Beginner's Guide to Jewish Genealogy

Few Jews live today in the same place their ancestors did five generations back in the family tree. The Holocaust and Jewish migration have rewritten the map of Jewish settlement, causing many Jews to believe it is impossible to trace their Jewish roots back to the old country. This is a misconception, however. Clues to your Jewish ancestry can be found in a wide variety of records, as well as in an understanding of Jewish naming conventions, surname adoption, migration patterns and other resources specific to Jewish culture. Where Did They Come From? While most of the early Jewish settlers in America were Sephardic, many coming from Spain and other areas around the Mediterranean, most Jews living in America today are Ashkenazic, descended from Jews who emigrated from Germany and Eastern Europe between 1880 and the early 1920s. The majority of these Jewish immigrants were from Russia and Russian-held portions of Poland, escaping discrimination and pogroms (extreme persecutions).  more