Eighty-sixth installment from the diary of my great-grandfather’s sister Alise, written during the First World War. When the diary starts, she is living just a few miles from the front lines of the Eastern Front, and is then forced to
Mappy Monday – Ethnic and Religious Enclaves
Latvia is not and has never been one monoethnic entity. Certainly, Latvians – and Luteran Latvians, at that – have made up the majority, but they are not the only ones living in Latvia. Throughout the years, there have been
Mappy Monday – Administrative Divisions?!
One common point of confusion/frustration when it comes to tracking Latvian locations on maps throughout the centuries is the big jumble of administrative divisions. Some have stayed constant and relatively simple – like cities, albeit increasing in size – while
Mappy Monday – Prefixes Everywhere!
Rural Latvia was and is covered with farms – usually quite small in size, and all with names. Many of these names have been around for centuries – in most cases, longer than surnames. Many of these farm names come
52 Ancestors #37: Marcis Graumanis
Time for Week 37 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! As noted in my first post of this challenge, I am starting with my most ancient known ancestors. This week’s ancestor is Marcis Graumanis, born June 1, 1823
52 Ancestors #36: Pēteris Celmiņš
Time for Week 36 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! As noted in my first post of this challenge, I am starting with my most ancient known ancestors. Sorry that I’ve been delayed on these posts – I
52 Ancestors #35: Ansis Eglītis
Time for Week 35 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! As noted in my first post of this challenge, I am starting with my most ancient known ancestors. This week’s ancestor is Ansis Eglītis, born April 13, 1850,
52 Ancestors #34: Jānis Šīrs
Time for Week 5 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! As noted in my first post of this challenge, I am starting with my most ancient known ancestors. This week’s ancestor is Jānis Šīrs, born October 20, 1819
52 Ancestors #33: Jānis Graumanis
Time for Week 33 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! As noted in my first post of this challenge, I am starting with my most ancient known ancestors. This week’s ancestor is Jānis Graumanis, born c. 1789 and
52 Ancestors #31: Ansis Eglītis
Time for Week 31 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! As noted in my first post of this challenge, I am starting with my most ancient known ancestors. This week’s ancestor is Ansis Eglītis, born c. 1818, died