THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 102
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(Issued monthly by Gberghold@AOL.com)
December 31, 2001
((c) G. J. Berghold-all rights reserved)
HAPPY NEW YEAR - GLÜCKLICHES NEW JAHR - GUTE RUTSCH (SLIDE INTO THE NEW YEAR)
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end of newsletter section "C". Introductions, notes and articles without a
by-line are written by the editor and reflect his views.
THANK YOU FOR THE MANY XMAS GREETINGS!
This first section of our 4-section newsletter includes:
* (105th) Birthday Of Oldest Burgenland Inhabitant
* 3 New Village History Books Published
* Village History Series Continued (Weiden bei Rechnitz)
* Graben-Ditch Or Valley
* Virus Consolation
* Governmental Compensation-1921
* Apples-Fruit Of The Burgenland
80 YEARS BURGENLAND, 105 YEARS THERESIA LEYRER (from Albert Schuch)
While the province of Burgenland recently celebrated its 80th "birthday", its
oldest inhabitant is 105 years old: Theresia Leyrer nee Paar was born on 5
October 1896 in the village of Stuben (near Bernstein). After six years of
elementary school, Theresia was hired out to a farmer, to work as a
maidservant. She then worked in a bakery in Güns (Köszeg) and again as a
maidservant in various households in Steinamanger (Szombathely). When her
daughter Irma moved to Vienna, she joined her. In 1936 Theresia returned to
Stuben, where she married her brother-in-law, Eduard Leyrer, in 1939. Their
marriage lasted 43 years. Today Theresia, who used to be famous for her good
cooking, resides in Bernstein, in the local old people's home.
(Source: bvz, 16 October 2001)
NEW VILLAGE HISTORY BOOKS PUBLISHED (from Albert Schuch)
Recently, local history books ("Ortschronik") have been published for the
villages of:
- Punitz (450 Years Punitz, about 50 pages, edited by Franz Marth),
- Glasing (edited by Mag. Eduard Laky and Mag. Wolfgang Tretter)
- Moschendorf (780 Years Moschendorf; includes a chapter about the emigration
to the US).
(ED. Note: members may try to obtain copies by writing the village local
office (Gemeindeamt-addresses are: Stadtgemeinde (Punitz, Glasing)-Rathaus,
Hauptplatz 7, A-7540 Güssing, Austria;
Gemeindeamt Moschendorf, Nr. 95, A-7540 Moschendorf, Austria.)
VILLAGE HISTORY SERIES-WEIDEN BEI RECHNITZ (from Albert Schuch)
First mentioned in a tax conscription of 1538 as "Rakottyas", an old
Hungarian synonym for the German name "Weiden" (= willow tree). Owned by the
Counts Erdödy, it was inhabited by only 8 lodgers (pauperes). Ten years
later, in 1548, the tax collectors already reported some farmers, two lodgers
and one soldier (pixidarius). By 1570, the area of farming land had doubled;
there were still two lodgers (pauperes), two empty lodger's houses and three
tenants (inquilini). By that time the village was already to some extent
inhabited by Croatian refugees.
After the Bocskay (1605-06) and Bethlen (1621) uprisings, more Croatians
followed, this time Greek-Orthodox "Vlahi". Two characteristic Vlahi surnames
of Weiden (and surroundings), SMOLIAN and PARAPATIC can already be found in
the land records of Kohfidisch (also an Erdödy possession) in 1613. One Georg
Parapatic owned 3 sessiones - he is therefore supposed to have been a wealthy
and influential person. He - or another Parapatic - may have founded the
settlement of Parapatic-Brig (aka Bosniak-Brig or Parapatisch-Berg) near
Weiden.
According to the ecclesiastical inspection of 1674 Weiden belonged to the
parish of Neumarkt. Weiden had a cemetery of its own, by 1697 a portable
altar too. So the priest of Neumarkt could say mass in a private house of
Weiden.
In 1720/21 the village was inhabited by 25 farmers and 3 "free men" (nobles);
7 of them were Hungarians, 21 Croatians.
The first Vlahi settlers - as documented in the oldest church records of
Neumarkt (from 1692 onwards) were: CACINOVIS (CIACSINOVICS), DRAGANOVIC,
POKOMANDI, SMOLJAN, VUKICEVIC, VUKOVIC, BURSIC, KEGLOVIC, HERSIC. The baptism
records of Weiden (separate books since 1789) include the noblemen (nobilis)
Paulus KUNICH (22 May 1803) and Franz TALIAN (1826).
The Urbarium of 1676 lists the following names: BAUSA (2), BENDEKOUICH
(BENEDEKOUICZ, 4), BURSICH (BURSICZ, 4), CSECZNOICH, DRAGANOICH, HERSICH (2),
LAKICH (LAKICZ, 2), ORLICH, PRAPATICH (2), PRIGNUTICZ, RADICS, TIBOLT (2),
VIDASICH (2), VUKICSEUICH (VUKICZEUICH, WUKICSEUICH, 4), ZEBICH (ZEBICS, 3).
With the exception of Tibolt all names are Croatian.
The parish of Weiden was founded in 1808, with Johann MAGDICS as first priest
(died in Weiden in 1808). Most notable among his successors is Josef HOMPASZ,
a nobleman born in Schandorf, who served from 1813 to 1837. In 1819 a church
was build (St. Johann Nepomuk).
Other priests: Andreas BARILICH, from Klingenbach (1837-58), Franz BARKOVIC,
from Unterpullendorf (1864-73), Franz MIHOLIC, son of teacher from the
Muraköz area (1873-90).
Father Miholic is said to have found an old document (when demolishing an old
chapel in the cemetery). Therein the (cathedral) chapter of Szombathely
granted the (Vlahi) inhabitants of Weiden the right to settle, if and when
they gave up their old (Greek-Orthodox) faith and became Catholics.
Teachers: Johann KOLARIC (1807-24), Georg GLUDOVAC (1824-46), Alexius
KEGLEVIC (1906-46). Some inhabitants of Weiden are said to have been pig
traders (imported from Serbia) until the late 19th century. Then they
switched to trading horses, which they mostly sold in Sopron and Wiener
Neustadt.
Statistical data: 55 houses and 347 inhabitants in 1900 (319 of them
Croatians); 56 houses with 231 inhabitants in 1951.
Summarized and translated by Albert Schuch, November 2001 (Sources: Josef
Loibersbeck: Um Hirschenstein und Plischa. In: Volk und Heimat 1962, # 23-24;
Harald & Leonhard Prickler: Hoheitszeichen der kroatischen Gemeinden des
Burgenlandes. Eisenstadt 1997, p. 216)
GRABEN-DITCH OR VALLEY
Some German geographic terms can be confusing. One that has given me trouble
is "Graben." The following clarifIies the definition. I wrote to Albert
Schuch:
>>Albert, please tell me about the use of the word "Graben. " The dictionary
says ditch, canal or drain, but those terms don't seem to always fit
Burgenland map usage. We also have village names with "graben" added."
Rehgraben, Sagergraben, Katzelgraben, Schmalzgraben. Names are from Wandern
im Südburgenland, S&F (Schubert & Franzke, a Radfahren Guide, 1:50, 000
scale.) We have drainage ditches here in the US, but we do not name them
unless they are navigable canals. I know that the southern Burgenland was
once quite swampy and that there were drainage projects. Does "graben" in
this area generally mean "drainage ditch?"<<
Albert replies: Of course your dictionary is right, as ditch, canal and drain
are all correct translations of the German word "Graben".
However, when used as a geographical term (like in village names), "Graben"
has the meaning of "small valley". You may remember the small valley outside
Stegersbach, where my mother was born and her sister still lives. (You
stopped there after lunch at Dr. Dujmovits' house.) This is a typical
"Graben", and it is (or rather was) referred to in that way by the locals:
They used to call it "Nirscherl-Graben", whereby the first part of this name
is derived from the adjacent hill, the "Kanischaberg".
VIRUS CONSOLATION (from Bob Unger)
Bob writes: Sorry to hear that your system became infected with a virus.
After all the good you have done for so many it is inconceivable that someone
could have sent you a virus on purpose. But in this new strange world one
doesn't know what to expect, since a few terrorists have succeeded in
changing the world, as we once knew it. I wish I could do something to ease
the pain and trauma related to your computer virus. I came across the
following Daffodil Principal and that triggered a thought. That story tells
about a woman who planted 50,000 daffodils resulting in a very beautiful
field of flowers for all to enjoy. It relates how this was started by an
inspiration, followed by the planting of each bulb, one at a time.
Essentially the story is about having an idea and the dedication to follow it
through.
To me your dedication in creating the Burgenland Bunch and nurturing it one
member at a time is a far greater accomplishment than a field of flowers.
The 100th edition of the BB news letter says that we
have 750 readers. I would venture to say that each of those 750 readers
represents a seed from which knowledge about the land of our ancestors'
spreads. In newsletter # 98A, I offered the fact that over a period of 500
years 1,048,576 individuals are involved in the creation of one person living
today. So, you have brought much joy and knowledge to 750 current BB
members, and when you consider 1,048, 576 individuals, for each, that equals
a really high number. Many of those are our ancestors looking down from
heaven saying, "you did good Gerry", now my people know what we were all
about.
So, thanks for again picking up the torch and continuing to lead the
Burgenland Bunch onward to perhaps even greater things. Let me know what I
can do to help. (ED: Bob did just that with this email.)
COMPENSATION IN THE BURGENLAND (from Albert Schuch)
(ED. Note: As a result of the 9/11 WTC tragedy, we hear much about
governmental compensation for the victims. Not a singular incident as the
following will illustrate.) Albert writes to Bob Unger:
I read an article by Dr. Felix Tobler earlier today, wherein he writes about
the damage caused by Hungarian guerillas in Burgenland 1919-1921. (Hungarians
were protesting the partitioning of land to Austria.) One had to report what
one had lost (or what damage was done to one's home) to the government in
order to receive compensation. This was done by filling out special forms
that are still stored in the Provincial Archives in Eisenstadt.
To illustrate his article, Dr. Tobler included one photocopy from these
files. Coincidently, this one was filled out by a Maria Pernitz of Königsdorf
39, on 6 December 1922. She asked for the payment of roughly 2 million crowns
(it was the time of hyper-inflation) and received about 800,000. The damage
reported by her was confirmed by two witnesses (Karl Leitgeb and Karl Zotter,
both also from Königsdorf) and by the deputy mayor of Königsdorf, Franz Unger.
APPLES-FRUIT OF THE BURGENLAND
Burgenland is noted for its fruit production. Apples, apricots, grapes,
pears, plums, cherries, all are shipped fresh to urban areas, canned, or
turned into jelly, wine, juice or schnapps. Much of the fruit in Vienna's
markets is from the Burgenland. My grandmother always said that Burgenland
fruit was larger than American fruit and we didn't believe her until we
visited Burgenland. After grapes, apples are next in quantity of fruit grown.
We were sitting in the kitchen nook of the Gerger family in Güssing when Herr
Gerger brought out a bottle of his own "apfelsaft" (apple juice). I thought
he was tricking us with some "apfel schnapps", but he assured us it was
harmless homemade apple juice, and so it was, and very good. Fruit juice is
often served concentrated, diluted with mineral water and we also had some
that way at the Schuchs in Kleinpetersdorf. Cider is pressed as well as
"Perry" (a pear cider), and apfel schnapps is distilled, but much of the
apple harvest is pressed for non-alcoholic juice or "Most". It is a good
drink to order in place of wine. It does not have the commercial taste of
American apple juice. We found the apples tasty eating.
The Gergers have an orchard in the Ortsteile of Rosenberg and Herr Gerger
goes there to tend his orchard. It is an idyllic rural spot, just west of
Burg Güssing, which you can see to the east. Deer are a problem and he
counters this by feeding them culls, hoping they will leave his trees alone.
Wind storms are also a problem and he had some large branches down when we
visited Rosenberg to view my grandfather's old home. The Gerger family is
native to Rosenberg and married with my Pöltl line, thus we are cousins. The
Schuchs of Kleinpetersdorf, like many village dwellers, also have a small
apple orchard in the rear of their property. Apple wood makes a great fire.
A very nice book in German is "Rund Um Den Apfelbaum" (Around The Appletree)
by Gerger/Holler, Doncsecs Druck in Pinkafeld, publishers. It describes apple
culture in southern Burgenland and identifies the many varieties grown. I'm
interested since we live in the northern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, noted
for apple production. We have an annual apple festival and we live within
smelling distance of the Whitehouse Apple Factory. When they make applesauce
or apple butter, the air is like wine! Late in the season when they make
vinegar, it's otherwise! On page 82 of the above book is a picture of the
farm of Heidi Gerger's parents, near Neustift. Heidi is cousin Klaus' wife
and we were able to visit this farm. There are 2900 fruit trees in this area
and we saw an old fruit press and farm implements.
Apple trees originated somewhere near the Caucasus (Garden of Eden?) about
5000BC and were brought to the Burgenland region by various colonizing
groups. The Romans cultivated fruit trees here as well as German settlers
following the forays of Charlemagne. Medieval monastery records mention
orchards. In 1895 there were 5456 apple trees in the Güssing area with many
more at other villages. Apfelstrudel probably originated from Turkish
pastries following the Turkish Wars, apples replacing nuts, raisins and
honey. It resembles Greek Baklava and other near eastern phyllo dough pastry.
It is interesting to note that Turkish sources referred to Vienna as the
"golden apple" and Costantinople as the "red apple" - Turkish myth speaks of
"the warrior of the faith who will pluck the red apple."
Unlike the United States where Red and Yellow Delicious, Rome, Granny Smith,
Winesap and other modern hybrids predominate, Burgenland apples tend to be
older varieties. Chief among them are the Kronprinz Rudolf (18%), Ilzer
Rosenapfel (10%), Jonathan (12%), Rheinischer Bohnapfel (8%) and the
Steirischer Maschanzker (8%). After these come a bewildering variety which
includes the Roter Delicious (2%) and the McIntosh and Winesap. The
Burgenland apples are not always as perfect as our American apples, grown for
the supermarkets, but I think they have more flavor.
Where would we be without Apfelstrudel, Apfelflecken, apple dumplings, pie,
cake, baked apples, applesauce, apple butter and an apple a day, not to
mention juice, cider, brandy, vinegar and even Pennsylvania dried apples
(apple schnitz)? In order to reduce the size of my waist, my wife bakes an
almost sugarless apple crisp. I'll have a large piece of apfelstrudel please!
Newsletter continues as no. 102A
THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 102A
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(Issued monthly by Gberghold@AOL.com)
December 31, 2001
(c) G. J. Berghold-all rights reserved
This second section of our 4-section newsletter contains:
* Meaning Of Bunch -Again
* Apples-Addendum
* Anglican Church-Vienna
* Visiting The Homeplace-Mischendorf
* Lehigh University-Burgenland Descendant Alma Mater
MEANING OF "BUNCH" - AGAIN
In a message dated 11/29/01 10:06:13 AM Eastern Standard Time, nicole@uwf.edu
writes:
<< Hi Gerry, What is the significance of the name "Burgenland Bunch"? Is the
word bunch in place of the word clan, or does it have more significance? Is
Bunch a name that is native to this region? Nicole >>
Reply: "Bunch" by Webster, is a loose group of the same items, like a "bunch
of flowers" or a "wild bunch of people." There is a movie entitled "The Wild
Bunch" as an example. Therefore, BB implies a homogeneous grouping-in this
case, descendants of Burgenland immigrants, loosely connected by a few lists
and a newsletter. Similar German words are "Bundel", "Bund", "Gemeinschaft"
etc. Clan would denote a much closer relationship. There already exists a
Burgenländische Gemeinschaft and Burgenland Bund, at least to Americans,
would have a political significance. Americans wouldn't understand "Bundel"
and "group" has much commercial usage, so we are left with bunch. I might
mention that "bunch" causes Europeans all sorts of definition problems. Ergo,
I accomplished my desire-a name that is unique and eye catching. Regards,
Gerry Berghold, Editor BB News, founder Burgenland Bunch.
APPLES-FRUIT OF THE BURGENLAND-ADDENDUM
(ED. Note: I happened to mention to Inge Schuch that I was writing an article
concerning apples and she replied with the following).
"I wonder what you will be writing about apples/fruit of the Burgenland in
your next newsletter. What a sweet idea. Apples from our orchard in
Kleinpetersdorf, and from my aunt's in Stegersbach have always been special
to me. Because the trees that our grandparents and great-grandparents planted
grow the kind of apples that you cannot buy in the supermarkets.
"Grofnstoana" for instance, as my mother calls them - I would not even know
how to spell the word properly in standard German - are one of my favorite
apples; so wonderfully acidic and aromatic. "Jonathan," too. But things have
started to change. Take "Kronprinz" - I think it is a safe bet to say that
you could not get those in a supermarket when I first moved to Vienna 16
years ago; and now they have become fairly commonplace and popular. Does the
book you bought mention http://www.arche-noah.at/? That is an Austrian
association with the ambition of preventing old species of fruits and
vegetables in danger of dying out from disappearing, and of promoting the
distribution of old varieties."
ANGLICAN CHURCH IN VIENNA (from Inge Schuch)
(ED. Note: Inge mentioned attending a concert in the Anglican Church in
Vienna. There are Catholic Churches and Cathedrals and Lutheran and Reformed
Churches in Austria, but I didn't realize there was an Anglican one. I spent
some time in England (East Anglia) and I have fond memories of special
services in the cathedrals of Norwich, Ely, Peterborough, and London.
Especially significant at this time of year, as their choral concerts are
always something special.) Inge writes:
"You asked about the Anglican church in Vienna that I mentioned in my last
mail. This is the Christ Church in Jaurčsgasse in the third district, right
across the street from the British Embassy, where I worked for three very
happy years. Turns out the church even has a website,
http://www.christchurchvienna.org/.
That is something I didn't know, and neither did I know its history. Here is
what I found out:
Viktor Rumpelmayer, the architect of the British Residence, also designed the
Gothic-style Anglican Church, Christ Church. As with the Residence, the
construction of Christ Church was mainly due to the determination of the then
Ambassador Sir Andrew Buchanan. Under the Confessional Laws of May 1874
only Roman Catholic, the Evangelical and the Helvetic churches were entitled
to the right of public worship in Austria.
The Ambassador tried all means available to obtain permission, and in January
1875 his perseverance was finally rewarded with success. The Austrian
Government granted a special license for the erection of the church, provided
that it was placed under the protection and jurisdiction of Her Majesty's
Embassy. The church was opened on 8 July 1877, and close links between the
Anglican Church and the Embassy continue to the present day, the Chaplain of
Christ Church being the official Chaplain to Her Majesty's
Ambassador.
So this I learned, thanks to your enquiry. Like, also thanks to you, I
learned a lot about Köszeg this summer. I really enjoyed your article about
the trip, and recalling those happy hours as I read your text."
VISITING THE HOMEPLACE...MISCHENDORF (birder@newnorth.net (Janet Alesauskas)
The following is my diary of a much too short visit to Burgenland. A day
doesn't pass that I don't recall the beauty, the people and the feeling that
a void in my life has been filled. All my life I have heard about
Mischendorf, and this June I was able to visit a place I felt I had known
forever.
After touring parts of Europe in a camper for four weeks, my husband and I
headed for Southern Austria going past the Worthersee (Carinthia), up to Graz
(Styria) on the Autobahn and over to Oberwart on Route 50 and 57. I was
surprised at the size of Oberwart, which we saw a lot of, looking for Route
63. We got onto a side road and it took us through the sweet town of Jabing
and directly to Rohrbach, which is the hometown of my maternal Grandmother,
Theresa Hedwig Schuch Janisch. I have an old photo of the inside of the
church and had wanted to see how it looked today, but was unable to get in.
Following the Pinka River we arrived in Mischendorf. We were looking for
house No.127, the home of Paula (Kassanits)and Siegfried Graf, our hosts.
Paula is a first cousin to my father, Richard Schweitzer. We didn't have to
look far. A woman riding her bicycle came toward us waiving her arms. From a
photograph I knew this was Paula. I don't speak German, but at that moment it
didn't matter. Hearts spoke!
Paula welcomed us into her home and somehow we were able to communicate. A
man in town, Joe Graf, did speak English and he was taking us to see No.75,
the house where my father was raised, the home of my Grandmother, Rosa
Kassanits Schweitzer Blum and my Great-grandmother, Rosina Halwax Kassanits
(b. 4/16/1864 d. 3/-/1945). It was a very emotional time for me. As I walked
through the yard past the house and the farm buildings and up the hill, I
felt I was walking with spirits of the past. Incredible! I had not expected
that. We then visited the Cristo-Schneider House, which had been the home of
my Mother's Father, Frank Janisch's Grandfather, Franz Oswald (b. 12/3/1841
d. 3/29/1934). He was a master tailor and merchant and had been a member of
the town council and school board. I had a photo taken circa 1920 when it was
still their store.
That evening Paula's daughter, Elizabeth, arrived from Salzburg. She became
our very kind and thoughtful interpreter and without her generous help we
would have missed so much.
We awoke Saturday morning to the crowing of a rooster and the tolling of
church bells. The morning found us visiting the inside of St. Ladislaus, very
impressive with its gold altar and hundred year old lace altar cloth. We were
told that valuable works of art were in the church including a painting of
St. Patrick. The vestibule still had the holes in the ceiling for the bell
ropes, bells my father rang daily. A walk through the town, past the priest's
house and up the hill took us to the cemetery. It was a spectacular day with
blue skies and puffy white clouds making the view of the town " picture
postcard perfect". I was surprised at the size of the monuments and
disappointed that the old graves were covered by new ones. I was unable to
understand why this was done. (ED. Note: space is at a premium, when plot
fees are no longer paid, plots are reassigned.)
Mischendorf was more than I expected. The town is immaculate with pastel
colored houses and flowers everywhere. The people take such pride in their
homes and are so friendly. It made me feel proud that this was my heritage.
We visited a relative in Klein Bachselten then proceeded to the wine country
on the Hungarian border. Beautiful and pastoral countryside wherever we went.
After passing through the town of Heiligenbrunn we went to an area to see the
"old buildings" with their thick walls, thatched roofs and dirt floors. It
was here that we had an opportunity to taste wine from the "Old Grapes". (ED:
the Wienkellers, which are still used and a National Treasure.)
The evening was spent at the winery of Anita and Eddie Weber from Deutsch
Schützen, our host's daughter. Our meal of Paula's delicious rye bread and
desserts, thinly cut cheeses and meats and a tasty spread made of rendered
pork fat and seasoning was brought in baskets and for hours we enjoyed
conversation and their award-winning wine. I think this is what is referred
to as "Gemutlichkeit."
We attended mass on Sunday at St. Ladislaus. The main floor was packed with
women, some even standing. The small choir loft is where the men sat. The
attendant to the priest was a little girl. I found it interesting that the
men and women were still segregated and that it was a girl attending the
priest.
The afternoon brought family together from Oberwart, Wien, Klein Bachselten
and Deutsch Schützen at a wonderful restaurant in Podler, Gasthof Schitter.
How incredible for me to sit with all my family who, up until two days
before, I didn't even know and now I will never forget. It was difficult to
leave. I am so very fortunate to have this wonderful family and these
beautiful memories.
LEHIGH UNIVERSITY-BURGENLAND DESCENDANT ALMA MATER
Burgenland immigrants were well aware of the benefits of higher education.
Many attended immigrant classes to learn English. Their children (the first
US generation) often left school to help support families, particularly
during the depression years. Nonetheless, many earned high school diplomas
and some even went on to college or university. It was the second US born
generation; however, that began to attend institutions of higher learning. In
the large Burgenland enclave of Allentown-Bethlehem, PA there were 5 colleges
and universities, in Allentown, Muhlenberg and Cedar Crest Colleges; in
Bethlehem, Moravian Seminary and College For Women and Lehigh University.
Muhlenberg was started in 1867 with 25 students. Its curriculum prepared men
for the Lutheran Ministry. It offered a four year program in Greek, Latin,
German and Mathematics. Following WWII, it had 1200 students and an expanded
curriculum. Cedar Crest was started as a school for women offering a Liberal
Arts curriculum. The Moravian institutions in Bethlehem were similar, but
allied to the Moravian Ministry. All of these colleges underwent many changes
over the years and are now fully accredited with open enrollment. There were
also two private business colleges and an art school.
Lehigh University was started in 1865, offering a full curriculum of
technological and scientific studies and literature. It offered courses
leading to degrees in the arts and sciences with emphasis on civil and
mechanical engineering, metallurgy and mining. A business college was added,
the curriculum was expanded and post graduate studies became available.
Located on the slope of South Mountain, Bethlehem, east of the borough of
Fountain Hill, Lehigh became the goal of many men of Burgenländisch descent.
Tuition was high, acceptance required the highest scholastic qualifications
and scholastic standards were daunting, but the rewards of a Lehigh degree
were well recognized. In addition, it was possible to live at home and avoid
residence fees. As a result, the archives of the resultant Lehigh Town
Council and Allentown-Lehigh Organization (ALO) and the class memorial
tablets in Packer Chapel contain many Burgenland family names.
The path leading to Lehigh for one young Allentown-Burgenland descendant
during the post WWII period was Harrison-Morton Junior High School, Allentown
High School, the US Air Force and finally enrollment for the class of 1956.
Having applied and been accepted in 1948, military service intervened, but
eventually paid for tuition via benefits available to veterans. The fact that
Lehigh kept this acceptance open during his four years of military service is
something for which this alumnus will forever be grateful.
The following (edited) was sent to the Lehigh Alumni Newsletter and appeared
in their Fall 2001 issue:
Dear Editor,
In "At Lehigh", Summer 2001, I read with much interest, Catherine Ridings'
"BECOMING A PART OF A VIRTUAL COMMUNITY." Those of us who have joined today's
mobile society can most certainly find established communities on the
internet.
One such community is the 800 member Burgenland Bunch, an ad hoc organization
of descendants of immigrants from Burgenland, Austria. Over fifty thousand
immigrants came to America from this region around the turn of the last
century. Many settled in the Lehigh Valley and many of their descendants
became Lehigh graduates. I was one, my four grandparents having immigrated to
Allentown from southern Burgenland in the early 1900's. I received my degree
in February of 1957 and the class of 1956 has at least a dozen local
Burgenland descendants listed in the 1956 Epitome. I'm sure there are others.
Immigrants were attracted to the Bethlehem Steel Works and the cement plants
north of Allentown. After becoming established, Lehigh became the higher
education choice of many of their children.
Always interested in my south-eastern European ethnic heritage, I began the
study in earnest following my retirement. In 1997 I founded the Burgenland
Bunch as an internet community willing to share our findings. I began editing
an internet newsletter which is now in its 99th edition (monthly email of 4
sections, 21 pages.) We have a series of web pages which archive Burgenland
data. Our archives, now in excess of 2000 pages, hold the largest collection
of English language Burgenland material extant. In addition to family history
and culture, we list 3000 Burgenland family names, over 400 villages of
origin and often where families settled in the Americas. As one example of
our work, Frank Teklits, Lehigh '1956, has translated (with permission) a
German language history of 16th century Croatian movement to the Burgenland
and has also digitized the church records of Szt. Peterfa, Hungary (border
village).
I know there are many Lehigh alumni with Burgenland heritage. If interested,
they can visit our website. We can be reached at http://go.to/burgenland-bunch
Gerald J. (Gerry) Berghold '1957
Newsletter continues as no. 102B
THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 102B
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(Issued monthly by Gberghold@AOL.com)
December 31, 2001
(c) G. J. Berghold-all rights reserved
This third section of our 4- section newsletter contains:
* The Hungarian Calvinist Congregation of Oberwart-Part 1
(including a brief history of the Oberwart border region)
The Hungarian Calvinist Congregation of Oberwart (by Fritz Königshofer-
December 8, 2001)
(ED. Note: This article will be published in three installments of which
this is the first. It deals with a little known group, part of the small
protestant minority of Land Burgenland and an even smaller group of
descendants of Magyar border guards. Of extreme interest is their long
historical association, well covered in this article-probably the first
available in the English language. Included are prominent noble family names
as well as the names of pastors and school teachers and a bibliography. If
your interest is the Oberwart region, you would do well to study this
article. Numbers in brackets [ 1] refer to the bibliography which will be
found at the end of Part 3. This is a worthy edition to our series of
Burgenland historical articles in the English language. Our thanks to Fritz
Königshofer for his efforts.)
Introduction
Acting on an idea of BB member Carol Sorensen of Illinois, this article tries
to piece together the history of the Reformed parish of Oberwart (Hungarian
name Felsőőr) in the light of the facts and questions that interest
genealogists. Carol, who has ancestors from this unique congregation,
provided me with copies of the commemorative brochure "200 Years Reformed
Church in Oberwart" [1], another article by the parish [2], excerpts from a
scholarly book about the "Obere Wart" [3], and other material as will be
mentioned. I added a few of my own sources and consulted with a Hungarian
colleague of mine who helped me interpret some of the Hungarian texts.
Special thanks also go to BB Burgenland editor Albert Schuch who reviewed the
article and suggested several corrections and additions which were
incorporated.
Author Karl Lukan [4] has pointed out the uniqueness in today's Austria of
the Reformed parish of Oberwart. Not only is it the only protestant parish of
Austria which exists uninterrupted since the Reformation, but it also
constitutes a triple minority. In mainly Roman Catholic Austria, the
congregation belongs to the Protestants which comprise only about 6% of the
Austrian population, within the Protestant Church, it belongs to the
miniscule minority of the Reformed (Calvinist) Church with a total of about
15,000 members, while within the only nine Reformed congregations of Austria
it is the only one with a non-German, in this case Hungarian, mother tongue.
The Austrians call this religion "Evangelisch HB," where the HB stands for
Helvetisches Bekenntnis ("Swiss Confession") as contrasted with AB
("Augsburger Bekenntnis") which is the term used for the Lutheran Church. Of
the other Reformed congregations in today's Austria, three are in Vienna, one
in Linz, and four in the westernmost state of Vorarlberg.
Calvinism historically has had a strong presence in Hungary, amounting to
14.3% of the pre-WW 1 population of the old Kingdom. This was double the
number of Lutherans. However, in Western Hungary, there were few Calvinists,
and Oberwart is the only Reformed parish in what is today's Burgenland.
Calvinism is organized highly autonomously, and thus knows many independent
national and other groupings. In the United States, the so-called
Presbyterians form the largest Calvinist denomination, but Hungarian
immigrants appear mostly to have established their own church organizations,
which today can be found under two umbrella organizations, namely the
Hungarian Reformed Church in America, and the Calvin Synod. (The web portal
of the latter at http://www.calvinsynod.org can be used to obtain a more
detailed impression of Calvinism, the Hungarian congregations, and the
worldwide organization of Calvin's creed.)
This article is not only about the Reformed congregation of Oberwart. At
the same time, it is about the Magyar minority in Burgenland which traces its
origin back to border guards that were placed in the region of the "Obere
Warth" (Felsőőrvidék, or the "up-land guarded border area") relatively soon
after Hungary's Christianization and formation as a kingdom recognized by its
neighbors (despite continuing, long-lasting mutual warfare at this and other
Hungarian borders). A corresponding "Untere Warth" (Alsóőrség, or down-land
guarded border area) existed to the southeast of Szentgotthárd. The ethnic
Magyar islands in Southern Burgenland descending from original border guards
are Oberwart, Unterwart (Alsóőr, but not to be confused with the entirely
different area of the Untere Warth just mentioned), Siget in der Wart, and
the former Kisjobbágyi which is now part of the village of Jabing.
Interestingly, the ethnic Magyars in Unterwart are traditionally Roman
Catholics, while the ones in Siget in der Wart are Lutherans.
While Oberwart originally was a Magyar settlement the population of which
embraced the Reformed Protestant (Calvinist) movement, over time a Roman
Catholic and a Lutheran parish were added, serving a growing ethnic Magyar
and ethnic German population in Oberwart's role as a district capital. In
the census of 1910, about three quarters of the population of 4,000 declared
themselves as Magyars. By religion, there were about 1,600 each of Reformed
Protestants and Roman Catholics, and about 650 Lutherans. As a consequence
of the new Burgenland becoming a state of Austria in late 1921, the Magyars
of Oberwart, Unterwart, Siget and Jabing suddenly found themselves in the
role of a minority. In 1934, 2,176 inhabitants of Oberwart declared
themselves as ethnic Magyars, while 2,088 registered as Germans. According
to the census of 1991, there were 1,592 Magyars in Oberwart compared to a
total town population of 6,319. This shows that the population with
Hungarian mother tongue has become a minority in the town, albeit fortunately
still a strong one.
The Magyar Border Guards
The Magyars were nomadic people of the East (probably the Urals, and
subsequently the region north of the Black Sea, the so-called Ethelköz) which
started to raid the area of the central Danubian basin (today's Alföld, or
Great Hungarian Plain) from about 860 AD. The East-frankish king (later
emperor) Arnulf allied with them to destroy the Great Moravian Empire, but
after Arnulf's death, the Magyars defeated the Bavarians in 907 AD and
subsequently settled the Great and the Small Alföld (the latter located
between Vienna and Lake Balaton). After a number of raids further into
Western Europe, king (later emperor) Otto the Great decisively defeated the
Magyars in 955 AD in the battle on the Lechfeld. From then onwards, the
western border of Hungary more or less became the one lasting until 1921,
today the western border of Burgenland. This border is very near the much
older border between the Roman provinces Noricum (today mainly Austria) and
Pannonia (today mostly Hungary).
Grand-duke Géza of the Árpád dynasty (the first leaders of the Magyars in
the Alföld) prepared his people for Christianity which was followed through
by Géza's son István (the Saint) who in turn in 997 AD was crowned king of
Hungary with the famous Stephen's Crown provided by Pope Sylvester II, thus
taking Hungary into the Christian Abendland.
Border guards (including the ancestors of the Magyar families of the
Felsőőrvidék) were probably placed into the frontier regions of the new
kingdom soon afterwards, perhaps as early as the late 11th century.
Initially, they probably lived without permanent abodes, until the first
fortifications and castles were built (such as Güssing, Schlaining,
Bernstein), allowing the guards and their families to settle permanently in
the areas between the castles. The raids of the Mongols around 1240
decimated and dispersed the border guards. However, after the end of these
raids, the border guards were given special privileges (like officer rank and
the allocation of land to settle) under the Árpád kings Béla IV (1235-70),
István V (1270-72) and László IV (1272-90) [5].
As a slight detour to improve the historic perspective, let us, e.g.,
look at what happened during the reign of Béla IV. While this king was
defeated by the Mongols (Tartars), he later conquered Styria, Galicia (now
the region of southeast Poland and western Ukraine), Lodomeria (now in the
Ukraine) and Bulgaria. He strengthened the royal authority by admitting the
Kulomans-Kumans (Hungarian name Kún, a Turkic people who had settled around
Kecskemét) as civil servants and thus integrating and assimilating them. The
story of Béla IV is only one of many which demonstrate the fragility and
danger of each realm's border areas over centuries, and the ongoing
blending-in of new ethnic elements into the emerging nations.
In a document dated 1327, king Karl I (of the Neapolitan line of Anjou
dynasty who was elected to the Hungarian throne after the extinction of the
male Árpád lines in 1301) confirmed their earlier privileges to the border
guards living between Güssing and Bernstein. The document apparently calls
the border guards (aka "spiculatores") the "noble servants of the king"
indicating a very early type of formal nobility. I have the term
spiculatores from the literature I reviewed, but wonder whether it has been
transcribed correctly. "Spicula" is the Latin word for arrow or lance, i.e.,
one could interpret "spiculatores" as "lance bearers," but a much better
fitting term would have been "speculatores" which translated to watchmen,
guards or scouts.
The document of 1327 charged a certain Miklós (Nicholas), son of a Péter,
from Oberwart, to be the overseer of the border guards, and to make an
attempt to gather them, as they meanwhile had obviously spread out, dispersed
and in some cases disappeared. Some literature calls the leader Miklós Eőri,
or Miklós Felsőeőri, but the 1327 document likely only designated Oberwart
(Felsőőr, Oberwart) as the place, where Miklós and his father lived. It is
unlikely that formal and permanent family names existed yet among the border
guards at the time.
Due to the Inheritance Treaties of Vienna of 1515, the Habsburg dynasty
became the formal rulers of Hungary when the young king Ludwig II died in the
battle of Mohács in 1526 against the Turks. However, in practice, following
Magyar and Transylvanian uprisings and the taking of Pest by Turkish sultan
Suleiman the Magnificent in 1541, the authority of the Habsburgs was quickly
limited to Western Hungary, i.e., the region west and northwest of the
Balaton and Upper Hungary (today's Slovakia). In any case, Western Hungary
(and Oberwart) were now clearly under Habsburg rule. Thus it was the
Habsburgs, i.e., the Holy Roman emperors Rudolf II in 1582, and Matthias in
1611 (the latter becaming emperor in 1612, but having ruled Hungary on behalf
of brother Rudolf II since 1606 as king Matthias II), who confirmed the noble
status and privileges of the free Magyar families of the Warth. These
decrees were a relief for the concerned, as over time many commoners had
intermarried with them, causing concern about the continuing noble status of
the families. The document of king Matthias II dated February 16, 1611 not
only once again affirmed the privileges of these families, but soon
afterwards these privileges were put on record at the catholic parish rectory
of Vasvár which at that time apparently served as the center for land records
of the region. I have most of these details from the entry about the
Oberwart family Zámbó in Iván Nagy's volumes on Hungarian families [6].
The document issued by emperor Rudolf II on February 18, 1582 is most
instructive as it not only refers to the confirmed privileges (such as
allocation of new land, tools and livestock), but also for the first time
names the 65 families who enjoyed these privileges. The following list of
these names provides also some of the alternative spellings (there were more
of these over time). An asterisk is placed against the name of families for
which a little bit of extra information can be found in the books of Nagy
than just the reference to the 1582 document, and two asterisk are noted in
cases there is significantly more information in the Nagy. The best covered
entries in the Nagy are about the Bertha family (including a picture of the
family's coat of arms) and the Zámbó family. The latter entry includes the
coverage of the history of the border guards of Oberwart as reported by me in
this article. Most of the additional information in the individual family
entries refers to later branching out of these families to other counties in
Hungary. Readers with ancestors among these families should also consult the
books on Hungarian noble families by Béla Kempelen ("Magyar Nemes Családok"),
the book by Gyula Balogh (recently re-published with a new chapter added by
Márton Szluha) on the noble families of Vas ("Vas vármegye nemes családaj"),
the book by József Palatinus ("Vasvármegyei nemes családok története"), and
the little books on the various censuses of nobility (for years 1726/27,
1754/55, 1781/82, 1835, and 1845) in Vas county written in the 1930s/40s by
Dr. Kálmán Horváth.
This now is the much-published list of the Magyar noble families of the upper
"Warth" from the document of year 1582:
1. Ádám
2. Adorján (*)
3. Alberth
4. Andorko (Andorkó)
5. Balás
6. Balla
7. Barthomej
8. Becsker (Becskér)
9. Beökeös
10. Benkő
11. Bertha (**)
12. Bertók
13. Dongó
14. Eördögh (*)
15. Fábián
16. Fajt
17. Farkas
18. Filep
19. Finta
20. Folta
21. Gáll
22. Gángol (Gangol)
23. Geörögh
24. Gerőtz (Gerőcz)
25. Hágen (Hagen)
26. Hegedős
27. Hegyi (*)
28. Heöbők (Heöbök)
29. Imre (*)
30. Jáky
31. Jost
32. Kántor
33. Kászmér (Kaszmér)
34. Kelemen
35. Kiss, aka Steft
36. Kondor (*)
37. Kolár
38. Leeb
39. Magyar
40. Merth
41. Miklós
42. Műer (Müer)
43. Nagy
44. Orbán (**)
45. Osvalth (Osvald) (*)
46. Otth (*)
47. Pajor
48. Páll (Pál) (*)
49. Patyi (Pathy? **)
50. Pongrácz (**)
51. Pyerker (**)
52. Sejper (Seper) (*)
53. Simon
54. Sisko
55. Stelczer (Stalzer? *)
56. Steft
57. Thisba
58. Tóth
59. Török
60. Tornyos
61. Varga
62. Vas
63. Zabó
64. Zámbó (Zambó) (**)
65. Zarka (*)
When I looked at this list with my Hungarian colleague, it was impossible to
fail to notice how many names look like first names or sound German, or both.
Examples are Osvalth, Fajt (Veit), Alberth, Otth (Otto) and Geörögh (Georg),
besides Stelczer, Jost, Leeb, Hagen and others. This indicates that the
original group of border guards possibly did not solely comprise ethnic
Magyars. Alternatively, perhaps some of the original families of border
guards had intermarried with male ethnic Germans, or members of the group had
adopted (or were tagged with) German names as family names were formed.
Since one of the families in the list, namely family Zambó, gets mentioned in
documents by last name around 1385, the evidence of Oberwart suggests that at
least some of the family names were formed during the late 14th century.
(to be continued in Newsletter No. 103B)
Newsletter continues as No. 102C.
THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 102C
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(Issued monthly by Gberghold@AOL.com)
December 31, 2001
(c) G. J. Berghold-all rights reserved
MARK YOUR CALENDAR - BURGENLAND LANDESHAUPTMANN NIESSL
(GOVERNOR) & PARTY WILL VISIT UNITED STATES IN MID-MAY OF 2002!
This fourth section of our 4-section newsletter contains:
* Junk Email-Spam-Porn
* Stop Spreading Viruses & Worms
* New York Austrian Museum
* St. Kathrein Records Being Digitized
* Historic Burgenland Video
* Site For Austrian Cookie Recipes
* Earliest Croatian Records?
* BB Songbook Website
* Burgenland Bunch Staff
JUNK EMAIL - SPAM - PORN
We seem to be receiving an inordinate amount of junk email lately. Some of it
is quite nasty. I wish to remind you that the BB is in no way responsible for
this slime. It is a fact of Internet life that whenever you visit a website
or add your Email address to an Internet list, it becomes available to those
who search for such things in order to distribute their trash messages.
Therefore, the first thing to do when reviewing your mail is to delete
unread, any that comes from an address you do not recognize or which looks
suspect. Most Spam has a subject line of "hey", "call me", "hiya", "what's
wrong?", "what's up?" etc. When you open it, you'll find an ad or
announcement for porn or some product. At worst, it can contain a virus or
worm or take you to one by hyperlink. Porn often has an obvious subject line.
Email from unknown sources (often foreign countries) with attachments is very
dangerous to open, often carrying virus infection. Open such at your peril. I
also received the following message recently:
"I received the following notice from Yahoo (email server). Because my email
address is posted (as well as all other members), I am now subject to being
SPAMMED. Although this may be closing the barn door after the horse got out,
please remove my email address from your website.
Yahoo message read:
Your email address xxxxxxxx@yahoo.com was harvested by a SPAM robot.
It got your address from the webpage
http://members.chello.at/lagraf1/BB-members/index.html"
My reply:
Our Invitation Letter informs prospective members of the possibility of junk
email if they list with us. We will also add same to our Welcome Letter. It
is your decision whether or not to list with us. I might suggest however,
that if you are interested in the Burgenland, the benefits of such listing
far exceed the dangers. All that is required is a knowledge of how the
Internet works and a little caution. We also strongly urge that ALL email to
BB members and staff carry the letters BB or the words Burgenland Bunch in
the email subject line; doing so suggests legitimacy to the recipient. So
far, we have not been targeted by Spam using those codes. Also remember, if
you are surfing the Internet or using Email these days without a virus
shield, you are putting yourself and your correspondents at grave risk. Read
the next article.
STOP STREADING VIRUSES & WORMS
The latest Roots Web Newsletter carried the following caution:
STOP SPREADING VIRUSES and WORMS-CLEAN UP YOUR COMPUTERS--YOUR GENEALOGY DATA
IS AT RISK
Free Online Virus Scanner:
http://housecall.antivirus.com/pc_housecall/
Use Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 or 5.5?
Be Sure You Have This Patch:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS01-020.asp
Viruses, Trojans and Worms:
http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/virus.html
NEW YORK AUSTRIAN MUSEUM (from New York Times Review, courtesy Rebecca Carr)
* "NEW WORLDS: GERMAN AND AUSTRIAN ART, 1890-1940,"
Neue Galerie New York, Museum for German and Austrian Art, 1048 Fifth Avenue,
at 86th Street, (212) 628- 6200 (through Feb. 18). This superb addition to
the Museum Mile in Manhattan, ensconced in an impeccably renovated mansion,
brings some welcome balance to a city in which European modernism usually has
a French accent. The opening show's survey of art and design from the
Viennese Secession to the Bauhaus includes six paintings by Gustav Klimt, a
wall of watercolors and gouaches by Egon Schiele and a room ablaze with the
undiluted colors of German Expressionist paintings. Unusually fine, often
rare examples of furniture, silver, jewelry and tableware by Otto Wagner,
Josef Hoffmann, Wilhelm Wagenfeld and Mies van der Rohe are installed with
particular sensitivity.
The building's interior has been altered, and sometimes merely tweaked, to
complement its new mission, most spectacularly the echt Viennese coffeehouse.
It is all just about perfect. Hours:
Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 6 p.m.
Admission: $10; $7, students and 65+; under 12 not admitted (Smith).
ST. KATHREIN RECORDS BEING DIGITIZED (from Frank Teklits)
As you have read from the BB newsletters, I have also completed digitizing
some of the 1895 - 1905 marriage records of Szentpeterfa. I am now well into
doing the same for the records of St. Kathrein, that fellow BB member, John
Lavendoski, photographed while in Burgenland in the summer of 1999. I'll
probably complete digitizing the birth & marriage records (1804 - 1829) of
the village in the next few weeks. I did take a quick look at the death
record images of St. Kathrein to see what they were like, & may be asking
some of you some questions about death records in general. The script writing
of the death records that I've looked at appear readable, but the age at
death terminology appears confusing. Perhaps, if I look at the death records
over a longer time period, I may be able to grasp the methodology used.
Digitizing church records is akin to watching grass grow; it takes a long
time to complete a relatively short time period from a set of church records.
It's been almost a full time effort for me for the past 2 1/2 years. It'll
be all worthwhile if they are someday useful to the membership rather than
sitting idle in the desks of a few of us.
HISTORIC BURGENLAND VIDEO (from Albert Schuch)
A video cassette entitled "Historisches Burgenland" has been released a few
months ago. Since it has been recorded using the VHS PAL system, it is
probably of no use for the average American viewer.
The cassette includes short films from the years 1921 (Austrian policemen
under enemy fire in Agendorf / Agfalva), 1922 (Socialist rally in Hornstein,
plus a few pictures from a soccer game Eisenstadt vs. Hornstein), 1924
(session of the provincial government, with governor Josef Rauhofer and
others), 1925 (opening of the new railway line connecting Pinkafeld with
Friedberg/Styria), 1928 (main square of Stegersbach on a busy day), 1929
(opening of the new government building in Eisenstadt, with Austrian
President Miklas and Chancellor Schober etc.), 1930 (Out and about in the
Burgenland; a most interesting 15 minutes tour from north to south), 1931
(various: Jewish ghetto in Eisenstadt; gypsies being registered by the
police; passport checkpoint on Lake Neusiedl), 1932 (various: home of Franz
Liszt in Raiding, Mariasdorf church, mining in Neufeld), 1933 (folk customs
in Neckenmarkt; traditional pottery in Stoob - two separate films), 1934
(rally with Chancellor Dollfuss in Neusiedl am See, with governor Hans
Sylvester), 1940 (festive event of Nazi youth organizations BDM and HJ in
Oberwart), 1945 (Russian tanks rolling into Burgenland), 1954 (Haydn's skull
coming "home" to Eisenstadt), 1958 (Hungarian refugees and the situation
near the Iron Curtain; folk customs of the Croats in Klingenbach - two
separate films), 1961 (passion play in St. Margarethen), 1963 (American
Burgenländers arriving on Schwechat airport), 1969 (factory work in
Stegersbach), 1970 (Governor Kery visits the Seewinkel, where engineers are
drilling to find oil), 1971 (overview on industrialization), 1985 (indigo
printshop of Josef Koo in Steinberg), 1989 (Austrian foreign minister Alois
Mock and his Hungarian colleague Gyula Horn cut through the barbed wire of
the Iron Curtain), 1994 (opening of the Seewinkel National Park), 1996
(general impressions two years after joining the European Union) and 2000
(President Thomas Klestil visiting the Austrian Army, which is guarding the
border near Kittsee).
Most of these films, especially the older ones, are quite interesting. They
vary in length between 30" and 14' 34". The latter is the longest by far,
with the second longest only amounting to 4' 30". Most of the films have a
running time of only about one or two minutes, with the total running time
amounting to 60 minutes.
If your video/tv-system supports the European PAL VHS technology, you can
order the video from the "Filmarchiv Austria" (http://www.filmarchiv.at/) in
Vienna or from the publishing house "LexList12"
(http://www.kbk.at/ll12/index.htm) in Oberwart, Burgenland. The cassette
costs 298 Austrian Schillings (21.60 Euro), postage not included.
SITE FOR AUSTRIAN COOKIE RECIPES (from Ingeborg Schuch))
Brother Albert has come across a rich selection of recipes for traditional
Christmas cookies. He has forwarded the address to me, suggesting that I
share it with you since this is "my department," which I do with great
pleasure. I have looked at a number of recipes, and if I find the time I will
try out a few myself, either for our Christmas get-together at the bank in
Vienna, or later, when I am home in Kleinpetersdorf.
http://germanistik.uibk.ac.at/people/kekse/index.htm
In the weekend papers I read about a book you may find interesting as well:
"Das Herz europaschwer." This is a collection of short stories (originally
published in 1997, plus audio book, Picus Verlag) about people with two
"halben Heimaten." The author is Fritz Kalman, a man torn between Vienna,
where he was born almost 90 years ago, and his second home Montevideo,
Uruguay, to which he fled in 1938.
EARLIEST CROATIAN RECORDS?
One tax that the Ottoman Turks levied on subject peoples was what is referred
to as the "Boy Tribute System." Every three years Turkish tax collectors
would visit non-Turkish villages which they had subjected and select the
finest male children for shipment to Constantinople and training as imperial
soldiers and servants. This system was introduced by Sultan Murad II in 1432
AD in Greece and the Balkans and abolished in 1638. In order to insure that
all boys were considered, village priests and elders were required to keep
parish rolls of names and birth. It is possible that such records still exist
although I have never heard of them before reading the following book. These
records would predate the church records (originated by the Council of Trent
1545-63) by at least 100 years, although few of the boys selected would have
subsequently married and had descendants. The "Boy Tribute System " did not
apply to Hungary proper but it did apply to Croatia. Source: "Lords of the
Horizon" by Jason Goodwin, Henry Holt Publisher, New York, 1999, pps. 56-60.
BB SONGBOOK WEBSITE (from Hannes Graf)
(ED. Note: If you haven't visited the BB songbook for some time, you are in
for a treat. Hannes Graf and Tom Steichen have been busy expanding this site
with words, music and sound. It now includes many folk songs from the
Burgenland area. To go there, hyperlink (click on song book) from the BB
Homepage. It may take a little time to load depending on your system, as
Hannes is driving resources to the maximum. I'd also like to remind new
members that the music they hear (your speakers must be on) when they go the
Homepage is the "Amerikalied"-a song very popular with Burgenland and other
immigrant groups. It is our theme song and hauntingly nostalgic. You'll find
both the German and English words at the song site. Our thanks to Hannes and
Tom for continuing to expand this great addition to the Homepage.)
There have been problems printing the words and music to the songs. Hannes
writes:
We've added text with printer solutions to the first page of the songbook.
I've tested some printers and the best way to print it out is with a 70%
scale. This works most Laser printers (HP, Xerox) and some Inkjets. For those
who have none of these printers I plan to allow a graphic copy. I wanted at
first to make Acrobat-PDF files, but if we make all in this way the pages
become too big.
So I've made only the two immigrant songs "Amerikalied" in PDF. If someone
wants to have the others also in PDF, I will send it via Email. But this
service is only for BB-members, so we should make a notice to the next
"Newsletter". All songs are available in PDF-format.
END OF NEWSLETTER
BURGENLAND BUNCH STAFF (USA unless designated otherwise)
Coordinator & Editor Newsletter>Gberghold@AOL.com (Gerald J. Berghold)
Burgenland Editor> albert.schuch@gmx.at (Albert Schuch; Austria)
Home Page Editor> hapander@spacestar.net (Hap Anderson)
Internet/URL Editor> ARKRESH@AOL.com (Anna Tanczos Kresh)
Contributing Editors:
Austro/Hungarian Research>fritzkoe@mindspring.com (Fritz Königshofer)
Burgenland Co-Editor>klaus.gerger@usa.net (Klaus Gerger, Austria)
Burgenland Lake Corner Research>dkneb@tnics.com (Dale Knebel)
Chicago Burgenland Enclave>tglatz@aol.com (Tom Glatz)
Croatian Burgenland>fteklits@home.com, (Frank Teklits)
Home Page village lists>ardsleyut@mstar2.net, (Bill Rudy)
Home Page surname lists> steichen@triad.rr.com (Tom Steichen)
Home Page membership list>lagraf1@chello.at, (Hannes Graf, Austria)
Judaic Burgenland>71431.1612@compuserve.com (Maureen Tighe-Brown)
Western US BB Members-Research>rfunger@home.com (Bob Unger)
WorldGenWeb-Austria, RootsWeb Liason-Burgenland >cwardell@aon.at (Charles Wardell, Austria)
BB ARCHIVES>(can be reached via Home Page hyperlinks)
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