ZIERING
Chaim, a WW I Austro-Hungarian army hero, joined his brothers in U.S., made money and returned, in around 1936,
As a result of this publication we might be lucky to find some Zierings which I listed as missing since WW II, but, to Western Ukraine (at that time - part of Poland). Accordingly to witnesses, murdered with his family during WW II by more likely, we will produce the document which will make it clear that the reason for the Jewish Zierings missing from the Nazis.
the Central Eastern Europe is not because “they all moved to America”.
Schoil - no trace since WW II.
I wish you and your family all the best in your endeavors. We will keep in touch.
Meir Lichtman (probably took a family name after his mother), married his cousin Scheindla Ziering - no trace since Yours truly
WW II.
Jakub Ciring
Female children of Ruwen Wulf and Tauba:
Roza (the oldest female, and as my father says, the most beautiful), married Jakob Dornfeld. They lived in the town P.S. I hope that you don’t mind if I sent the copy of this letter to my Ziering relatives, who asked me similar questions of Dolina, near Stanislawow. Children of Roza Ziering and Jakob Dornfeld:
about my family tree,
Izrael, my father, born 1914. Until graduating from high school carried family name of his father, but after finding out
Note:
that his parents are not “properly” married by the standards of the Polish law - had to settle for Ziering (Germanic pro-
During the summer of 2012 Inez and I went to Alberta to attend Maya Ciring’s wedding – and to meet Jakub and his family:
nunciation is “Tziring”) in his personal documents. After occupation of the Western Ukraine by the Soviet Union in 1939,
Danuta, Jakub, of course, and Jerry, Jakub’s son. Maya was getting married to a great guy named Chris Walsh, whose parents
conscripted into Soviet army. His name was transcribed phonetically into Russian alphabet - (insert “Ciring” spelled in
were from St. John, New Bruswick – just three hours from where we live in Canada. The trip is fresh in my mind, as I write
Russian). At the end of WW II married Irina Dolgov (my mother) in Siberia. They came to Poland in 1946. The family
this three weeks after our return. It was a wonderful vacation for a host of reasons – not the least of which is that Jakub has
name was rewritten back into Latin alphabet, letter for letter, as Ciring (“c”-stands in Polish language for the sound “tz”).
always been looking for the family that was taken from him during the World War II, and I have always been looking for more
Anna Dornfeld, born 1923. Probably perished in 1943 in the city of Lvov with her Ukrainian boyfriend.
family – especially Zierings – to fulfill the prime directive: All Zierings are related: go and find them.
Berta, born 1930. Murdered together with her parents in Dolina in 1943 by the Nazis. (Death of my grandparents and Obviously, Jakub is separated from me by some generations of cousins – but maybe not. My cousin Bill Ziering (Long Island my aunt confirmed by reliable Polish witnesses – Mr. Wladyslaw Prosowicz among them. Dolina itself was destroyed by Bill) swears that one of the many family secrets was that Wolf Reuven had another family in Europe which he left behind him –
the Nazis in the same year as a punishment for partisan activities in vicinity).
aka: didn’t turn up with here. I think Bill has this mixed up with Wolf’s second wife’s family – Sarah – who was married in Europe Daughters of Ruwen Wulf and Tauba – continued:
to another man, was told by a Gypsy that there would be two deaths in her family, and who soon after lost both her husband and Malka, married name Wieseltier. No trace after WW II.
son to illness. She was from Dorohoi and came to New York where she worked for Wolf/ William as his secretary – maybe – or Rahel, married name Zelzer - No trace after WW II.
just another sweat shop girl (more likely), and was courted by the widowed and burdened with children Wolf. Bill says no, and Yentl (Yenta), married name Berger. No trace after WW II.
Bill descends from her, whereas I descend from Wolf’s first wife, Helen Silverman.?
Lea, married name Weitzner. No trace after WW II.
That Jakub and I felt like brothers from the first is not really surprising, because we had been exchanging emails for a year In Holyn there were other Zierings related to Ruwen Wolf:
before Inez and I went to Alberta. That Jakub looks a lot like Bill Mag, Peter Kaye, and Uncle Jack Ziering is more telling, how-
- Urin Ziering, the miller, with two sons, Eleazar and Bernard,
ever. And the amazing resemblance between Jakub’s son Jerry and my cousin Long Island Bill, and even to me in the eyes, was
- Herschel Ziering, the landlord, with sons Leon and Abraham and daughter Scheindla (who married Meir Lichtman,
remarked upon by Inez from the first time she met Jerry.
son of Ruwen Wulf Ziering).
Maya, however, does not look like the girl cousins on my Ziering side – she actually looks more like a Liftig – but she’s In Stanislwow there were other Ziering relatives:
beautiful – which is not to say my Ziering girl cousins aren’t. Maya wants to name her children Wolf/ William, Rose, and I Anna The owner of the candle factory, one doctor, one lawyer and one owner of the chemical storage “Excelsior”.
– which parallels her own family names as well as my own.
In Dolina lived other Zierings, supposedly not related to our family: Markus Ziering with son Fischel and daughter The Zierings are very very smart – as is Jakub’s family. That could and is being claimed by everyone these days – but still.
Malka.
There is so much to say about our trip and I haven’t digested it all.
I was born in 1947 in Poland in the town of Szczecin (until the end of WW II, a German town of Stettin - aren’t you I joked with Jakub that there is a scene in Chevy Chase’s “American Lampoon European Vacation” in which Chevy tracks
gettnig dizzy of this mixed up Central European geography?). I am the only child of my parents, but I have a half brother down his wife’s German relatives in some Bavarian shithole. Chevy’s thoroughly American family doesn’t speak andGerman and from my Mom’s first marriage in Russia. During my 31 years in Poland, I didn’t meet another Ziering or Ciring or heard the thoroughly Bavarian farmer and his wife don’t speak any English.
about one (beside us) living there. I left Poland with my wife Danuta (maiden name Romanowska-Skop - there is another Chevy’s family stays three days and Chevy’s kids tear up anything and everything in their ancestral farm house; and all the Jewish name story behind that) and my son Jeremiasz in 1978 by Vienna, Austria. In Vienna’s phone directory I found dinner talk is from Chevy’s side: about Aunt this and Uncle that –with the uncomprehending Bavarians nodding politely and quite a few Zierings, even Rosa Ziering, but I was told that they are not Jewish, and since I am not able to communicate in generously feeding them. When Chevy pulls away in his station wagon, the farmer turns to his wife and says (subtitled): “Who German - I did not investigate it any further. (Imagine phoning a full blooded Austrian and asking him in broken German the hell are they?”
if he isn’t, by any chance, a Jew from Galizia. Actually could have been a lot of fun. Too bad I could not find anybody with The camera pans to the address on their mailbox – which was one number off from the address of Chevy’s wife’s real
enough chutzpah to pull this one off. Maybe your brother or cousins will try it while in Europe).
Bavarian relatives.
The first year in Canada, we lived in Victoria. British Columbia then moved to Calgary. We love being here.
I joke with Jakub that this could be the situation with us, and he seems to accept the daring possibility with grace. But I don’t Not long ago, during my business trip to New York, I checked the Manhattan phone directory and phoned Robert
believe it. The Zierings were a large and prosperous family in Europe, and, for the most part, have succeeded over here; and I hope I Ziering who lives there (he was kind enough to assure me that, as far as he is concerned, all Zierings are related).
did something to bring them together on this side of the Atlantic – especially with Allison’s parents, Jakub’s closest relatives.
One day, our daughter, Maya (who was born in Calgary), turned my attention to a young actor on the TV show
Certainly, no one could be prouder of having relatives like Jakub and Danuta and Maya (Chris Walsh), and Jerry, than I am
“Beverly Hills No. something”. And this is how I rediscovered American Zierings, descended from my great-grandparents.
– and also Inez.
I’m writing this letter in full support of the idea of publishing a “Ziering Directory”.
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