Fwd: RE: village: Kudrynce, Bukovina, Austria

<x-flowed>Dear Bruce and Randy,

I don't know anything specific about Uscie Biskupie, but I do have a
very similar story in my mother's family. We also have a fleeing the
Czar's army story from Attaki-Soroka in my wife's family and a
general fleeing Russia to Moldovia story in my father's family.
Russia was just a bad place in the 19th Century.

In 1860, my maternal GGF Aron Dovid Barak Kantorji (1843-1927), who
lived in Khotin, Bessarabia, received a draft notice from the Czar's
army. The entire Barak family fled the Russian Empire. The crossed
the Dneister, and settled in Storozynetz, Bukovina, and some of them
later settled in Chernovitz.

Upon arrival in Austria, they changed the surname to Kantorji, for
reasons that are obscure at best. He named his one son born there
Shmuel (there were seven daughters). One uncle or cousin, also
named Sam went on to Detroit, where they changed the name to Brady.
We believe that another went to Israel, but have no further contact.

I have recently developed a probably very far-fetched theory to
explain "Kantorji," which means singer or Canter. According to
Beiderman's Dictonary of Jewish Surnames in the Russian Empire, the
Barak family from Khotin and nearby towns were using an acronym for
Ben Rabbenu Kalonymos. One of the last Askenazic tzaddikim from the
famous Kalonymos family was Shmuel ben Kalonymos heHazzan. He was
killed by crusaders in Erfurt, Germany in 1221 CE. For centuries his
death and the others killed in the Erfurt massacre were the subject
of a special observance. The theory is that Kantorji is a
Yiddishization of heHazzan. These Barak-Kantorjis also featured the
male name Sam very prominently.

Sorry to take this thread on such a tangent . . . but that's my contribution.

Marc Cohen
Palo Alto, CA



>Status: U
>Date: Fri, 6 Jun 2003 16:07:25 -0400
>To: czernowitz-l_at_cornell.edu
>From: Bruce Reisch <bir1_at_nysaes.cornell.edu>
>Subject: RE: village: Kudrynce, Bukovina, Austria
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>
>Jeanne:
>
>My g-g-g-grandmother, Mirele (Miriam) Zimmerman came from Uscie Biskupie
>(aka Ust'ye). I am very interested in learning more about this town which, I
>believe, was a point of escape for young men fleeing Army service in Russian
>Podolia. This, at least, is how my g-g-g-grandfather, Mordechai Gerstein
>and Mirele met. Once across the Dniester you were in Galicia
>(Austro-Hungary) and free of the Russian army. Mordechai was from the
>village of Zhvanets, approximately 3 miles East of Khotin on the opposite
>side of the Dniester.
>
>I am very anxious to know if anyone else on the list has a connection to
>Uscie Biskupie which translates as "Bishop's outlet."
>
>Regards,
>
>Randy
>
>Rand H. Fishbein, Ph.D.


--



TEL/FAX (650) 852-0657 marccohen_at_mindspring.com
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Received on 2003-06-07 14:21:47