[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] Is Nebjanskij/ska a real surname?

[Dana Parker]

Hello all,

I have been trying to find out what happened to my grandmother's cousins, who remained in Volhynia and Ukraine after my great-grandfather emigrated to the US.  Through Odessa3, I found EWZ files (Nazi naturalization records) for her first cousin, Olga Thiem.   She was deemed "heavily Russified", and had 3 adult children missing ("verschleppt").  The application gives the children's names as Arkadij Nebjanskij, Wasilij Nebjanskij, and Nina Nebjanska.  At the time of the application, Olga had been widowed and remarried, so her first husband's full name is not given.  

Is this surname a real name, or a euphemism indicating Olga's belief that they are dead?   Niebianska mean "heavenly" in Polish, and I'm guessing that it has a similar meaning in Ukrainian/Russian.  If they had been fighting for the Red Army in during WWII, she might not have wanted to provide their surname to the Germans.  

Thanks in advance for any assistance.  Hoping to avoid research into a made-up name, if that's possible.  

Dana Parker


Dana Parker