Thank you so very much for sharing! I am SO PROUD to say that I can finally be almost entirely certain I am the great-granddaughter of a Rusyn! My paternal grandfather's father was clearly Rusyn. All Greek Catholic, ancestors came from villages where Rusyns lived, met the criteria you listed for immigration (Grandpa's father came to the US in 1900 while his mother came over to visit in the year 1912 -- and the siblings came in between those years), etc. But the biggest clue I found was that my great-great-grandmother listed "RUTH" on the Ellis Island info at immigration for ethnicity. Originally, they had somehow put "Slovenian" but my smart grandma knew to correct it. I like to think it was her way to tell me over a hundred years later. :D Their family was from Mikohaza, Alsoregmec, and a couple of towns in what is now Slovakia (Cel'ovce and Lastovce). The genealogist I hired to help us find info about their family agreed that we are most definitely Rusyn! I am still wondering about my great-grandmother, but her case is a little more unique. Her mother was Greek Catholic and father, a Roman Catholic, so it is a little less clear on that side. I have been actively trying to learn more about Ruthenian/Rusyn heritage and culture because so much of it just disappeared over the years in our family. Thanks for your video -- you really helped to confirm what I know! :D
My great - grandfather was employed as an agent for railroads, steel mills and coal mines in Western PA, Pittsburgh area.....prior to WW1 he was an officer in the Czar's Army with his cousin who was also an officer in the Hungarian empire....They BOTH own land and farms in several different countries!! Russia and Hungary and present day Slovakia....anyway....my great - grandfather brought 8 SHIPLOADS ( an estimated 10,000 FAMILIES) of Ruthenians (Carpatho-Russians, Rusyns) to America for work in the mills and mines and railroads of the Pittsburgh area, and also Cleveland and Chicago and Detroit areas. So similar of the Hispanics coming north to do unskilled, dirty, hard labor work with NO benefits and long hours (12 to 16 hour days/6 days a week). The native ("Dirty Johny Bull English") would not do these jobs and at slave wages of 10 CENTS an hour, complained that the "Hunkies" were destroying the wage level of the American workers. Bottom line is that if you are a "Hunky" in Western PA or Ohio or southern Michigan or even Illinois, you may be here because of what he did. He had spoken 8 different languages of all Europe but went back to the "old country" to save as many of his people as he could, or who wanted to come to America. (He worked as the Military Attache' to the French in Paris and knew there was a war coming.) He came to the Rusyns and offered them visas, working papers, and passage on the ship to America. THAT is why nearly all Ruthenians came to America BEFORE WW1. After the war started, so many died in fighting for Hungary or Russia. Sometimes they were relatives!! Sort of like the American civil War...except they lived under different governments and neither wanted to fight anybody!!! (a good reason why both Austria-Hungary and Russia Empires disintegrated because of WW1). There is a social club in Johnstown PA that was founded by my grandfather. It was called the Carpatho-Russian Club. But during the McCarthy years of the late 50's the local Congressman told my grandfather they should change the name and stop using the "Russian" in it...So, they changed it the Carpatho-American Club....You can see this in the Tom Cruise movie, "All the Right Moves" which was filmed in Johnstown in the early 80's. PS: if you notice my last name, you will realize that the last man that walked on the moon was also a Hunky (Ruthenian)...my cousin...second-generation Ruthenian-American. And Madame Currie....although she lived in Poland was also of Ruthenian origin. And the element Ruthenium is argued to be named after her...for all her research into radioactivity and physics. PSS: the term "Hunky" is a derogatory slang for people who immigrated through the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The agents at Ellis Island could not pronounce their names but recognized the Hungarian seal...thus they just called them "Hunky". Prior to the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian empire, if you were Austrian, your official language was German. If you were Hungarian or of any of the dozen different Slavic ethnicities, your official language was Hungarian and ALL your official documents were in Hungarian. Also, many people, Ruthenians....emigrated to America via Russia or Poland or Germany or many other Eastern European countries. This so many Americans have lost their TRUE ethnicity and origins. Some did it to assimilate, others to have support from the predominant ethnicity they ended living around, others to survive. Some to hide from Bolshevik agents that were sent to assassinate anyone that would return to lead an uprising against the Bolshevik Communists.
I am 1/4 Rusyn from my mothers side. My grandfather is from a tiny village in Slovakia between the Ukrainian and Polish border. I always believed that we were a dying breed but your videos opened my eyes. Thank you.
The only thing I might add is that many Rusyns in America left the Byzantine Catholic Church to form Russian Orthodox churches. Since some Russian Orthodox folks may not know their family was originally Byzantine Catholic, mentioning Russian Orthodox may help some people discover their Rusyn ancestry.
This was exactly spot on in my case. My Grandparents were “Russian Orthodox” so I never would have guessed that in Jasionka, Poland where they were from, birth and Baptismal records were found for them in a Greek Catholic Church. They must have only become Russian Orthodox once they were in America.
and Ukranian Orthodox as well....there is a break-away church in Johnstown, PA that is a "Ukranian Orthodox" but in all aspects except the priest being married, is of the Ruthenian Rite. All you have to mention is the Ruthenian Rite and you ARE Ruthenian!! I have met many Roman Catholic Priests that say, "I have heard of that?!" LOL Like they learned in seminary school decades ago!! But we do have our own Metropolitan Bishop and do not marry priests (although that may change), and recognize the Bishop of Rome as the Holy See. Not the Bishop of Constantinople. Or Kyiv and SURELY NOT the Bishop of Moscow. PS : I have distant family in Pittsburgh I never learned about till I was in my 20's, by accident. It seems, my great grandfather who brought the clan to America also had a younger brother, who wanted to break away from the "patriarchy" of his older brother, and decided to convert to Roman Catholic. Both of these brothers each had families of 15 CHILDREN!!! and live 2 blocks from each other. Because the younger brother denounced his heritage and became "Americanized"....they never spoke to each other again...neither did their 30 children!!! If it wasn't such a head shaker, I'd LOL at that. BUT that was how determined those old "Hunkies" were of holding onto their identity.
Has nobody here heard of the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Diocese? Its one and only bishop has his see in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
Thank you for sharing, I already knew I was Rusyn. As my father's parents were Štefančik and Kundrat respectively and my father already grew up in a Rusyn village, (Legnava).
Im 50% carpatho-rusyn, my grandpa was born in uzhhorod, Czechoslovakia (now ukraine but was Czechoslovakia when he was born) when he was 7 (sometime in 1927). My great grandpa was rusyn, but he was American and served in the army overseas in europe where he met my great grandma, my grandpa had dual citizenship so him and my great grandma met him over here and came through ellis island. My grandmas side is not as clear, but i had a great, great uncle that died from the spanish flu, so i know they were over here longer. My grandparents met at their church. Its such a cool ancestry to have because its so unique. I was raised in a byzantine catholic church. Im really lucky he told me as much as he did before he passed, he taught me to be proud of it. When i try to explain what carpatho-rusyn is to people, they get so confused and don't know what im talking about. 😂 its fun to explain though. Im trying to find my family that's still over there because there were some that stayed back and for whatever reason, they lost contact
Great video! I'm 1/2 Rusyn, since my father was 100%. His father's parents were Kovalyak and Kovalcik from Circ and Orlov, Slovakia and his mother's parents were Adam and Ropicky from Golice, Poland. I just wonder if my grandmother would have considered herself Lemko. She's been dead since 1980, so no one's left to ask. Great channel and I subscribed 😊
Thank you, very well done presentation. Like many people of Rusyn background, it was a confusing and long journey to clarity. You've now shortened it. I very much agree with your assessments of both Ancestry and Family Search as my experience has been similar. Hope this helps.
Both sides of my family are rusyn. The first few censuses taken they have a different country of origin/ethnicity for each one from ruthenia and rusyn then Austrian and Galicia then Poland. Every 10 years it’s something different for the same people it had me quite confused when doing research into my family tree. They moved to northeast pa to work in the coal mines late 1800s. My great grandfathers birthplace is listed as uteshko in the obituary but I can’t seem to find this town/village. Maybe the name changed since?
My great-grandparents were from Galicia and put Rusyn down as their language. They were Greek Catholic and immigrated around 1909. Do you have any suggestions on Next steps as far as finding what town or area of Galicia they might have been from? One of their surnames was Palica so I'm thinking it would have been more on the Polish side, but that's speculation on my part.
Looked up your surname on some Rusyn databases and it seems like it's definitely Lemko-Rusyn (welcome to the club!). You are definitely going to be looking at Western Galicia instead of Eastern. I can't link attachments in RU-vid comments, however the places it listed were as follows *Woroblyk Kop., Woroblyk Szl. (4), Odrechowa (5)*. It is probably one of these. If you have any other questions feel free to email me at lemkowithhistory@gmail.com and I'd be happy to help. Link to one of them, Ordrechowa: www.google.com/maps/place/Odrzechowa,+Poland/@49.4469993,21.7580552,9.8z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x473c1539794704e1:0xdcf75b6ecd975b38!8m2!3d49.5455507!4d21.9751183
My great-grandfather was Rusyn. He was from Sambor, Galicia, Poland. He noted on his declaration of intent. He stated he was Rusyn Ruthenian (Russniak) (Ruthenian), on the ship manifest record. He departed from Bremen Germany to migrate to the US. I would really love to find his birth record, but I can’t find him on any databases and don’t know what archive to reach out to.
1/2 Rusyn, my Baba wrote down Seredne', and so was my grandfather. I guess my grandfather started walking when the village was taken over, we have no idea how he got to the states. We were Greek Catholic, but wonder if they were also Jewish. Thanx for the information. My grandfather told me often, remember you are carpato-rusyn.
I am 100% Rusyn. All four of my grandparents were Rusyn and (of course) both my mother and father. While my mother's side of the family was Greek Catholic, my father's side was Orthodox. I grew up in a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, PA called Ruska Dolina. It's hard to imagine now, but when my sister and brother were going to school, the Rusyn's (Greek Catholics) were not allowed to enroll in the Slovak church parochial school in the neighborhood. There was a clear difference between the Rusyns and the Slovaks.
I know that I'm Rusyn but a good thing to see is if the "birthplace" on census records from the US change anytime between 1900 and 1950. My great-great grandfather's "birthplace"/"native country" in 1910 was "Austria-Hungary", in 1920 was "Czechoslovakia", in 1930 was "Poland", in 1940 was "White Russia", and so on. Another tip is look at church records, as Slovakia has very good christening records all the way back to the 1800s. A third tip is to connect with the Carpatho-Rusyn Society in the US who can help you find resources to find the region where ancestry came from. For the Greek Catholic and emigrated early, be careful as now you might be Russian Orthodox or Roman Catholic. The Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church where my great-great grandparents attended had to close due to loss of population, which split my family into Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic (RO side wanted to keep the eastern rite tradition but the RC side said they were in communion so switch to roman rite). My great-great grandparents, my great-grandparents, and my great uncle are still buried in that Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church's cemetery
This is a very good point. My best friend's maternal grandparents lived in a country called Russia, until they came to America in 1912. Their relatives who still live in Europe live in a country called Poland today. Shifting borders make things confusing. When asked their ethnicity, my friend's family would variously answer Russian, Polish, Ukrainian, or Slovak--depending on the mood that struck them. They never once said Carpatho-Russian--despite the fact that they belonged to a Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Church. About half the Carpatho-Russians in my town belong to that church, and the other half belong to the Byzantine Catholic Church. The people in the two churches were all related to each other, however.
Thank you LWH! I have been binge watching your videos. I can't settle on my own ancestry. I had always believed them to be ethnic Poles. However my paternal great-great-grandfather claimed Ruthenian on his immigration paperwork as well as in the 1910 census. Is there any reason a Pole would claim such a thing? The facts around his life all appear Polish (lived just outside of Sanok, practiced Roman Catholicism here in the States, Polish last name), however his claim to being a Ruthenian can't be ignored. Anyone have any help?
Glad you enjoy my content! Pretty much the entire circle of villages around Sanok were Lemko-Rusyn except for the city itself so if he was from just outside it would be somewhat unlikely that he was a Pole. Many Rusyns who came to America both: #1) Have Polish surnames because of proximity to Poles #2) Converted to Roman Catholicism Heck, even many of my own family from far deeper into Lemkovyna became Roman Catholics once here. Those Rusyn places by Sanok had even greater influence from Poles than down by the Slovak border. If he claimed to be Ruthenian on his immigration forms, I would take that as fact over any church denomination before or afterward.
My paternal grandfather’s side is entirely Irish and my paternal grandmother’s side is Lemko, as well as other european ethnicities. My maternal grandparents… no clue.. my mom was adopted. Although, she has taken dna tests to find what ethnicity she is and I know that she’s Polish, and others that I can’t remember. The Polish makes sense because we live in the Chicago area, where she grew up. She hasn’t done any ancestry to find her biological family, because she doesn’t want to cause any problems with the biological family because some of them might not know about her.
Although my surname is through marriage to a Spaniard, both of my parents were Hungarian. My uncle traced the ancestry of my mother's side of the family. Her maiden name was Ujhelyi- of noble lineage... the Tisza Ujhelyi- Ujhelyi line. The family tree has many Slovak - sounding last names of women. Like Lehotsky, Sulyovsky. The birthplaces are in Bratislava, and the Ukraine. In Tiszaujhely village ( Novo Selo) the Greek Orthodox church is restoring an old family curia ( estate) and manages the family cemetary. Do you think my family has Rusyn ancestry?
My great-grandmother was identified as Ruthenian on her passenger list record to the US in 1911, and she was married in a Greek Catholic Ruthenian Church in the US. However, I am still confused because her home village was north of Lviv, near Sokal, so not that close to the regions that are typically indicated as being Carpatho-Rusyn. Do you have any insights into why this could be?
Could you please tell us the song /intro to your video because it's really beautiful and interesting. (the Name) And also this Channel is one of the most interisting there is about Subcarpathian-Rus. I've watched the movie "Silverlands" a movie that describes the occurences from 1918-1939 in Subcarpathian-Rus, it might be interesting for others
Do you know what is the best for getting dna test because I'd like to jut know my Ancestry really. Also don't think I have any Rusyn ancestry sadly but I think it is mostly german/uk base
The best test for you depends on your ancestry because different companies had different databases. (I know, that's rather circular reasoning.) There's a channel called GeneaVlogger where they talk about this with some frequency.
I’m from Romania and my village was made up by ruthenians from Bucovina. Is there a chance I can find out if I am a descendent? The sites in the video didn’t help
Generally speaking Rusyn settlements in Romania are less known or recorded than in Slovakia and Poland. However it would be a good idea to reach out to the Rusyns of Romania organization, as they have pretty good records. The majority of Rusyns settlements are in Maramuresh, with only a few in Bucovina.
Thank you. My father and grandfather were Rusyns (Rusini) and were born in Vojvodina and they were greek-catholics. So I am a half Rusinka, but unfortunately my father and his siblings (uncles and aunts) never spoke "rusinski" with me, so I only understand something of this beautiful language, but it´s very hard to speak.
Glad this video could help you! And welcome to the LWH Rusyn community. I think we have quite a few other Pannonian Rusyns or descendants who can help you as well. If you ever have any questions just email or comment and I can get back to you.
@@lemkowithhistory It’s a bit more complicated than that haha. My grandma’s mother was born in Pennsylvania and moved back to Čertižné, and had my grandma. 2nd Great Grandma: Born in Čertižné Great Grandma: Born outside of Scranton, Pennsylvania Grandma: Born in Čertižne
I started this year and am shocked that I am hitting a brick wall. I have gone to the places you suggested, the Family Tree one is the worst, IMHO- they had none of my ancestors correct- even my mom and dad- it is about finding names for them to baptize the dead- not necessarily to find genealogy- though they will tell you it is. I am not giving up- wish I could read Peruski (sp)
Hello! My name is Marcos Milan and my grandparents lived in Radoszyce and Wernejowka, that are close to Sanok city. They moved to Brazil after the WWII. I went to Poland in 2012 and knew Radoszyce. Unfortunatelly, Wernejowka dosen't exist nowadays. My grandfather was Jan Milan and was born at 01/01/1920; my grandmother was Maria (Gucz) Milan and was born at 04/31/1922. If anyone had some informations about the families Milan and/or Gucz, I would like do know and I will be stay pretty grateful... Greetings from Brazil.
I just did a DNA test, I was Bron in Bedevlya near Khust, it says that I'm mostly from west Ukrain but I also have rumenian, Baltic and Scandinavian DNA but I think that's where the name rush came from
I am rusyn also, my ancestors was rusyns also, my mom grew up in Village names jakubany in Slovakia and there are everybody rusyns.. Thank u for this video
I just found out my grandfather’s parents were indeed Rusyn via ancestry documents, and his words. He would tell my mom we were black Rusyn, but my ancestry says white Rusyn.
I learned today that I am 1/4 Rusyn and my mom is 50% through our ancestry data! My great grandparents lied and said they were polish when the were early to the USA to avoid persecution. They emigrated between 1880-1900 ish
Grandparents 'born in Austria' Forced to attend Hungarian school. (1st language: Ukrainian) Claimed [russian (?)] at Ellis island (we are Not russian). So, guessing they meant Rusyn ?
100% if they were forced to attend A hungarian school, as no Ukrainians lived in the Kingdom of Hungary. If it were a Polish school for example it'd be a little more complicated.
There's another distinct group of Rusyns that are today referred to as Pannonian Rusyns. They were centered in what is today Western Serbia/Eastern Croatia. They, too, were under Austro-Hungarian rule and very often had Hungarian-language names forced on them because of Magyarization. Their main village was modern-day Ruski Krstur, in those days referred to by its Hungarian name, Bácskeresztúr (which sounds like BOTCH-keh-res-toor). Most US immigration folks didn't know the Hungarian phonetics, so when they heard our ancestors say this village name, they often transcribed it as BACH KERESTUR. To complicate things, after WWI part of Austria-Hungary then became Yugoslavia, so one might find *that* listed on documents that were created in the US *after* the actual Rusyn immigration.
Proud Rusyn from Slovakia here. Very unique ethnic group of people. Even though I was born in Slovakia I found out that Rusyns don´t have the same mentality as Slovaks in general. It´s very interesting!
because we are different that slovaks and historicaly we had our own state about 800 years ago , believe me ve are more closer to the ukrainians than slovaks . Rusyns are ancestors of ukrainians so we are unique nation
My maternal grandfather was Rusyn/Lemko. His parents and siblings were sent by force from Poland to Soviet Union. Fortunately, before the war, my grandfather moved to another part of Poland and was thus not detected by the communist authorities. Unfortunately he was not able to see his family any more.
1899 ✅ Greek Catholic ✅ Listed at Ellis Island as having come from "Austria" ✅ Found the village of their origin in the Lemko Region ✅✅✅ Ancestry DNA slaps me right in Lemko region on their map. ✅✅✅✅✅
3rd generation full Rusyn American :) The Greek Catholic thing is not entirely accurate; depending on the region of Ruthenia in which they came from, many Rusyns were either Catholic or Russian/Ukrainian Orthodox.
Quite right, though most were Greek Catholics to be fair. I can't remember if I gave an example of my Roman Catholic ancestor during that part, it has been a bit since I watched this video. As a short guide I think it did it's job nailing down the most likely traits.
@@corinneh.b.7765 Galicia (not Garlice) was ruled by Austria from 1772 to 1918. Poland did not exist at the time. Your ancestors were citizens of Austria.
@@annaderevjanik5494 First of all, I misspelled G O R L I C E. As in the county (poviat). Second of all, THAT IS THE CORRECT PRESENT DAY VILLAGE, COUNTY AND COUNTRY. Would you like me to add Lesser Poland Voivodeship? I know full well the history of the lands my ancestors come from. Please mind your business. Thanks.
My Rusin grandfather came in 1921, a few days after his 18th birthday, to join his sister, who emigrated in 1918. His nephew, full Rusyn, came in 1930. Not all Rusyns came to the US between 1870 and 1914.
@@lemkowithhistory No, not at all. My point was that my 100% Rusyn grandfather came from Slovakia after your time window, as did many Rusyns after WWI. Your window of arrival is meaningless. I also just found out that there was another stream of Rusyns to the US in the late 1940s and 1950s, smaller than pre-WWI but still present, of people fleeing post war deprivations and coming Communism. Most identified as Slovak or Polish by that time but were still Rusyn. Three of my 100% Rusyn family members left Spisska Nova Ves at that time. It is possible that your ancestors left Europe outside the stated time window but were still Rusyn.
@@nohjuan3048 I feel like I'm losing braincells talking to someone who can't understand generalizations. It would be like saying because some Irish people migrated to the US in the 1950s means the fact that the majority left Ireland after the potato famine is wrong. Lol.
@@lemkowithhistory That's ok, I feel like I lost brain cells talking to someone who uses broad generalizations with no basis in fact. You literally said, "If your ancestors emigrated before 1870 but after the First World War, it is less likely they were Rusyn." You have no facts behind that general statement. For one thing, WWI was over in 1919, not 1914. A significant wave of Ruysns left in the 1920s just to get away from the chaos of post-Nazi Europe. Second, there were waves of Rusyn immigration that were not related to war. Economic pressures, educational opportunities, the desire for new adventures were all part of the decision to leave Europe for a time or forever. What you are calling a "generalization" is actually an over-simplification that is inaccurate.
@@kikimudri Well there are 100,000+ Rusyns in Slovakia, so sure there are more in Ukraine, but that doesn't mean that is the only place. Do you mean you are Pannonian Rusyn? Or are we talking about the white croats here.
My family’s last name is Baleka (Originally spelt as Balyka in English.) Family moved here in 1914. Many last name changes. First census actually spelt our last name as Bylyg (Билыйґ/Білыйґ) Great Grandfather was said to have been from Primorsky Odessa which bordered Bessarabia at the time of his birth. I suspect my family is Rusyn. Also my great grandfather listed his faith as Greek Catholic and later on was made an Orthodox priest serving in the carpatho Russian diocese of America.
Odessa is very far away from historic Carpathian Rus'. The Carpatho-Russian church background is interesting though. If he really was from Odessa, Greek-Catholic is unlikely (but you never know with these things, maybe they wrote down the town wrong and he really was from Karpatska Rus). Did your great-grandfather marry a Rusyn who was a part of the Carpatho-Russian church? That is another way to prove some type of Rusyn connection. As of right now, there isn't much to go on in terms of verifying ancestry. Self identity is a whole other matter though if your family has identified as Carpatho-Russian or Carpatho-Rusyn for multiple generations.
@@lemkowithhistory thanks for the reply! I did some digging and it would seem that the Canadian government would also in certain cases refer to Orthodox as “Greek Catholic”. Even though that’s not the case. It turns out my family name is actually Cossack in origin, which I found out thanks to a good genealogist. From the Zaporizhian Cossacks. His wife’s maiden name was Barvinok and was a descendant of Ivan Barvinok. So maybe somewhere down the line my family has Rusyn lineage. Either way, I love your channel and I find it interesting as it paints more of the amazing picture of the Slavic peoples. But in terms of my family, they identified as Malorussian (before Ukraine’s independence).
100% Rusnak/ Rusyn / Carpatho-Russian / Ruthenian.....pick a name...any name! BTW.....my cousin Eugene Cernan, also another Ruthenian, was the 8th and Last Man to Walk on the Moon. He is also 2nd Generation Ruthenian.
I remember first seeing Cyrillic newspaper on kitchen table my great aunt stell was the only one who knew mother tongue. I was only 4 and innocently asked " Is this russian ?" And was angrily told No! So strongly l was scared. They were catholic but put down from Galicia, Austria near city presbyl never polish.
Make something about Michal Strenk, he was also Rusyn, Village named jarabina, flag of our fathers,battle of Iwo jima, he was there... One of this 5 heroes, hi is now in arlington he is hero for Slovakia, but i thing also for US people
@@lemkowithhistory And i forgot, but is here one more from rusyns, i wrote it because i just love hockey.. Peter Bondra his ancestors was from jakubany, he is legend of Washington capitals, but now second after Alex Oveckin
