In 1945 more than 70,000 Transylvanian Saxons were apprehended by Soviet occupiers and deported to labour camps in Siberia. The colonization continued until the end of the 13th century. history. The first superintendent of the Saxons Evangelical Church, Paul Wiener, was elected by Saxon pastors at a synod on 6 February 1553.[28]. Other traditional Transylvanian Saxon dishes include: The Transylvanian Saxon dialect (endonym: Siweberjesch-Sksesch or simply just Sksesch; German: Siebenbrgisch-Schsisch) is a very conservative and rather archaic German dialect that has evolved throughout the passing of time relatively isolated from other German dialects (apart, most notably, from Transylvanian Landler). The Transylvanian Saxons, called like that since medieval times, are representing a western population with unknown origin, settled in the Arch of Romanian Carpathian Mountains in the earliest of . The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed. [47][48] This particular pastry is still served in restaurants and bakeries in southern Transylvania, particularly in Braov and Sibiu counties, where, historically, there had been a more significant Transylvanian Saxon ethnic presence compared to the other counties across Transylvania. siebenbrgischen Namen auch die jene Nachnamen auf die in den 17ten The Web Sie kamen durch mit nur einen Namen The tracht looks like a garment from a bygone era, and, with the changes the Saxon community has faced over the past few decades, to some degree it is. The territory colonized by Germans covered an area of about 30,000km2 (10,000 sq. The word means 'god-given' or ' gift of God .'. . Zakel has traced her family history in this village as far back as the 17th Century. They are a combination of German settlers from multiple regions along the river Mosel in Germany, which settled in Transylvania in the 11 th century. Later, with few opportunities emerging after communism ended, as many as half a million left between December 1989 and spring 1990, mostly to Germany, as freedom of movement opened up the country. The Transylvanian Saxons (German: Siebenbrger Sachsen; Hungarian: Erdlyi szszok; Romanian: Sai) are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania (German: Siebenbrgen) from the 12th century onwards. Its 2018 U.S. Census population estimate is 34,215. 1947 verschiedene Familiennamen. Today, Romanias Saxon population is around just 12,000, most of whom are elderly. . Each person in a family might have a different descriptive identifier and those Although the primary reason for Gza II's invitation was border defence, similar to employing the Szeklers against foreign invaders in the east of Transylvania, Germans were also sought for their mining expertise as well as the ability to develop the region's economy. . The Saxons were a pious people, and the church, which acted as a safe house when under siege, was the centre-point of their communities. Although the Saxons did their best to resist and even tried to valiantly fight back the Mongol invaders, their resistance was eventually turned down by the Mongols and many of their settlements were destroyed or ruined in the process. Nearly 150,000 Romanians have this last name. Die In the 18th and 19th centuries Sephardic and Orthodox communities emerged in the Banat and the . u. Saxons who had fought on behalf of the Third Reich were often left marooned in Germany and unwanted by the new authorities in . An alternative term for them in standard German is also 'wehrkirchen' (i.e. For decades, the main . In 1989, still 95,000 Saxons lived in Romania (approx. Romania's significant German (Saxon) heritage is obvious in Southern Transylvania, home to hundreds of well-preserved Saxon towns and villages. On the history of the Transylvanian Saxons, it is very important to note what former federal German president and professor doctor Theodor Heuss (FDP) stated, namely: "their history is a piece of German history as a whole".[21]. The literal translation of this Romanian last name is 'black beard.'. (default) detailed compact very compact clear. The similarities with Luxembourgish are both in lexical nature and grammar nature. At the time she didnt mind: as a young woman, it meant liberation from oppressive communism, a chance to forge a life on the back of newfound opportunities in a wealthier country. After the end of World War I, on 8 January 1919, the representatives of the Transylvanian Saxons decided to support the unification of Transylvania with the Kingdom of Romania. Typische Schsische Familiennamen - Typical Saxon Family Names Other resolutions: 320 213 pixels | 640 427 pixels | 1,024 683 pixels | 1,280 853 pixels | 2,560 1,707 pixels. Transylvanian Saxon; in its longest form Siweberjesch-Sksesch) and remains, still to this day, very closely related to Luxembourgish with which it shares many lexical similarities. . Currently in Romania, about 60% of ethnic Germans reported being Roman Catholic and 40% Protestant (see Religion in Romania). Eastern settlement). The settlers clear the forest and build houses. They got by on one name and used a personal identifier when needed. Ergnzt durch Logik und andere Forschungsquellen, u.a. The new pro-Soviet government of Romania suppressed their historical rights and confiscated properties. Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. However, the Habsburgs still promoted Roman Catholicism to the Saxons during the Counter-Reformation. Anglo-Saxons often named their child by combining parts of the names of the parents. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. . Having lived in Transylvania for centuries, the Transylvanian-Saxons no longer . In the Middle Ages, approximately 300 villages were defended by the Kirchenburgen, or fortified churches with massive walls and watch towers.[29]. In February 1942 and May 1943, Germany concluded agreements with Hungary and Romania respectively, following which the Germans who were fit for military service, although they were either Hungarian citizens (in Northern Transylvania, entered the composition of the Hungarian state through the Second Vienna Award) or Romanian citizens (in Southern Transylvania, remaining part of Romania), could be incorporated into the regular German military units, into the Waffen-SS and into war-producing enterprises or into the Organisation Todt. The official coat of arms of the town of Sibiu/Hermannstadt, with the water lily including the two swords therein. She recently made a series of tote bags from recycled second-hand clothes for a collaborative art project. Emperor Joseph II attempted to revoke the Unio Trium Nationum in the late 18th century. 5 5 In 1714, a personal union was established between Britain and the Electorate of Hanover in the Holy Roman Empire based on the . I cant explain this kind of attachment, Stanciu said. Younger Saxons like Marlene Stanciu and Alex Herberth are returning to these communities and preserving their heritage (Credit: Stephen McGrath). Notably, it was part of the Kingdom of Hungary, a medieval realm that existed roughly . The Mongol invasion of 1241-42 devastated much of the Kingdom of Hungary. The Saxons first arrived in Romanias Transylvania region in the 12th Century from areas that today constitute Germany, France, Belgium and Luxembourg. beschreiben oder auch ihre Persnlichkeit und Manierismen). Otherwise, they enjoyed suzerainty; even Hungarians could not settle down in the Saxon territories. Barbaneagra. The legal foundation of their settlement in southern, southeastern, and northeastern Transylvania was officially stipulated within the Diploma Andreanum (German: Der Goldener Freibrief der Siebenbrger Sachsen, English: The Golden Charter of the Transylvanian Saxons, Romanian: Carta de aur a sailor transilvneni) issued by King Andrew II of Hungary which allocated them the royal land (Romanian: Pmntul criesc or Pmntul regal) under local autonomy known as Knigsboden or Fundus Regius in Latin. For centuries, the main tasks of the Transylvanian Saxons during the High Middle Ages were to protect the easternmost frontiers of the former Kingdom of Hungary against certain invading migratory Asiatic peoples, to bring more agriculture to the region, to instil Central European culture, enhance trade, and boost urbanisation and overall economic development. Stelle-verwandt (aktuelle Wohnung-Stelle, ehemaliger Wohnsitz, Stanciu has a background in anthropology and cultural policy, but now specialises in a range of traditional crafts, while Herberth works as a carpenter and restorer and researches ancient craft techniques. Stephan Ludwig Roth, intellectual, Evangelic Lutheran pastor, revolutionary. In the process of fortifying the borders of the Kingdom of Hungary to the east, they were early on helped by the Teutonic Knights. The Saxon Lutheran Church, a focal point of Saxon politics, lost 55% of its lands, and many towns lost over 50% of their private property (Gndisch 1). Johannes Benkner, former mayor of Braov/Kronstadt. At the same time, especially after Romania's accession into NATO and the EU, many Transylvanian Saxons are returning from Germany, reclaiming property lost to the former communist regime and/or starting up small and medium-sized enterprises. The Kingdom of Hungary's medieval eastern borders were therefore defended in the northeast by the Nsnerland Saxons, in the east by the Hungarian border guard tribe of the Szkelys, in the southeast by the castles built by the Teutonic Knights and Burzenland Saxons and in the south by the Altland Saxons. German borrowing of Jnos. The initial phase of German settlement in Transylvania began in the mid and mid-late 12th century, with colonists travelling to and residing in what would later become known in standard German as Altland (i.e. Samuel von Brukenthal, former Habsburg governor of Transylvania. Ihrer Suche! Tabellen zusammengestellt mit Informationen von: It has forty-three branches and approximately 10,000 members. of those who, Noch eine Eigenheit von schsischen Namen ist das Vorherrschen von, Another peculiarity of Saxon names is the prevalence of Church keeper Hildegard Linzing, who was born in the village, arrives with her young daughter, both wearing a traditional tracht, a floral patterned, finely embroidered dress often worn on special occasions. It has also come in contact with Romanian and Hungarian from which several words were derived. Erkennungsnamen haben, und diese Erkennungsnamen konnten verndert The rapid expansion of cities populated by the Saxons led to Transylvania being known in German as Siebenbrgen and Septem Castra or Septem Castrensis in Latin[d], referring to seven of the fortified towns (see Historical names of Transylvania), most likely: Other potential candidates for this list include: Other notable urban Saxon settlements include: In addition to fortifying their towns over the passing of time, the Transylvanian Saxons also had to fortify their villages by building their fortified churches (the Transylvanian Saxons were initially strongly Roman Catholic then Evangelical Lutheran after the Reformation). In Zeiden gebruchliche Redewendungen. Settlers from the Hermannstadt region spread into the Hrtibaciu River valley (German: Harbachtal) and to the foot of the Cibin (German: Zibin) and Sebe (German: Mhlbacher) mountains. The region was called Royal Lands or Saxon Lands (German: Knigsboden; Hungarian: Kirlyfld or Szszfld; Romanian: Pmntul criesc; Latin: Terra Saxonum or Fundus Regius). Aside from the Saxon seats, there had also been two districts, namely Bistritz/Bistria and Kronstadt/Braov, which had the following territorial extent, as depicted in the maps below: Along with the Teutonic Order, other religious organizations important to the development of German communities were the Cistercian abbeys of Igrisch (Igri) in the Banat region respectively Kerz (Cra) in Fogaraschland (ara Fgraului). The Cleveland group brought together representatives of other Saxon groups in Erie, PA, on 5 July 1902 to form the . In this particular process, they founded or co-founded major historical settlements in both principalities such as Trgu Neam (German: Niamtz), Baia (German: Stadt Molde or Moldennmarkt), Trgovite (German: Tergowisch), or Cmpulung (German: Langenau). The anthem is also known as Siebenbrgen, Land des Segens (literally Transylvania, land of blessings).[57]. A locational surname whose literal meaning is "woodland clearing on or near a ridge", derived from the Old English hrycg meaning "ridge" and leah, meaning "clearing". As a result of these agreements, approximately 95% of the members of the German ethnic group who were fit for military service (Transylvanian Saxons and Banat Swabians) voluntarily enrolled into the Waffen-SS units (approximately 63,000 people), with several thousand serving in the special units of the SS Security Service (SD-Sonderkommandos), of which at least 2,000 ethnic Germans were enrolled in the concentration camps (KZ-Wachkompanien), of which at least 55% served in extermination camps, predominantly in Auschwitz and Lublin. Many saw it as an escape from communist Romania, and willingly left. The letters f and h only appear in loanwords. After the fall of communism in 1989, around 90% of the Saxons who remained fled Transylvania within a few months. aside from Luxembourg, also contemporary Netherlands and Belgium) and from modern day France as well. Gergely Szilvay. These fortified churches, or kirchenburgen as they are known in standard German, had defensive capacities in the event of a foreign attack on a rural Transylvanian Saxon community (e.g. The Saxons, long a commercially powerful force in Transylvania, were hit particularly hard. Size of this PNG preview of this SVG file: 800 533 pixels. Nowadays, the vast majority of Transylvanian Saxons live in either Germany or Austria. Transylvania in Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Lower part: the locator acts as the judge in the village. Stephan Ludwig Roth, an Evangelical Lutheran pastor and intellectual who led the German support for Romanian political rights, eventually opposed the unification of Transylvania with Hungary and was executed by the Hungarian military tribunal during the revolution. First recorded as a surname in Staffordshire, England, but refers to a village in Normandy called Rugles. Use the drop-down list to select a specific part of the site. wahrscheinlich im frhen Mittelalter verloren.). Rooms were built inside the walls, serving as food deposits in times of peace and shelter in times of siege. It is believed to have Jute origin. 40% of the population of 1910), and between 1991 and 1992 another 75,000 emigrated. If you liked this story,sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newslettercalled "The Essential List". Transylvania County, North Carolina - Transylvania County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Today, relatively few still live in Romania, where the second last official census (carried out in 2011) indicated 36,042 Germans, out of which only 11,400 were of Transylvanian Saxon descent. during Roman times, those affiliations seem to have been lost during the Dark . [46], One prominent example of a local traditional dessert of the Transylvanian Saxons is the hanklich (Romanian: hencle or hencle ssesc), a sweet cheese pie with powdered sugar on top (variations include plums as main ingredients, raisins, or other dry fruits). During the Modern Age, they favoured more and more the Romanians in order for the latter to obtain increased and rightful political, social, and cultural rights before the Hungarian nobility, with Transylvanian Saxon intellectuals pleading for the Latinity of the Romanian language and the Romanian people. However: surname spelling has only recently become fixed, and people sometimes Apply this search to the main name collection, the letters in the pattern are compared to the letters in the name, search for an exact phrase by surrounding it with double quotes, this field understands simple boolean logic, force a term to be included by preceding it with a, force a term to be excluded by preceding it with a, sounds can only be searched in names that have been assigned pronunciations, syllables can only be counted in names that have been assigned pronunciations, names without pronunciations are excluded from results. The Transylvanian Saxons (Siebenbrger Sachsen in German) indeed have a long and storied history, and over many centuries they left an indelible mark on the region. Consequently, they had to pay yearly tax to the king and provide military contributions to the royal army in case of danger of attack from abroad. Nonetheless, a sizable Transylvanian Saxon population also resides today in North America, most notably in the United States (specifically in Idaho, Ohio, and Colorado as well as in Canada, southern Ontario more precisely). Staats- oder Volksangehrigkeit). This surname of German origin is a variant of "Meyer," a cognate of the English "mayor". These German settlers were invited by Gza II. On a scorching summer day in the Transylvanian village of apu (Abtsdorf an der Kokel in German), Doris-Evelyn Zakel is busy collecting pears from an old tree in the courtyard of her great aunts traditional Saxon home. The Sachsenheim Originally a house purchased by the Transylvanian Saxons Sick Benefits Society in 1907, the Sachsenheim underwent major renovations in 1910 and 1925. It is an attachment felt by many with roots in this ancient community. As the semi-independent Principality of Transylvania was one of the most religiously tolerant states in Europe at the time, the Saxons were allowed to practice their own religion (meaning that they enjoyed religious autonomy). Obwohl die Deutungen nur genaue Ausknfte ber den The represents the sound [r], which exists in some dialects of Latvian, but not in . Rumniendeutsche in der Waffen-SS, Bhlau Verlag Kln, Weimar, Wien 2007, History of German settlement in Central and Eastern Europe, the "national church" of the Transylvanian Saxons, Villages with fortified churches in Transylvania, arrested by the Soviet Army and sent to labour camps, Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Romania, Association of Transylvanian Saxons in Germany, List of fortified churches in Transylvania, Flight and expulsion of Germans (19441950), "Siebenbrgen und die Siebenbrger Sachsen", "Bodo Lttgen: Positives Einwirken und Mut zur Vernderung", "The History Of The Zipser Germans In Central Europe", "Ethnic German repatriates: Historical background", "Transylvania and the Transylvanian Saxons", "Cine sunt saii i cum au contribuit la dezvoltarea Transilvaniei. This village as far back as the judge in the 18th and 19th centuries Sephardic and Orthodox emerged. In Siberia fled Transylvania within a few months PNG preview of this SVG:. 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