Frequently
Asked
Questions
1.
How
can
I
start
researching
my
German-Russian
family?
2.
What
is
the
correct
spelling
of
my
family's
name?
3.
When
and
why
did
German
Russians
go
to
Russia?
4.
When
and
why
did
the
German
Russians
leave
Russia?
5.
Where
did
the
German
Russians
settle
in
the
Americas?
6.
Where
is
village
xyz
on
a
current
map
of
Russia?
7.
Why
were
there
so
many
Germans
in
Poland?
8.
What
connections
do
German
Russians
have
to
Prussia?
9.
Why
didn't
my
grandparents
talk
about
their
German-Russian
heritage?
10.
Why
did
my
relatives
speak
German
instead
of
Russian?
11.
What
books
will
help
me
research
my
German
Russian
heritage?
12.
What
happened
to
the
Germans
living
in
the
Soviet
Union
prior
to
and
during
World
War
II?
13.
How
do
I
get
in
contact
with
my
relatives
who
stayed
in
Russia?
How
do
I
find
if
I
even
have
any
relatives
there?
14.
Is/Are
the
German-Russian
village(s)
still
there
and
can
I
visit
them?
15.
Are
there
tours
to
Russia
to
the
place(s)
where
my
ancestors
lived?
16.
What
other
research
tools
for
German
Russians
are
available
to
me
on-line?
17.
How
do
I
get
a
hold
of
familial
records
in
Russia?
18.
Where
did
my
ancestors
come
from
in
Germany?
19.
How
do
I
become
a
member
of
AHSGR
and
what
does
membership
mean?
20.
What
is
a
village
coordinator?
21.
What
census
lists
are
available
for
research?
22.
Why
isn't
this
information
available
from
the
Russian
Archives
now?
23.
Are
there
any
Germans
still
living
in
Russia
and
if
so
where?
24.
What
is
the
basic
German
genealogical
vocabulary?
1.
How
can
I
start
researching
my
German-Russian
family?
Beginners
should
do
two
things
when
beginning
to
research
one's
family:
interview
relatives
and
read
a
book
on
performing
genealogical
research.
It
is
very
important
to
talk
to
your
relatives
while
they
are
still
living,
as
they
know
more
about
your
family
than
any
other
source.
Check
out
a
comprehensive
book
on
genealogy
research
from
the
library
to
give
yourself
a
basis
for
your
research
and
to
familiarize
yourself
with
the
various
documents
used
in
genealogical
research.
Gather
all
information
you
already
have
from
various
sources.
If
you
use
a
computer,
you
may
wish
to
purchase
genealogical
software
to
aid
in
organizing
your
information.
There
are
many
on-line
sites
that
can
be
helpful
in
researching
your
family
history
as
well.
AHSGR's
homepage
address
is
http://www.ahsgr.org/.
Document
all
sources
you
utilize,
as
this
helps
you
to
direct
your
research
more
efficiently.
Keep
in
mind
a
general
rule
of
genealogy
is
to
go
from
the
known
to
the
unknown
and
not
the
other
way
around.
Begin
your
research
with
yourself
and
the
family
history
that
you
know
of
or
can
obtain
from
living
relatives.
Use
the
family
Bible,
census
or
birth
records
to
fill
gaps
you
may
have
in
your
family
tree.
Attempt
to
find
out
when
your
relatives
immigrated
to
the
Americas
and
where
they
lived
in
Russia
before
you
seek
to
obtain
information
from
Russia.
Another
general
rule
is
to
do
as
much
research
locally
as
possible.
Use
your
local
LDS
Family
History
Center,
library,
interlibrary
loan,
genealogical
society,
etc.,
to
their
fullest
extent
before
you
write
or
travel
to
distant
archives
or
churches.
It
is
usually
cheaper
and
often
more
efficient,
and
it
will
make
subsequent
research
more
productive.
2.
What
is
the
correct
spelling
of
my
family's
name?
It
is
often
very
difficult
to
determine
the
original
spelling
of
a
surname
or
first
name,
for
a
number
of
reasons.
If
one
is
researching
Russian
records,
oftentimes
the
German
surname
of
an
individual
was
recorded
by
a
Russian
official
in
the
Cyrillic
alphabet.
The
dialect
spoken
by
the
Germans
in
Russia
also
provides
for
variations
of
spellings
in
both
German
and
Russian.
When
taking
the
English
transliteration
of
these
German
or
Russian
spellings,
more
changes
commonly
occur
and,
of
course,
when
individuals
came
to
the
United
States
names
were
written
as
understood
by
the
immigration
official.
In
researching
ancestors'
first
names,
it
is
also
helpful
to
consider
the
second
name
as
well
as
nicknames
and
alternate
spellings,
as
many
families
gave
the
same
first
name
to
more
than
one
son
or
daughter.
3.
When
and
why
did
Germans
go
to
Russia?
Although
Germany
was
not
unified
as
a
nation
until
1871,
the
German
principalities
and
kingdoms
have
historically
shared
an
inextricable
link
with
Russia.
For
centuries
Germans
have
lived
within
the
borders
of
Russia.
The
Germans
were
especially
prominent
in
the
Baltic
States
where
they
were
the
landowners.
During
the
time
of
Peter
the
Great,
many
Germans
were
appointed
to
government
advisory
positions.
However,
under
Elizabeth
I,
government
positions
were
purged
of
their
foreign,
primarily
German,
officers.
On
December
4,
1762,
Catherine
the
Great
issued
a
Manifesto
inviting
Western
Europeans
to
settle
in
Russia.
However,
it
was
her
second
Manifesto
of
July
22,
1763,
which
offered
transportation
to
Russia,
religious
and
political
autonomy,
and
land
that
incited
many
Western
Europeans,
mostly
Germans,
to
migrate
to
Russia.
This
Manifesto
was
issued
after
the
end
of
the
Seven
Years'
War
in
which
German
peasants
suffered
many
losses.
Conditions
among
the
German
people
were
very
unstable.
At
that
time,
the
area
that
is
now
Germany
was
a
conglomeration
of
more
than
300
principalities
and
dukedoms
which
frequently
changed
hands,
and
therefore
religions,
as
well.
Many
German
peasants,
seeking
a
way
to
practice
their
chosen
religion
and
to
improve
their
social
standing,
accepted
the
offer
to
settle
in
Russia.
The
first
wave
of
migration
occurred
in
the
Volga
River
region
beginning
in
1764.
By
the
late
1760s
some
isolated
settlements
were
already
founded
in
South
Russia.
Hutterites
first
settled
in
Russia
in
1770
and
Mennonites
began
to
settle
in
Russia
by
1789.
In
1803,
Alexander
I
reissued
the
Manifesto
of
Catherine
II,
prompting
another
wave
of
migration,
primarily
into
South
Russia.
By
the
mid-nineteenth
century
the
areas
of
Volhynia,
Crimea,
and
the
Caucasus
were
being
settled
by
Germans.
Beginning
in
the
late
nineteenth
century
and
continuing
into
the
first
decade
of
this
century,
settlements
were
being
founded
by
Germans
in
Siberia.
At
the
end
of
the
nineteenth
century
Russia
had
a
population
of
approximately
1.8
million
Germans
See
our
store
or
our
Books
page
for
a
listing
of
books
available
for
sale
or
a
comprehensive
list
of
books
on
this
subject.
4.
When
and
why
did
the
German
Russians
leave
Russia?
When
Alexander
II
revoked
the
privileges
offered
to
the
Germans
who
had
settled
in
Russia
more
than
a
century
earlier,
such
as
exemption
from
military
service,
the
emigration
of
the
Germans
from
Russia
to
the
Americas
began.
1872
was
the
beginning
of
a
large
wave
of
emigration
of
Germans
from
Russia
as
a
result
of
the
social
conditions
in
Russia.
There
was
a
growing
sentiment
of
hostility
towards
foreigners,
particularly
Germans,
and
a
policy
of
Russification
was
adopted
to
make
the
populations
in
the
empire
more
Russian.
Later
emigrants
left
Russia
due
to
worsening
living
conditions,
caused
by
war
and
famine.
See
our
store
or
our
Books
page
for
a
listing
of
books
available
for
sale
or
a
comprehensive
list
of
books
on
this
subject.
5.
Where
did
the
German
Russians
settle
in
the
Americas?
The
first
settlers
came
to
the
Midwest
of
the
United
States
Illinois,
Nebraska,
Kansas,
and
the
Dakotas
as
this
region
resembled
the
areas
they
had
left
behind
in
Russia.
These
immigrants
spread
out
to
settle
in
Colorado,
Montana,
Idaho,
Washington,
Oregon,
California,
Oklahoma
and
Texas.
Immigration
to
Canada,
Brazil
and
Argentina
quickly
followed.
Many
who
immigrated
to
South
America
had
first
attempted
to
settle
in
North
America
but
were
turned
away
due
to
disease.
6.
Where
is
village
xyz
on
a
current
map
of
Russia?
Many
German
villages
no
longer
appear
on
present-day
maps
of
Russia,
as
most
were
destroyed
|
American
Historical Society of Germans From Russia
