[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] German Occupation - Latvian - Contractor

[Sig Matt]

  Reiner,
   
  My apologies for a less than instant reply.
  Family matters and some additional research into the Angerburg-Lithuanian connection are part of the reason.
   
  Angerburg/Ostpreussen, is a beautiful area. A series of lakes, a veritable summer play ground.
  Helmuth Meger, a distant uncle by marriage came from the Angerburg area. His family lived there until 1945. They emigrated to Canada after WWII. 
Helmuth married my mother's cousin Edith Streichert in the late 50s in Winnipeg, Canada. They later moved to Vancouver B.C. Canada. Helmuth's sisters were married into a Schmalz family. I am not familiar with the origin of the Schmalz family. 
  Angerburg lies about 95km E-SE of my hometown Kreuzburg in the Polish part of Eastprussia. In my growing up years we had no connection to that area so I'm personally less familiar with that region.
   
  In a book Genealogical Guide to East and West Prussia, by Edward R. Brandt, PH.D.and Adalbert Goertz,PH.D. I read the following:
  Around 1600 "the old Baltic Pruzzen language becomes extinct." In another area they describe that the old Baltic languages (which included Latvia) were 'related'.
  In the time 1714 they speak of settling 'Prussian Lithuanian' peasants in Insterburg.
  1719  'By this time Lithuanian-language worship services are again being held in the entire area north of the Labiau-Wehlau-Darkehmen-Goldap line.
  1722  Gumbinnen becomes the administrative center of 'Prussian Lithuania', which is called
  "Little Lithuania" by Lithuanians.
  1732-33  32000 'Salzburgers' settle in the Gumbinnen area resulting in a Lithuanian minority.
   
  The Lithuanian area of Eastprussia covered pretty much the whole north-east corner of the province down to the Masurian area and Labia-Wehlau line the the west.
  So much on that for today.
  After reading up a bit more I plan to reply with more general information to the mailing list.
  The following translations are out of the Genealogical Guide to East and West Prussia:
   
  Deputant=  land laborer paid in kind
   
  Deputat=  payment in kind e.g., grain, potatoes, lodging
   
  Tageloehner=  land laborer earning daily wage in kind (Deputat), some cash
   
  Mein Deutsches Woerterbuch uebersetzt:
  Vormann=  Vorgaenger 
  Vorgaenger=  jemand, der einem in etwas (z. B. im Amt ) vorangegangen ist, der frueher dasselbe getan hat
    
  Scharwerk=  Frondienst; harte Arbeit 
   
  scharwerken=  (mundartl.) Scharwerk verrichten
   
  Scharwerker=  (mundartl.) landwirtschaftlicher Tageloehner mit handwerklichem Koennen
   
  If you have frurther questions feel free to ask. 
   
  Best Wishes
   
  Siegfried
  sigmatt at sbcglobal.net
   
   
  Reiner Kerp <mail at reiner-kerp.de> wrote:
    Hello Sig Matt,

when you wrote:

> I believe the key to resolving the kontraktneek question
> would be to find someone familiar enough with the
> Latvian language and also familiar with the common
> usage of terms in that area.

you are at the safe side. But as long as we don´t have such a person, thus 
cannot prove the meaning of this word. A situation which we encounter again 
and again and have to deal with. 
   As my mother-in-law doesn´t live anymore, I 
cannot ask her furthermor. She and her family lived at Angerburg/Ostpreußen, 
which is pretty close to Lithuania. As many terms in records are based on 
Latin, I usually get my Latin dictionary and try to conclude, what a term 
may mean.

> I grew up in Eastprussia, I was 14 at the time in 1945.

Who else could be an expert like you!!! Share your knowledge.

Connected to the above topic I was asked what Deputat, Scharwerk and Vormann 
means. As I don´t know this, I just checked my dictionaries, Wiki and 
GenWiki or tried to find a good explanation. Unfortunately I didn´t find one 
good enough to answer.

Genealogy stays being a challange! Conclusions ar no evidence.

Best wishes,

Reiner



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