these we cite a certain Marcu Lorcnz,Russian subject born in Odessa and Iacov §loimovici, Austriansubject born in Poland, both manufacturers of cotton. We alsocite Herscu §teinbcrg an Austrian Sudit originally from theGerman states, manufacturer of fine leather for shoes. These

entries also indicate the new tastes of the Moldavian society, instep with the latest styles—especially French—which broughtabout new kinds of tradesmen. A new breed of tradesmen arose

among whom some were Jewish Sudits, who engaged in newerand more refined trades unknown previously in Moldavia:

watchmakers, jewelers, locksmiths, crude oil explorers.9Thus, this new breed contributed to the modernization of the

trades and the introduction of new trades, which provided theimpetus for the economic development of Moldavia in the lastcentury. We cite a certain lanchel Kopcl. Austrian subject inBotosani. originally from Cernauti, who was a bootmaker intheGerman style. ' Together withthe German Sudits. theJewsappeared as qualified or skilled hands in the existing"factories" of the times. We mention Iuc luster, an Austriansubject originally from Cernauti, who qualified as an artisan ina glass factory at the estate Comanesti. Bacau region.95["estate" refers to part of a town or village dominated by alandowner].

The growing need of the Moldavian landowners for capital,first for their personal needs and then for their business needs,and the lack of a native currency, established the presence ofthe money lenders and brokers. Jews, both native and foreign,dominated this activity in Moldavia in the first quarter of thenineteenth century. Among the 22 money brokers registered inthe catagraphy of 1824-25. 20 were Jews, one was Greek andone was Armenian. Of the Jewish money brokers, 13 residedin Iasi, 6 in Botosani and one in Suceava. Also, in the ranks ofJewish Sudits there appeared the first bankers who hadconnections with foreign banks. The most prominent bankerof that time who appeared in the catagraphy of 1824-25 wasMihel Daniel.90

The category of lease holders or tenants who were consideredmerchants before and after the Organic Laws was wellrepresented by the Jewish Sudits. who accounted for 30 headsof household among a total of 89 Sudits who were leaseholders. They were concentrated especially in Botosani,Suceava, Iasj and Dorohoi where they were also engaged indomestic and international trade of cattle, spirits and lumber.This suggests that from the capital gained through trade theywere able to engage in leasing. Another category consisted ofJewish Sudits who leased other things besides estates or plots.Specifically they leased inns, mills, and the like. Thisoccupation was practiced by 29 Jewish Sudit heads ofhousehold from Iasi, Botosani, Bacau, Vaslui, Hirlau, Putna,Dorohoi. Carligatura, Neamt and Roman.

The third occupational category contained the liberalprofessions. Other miscellaneous occupations were alsoincluded here. Only 17 heads of household are listed in thiscategory, of whom 13 resided in Ia§i. Among them, one was adoctor (Zeilic Rahehaus), one was a druggist (Mihel Buroh.originally from Cernauti). many were school teachers, a fewwere artists (a musician, a fiddler, a comedian named Lionwho was Catholic and born in Paris), one was a Germantranslator, a few were transcribers (so-called "Germanwriters") and a few Jewish Sudits were employed in the publicservice: a staroste at the Austrian consulate in Iasi, a staroste

who administered the collection of taxes for the Prince of

Moldavia, a servant at the Austrian Agency in Iasi.

ROM-SIG NEWS, Vol.5, No. 1, Fall 1996 11

The catagraphy of the Sudits in 1824-25 provides interestingdemographic data, and detailed information about the materialsituation of the Jewish Sudits—which was generally good—aswell as juridical, enthnographic. toponymic. and historical datawhich clearly gives this document such an exceptional value.

Details between 1828 and 1834

Between 1828 and 1834 the Russian administration of the

principalities requested that some statistical data be compiledabout the population in Moldovia which also included theforeign subjects. The Jewish Sudits were not included in thegeneral statistics of the population of Moldavia, but wereregistered in a separate census for fiscal reasons, together withthe native Jews. It should be noted that the new statistics were

based on more modern methods of gathering data, and weremore rigorous than the catagraphies conducted before. Thesecensuses were to be taken periodically every 7 years and were toinclude all the foreign subjects regardless of origin or religion.The first work of this kind based on the Organic Laws whichestablished specific guidelines for the fiscal census is thecatagraphy of 1831.97


In 1831 the total native Jewish population in the cities and townsof Moldavia was 30.730. Additionally, there were 4,960 nativeJews living in small villages, lease holders of estates or plots.There were also 1,266s8 Jewish Sudit heads of household. Thetotal urban population of Moldavia in 1831 was 130,679. Mostof the Jewish Sudits resided in Ia§i. Botosani, Galan, andDorohoi, the principal economic centers of Moldavia. TheJewish Sudits represented only about 3.4 percent of the totalpopulation, but they had a much larger number of apprenticesand journeymen than the other tradesmen and were engaged ina larger volume of commerce and trade than the othermerchants. This was the time when the Moldavian economyexperiencedsignificant growth as a result of the freedom of tradeestablished through the peace of Adrianopol in 1829. Thisperiod also saw the beginning of radical economic, social,administrative, and health reforms through the introduction ofthe Organic Laws.


The catagraphy of 1832 was the first complete census withdemographic emphasis, and it also provided occupational detailsabout the Sudits. In 1832 the Sudits comprised 3,177s9 heads ofhousehold, representing 2.46 percent of the total urbanpopulation of Moldavia. The Jewish Sudits totalled 1,266 headsof household or about 6,330 people. The native Jews, togetherwith their servants, totalled 30,731 people.100

In the town of Ia§i the occupation, trade or commerce practicedwas grouped in a three-tier hierarchy. Of the 1,145 Sudits

counted. 111 were in the first level, 201 in the second level and

819 in the third level. The native merchants and tradesmen

were distributed as follows: 29 in the first level, 83 in thesecond level and 1,258 in the third level. From this data wesee that the Sudit merchants and tradesmen had a clear

qualitative superiority. This is explained by the amount ofmoney involved, the volume of business and the moreextensive international contacts that the Sudits possesedcompared with the native businessmen. What is alsosignificant is the fact that the Jewish Sudits constituted themajority group of all the Sudits. The catagraphies of certainregions, notably Iasi103 and Botosani104 offer additionalinformation regarding the kind of occupation and the level ofbusiness of the Jewish Sudits.

The Jewish artisans, both native and Sudit, conducted theiractivities through professional guilds headed by a chief(staroste). The Jews in Iasi, both native and Sudit, belonged in1835 to 20 guilds.105 The census lists 1,597 Jewish Sudits inIasi who were involved in commerce or trades who belonged tothe various guilds. Of these, 666 were masters and 480 werejourneymen. They were barbers, bakers, bricklayers, dyers,shoemakers, innkeepers, and tailors. The 435 tailors formedthe biggest group. The native and Sudit Jews were wellrepresented in all the guilds, with the exception of makers ofspecial clothes, which was dominated by the Armenians. Alsoremarkable is the fact that certain professions were practicedsolely by Jews: 10 painters and 50 old clothes dealers.106 Thenative merchants and artisans who belonged to the guilds wereassessed to pay taxes toward the guild, and were also assessedas a community toward the government, based on the volumeof their business. However, the Sudit merchants, both Jewishand non-Jewish, were exempted from personal taxes as well asfrom other obligations which the native merchants wereresponsible to pay. Some Sudit merchants who were engagedin commerce operated outside the guilds. As a result, a verytense climate existed in the Moldavian towns between thosewho belonged to guilds and those who didn't, between thenative merchants and the Sudits who were beneficiaries ofcertain exemptions and privileges. The feudal system inMoldavia had fiscal and juridical laws which applieddifferently and unequally to different classes.107 A similarsystem was applied to native merchants, who were responsiblefor taxes, and Sudits, who were exempted. Another elementcontributing to the competition between the merchants was theability of theSudit merchants to produce andsupply new stylesand innovations which satisfied the demand for the latestEuropean goods, while the native merchants were stillingrained in the oldways and found it difficult to keepup withthe changes in the professions in this time of transition.


Especially interestingand rich in details with respect to Suditsin general and Jews in particular is the catagraphyof the Jews


of Iasi in 1844, and the general fiscal census of Moldavia in1845. The fiscal census of the Jews of Iasi is an unpublishedstatistical demographic document titled Catagrafia evreilor dincvartalul 6 al orasului Iasi and represents the tally of the Jewsfrom the sixth sector of lasj. including both Sudit and nativeJews. This sector's census is the only one that was preserved, andaccounts for 629 heads of household. The remainder of the

catagraphy for all other sectors was lost. The professionalcategory, which is also based on belonging to a specific guild orunion, figures prominently in this document. The census revealsthe great variety of branches of trades and commerce that theJews were engaged in at the middle of the 19th century, as wellas the specific grouping of the native Jews into professionalunions. 620 Jewish heads of household were engaged in 55trades, commerce or public service unions. In 40 of those unionsonly native Jews belonged, some others were mixed with bothSudit and native Jews, and in some the Sudit Jews were

prominent.109 Among the latter are inn keepers, tavern keepers,tailors, and even a "manufacturer," a certain Liber Flis, anAustrian subject from Lcmberg, owner of a small business[clcanersl who engaged in "washing shirts." The Jewish Suditswere mostly Austrian subjects, originating from such Galiciantowns as: Brodi. Stanislau, Horodenca, Tismcnila, or fromCernauti and Bucecea. Some were Prussian, French, or Russiansubjects who were native Jews bom in Iasj. who became foreignsubjects with the passage of time. Only one Jew,a Prussian subjectwas born [outside of Moldavia], specificallyin Leydcn, Holland.

Important observations regarding the count, occupation andorigin of the Jewish Sudits can be made from the generalcatagraphy of Moldavia taken in 1845. Of a total 4,624 Suditheads of household there are 3,187 non-Jewish and 1,437Jewish heads of household. As in the previous catagraphies of1831 and 1832 the majority of the Jewish Sudits were engaged invery lucrative occupations: commerce or trades. Moreover, theJewish Sudits were engaged in a greater variety of trades then thenative tradesmen, and were more specialized in a given trade.While the local tradesmen were active in 61 trades, the

indigenous Jews were active in 85, and the Sudit Jews were activein 101' trades. The Jewish Sudits of lasj dominated thefollowing branches: tailors, silversmiths, butchers, bootmakers.

In commerce, all Jews were involved in 41 branches, the Sudits

in 40 branches, and the natives in only 9 branches. Jews, bothnative and Sudit, were prominent in foreign goods trading cattletrading (both domestic and external), spirits and food stufftrading, leasing, and money lending. In Iasi the Jews, bothnative and Sudit. were the money changers, operating as smallmoney changers, bankers or middlemen. Jewish Sudits were alsolocksmiths, watchmakers, and hirurgi [paramedics! ' such asMarcus §apir of Iasi. According to the Prussian consulJ.F.Nicgebaur, the Jews excelled in the trade of leeches, whichwere exported to France and from which they realized significantprofits. The catagraphy of 1845 reveals that the total numberof Jews in the cities and small towns grew to 15.558 heads of

families,""of which 14.151 were natives and 1,437 were Sudits.

The Sudit proportion of the total number of Jews was not assignificantquantitativelyas it was qualitatively. The numericalsuperiority of the Jews in commerce and the trades in themiddle of the century is evident when contrasted^with theChristian merchants or tradesmen, especially the native ones.Since Iasi was an important commercial center, most of theJewish Sudits lived there: 784 heads of household, and a total

of 1.779 people. Botosani had 139 heads of household whowere Jewish Sudits while Dorohoi had 35.

Sudits were Austrian subjects.


Most of the Jewish

The last catagraphy of Moldavia in the regulation [Organiclaws] period was in 1851. It indicates that in all six districts ofIasi the total Jewish population was 6.320 families, of which532 families were foreign subjects. In the total Jewish familycount. 164 "families" were widows or old [single] people.Another 200 families were added to account for Jews from

surrounding communities, bringing the total number of theJewish families in the Iasi region120 to 6.520. Statistics fromother cities are recorded as follows: in Falticeni there were 840

native Jews and 94 Jewish Sudit heads of household; in

Burdujeni there were 13 Jewish Sudit heads of household; ' inDorohoi122 there were 1,302 native Jews and 48 Jewish Sudilheads of household; in Heira 12 Jewish Sudits; in TargulFrumos123 190 Jewish heads of households of whom 157 werenative; in Podul Iloaici12'1 235 Jewish heads of household ofwhom 188 were native. Bacau county had 31 Jewish Sudits,of whom 16 were Austrian, 6 were Prussian, 1 Greek, 8Bavarian. In Targul Ocna126 there were 9 Jewish Sudits ofwhich 8 were Austrian, while in Targul Moinesli ' there wasone Austrian Sudit, and in Glodurilc and Parincca in Bacauregion128 thbre were two Sudits. However, other significantstatistics from such important towns as Botosani. Roman, andCovurlui arc missing. Remarkably, in addition to those whowere subjects of Austria. Prussia and Russia, some Sudits weresubjects of France, Britain, Greece, and Bavaria. For example,in lasj 312 Jewish Sudits were Austrian, 20 were Prussian, 10were Greek, 2 British, 1 French and 1 Russian.129 Also, fromthe 1851 catagraphy of the Jews in Iasi other important detailsemerge regarding their occupations, the proportions of theshops that were Jewish Sudit artisans, and even how someartisans had more apprentices than others. Many shops had 3to 6 apprentices,130 indicating a modest manufacturing capacity.This catagraphy131 indicates as in previous ones that themajority of the Jewish Sudits of Iasj were engaged in commerce,many trades or the liberal professions. One Russian Sudit fromQuarter I and two Austrian Sudits from Quarters III and IVwere watchmakers in the shops of Trisfetitelorof the monasteryTrei Ierarhi. Two other Austrian Sudits were locksmiths, and

two others were jewelers. In the liberal professions there werepharmacists, lawyers, booksellers, teachers.

ROM-SIG NEWS, Vol. 5, No. 1, Fall 1996 13


The year 1859 marks a significant point in the dynamics of thenumber of Jewish Sudits and of the foreign subjects in general inthe regulation [Organic laws] period. The catagraphy of1859-1860132 indicates a total of 6,164 Sudits of whom three-quarters were Jewish foreign subjects.

The enormous growth of the Jewish Sudits can be attributed to themigration of Jews from the Hapsburg Empire, from the Germanstates, and from Russia and Bessarabia to the Moldavian cities andtowns. It can also be attributed to an ever growing number of richnative Jews, who were merchants or artisans who became foreignsubjects. This signaled a process with big socio-economicimplications. The year 1859apparently marks a peak in the numberof Sudits. Under the adnunistration of Alexandra loan Cuza,

measures were introduced repealing the jurisdiction of theconsulates and revoking the juridical and fiscal exemptions andprivileges that foreign subjects enjoyed A new period started, inwhich the number of Sudits remained the same or even decreased

According to Din lucrarUe statistice ale Moldova (Statisticalresearch of Moldavia), chapter 2, "Population in 1859 and 1860,"Iasi (1862), cf. Verax, "La Roumanie et lesJuifs", the total JewishSudit populationin 1859was 4,670 heads of household

The Jewish Sudits were concentrated in the capital [Iasil which wasthe economic center of the principality, followed by Botosani andGalafi, both being important commercial towns and centers ofproduction. Galafiwas also an important port on the Danube river.This concentration is not surprising considering that most JewishSudits were merchants, artisans or members of the liberalprofessions. They possessed capital and were mostly towndwellers.They were separated from agriculture and played a role in theseparationof the towns and villages. As urban artisans, the JewishSuditswerea productive element involvedin the productionof manyprincipal necessities: clothing footwear, gift items (jewelry, silver),household items, foodstuffs.

Year Non- Jewish Total Total Total Sudits Jewish

Jewish Sudits Sudits Resi- nbr as % Sudits

Sudits dents of of total % of

people Res.

REGION 1824-25 1845 18511

Bacau 57 33 139

Botosani 303 175 292

Burdujeni 13Cariigatura 15 2 5Covuriui 33 80 168

Dorohoi 62 68 48

Falciu 65 36 14

Falticeni 94

Herta 31 16 12

Hirlau 43 5

Iasi 432 784 532

Neamt 65 26 122

Putna 74 33 68

Roman 89 20 125

Suceava 37 95 107

Tecuci 32 4 13

Tutova 62 39 49

Vaslui 45 35 12

1803 334 198 532 3199 15995 16.63 6.19

1808 322 200 522 3307 16410 15.78 6.05

1820 705 440 1145 - 21130

1824-25 571 432 1003

1845 995 784 1779 - - -

1851 - 532 - - - -

1859-60 1980 1320 33003 - 65745

Table 2

Sudit Heads of Household in Iasi from 1803-1860'

"Population of the city of Iasj from the middle of the 18th centuryuntil 1859," Population and Society. Studies in Historical Demography, by Gh. Platon, vol. 1, Cluj (1972), p. 301. In turn, this was basedon the statistics of 1859-60 published by the Central Statistics Office ofthe Interior Ministry ofMoldavia, Din lucrarile statistice ale Moldovei,chap. 2, "Populatiuneain 1859si I860" Iasi (1862), p. 114-115.

1Table compiled based on the catagraphies of the pre- and post-Organic Laws in the State Archives in Iasi.

Total 844 1437 1916

Table 1

Jewish Sudit Heads of Household from 1824-18512

1 State Archives in Iasi, Department of State of Moldavia.Dossiers 1713, 1778.

Tabic was compiled based on data from the State Archives inIasi, Moldavian Department of State, Tr. 166, op. 184, condica23, files 581-583; Tr. 1423, op. 1619, condicele 845, 871, 892,912, 926, 951, 962, 1019; Tr. 1768, op. 2018, Dossiers 891,901, 968; Tr. 1768. op. 2017, Dossiers 849, 880.

Table 2 traces the growth of the Jewish Sudits in Iasi, a citywhich on the eve of the unification of Moldavia and Wallachia

numbered 30,460 Jews in a total population of65,745 people.133This included 50 percent of all Sudits in Moldavia, numbering6,164 heads of household In 1859 Jewish Sudits representedonly 2 percent of the total population of Iasj. A document whichindicates the importance of the Jews in the socio-professionaland economic structure of the Moldavian capital was releasedby the Ministry of Finance in 1860, entitled: Matca asezariimestesugarilor pamanteni supusi straini, evrei si tiganidezrobiti si a negustorilor pamanteni suditi si evrei dincapitala Iasi.


Economic Class Total Taxes in Lei

1 II HI

Natives 2 11 1030 1043 15786

Foreign Subj 15 42 388 445 7368

Jews 14 77 3445 3536 54027

Total 31 130 4863 5024 77181

Table 3

Tax revenues from the licensed tradesmen of Iasi in 1860.

Economic Class Total Taxes in Lei

I II III

Natives 18

Foreign Subj 82Jews 133

Total 233

56 305 379 10422

105 348 535 15948

293 2572 2998 66420

454 3225 3912 92790

Table 4

Tax revenues from the licensed tradesmen of Iasi in 1860.

From Tables 3 and 4, it is evident that the Sudit tradesmentogether with the Jews represented a numerical majority whencompared with the native artisans of classes I and II. If we takethis fact into consideration, together with the volume of theirbusiness and their relations with Wcstem Europe, as well astheir means of production in the industrial and commercialsector, we can conclude that the Jews, and implicitly the JewishSudits as well as other foreign subjects, dominated economic lifein the capital of Moldavia at the middle of the 19th century.This is evident also in the amount of taxation imposed on theJews compared with taxation imposed on other groups. Thisapplied to other commercial towns such as Botosani, Galau andDorohoi and was also related in the writings of foreigntravelers.' The Rumanian bourgeoisie—as in all of Europecomposed of factory owners, bankers, merchants and artisans—was growing mainly in the urban centers.

From this analysis we conclude that the Jewish Suditsconstituted an urban class that was productive, useful from asocial point of view, and engaged in the trades as well ascommerce both domestically and internationally. Their incomewas derived from commercial transactions as well as from the

liberal professions. They played a major role in themodernization of the Moldavian society during a critical andradical time of transformation. In their capacity as merchantsand especially through their international trade and contacts,they contributed significantly to the commercial exchanges withWestern Europe and helped to integrate Rumania ininternational commerce.

In Moldavia they were also engaged in money lending, evolvingfrom simple money lending to extensive banking activities. Theywere also responsible for the introduction of insurance and stock

companies in the second half of the 19th century. Withoutresearching this urban class, it is impossible to understand thecomplex and dynamic process of the rise of the Rumaniancommercial, financial, and industrial middle class. The

merchants, tradesmen, owners of capital, bankers, and alsothose engaged in the liberal professions, were the purveyors ofa new capitalistic order, helping to bring down the old feudalsystem. Through their productive activity, and theirinvolvement in all segments of the economy, the Jewish Suditscontributed to the modernization and development of theeconomy of the country. Since they played a significant role inthe economic development of modern Rumania, we can saythat the Jewish Sudits made a positive active contribution tothat development. However, this process did not occur withoutserious socio-economic consequences. If on one hand theJewish Sudits played a positive role in the development of theeconomy, on the other hand they were the beneficiaries of theold order and had a privileged status with many exemptionsand benefits tied to the old feudal system in many respects.

Year Jewish Nbr

Sudit of

Families Jewish

Sudits

1820 484

1824-25 844

1832 1266

1845 1437

6330

Total Number Non- Total

Jewish of Jewish Nbr. of

Families Jews Sudit Residents

Families

15558

1451

1187

42021 1908

1845

130679

Table 5

Population growth in Moldavia 1820-1845.

Endnotes and References

(continued from last issue)

Th. Codrescu, op.cit., viii, p. 368.

84 B.A.R., Documents Packet CXXV/157, October 6, 1801,"Catagraf a evreilor cu dughene din §tefanesti (Catagraphyof the Jews with small shops from §tcfanesti)."

85Slate Archives in Bucharest, Manuscript 804. Another copy

is at the State Archive in Iasi as Manuscript 1634.

"Populatia orasului lap de la jumalate secolului alXI 'ill-lea pana la 1859" in Populatie si Societate. Studi dedemograf e istorica. ("Population of the city of Iasj from themiddle of the 18th century until 1859." Population andSociety, Studies in Historical Demography), vol. 1, Cluj(1972), p. 274 and Appendices II and III, pp. 309-315.According to the calculations, in 1808 in the city of Iasj therewere 23 branches of commerce practiced by 429 merchants and77 branches of trades practiced by 1125 artisans.


State Archives in Iasi. Moldavian Department of State. Tr.166. op. 184. nr. 7-21.

Gh. Ghilanescu. Iasj in 1820 in "loan Neculce," BuletinulMuzenluiMunicipal din lap, 1923, 3. p. 13. The author indicates76 branches of trades practiced by Uie Sudits in Iasi withoutdistinguishing between die trades and commerce. The author alsosubdivides the 76 branches into 3 categories of artisans: Christians49.2 percent, foreign Sudits 24.7 percent, Jews 20.1 percent

on

N. A. Bogdan. Din trecutul comertului moldovenesc si maiales iesian, Iasj, 1925. (From the former Moldavian trade,especially from Iasj).

State Archives in Iasi. Tr. 166. op 184, condica 9, files 264-265.

Stela Maries;. The importance of the catagraphy in theyears 1824-1825 for the problem of the Jewish Sudits inMoldavia (being printed).

91 State Archives in Iasj. Tr. 166. op. 184, nr. 23. files 105, 108,167.

)3 Ibidem. In the register of the Sudits for 1824-25, it mentionsHcrscu Elisei. an Austrian Sudit who "has crude oil pits" atMoincsti. as a leaseholder.

11 Ibidem, file 304.

93 Ibidem, file 464.

90 Ibidem, file 95.

' State Archives in Iasi. Moldavian Department of State, Tr.885. op. 1011. Dossiers 1-62.

This number was calculated based on a total Sudit count of

3.166 heads of household. Since in the 1824-25 catagraphyJewish Sudits accounted for 40 percent of the total Sudits, theauthor calculated the number of Jewish Sudits in 1831 to also beabout 40 percent from the total Sudits numbering 3,166.

State Archives in Iasi. Moldavian Department of State, Tr.644. op. 708. Dossiers 107. 144, 203, 311. 346, 375. 411, 452.485, 524.

Ibidem, Tr. 644, op. 708, Dossier 524, file 22.

101Ibidem: see Ibidem, Moldavian Department of State. Tr. 875.

op. 997. Dossier 259, file 105.

102State Archives in Iasi. Documents, Packet 46/doc 28.

State Archives in Iasi, Moldavian Department of State. Tr. 875.op. 997. Dossier 259. file 38. In thecatagraphy of 1832 for the Iasjregion in the area of Copoului, where 9 foreign Jews are registeredit mentions a Sudit Jew, Solomon sin Marcus Diamant. who lived inSculeni. owned a house and was a representative from the county.

Also in the Iasj region. Branistei area, there were 4 Sudits. amongwhom was Moisa §milovici, a Jew from Cozia who was a Prussiansubject with 2 horses, 5 cows. 2 oxen. He was a merchant of classII. Ibidem, file 39.

State Archives in Iasi. Moldavian Department of State, Tr. 885,op. 1011, nr 202. See A. Gorovci. Monografia orasuluiBotosani, Falticeni (1936), p. 179. In the catagraphy of 1832 forthe city and county of Botosani, it can be observed that certaintrades were practiced exclusively by Jews. They also excelled astailors. In the city ofBotosani, 79 tavern keepers and spirits dealerswere registered as Moldavians, 46 as Jews wiUiout specifyingwhether they were natives or Sudits. Also registered were 6Armenians and 3 brewers who were of German origin.

Stale Archives in Iasi, Moldavian Department of Stale, Tr.875, op. 997, files 25-27, Iasi, December 15, 1835. Ecstractde toti supusii straini care nu sau insreis la patente si jidoviiorasului, supusi staini si rudele care platesc in osabire a lordare. (Abstract of all foreign subject who did not register forlicences and all the Jews of the city, foreign subjects and theirrelatives who paid their gifts). This unedited documentindicates in detail the numbers of the master tradesmen as well

as the journeymen, and the professional guilds to which theybelonged. The guild of the bucket makers included thetinsmiths (17) and the brassmongers (19), the guild of thesilversmiths included silversmiths (19) and jewelers (21), theguild of tailors (435) included lace makers (25), the guild ofworkers with adzes or chisels (66), stone masons (2). guild offlour makers (161), shoe makers (212), tavern keepers (81),guild of fur coat and hat makers (89), guild of bread makers(62), barbers (6), brick layers (1), butchers (24), movers andmovers with carts (35). Remarkably the Sudits, both Jews andnon-Jews who were not registered were still included in theguilds. This source also indicates that in 1835 in Iasi therewere over 1000 persons, merchants and tradesmen, who didnot pay to be registered. They were probably Jewish Sudits whopaid their obligations through the tax system together with thenative Jews, or they were non-Jews who through theinterventions of the foreign consulates preferred to pay taxesaccording to the rules of the period of pre-Organie laws.

Ibidem.

L. Boicu, Dcspre structura sociala a orasului moldovenesc la mijlocul sccolul al XlX-Ica in StudL an XVI, 1963,nr 2, pp. 303-304. (About the social structure of the Moldaviancity in the middle of the 19th century).

10K

State Archives in Iasi, Moldavian Department of State, Tr.1768, op. 2018, nr. 624, file 94. The registry of the city of Iasiwas very detailed and it contained the following data oninhabitants: name and nickname, place of registry of birth,name of parents and children, age, occupation, whether theyhad apprentices, journeymen, or servants, if they were natives


or foreign subjects, place of birth, how long they been in Iasi.what passport they possessed address, whether they owned theirplace of residence or rented from whom they rented, what partof the city. Unfortunately, only the data from Sector VI of Iasi waspreserved

Ibidem. The professional guilds in Iasj in 1844 in whichonly native Jews belonged were the following: movers,shoemakers, bootmakers, workers with adzes or chisels, fur coal

makers, flour makers, silversmiths, tinsmiths, mirror makers,

painters, sellers of drugs, ritual slaughterers, school couriers,etc. The guilds where both Sudits and native Jews wereprominent were: stone masons, tailors, inn keepers, and spiritsdealers, street vendors, butchers, manual laborers, bagel andbread makers, musicians, etc.

Ibidem.

State Archives in Iasj. Moldavian Department of State Tr. 1423.op. 1619, Dossiers 845, 871, 892, 912, 926, 951, 962, 1019, 1020,1026.

112

113

115

Ibidem,Tr. 1423. op. 1619, Dossiers 1021. 1029, 1033.

Gh. Plalon. "Polulatia orasului moldovenesc la mijloculsecolul alXIX-lea" ("The population of the Moldavian town inthe middle of the 19th century"), in Carpica, 111(1970), p. 17.

State Archives in Iasi, Moldavian Department of State,Dossier 1652, file 73.

J. F. Neigebaur, op. cit., p. 276.

Gh. Platon, op. cit.. Appendix X, Apud. State Archives inIasi. Moldavian Department of State, Tr. 1423, op. 1619,Dossiers 1029. 1033. According to other sources, the totalnumber of Jews in Iasj in 1845 was 6,778 heads of household.See State Archives in Iasj, Moldavian Department of State,Dossier 1431, file 2.

There were 4,347 tradesmen and their apprentices (6,328),and 3,629 merchants that were natives. 1,090 tradesmen andtheir apprentices (102), and 1,168 merchants that were non-Jewish Sudits, and 4.898 tradesmen and their apprentices(1,427), and 5,330 merchants that were Jewish. See Gh. Platon.op. cit., Appendix V.

118

Ibidem, Appendix X.

State Archives in Iasj. Moldavian Department of State, Tr.1768, op. 2018. Dossiers 901, 968.

120 Ibidem. Dossier 891, files 145-179, 181-183, 189-191, 199-202.

121 Ibidem, Tr. 1768, op. 2017, Dossier 849, file 880.

122Ibidem. Dossier 849. file 31.

Ibidem. Tr. 1768. op. 2018, Dossier 891. files 125-136.

Ibidem, files 159-163.12-1

Ibidem. Moldavian Department of Stale. Dossier 1778. files21-24.

Ibidem.

127Ibidem.

Ibidem.

129

130

Ibidem. Tr. 1768, op. 2018, Dossier 968.

Iancu sin §ulim Horovici. tailor, had six apprentices; Ihcthe tailor had 5 apprentices; Mendel Zingcr had 5 apprentices;Haim the hatmakcr [ceprezarul, or capmaker] had 5apprentices: Faibis Lenarovici, a stolier, had 5 apprentices;M. Fisler, a saidacar [maker of church decorative ornaments!,had 3 appprentices; the merchant, Schlesinger Bucurcsteanu.had 3 apprentices and a secretary. Apud Gh. Platon. Populatiaorasului lap... (Population of the city of Iasj...), p 299.

131 Stale Archives in Iasj, Moldavian Department of Stale, Tr.1768, op. 2018, Dossiers 901, 968. The Jewish Sudits of Iasjin 1851 were tavern keepers, spirits dealers, flour dealers,money changers, silversmiths, tinsmiths, tailors, stone masons,mill attendants, druggists, washers of wool, painters, tobaccodealers, watchmakers, locksmiths, brewers, lawyers,instructors of children, etc.

Din lucrarile statistice ale Moldovei (From the statistical

data of Moldavia), chapter II, 'Populatia pe 1859 si I860lap," (1862), p. 142.

Gh. Platon, Populatia orasului /osi..., p. 301, apud Dinlucrarile statistice ale Moldovei, chapter II, "Populatia pe1859 si 1860", Iasi (1862), pp. 114 -115. J.F Niegebaur,Prussian consul in Iasj, 1843-1845, a diplomat familiar withthe subject, confirms that the statistical data from 1859-1860indicates 30,000 Jews from 70,000 residents in Iasj. See J.F.Niegebaur. op. cit., p. 302.

"Settlements of the foreign tradesmen. Jews and Gypsies,and Sudit and Jewish merchants from Iasj." Slate Archives inIasj, Tr. 1768. op. 2018, Dossier 1599, files 41, 113 andDossier 1603, files 21, 50, 124, 148.

135 J.F. Niegebaur, op. cit., pp. 14, 15, 302, 306; idem, DieDonaufurstentumer, Breslau (1859), pp. 93, 94.

Constantin Giurescu, Contributiani la studiul originilor sidezvoltari burgheziei romane pina la 1848, Bucuresti (1972),p. 14. (Contributions to the study of me origins and developmentof the Rumanian bourgeoisie).


From our Readers

Jews of the U.S. and Canada

A family member lent me two books which may be ofinterest. They are: Who's Who in American Jewryand The Jew in Canada.

The former is "A Biographical Dictionary of LivingJews of the United States and Canada" (as of 1938-39) and the latter is "A Complete Record of CanadianJewry from the Days of the French Regime to thePresent Time" (1926). (A complete record does notmean a list of every Jewish person in Canada.)

I don't expect that the books will identify lost familymembers for anyone, but they may provide interestinginformation, and/or maybe a photo or two. I'd behappy, within reason, to look up family names forfolks and photocopy relevant pages.

Besides photographs and biographies, The Jew inCanada tells the history ofvarious Jewish organizationsin each of the major cities, including the names of theinstrumental people involved, and much else. (Myfather's family, paternal and maternal, settled inWinnipeg before some ofthem moved to California).

Bruce M. Bertram <[email protected]>646 Hyde Park DriveSunnyvale, CA 94087

Carol Marcusohn, Braila Researcher

Carol Marcusohn was terrific for us. I told him

about my maternal grandparents from Raduc-aneni, and asked him to dig up whatever hecould. The results were, I think, incredible.

Marcusohn mailed me a copy of mygrandfather's burth certificate, from 1875. Mygrandfather was the first of the children.Marcusohn also sent us the birth certificates of

all the siblings, as well as the birth certificates ofmy grandfather's children, including my mother.

Yourcomments and suggestions are always welcome. Writeto: Editor. ROM-SIGNEWS, 11908 Tildcnwood Drive, Rockville, MD 20852. If you have informationhelpful to our writers, answer them directly. If it's of general interest, write us.

He got some of the documents in Ia§i: these hewas able to photostat. The documents fromRaducaneni had to be copied by him by handbecause they have no copy machine there.

As a result of obtaining the birth certificate, Idiscovered that my great-grandfather andgreat-grandmother claimed they were born inRomania, too. I learned my great-grandmother's family name; I learned the businessof my great-grandfather in 1875. I learned theages of both of these ancestors.

In addition to going to Ia§i and Raducaneni,Marcusohn also went, at my suggestion, toPodu Iloaie. For all of this, he charged $500,which included his travelling expenses. I thinkthis is reasonable. There would have been

absolutely no way for me to obtain thesedocuments without him.

Melvin Lubin

250 Sunset Ave.

Englewood, NJ 07631

Can We Be Schor?

The list of Romanian synagogues recentlyprinted in ROM-SIG NEWS includes theSynagoga Azil (Schor) in Ia§i, at str. Sf.Constantin 5.

I am fairly sure this name relates to my family,and to my great-great-great-grandfather, RabbiIsaiah Schor of Ia§i. It would be nice to knowfor certain and even perhaps to connect withcontemporary members of the Schor family. Iwould appreciate hearing from anyone who hasany information on this question.

Ruth M. Sawits

259 Ackerman Avenue

Emerson, NJ 07630<[email protected]>


Yossel Leibovici of Czernowitz

I'd like to ask ifanyone has everheard anything of mygreat-great grandfather, Yossel Leibovici. He wasborn in Czernowitz in the 1820s and died in Vasluiabout 1915. His wife's name was Etta or Ita, maidenname unknown. According to my father's cousin hewas the rebbe of Vaslui, and even the RomanianOrthodox prelate in Vaslui consulted with him. Hisdaughter, Sima, married my great-grand-father,Koppel Finkelstein. .

Arye Barkai2150 San Souci Blvd, Apt. B205North Miami, FL 33181eMail: [email protected]

Where is Vadaschete?

My g-grandfather's ID document says he comes froma town called "Vadaschete" in Bessarabia, Russia. Ican't find it in any map; but the spelling "looks"correct. Has this town disappeared? Has anyoneheard of such a town? If not, are there any othertowns of which "Vadaschete" could be a misspelling?Any information is more than welcome. [Editor'snote: we can 'tfmd it in theBGN Gazetteer].

Martin Hadis

eMail: [email protected]

Volunteer Translators Needed

Several of our members who are fluent in Romanianhave offered to translate items for other members (andhave already done so for some). We could always usemore Romanian translators. If you are willing, let usknow. Just specify whether you prefer to do only apage or two, or whether you might be available for alonger item, such as an article we might receive fromRomania for possible use in ROM-SIG NEWS.

We would also like to have Hebrew, Hungarian, andperhaps German translators on our volunteer list. Forexample, we have in hand an eight-page index to theSokiryany Yizkor book: all in Hebrew (without thevowels). Contact Marlene or Sam (see the masthead).

July, 1997: Paris and Beyond

The 5th International Seminar on Jewish Genealogywill be held in Paris, France on July 14-17, 1997.Lectures will be in Englishor French with simultaneoustranslation to the otherlanguage. ROM-SIG ispleasedto report that Professor Ladislau Gyemant will be afeatured speaker at this seminar.

Several of our members have expressed interest in aguided tour in Romania (also Bukovina orBessarabia?) in 1997, perhaps just before or afterthe seminar in Paris. Susan King (JEWISHGEN)and Sallyann Sack (Avotaynu) are offering trips tovarious Eastern European destinations thruUNIGLOBE, a travel agency that Susan works for.These UNIGLOBE tours are likely to be well-planned and well-guided: it is too soon to expectdetailsor costs yet from Susan and Sallyann, but wesuggest you check in at: http://www.uniglobe-dynamic.com/paris97.html to let them know of yourinterest. Both Susan and Sallyann have extensiveconnections already in Eastern Europe, whichshould enhance the value of their trips.

Meanwhile, our Bruno Segal (and Art Leeds andseveral others) wonder whether ROM-SIG shouldcoordinate, or at least be a matchmaker, for a tourspecific to our members' interests in Romania, etc.Along that line, we have received this message fromone of our members:

I am interested in becoming involved in planning a 1997trip to Romania following the genealogy conference. Ibegan planning for a trip that I intended to lead in 1994,but decided that the hassles were not worth it. I am alsoinvestigating the possibility of working in Romania in1997, beginning in June or July. Others interested intravelling in Romania after the 1997 conference couldbe directed to my e-mail address or could phone me.

Rick Bercuvitz ([email protected])293 Brookline St., Cambridge, MA 02139617-547-1082

Please let Rick know the nature and extent of anyinterest as soon as possible, since a project like thismust be planned well in advance. Interest does notconstitute commitment, although commitments willstill be required by Spring.


Members of ROM-SIG have reported to us on two researchers, one based in GalaU' and the other working the Kishinev Archives.Both of these individuals have done very satisfactory' work for these members, and we call them to your attention.

Georghe Mireuta, Gala{i Researcher

We have found and validated a researcher in Galati,Romania, who has now delivered satisfactory resultsto three ROM-SIG members. He is a well-educated

engineer, very literate in English, looking for theopportunity to earn money by performing genealogicalresearch and/or assisting Americans visiting Romaniafor that purpose. His address is:

Georghe Mireuta,Str. Rosiori, 4, BL R5, AP. 606200 Galati, Romania

Mr. Mireuta had no priorexperience in genealogy beforehe was asked by a friend to assist one of our members.He did so, and the member recommended that we tryhim. We passed the word about him to some, includingArlene Edwards and Stu Cooper, who have listed Galatias one of their search towns. Arlene now reports:

I hired Georghe in April 1996 on recommendation fromROM-SIG. As soon as he was able to go to the Archivesin Galati, he found two birth documents for me. I nowknow that one of my great uncles lived in Galati and heand his wife had two children bom there. There is a greatdeal of information in the document and the attachedtranslation....! can honestly tell you that Georghe Mireutais a man of honor, dignity and commitment. He is mostunusual in that he communicates with his clients quiteoften....l highly recommend him! If you [all] have anyquestions, feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].

ROM-SIG NEWS has recently also received thisannouncement from Stu Cooper, who initially usedMireuta for his own personal research:

I am pleased to announce that we have a signedagreement with Gheorghe Mireuta of Galati, Romania toact as our agent throughout the country. We willcoordinate the work Mr. Mireuta does, give specificinstructions and write reports to clients thus acting as themiddleman. This gives our clients the peace of mind toknow that their search criteria are understood and arebeing conducted with the utmost efficiency. We payGheorghe an hourly fee that is above average forRomania but not exorbitant plus expenses for archivalfees, postage, etc. We do not markup the expense

amount to our clients. They pay actual costs. Our hourlyrate is $10.00 for time spent writing, researching, etc.ROM-SIG subscribers can contact me at:

Stu Cooper, Richroots Genealogy,51-20 Bell Blvd. Bayside, NY [email protected]

Another of our members, Marilyn Newman, is nowworking through Cooper for Mireuta's services.Thus, you can deal directly with Mireuta (whoseEnglish is excellent) or use Stu Cooper as yourexperienced intermediary.

Finally, we have heard from Mr. Mireuta himself,correcting the identification of several villages in ourFamilyFinder. Answering our query as to what recordshe can access, he replied as follows:

I have access to the Galati State Archives. There are births,marriage and death records, beginning with the year 1865.From 1896 onwards, you should consult the Civil StatusRecords, which are kept by the City Hall.

In this part of the country, the registration of birth, marriageand death records (we call them Civil Status records) wasintroduced only in 1865. The Galati State Archives keepsthese records up to 1896 (i.e, records over 100 years ofage). Records under 100 years can generally be found atlocal authorities, such as the city halls of each town. Here, itis more difficult to gain access [than to the State Archives],but we can try to obtain necessary information ordocuments.

Anton Valdine, Moscow-basedResearcher

ROM-SIG member Adina Gertz commends Mr.

Anton S. Valdine, a genealogist based in Moscow,who did research for her in the Kishinev Archives:

His rates are reasonable and I especially appreciated thathe began with a preliminary search which you have topay for even in the event of negative results, but at leastyou do not waste a lot of money on hours of fruitlessresearch.

I was disappointed that he did not find records for myancestors for the time period that most interested me,


1875-1900, but interestingly enough, he sent me a wealthof information from census records found in the Kishinev

Archives, going back much further in time. I now have thenames of ancestors going back until the late 1700's. Withthis information I was able to establish my relationshipwith relatives in Argentina and in Israel. The only problemwe sometimes had was in understanding eachotherbecause of language difficulties, but if I explained myselfa second time in an E mail message, Mr. Valdin wasalways quick to respond.

Mrs. Adina Gertz

Even Shemuel 23, Ramat 0297230 Jerusalem, IsraeleMail: [email protected]

At Mrs. Gertz' suggestion, we contacted Mr. Valdineby eMail. His reply did exhibit the "fractured English"that Mrs. Gertz alluded to, but it was not too difficultto understand. This is our edited version:

By the end of October of 1996, two-thirds of the pre-1917records in the State Historical Archive in Kishinev,Moldova will have been disinfected (to prevent the growthof fungus on the textual materials). So, it is again possibleto search there.

Of course, files for former Bessarabia are often split upamong several achives because of administrative actionsduring the Soviet period. (This is also true for manyUkrainian, Belarus and Russian files). For example, somesources for Khotin—mostly vital records such assynagogue registers-are held in Chernovtsy, becauseKhotin is now included in the Chemovitskaya oblast ofUkraine. But official records (revision lists, etc.) are heldin Kishinev. On the other hand, Tiraspol vital sources arein Kishinev, and official records are in Kherson, becauseTiraspol was formerly in the Kherson gubemia. This rulehas a lot of exceptions and variations, which causes a lotof trouble for the genealogist.

In any case, a successful search is possible. Especially, ifwe are lucky enough to find the place in which theindividual's ancestry was officially enrolled. Sometimes, itis even possible to do this in Moscow, where even a littleparticipation in revolutionary movements (against theCzar or against the Soviet State) will often show up in the(national) police card index.

Sometimes this checking and cross-checking of othersources is the only way to find the place of officialenrollment. For example, a person could live in Kishinevwhile being a member of Orgeyev middle class society,and vice-versa. The distance between the true place ofresidence and the place of official enrollment—sometimesmore than 1000 kilometers—is the second main difficulty

in our work.

Yet, I have some examples in my experience on how toovercome this. It is not simple. There are not anyInternet sources for such a search, so, unfortunately, it isimpossible to start free. For my work, the initial price is$95 U.S. and the total price—payable only for positiveresults—is $350-400. Copying, translation and mailingof the necessary documents are all included in this price.

Anton Valdine

Bolshaya Nabereznaya str.,5, bl. 1, app. 389Moscow, 123362 Russia

tel/fax (7-095) 491-78-26http://www.glasnet.ru/~geneal/eMail: [email protected]

Puzzled by one of Mr. Valdine's words, we asked:

Please define "ouezd". Does it mean "regional center"?

And he answered:

Yes, it's possible to say so sometimes, as here forORGEEV, which is the center of the region (i.e. ouezd).Soviet official regions (or districts) are smaller then theusual pre-1917 ouezd, but in Bessarabia they are ratherequal. So, several districts (one ouezd in pre-1917) inthe Soviet period are contained in one oblast(comparable with pre-1917) gubemia. But if both ouezdand gubemia are large, then in the territory of one formergubemia there can be several oblasts. For example,instead of the former Kherson gubemia there areKherson, Odessa and Nikolaev oblasts in modernUkraine. Part of the former Kherson gubemia (known asPridnestrovie), demanded independence from Moldova.Tiraspol ouezd now is included in Moldova, but it was,usually, never included in Bessarabia. As for Khotin, onthe contrary, in the past it was in the Bessarabiagubemia, but it is now in the Chernovtsy oblast.

Finally, we asked whether he had done any work inthe Chernovtsy (Czernowitz) region, and he repliedthat he had, though not as extensively as in Kishinev.

It seems to us that his answers support therecommendation of Mrs. Gertz, revealing a strongknowledge of the nature and history of thesearchives. If any others among our readers choose toengage him, please keep us posted on the results.And we urge our readers to keep us posted on theirexperience with other researchers as well.


Second ofa series

Sephardic Surnames in Romaniaby Marcel Bratu

The Sephardim {Spharad means Spain, in Hebrew) arementioned as inhabitants of the Iberian peninsula duringthe Visigothic kingdom of Spain (466-711 A.D.). Mostlikely, they reached Spain from everywhere around theMediterranean rim: Judea, Babylon, Alexandria, Turkey,the north rim of Africa, the southern rim of Europe. Inthe Moorish invasion of the 8th century, Islamic tribesfrom northern Africa drove the Visigoths from Spain.However, the Jews were allowed to stay and other Jewsfrom Africa were even encouraged to come, to fill needsfor artisans and for other occupations. In the ensuing500 years of Moorish occupation (711-1212), theSephardimhad a prosperous life, reaching 300,000 souls.This era is known as the "Golden Age," when theSpanish Jews succeeded at more than just survival; theybecame philosophers, physicians, diplomats, polyglots,scientists, etc. They spoke Arabic (which is very close toHebrew), and they dressed like the Moors; only theclergymen dressed differently. Their standard nameswere still 'x ben y' or 'x ibny' (ibn means son, in Arabic).

In the 11th century the Moors were troubled by nests ofChristian Spaniards organized in small kingdoms,principalities and dukedoms encouraged by the Vaticanto take power and to drive away the Moors. Little bylittle the Moors were defeated in Malaga, Algeciras,Cordoba, Granada, Toledo, Valencia, Saragossa andlater in Castile. The battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in

1212 was a major Moorish defeat, pushing them backinto Africa through the Strait ofGibraltar. Although theMoors did retain some territory in Spain until 1492, theChristians now controlled most ofthe peninsula.

The Christians, like the Moors before them, kept theJews because they were useful, and this period under theChristians lasted for another 300 years. Under theChristians the Jews spoke a new language, Ladino, amixture of Spanish and Hebrew. A surname became anecessity for identification of the individual, not for theauthorities but among themselves. The big towns werecrowded with Jews and the x ben y or x ibn y was notenough for them to know each other. The history of theSephardim is different from that of the Ashkenazi Jews,

originating in central Europe, living in small settlements,knowing each other and only being obliged byauthorities to have a surname 400 years later than theSephardim. For instance, in the 14th century there were12,000 Jews in Toledo in Spain, while in Frankfurt-a-Main in Germany there were only 700 Ashkenazim. Inthe 16th century, Seviglia (Seville) had 12,000Sephardim while Prague had only 1,200 Ashkenazim.Thus, Sephardic surnames appeared as early as the 14thand 15th centuries, as a concoction of Hebrew, Arabic,and Spanish. The first name was Hebrew, the surnamewas Arabic or, more often, Spanish.

-Symbolic Surnames-The father of the famous philosopher Maimonides(1135-1204) was named Asher ("fortunate"), and wasalso known as Maimon (the Arabic for "fortunate").The son was first known as Moshe ben Maimon, andthen as Maimonides (son of Maimon, using the Greekending -ides for "son of). Other cases: Shalom means"peace" or "greetings," in Hebrew, and becameBenveniste or Benvenisti in Spanish. Haviv means"dear" in Hebrew, and Habib means "dear" in Arabic.This surname became Caro ("dear") in Spanish.

-Profession or Occupation-Many surnames reflected the occupation of theindividual. Some examples: Hazan (cantor), Alfakar(potter in Arabic), Gabai (synagogue official).

-Birthploce-A long list: Alcalay (from Alcola), Spinoza or Espinoza(from Spinoza), Bejerano (Bejar), Ghirondi or Gheron(Gherona), Cordovero (Cordoba), Saragossi (Saragossa) and others like Montefiore, Montalban, Alfandari,Aftalion, and Barzilai which also matched birth places.

-Patronyms-Directly from the father's first name, we see names likeHalevi, Nachmanides and Davidon (this last surname isDavisohn or Davidsonin Yiddish).

Sephardic Jews were living in Italy and France by theyear 1300. The Spanish Hazan became Cantorini inItaly. Rofe was a common surname originating inphysician (Hebrew, rofeh) families. In France: Dayan(rabbinical judge), Sassoon and others. ProfessorLavoslav Glesinger published a list of the Sephardi


surnames in Yugoslavia. Many of the patronymic namesin his list resemble Ashkenazi names: Aserovic

(Ashkenazi: Usherovici), Abramovic (Abramovici),Samuelovic (Smilovici), Kahanovic (Kahanovici). Butbecausethese are not truly Yiddish surnames (see my nextarticle, on the later influx of Ashkenazi Jews intoRomania), there is proof for their Sephardic origin.Professor Glesinger mentions other Sephardic surnamesfrom Yugoslavia like Levi, Albahari, Ruben, Papo, Farchi,Semo, Gaon, Koen, Alfandari, Albala, Almosnino, Almuli,Finci or Finti, Pijade, Demayo or Mayo, Musafia,Eskenazi, Ben Zion and others...all very commonsurnames also among the Sephardim in Romania.

To return to the 300,000 Sephardi Jews in Spain: Theyhad a good life until the 14th century when the anti-Semitic terror became a real threat to their wealth and life.

The terror reached its peak in 1492 when Ferdinand andIsabella, the ChristianCastilian royal couple, incitedby theVatican, ruled that the Jews and the Moorish remnantsmust convert to Catholicism or leave Spain. About100,000Jews converted to Catholicismto remain in Spainand to save their wealth. These were the Marranos, orConversos, who did not get what they hoped for: 30,000of them died on the stake, burned as heretics during theInquisition. Many of the remaining Conversos fled toother European nations, especially to the Netherlands.

But 200,000 Jews preferred to leave Spain rather thanbecome Catholics and they spread through Europe, Africaandthe Middle East. They reached the Balkan peninsula,and then—through Yugoslavia, Turkey, and Greece—they reached Vallachia and Dobrodgea, Romanian territories. The Ottomans, rulerof these territories, acceptedthe Sephardim without hate, seeing no contradictionbetween Islam and the Jewish Bible. The main Sephardiccenters in the Ottoman Empire, points of migration to thenorth, were Istambul (now in European Turkey), Saloniki(in Greece) and Izmir (or Smyrna), a port on theMediterranean Sea in AsiaticTurkey. They reached theseRomanian territories in the 17th century, requiringat leasta hundredyears for the move from Spain to the Balkans, along journey through Europe, with many detours andsacrifices. But, at least they had a surname, while theAshkenazim living in Romania wore only the standardnames of x ben y or x sin y. Ten thousand Sephardi Jewssettled down in Vallachia, Transylvania and Dobrodgea.

However, many Sephardi Jews left Spain before theywere forced to. Intellectuals were in demand everywhere; seeking better financial revenue and more fame,they travelled all the continents. For instance, even inMoldavia during the reign of Stefan eel Mare (Stephenthe Great), 1457-1504, a Sephardi Jew came to thecourt on a diplomatic mission. He was Dr. Isac Beg,physician and diplomat, sent by King Uzum of Persia.Dr. Beg also visited loan Corvin, the Voivod ofTransylvania. Jozsef Schweitzer, of the University ofCluj-Napoca, also describes Sephardi Jews in Hungaryand Transylvania during the 14th century.

A few words about Dobrodgea, a territory between theBlack Sea and the Danube, with an artificial boundaryonly to the south. This land was part of the Romanprovince of Inferior Moesia. When the Ottomansbecame the main power in the Balkans, they conqueredthis land, callingit Dobruja. When the Ottoman Empiredeclined in power around 1800, this territory wasdisputed between the Romanians and Bulgaria,especially the southern part named Cadrilater, whichchanged hands a few times between these two countries.Today, the Cadrilater is in Bulgaria. During the longOttoman occupation, Sephardi Jews settled in what istoday Romanian Dobrodgea, mainly in Constanza (aBlack Sea port), in Tulcea (a Danubian port), Medgidiaand other small towns. Their number did not surpass1,000, most ofthese in Constanza.

Historians mention that these Jews crossed the Danube

delta to the north, reaching Bessarabia and founding thefirst Jewish settlements there. It is interestingto learnofthis Sephardi presence around 1600, because later thisterritory was crowded by Ashkenazim. Don't besurprised to find Sephardi Jews born in Bessarabia!

Speaking of surprises, the Sephardim were even foundin the European ghettos filled with Ashkenazi Jews,speaking Yiddish and not Spanish or Ladino. Enteringthis melting pot of the ghettos, some of them receivedAshkenazi surnames, creating ambiguities concerningtheir origin. When the Ashkenazim later emigrated toRomania, among them were some Sephardi Jews,dressed in Ashkenazi surnames. Finally, the wild Jewishimagination in changing surnames is unpredictable,causing trouble in the field ofonomastics.

ROM-SIG NEWS, Vol. 5, No. 1, Fall 1996

f

F a m i ly Fin d e r

Information

v

since

ADDITIONS and

August l. Keep this as a supplcmcn

CORRECTIONS

[ to the Summer Seminar (lV-4) edition of the Finder.

EDITOR'S \'()n-:S: Please bearin mind divergent spellingsofsurnames and oftown names. Also, theseare mainly additionsandcorrections. SOT a complete re-publication ofyour search names.

SEARCHING FOR: FROM:

MOSCOWITZ Iasi

Dr. Lowell Ackerman (eMail: [email protected])8901 E. Altadena Ave., Scottsdale, AZ 85260-8601

GRUNBAUM

KEMEN

REISMAN(N)RUBEL/RUBLE

Kathy. Altman

Arad

Arad

Satu Mare

Arad and Oradea

(eMail: [email protected])127 W. Norwalk Rd, Norwalk, CT 06850

REICHENBERG Oradea

Perrine Arguillere-Amaral129, Avenue Phillippe Auguste, Pahs 75011, FranceeMail: [email protected]

ABRAMOWITZ

ARON/ARONOWITZ

JAKOWITZ

N. Risa Axelrad

800 Grand Concourse,

KALICMAN

Andrew N. Bader

63 Floral Drive West, Plainview, NY 11803

PRISKOLNIK Mogilev Podolskiy, Ukr.SKOLYANSKI Kishinev, Mold.

Dr. Shirley P. Ballard (eMail: [email protected])15870 Sanctuary Dhve, Tampa, FL 33647

SPRENJOK Kishinev

SPRINZAK Kishinev

Nora Banner

6533 Alpine Lane, Bradenton, FL 34208

SIRCUS anywhere-RomaniaJoan BaronbergeMail: [email protected]

CAUFMAN/KAUFMAN Bacau, Bucuresti, VasluiFINKELSTEIN Tirgu Neamt, VasluiKIRSEN/KIRSHEN/KURSCHEN Chernovtsy, VasluiLEIBOVICIAA/ITZ Birlad, Chernovtsy, Vaslui

Iasi

Iasi

Birlad

77?e Bronx, NY 10451

Vaslui


(continued)

Arye BarkaiOct-April: (eMail: [email protected])

2150 Sans Souci Blvd, #B205, North Miami, FL 33181April-Oct: (eMail: [email protected])

1777 Grand Coincourse, 11N, Bronx, NY 10453

AUERBACH

CAHANE/KAHANE

NADLER/NAPADLER

NADLER/NAPADLER

PADLER

PADLER

Bucuresti

Iasi

Botosani

Chernovtsy, Ukr.Botosani

Chernovtsy, Ukr.Ron Ben-Ah (eMail: [email protected])1404 One Evergreen PI, Winnipeg MB R3L 0E9, Canada

KIRSCHEN Focsani

KRAFT Siret

Elizabeth K. Berman (eMail: [email protected])622 Pleasant Ave., Highland Park, IL 60035

BERNSTEIN Bucuresti

COHEN Bucuresti

SCHWARTZ Bucuresti

Debra Bernstein (eMail: [email protected])443 Peakham Road, Sudbury, MA 01776-2218

ABRAMOVICI

VALDERER

WILDER

Bruce Bertram

Ploesti

Ploesti

Ploesti

(eMail: [email protected])646 Hyde park Dhve, Sunnyvale, CA 94087

SCHERER Iasi

Phyllis Berman Blumenfeld2224 E. 14th St., Brooklyn, NY 11229-4313e-mail: plblum@amanda. dorsai.org

HERSHKOWITZ Botosani

Nadine Brown (eMail: [email protected])1047 Innsbruck St., Livermore, CA 94550

FERDMAN Kishinev, Mold.KHOUVINE Kishinev, Mold.

Nadine Burton (eMail: [email protected])1639 Marion Ave., Durham, NC 27705



KASNER, KASTNER RadautiKESSNER, KUSSNER Radauti

MENDELSSOHN Piatra Neamt

NATENSON, NATHANSON Piatra NeamtMerle Kastner Choquette4858 Cote-des-Neiges, #904Montreal QCH3V 1G8, Canada

MALAMUD Chernovtsy, Ukr.Cleide Chusyd (eMail: [email protected])Praca Germania #15-ap.191,Sao Paulo/SP 01455-080, Brazil

ENOCH

ROSENBERG

Maria Cohen

eMail: marla.cohenc

anywhere-BessarabiaYedintsy, Mold.

)f729.n115.z1 Jewishgen.org

ALTEROVICIA/ICZ

ALTROVITCH

ZUSMAN

Marilyn Cossever

Botosani and Iasi

Botosani and Iasi

Botosani and Iasi

(eMail: [email protected])1280 Raimbault St., Montrreal, QC H4L 4R9, Canada

AXELROD Iasi

EDELMAN Iasi

John Coxe (eMail: [email protected])3596 Paul Jones Ave., San Diego, CA 92117

GOLDBERG Bucuresti

WEISS anywhere-RomaniaKathleen Craine (eMail: [email protected])3438 W. Foster, Chicago, IL 60625

DENENBERG anywhere-BessarabiaHEIT Chernovtsy, Ukr.HELD Vashkovtsy, Ukr.

Frank Danberg (eMail: [email protected])P. O. Box 5283, Wilmington, DE 19808

FELIPITER Beltsy, Mold.FRENKEL Beltsy, Mold.

Miham Bulwar David-HayeMail: [email protected]. il

GOLDENBERG Birlad and iasi

Martin Davies

13 Park Drive Hale, Chesire Wa15 9DJ, EnglandeMail: [email protected]

DREIBLATT anywhere-RomaniaArnold DreyblattElisabeth-Chhstinenstr. 2, 13156 Berlin, GermanyeMail: eltf&berlin. snafu.de


GUTTMAN Budesti Ghica, Rom.

GUTTMAN Bozienii de Sus, Rom.GU"T« MAN Galati, Rom.GUTTMAN Ghelaesti, Rom.

Arlene B. Edwards (eMail: [email protected])1001 Highlight Drive, West Covina, CA 91791

FEIN Chernovtsy, Ukr.SCHREIBER Chernovtsy, Ukr.

David Egelman (eMail: [email protected])3747 Glen Haven, Houston, TX 77025

SHAPIRO Iasi

Louis Eliscu

2401 Logan Road, Ocean, NJ 07712-3637eMail: [email protected]

DIAMOND Iasi

TUMASES Iasi

Sandra H. Elstein

244 Main St., Southport, CT 06490

BRUNSTEIN Teleneshty, Mold.GOYHENBERG Teleneshty, Mold.KILINSKY Teleneshty, Mold.KRAMER Teleneshty, Mold.LIEBERMAN Teleneshty, Mold.

Joyce Field (eMail: [email protected])625Avondale, W. Lafayette, IN 47906-11

ASFELD anywhereGOTTLIEB anywhereKOLOMEAR/MEIR/MIER Kolomyya, Ukr.LIKURNIK/LIQUORNIK anywhereMELACH/MELECH Chernovtsy, Ukr.MOSES/MOZES anywhereREGENSTREICH/STREIF Gertsa, Ukr.REGENSTREICH/STREIF Mihaileni

TENEHAUS/TENENHOUSE anywhere and Piatra NeamtYATAM anywhere

Gary S. Fitleberg24106 Krttridge St., West Hills, CA 91307

FRID/FRIED ClujFRID/FRIED Gherla

Myron S. Freed47 Holland Lane, East Hartford, CT 06118

GASS Odessa , Ukr.GASS Soroki, Mold.

PELISCH/PELLISH Odessa , Ukr.Alan Golin Gass

602 South Harrison Lane, Denver, CO 80209




FEIN Chernovtsy, Ukr.RAMASCAN/RAMASCANU Piatra Neamt

SCHREIBER/SHREIBER Chernovtsy, Ukr.SCHREIBER/SHREIBER Iasi and Mihaileni

Ruth and Jerome Gavis

2110 South Road, Baltimore, MD 21209eMail: gavis@wohdnet. att.net

GARBER Focsani

GEHRBER Liesti

GELBER Liesti and Roman

SCHWARTZ Liesti

Terry GelberP. 0. Box 3078, Cahsbad, CA 92009

GLANZ Chernovtsy, Ukr.LUTTINGER Chernovtsy, Ukr.RUHALTER Chernovtsy, Ukr.

Harry Glanz (eMail: [email protected])5900 Armstrong, #904, Cote St.Luc, QC H4W2Z5 Canada

ROSENKRANZ

SCHWARZ

WEINTRAUB/WEINTROP

WOLF

WOLF

Blossom W. Glasser

3960 San Gregoho Way, San Diego, CA 92130

REH Chernovtsy, Ukr.Jon Glazer (eMail: [email protected])P. O. Box 31, Horse CReek, CA 96050

KRONBERG anywhere-RomaniaPhil Glowatz (eMail: [email protected])

HIRSCH Iasi

HIRSCHCOVITZ Iasi

OSIAS Iasi

Sandi Goldsmith (eMail: [email protected])1099 Haven Glen Lane, Atlanta, GA 30319

ABRAMOVICI Dorohoi

GRISARU Iasi

HERTANU DorohoiEva Goodman

3650 N. 36th Ave., #20, Hollywood, FL 33021

RUDNITSKY anywhere-BessarabiaRUDNITSKY Byeshty, Mold.RUDNITSKY Orhei, Mold.Ron Gorbet (eMail: [email protected])440 Bedford Park Avenue

North York, ON M5M 1K1, CANADA

Gorodenko, Ukr.anywhere-Bukovinaanywhere-Bukovinaanywhere-BukovinaRadauti

SEARCHING FOR:

ANSNER

CHAIES

GREENBERG

HAIES

HERMAN

LEE

FROM:

Bivolari and Iasi

Botosani and Bucuresti

Bivolari and Iasi

Botosani and Bucuresti

Chernovtsy, Ukr.Bivolari

NEUBERGER/NEWBERGER Saveni

Sandra Greenberg (eMail: [email protected])3038 S. Galena Ct, Denver, CO 80231

GOODMAN/GUTMAN

GOODMAN/GUTMAN

Dora Groysman5343 Monroe Ave., San Diego, CA 92115

CHEIS

GUTTER

GUTTMAN

SHERZER

Leovo, Mold.Romanovka, Mold.

Bacau

Siret

Roman and Suceava

Suceava

Herb Guttman (eMail: [email protected])701 King St. West, Apt. 413, Toronto, ON M5V 2W7

HANS/HANCZ

Andrew Hans

Signet(eMail: [email protected])

HERSHKOVITZ Galati

Clifford Ham's (eMail: [email protected])12435 Debby St., North Hollywood, CA 91606

SILVER/SILVERS Sokiryany, Ukr.TANENBAUM anywhereWASSERMAN Sokiryany, Ukr.

Shirley Wasserman Hausafus3431 Hilary Dhve, San Jose, CA 95124

BERNSTEIN

BILSKY

LEBOVITZ

SALTER

SOLTO

Mahlyn Hoffman5440 N. Braeswood, #954, Houston, TX 77096

Yedintsy, Mold.Yedintsy, Mold.Yedintsy, Mold.Yedintsy, Mold.Yedintsy, Mold.

DELPHINUS anywhere-RomaniaArthur Hyman (eMail: [email protected])6311 Rue Sophie, San Antonio, TX 78238-1533

BIELOZERKOVSKI Kishinev, Mold.Jean Paul Jesse

P. O. Box 14229, Tel Aviv IL-61141, Israel

PRINCE Brichany and Kishinev, Mold.PRINCE Velikiy Zhvanchik, Ukr.

AlanKarbhtz (eMail: [email protected])26 Park Grove, Edgware, Middlesex, HA8 7SJ, England



STORFER Chernovtsy, Ukr.Gay Lynne Kegan (eMail: [email protected])

COHEN

EINBINDER

GITMAN

GITMAN

GOODMAN

GOODMAN

LACHMAN

VALTMANA/VALTMAN

WAKSMANA/VAXMAN

WIESENTHAL

WIESENTHAL

Kalarash, Mold.Kalarash, Mold.Khotin & Novoseltsy, Ukr.Zachikoutsov, Ukr.Khotin & Novoseltsy, Ukr.Zachikoutsov, Ukr.Zhvanets, Ukr.Zhvanets, Ukr.Kalarash, Mold.Bucuresti

Chernovtsy, Ukr.Helene Schwartz Kenvin

P. O. Box 218, Esopus, NY 12429-0218eMail: [email protected]

VOLZER Mogilev Podolskiy, Ukr.Muhel WalzerKlein (eMail: [email protected])102 W. York Court, Longwood, FL 32779

KRASNER Tirashpol, Mold.Richard Krasner

eMail: p006004b@pbfreenet. seflin.lib. /?. us

RAUCHWERGER Snyatyn, Ukr.Dr. Shihey L. Kulick (eMail: [email protected])253 West 72nd St., New York, NY 10023

LERNER anywhere-MoldovaSarah F. Lasry (eMail: [email protected])4841 Kent Ave., Montreal, QC H3W1H4

PUSTILNIC Yedintsy and Ryshkany, Mold.Samuel Lenger (eMail: [email protected])Rehov Zamenhoff 8/4, Netanya IL-42309, Israel

FAUSTER or TAUSTER

SCHACHTER

SCHACHTER

Harold Levy3243 Arlington AVe., #139, Riverside, CA 92506

Dorosauti, Ukr.Dorosauti, Ukr.Zvinyachka, Ukr. (Zwineace)

CHESKOLOVITZ Kishinev, Mold.KHATCHKELEVITZ Kishinev, Mold.

Ralph Lewis (eMail: [email protected])

ELIESCU/ELIS Iasi

ILIESCU Iasi

GROSS/GROSU Iasi

LEIB Iasi

SCHECHTER Iasi

SEHTER Iasi

VALDMAN Iasi


Judy Lichtig (eMail: [email protected])31899 Gates MillBlvd., Pepper Pike, OH 44124

LITTMAN anywhere-RomaniaJack Liftman (eMail: [email protected])12063 Dunblane Ave., Northhdge, CA 91326-1133

COHEN

SILVERMAN

Naomi Paltiel Lowi

4858 Cote d'Neiges, #807C, Montreal QC H3V1G8 Canada

Botosani, Dolhasca, SuceavaBotosani

FISER7FISHER Lipkany, Mold.Robinn Magid (eMail: [email protected])221 Colgate Ave., Kensington, CA 94708-1121

GEALT

GIFESMAN

GOLDENSTEIN

HOZEN

KRIMMERSCHMEUSS

PACKERMAN

PITKES

SOIFER

TOBIAS

Ehc Marcus (eMail87 Woodlawn Ave.,

Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.Kishinev, Mold.

; [email protected])New Rochelle, NY 10804

GALPERtN

MELAMED

LarryMelamed

anywhere-BessarabiaBelgorod Dnestrovskiy, Ukr.

(eMail: [email protected])

ABRAMOVITZ Chernovtsy, Ukr.ABRAMOVITZ Novoseltsy, Ukr.

llene Mendelow'itz (eMail: [email protected])100 A Ovehook Road, Waltham, MA 02154

ALTER Iasi and Podu lloaie

GROISER Lipkany, Mold.NADLER Bucuresti

Howard Mendelsohn eMail: howmen@ix. netcom. com)1115 Sadlers Close, Marietta, GA 30068

DEUTSCH Salard, Salonta, Oradea

FELDHEIM Sibiu

KLEIN Biharea (Bihor)ROSENFELD Sibiu and Timisoara

Shelley and Alex Miller2409 Cumberland Ave

Mt. Penn, PA 19606

ABRAMOWITZ Iasi

ABRAMSON Iasi

Ken Miller (eMail: [email protected], com)



SCHWAMBERG/SHWAMBERG Resita

STOLL Resita

R. Gregg Moon (eMail: [email protected])12869 High Star, Houston, TX 77072

ALPER/ALPERN Iasi

PASCAL Iasi

Peter MyerseMail: [email protected]

ALPER Iasi

EDELSTEIN Iasi

Shiriey Myers82 Willow St., Brooklyn, NY 11201

SCHWARTZ VasluiRoy Ogus (eMail: [email protected])1577 Wavehey St., Palo Alto, CA 94301

EISENBERG(ER) LeordinaFISCHL AradFUCHS Ober Apsa (Verkhneye Vodyanoye), Ukr.FUCHS Yasinya, Ukr.

Gertrude Singer Ogushwitz19 Storrs Heights Road, Storrs, CT 06268-2305

PERL

SHLIZERMAN

Diego & Yael Pertolsvanger 111 (62). Jerusalem IL-96673, IsraeleMail: diegyael@inter. net. il

DEUTSCH GeoagiuRAFAEL Geoagiu

Dr. Theo Rafael (eMail: [email protected])3450 #2B Wayne Ave., Bronx, NY 10467

FEINBLATT

FRIEDMAN

FRIEDMAN

JOSEFSON/JOSEPHSON

KUPFER

MEYEROWITZ/MEYERS

MYERS

POSNER

POSNER

SEGAL

SPIEGLER/SPIGLER

Ellen Sadove Renck

Sapintaanywhere-Bessarabia

Bucuresti and Sinaia

Galati, Podu lloaie, Sinaiaanywhere-BessarabiaBucuresti, Iasi, PascaniBucuresti, Podu lloaie, SinaiaGalati

Galati

Podu lloaie

anywhere-BessarabiaIasi, Motca, PascaniIasi

(eMail: [email protected])10 Overtook Road, Scarsdale, NY 10583-3012

LONDA Ozarintsy (Azamitz), Ukr.Moms Rosen

4 Salem Park, Apt. 1-A, Elizabeth, NJ 07208

SEARCHING FOR:

KOENIG

SEGAL

Josephine Rosenblum3340 Lamarque Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45236eMail: jos [email protected]

COPELVICI

GREENBERG

KOPELOWITZ

PARISER

Sheldon Rosenspan226 N 16th St., Kenilworth, NJ 07033-1266

FROM:

Alalacain (near Botosani)Alalacain

anywhere-RomaniaBraila and Bucuresti

anywhere-RomaniaBraila and Bucuresti

HERSCOVICI/HERSHOVICS Bucecea

SONENFELD Roman

David Roth

16 Oman Avenue, London NW2 6BG, England

FEIVELMAN BucurestiTOVILMAN Iasi

David Rubin (eMail: [email protected])333 CarmelAve., Pacifica, CA 94044

ASPLER BotosaniElad Sarver (eMail: [email protected])5 Levontin St., Netanya IL-42318, Israel

SEGAL <Edel> anywhere-RomaniaJerry SegaleMail: [email protected]

CHELER

SILVERMAN

Bessie Selevan

20505 E. Country Club Rd, #1538, Miami, FL 33180

Soroki and Rezina, Mold.Rezina, Mold.

GREENBERG Kriulyany, Mold.Henry Shames4906 La Ramada Drive, Santa Barbara, CA 93111-1518

SILVERBUSH/SILBERBUSCH

Jerome Silverbush


Gura Humorului

BERKOVITZ

FRIEDMAN

JONAS

JONAS

HOFFMAN

HOFFMAN

UNGAR

Deanna Tachna

1137 Stanley, Birmingham, Ml 48009eMail: [email protected]. com

Marghita and OradeaMarghita and OradeaBaluzafalva

Kegye and TashnadBaluzafalva

Kegye and TashnadMarghita and Oradea


SEARCHING FOR: FROM: SEARCHING FOR: FROM:

TRACHTENBERG Beltsy, Mold. BERMAN Soroki, Mold.Marty Trachtenberg (eMail: [email protected]) DELMAN Iasi

JCC of Tidewater, 7300 NewportAve, Norfolk, VA 23505 GREENSPAN Beltsy, Mold. & Odessa, Ukr.HALPERN Iasi

ALTMAN Vaslui KANER Iasi

Celia Eidex Tsiang (eMail: [email protected]) OLCHINETSKY Beltsy, Mold. & Odessa, Ukr.REFFKIN Kishinev, Mold.

GELLERTNER Iasi RUSAK Iasi

Edan G. Unterman SHUSHANSKY Beltsy and Bendery, Mold.2 Tudor City Place, New York, NY 10017 Vivian Zelvin

3 Douglas Place, Eastchester, NY 10709ARONOVICIA/ITZ Bucuresti

ARONOVICIA/ITZ Husi and Tecuci SWIEBEL Cheresh, Ukr. (Cires-Panka)BACH Bessarabka, Mold. ZWIEBEL Cheresh, Ukr.BROWN anywhere-Bessarabia Eric Zwiebel

BROWN Kishinev, Mold. Schaepmanstraat 5, NL-7141 TR Groenb, The NetherlandsREISS Bucuresti and Husi eMail: [email protected] Podu Turcului and Tecuci

Linda Volin (eMail: [email protected]) MEISTER Cluj19 Steven St., Plainview, NY 11803 Bernie

WEINGARTEN IasiJoel M. Weingarten391 Camino Las Juntas, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523eMail: joel_weingarten@peoplesoft. com

CIORA

GOLDBERG

HALPERIN/HALPERN

RIGLER

Charles Weinstein

anywhere-RomaniaPodu Turcului

Podu Turcului

Podu Turcului

(eMail: [email protected])141 24th Avenue, Apt. 1, San Mateo, CA 94403-2251

WEISTHAUWEISSTHAL anywhere-RomaniaHarvey Weisthal (eMail: [email protected])

BURG

Frankie Welstead

23827 Floragate Drive, Spring, TX 77373

Chernovtsy & Vizhnitsa, Ukr.

ANIBROZI

HEINIC

HOENIG/HONIGMARILUS

PISALT

PUICOVICI

ROTHENBERGSCHECHTER

SCHWARTZ

Michael Willard

Bacau and Bucuresti

Bucuresti

Falticeni and Iasi

Falticeni

Falticeni

Husi

Bacau and Galati

Falticeni and Iasi

Bacau and Iasi

(eMail: [email protected]

ARONOWITZ anywhere-RomaniaARONOWITZ Tirgu Frumos

Berry Wizner (eMail: [email protected])P. O. Box 391, Hunter, NY 12442


Batya Unterschatz, Israeli Researcherby Harold Rhode

Batya Unterschatzof the Jewish Agency's Missing RelativeSearch Bureau is now available to do private research awell. I've worked with Batya many years and she is one othe best researchers/sleuths I have encountered. She hamanaged to dig out information from all sorts of sources amabout all sorts of people I never knew existed. [Editor:concur. She is outstanding, and may be able toferret ouyour Romanian connectionsin IsraelJ.

She can search for information in archives throughout Israellocate inheritors, find lost relatives and translate materiainto and from Russian, Lithuanian, Hebrew, Yiddish, Englisland who knows what else?

Batya is a member of the Association of ProfessionaGenealogists and her rate is $25 per hour. Her address:

Mrs. Batya Unterschatz3 Ibn Givirol Street

P. O. Box 92

Jerusalem, Israel

phone: 011-972-2-612-471fax: 011-972-2-534-6573