Rodziny - Polish Genealogical Society of America

Mo i k r e w n i.p l—A Re v i e w o f a Po l i s h Ge n e a l o g i c a l We b Si t e w i t h Su r n a m e Ma p p i n gspecific region in Poland and thus providesno starting point for researching thesurname. I’ve established that there are anumber of unrelated families who bear thisname. Therefore, old-fashioned documentsearches offer a better chance of finding anancestral village for my family.Some surnames, such as Czopor (frommy mother’s side), have no separate feminineform and no diacritical marks, andtherefore there is only one map for that surname(Figure 5). Since Czopor is an uncommonname, this map has proven to be veryuseful. This surname shows high concentrationsin southeastern Poland.The data from the “Mapa nazwisk”search engine is comparable to the datafrom the searchable database at http://www.herby.com.pl/indexslo.html, which some call the“Rymut site,” after Kazimierz Rymut, thePolish professor who first compiled andpublished the data. Both sets of figurescame from the Polish government agencycalled PESEL, and both show the frequencyand distribution of surnames borne byPolish citizens—the Rymut site with datafrom 1990, Moikrewni with data from 2002.For some time it has been possible to createsurname maps by taking data from theRymut site and plugging it into the appletat http://www.genpol.com/Mapa+main.html. Butthat mapping program is not as sharp andeasy to use as Moikrewni’s.It’s interesting that Moikrewni shows1,710 more Śliwińskis than the Rymut sitedoes. [Editor—Rymut said the 1990 datalacked figures for about 7% of the Polishpopulation, so the more accurate 2002 datawill often show larger numbers.] The Rymutsite combines the figures for the masculineand feminine forms, whereas Moikrewnigives separate maps and pages for eachform, and the total is up to you to calculate.The Rymut site breaks data down by the49 provinces of 1990, whereas Moikrewni’snumbers are broken down by current countiesor powiaty, not the 16 current provinces.The greater detail of Moikrewni’s data,and the ability to place your mouse over alocation on the map and see a county orcity name pop up, are particularly valuableto anyone not too familiar with Poland.Genealogists looking for all variantsand all data during searches may wish toconsult Rymut’s Dictionary of Surnamesin Current Use in Poland at the Beginningof the 21st Century, a CD published in8 Rodziny, Spring 2008Figure 5. Map of Czopor surname showing its comparativelylimited distribution in Poland.2002 by the Polish Genealogical Society ofAmerica (formerly sold by the Society, butnow out of print). That CD gives completebreakdowns of PESEL’s 2002 data for everycounty in which a surname appears, whereasMoikrewni lists data only for the 10counties in which a name is most common.Moikrewni’s maps, however, illustrate datafor all counties, not just the “top 10.”Moikrewni also allows you to incorporatethe surname maps it generates intoyour blog or family Web site. Naturally,the map includes the Moikrewni logo as areminder of where it came from.The forum portion of the Web site ishelpful for those with very good Polishwriting skills. Fortunately, as mentionedearlier, there is an English-language versionof the Web site, http:// www.itsourtree.com,and it provides contact information that willrespond to questions in English. The folksthere were very helpful with my inquiries.The English site does not have a surnamemapping feature, but you can access theMoikrewni site by clicking on the Polish flagnear the top right of the home page.Polish-language family tree Web sitesare aimed at the growing number of Polesinterested in genealogy. These sites attractnew clients by offering different free amenitiesthat make the experience potentiallymore fruitful. With a little bit of assistance,Polish-Americans can also use these freeamenities to benefit their research.