OBERKALBACH, HESSEN, GERMANY Village of My Berthold & Ullrich Ancestors
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Ceramic name plaque on the Berthold house.
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HOUSE NAMES All the houses in Oberkalbach have a name. I have yet to discover the true origin of this custom. It seems to stem far back into history when surnames were not yet in use. With some imagination one could decide that the house name had something to do with a characteristic of the original occupant or his occupation. My mother lived in the Fansterhanse house. It is said that the original owner may have been a window (Fenster but spoken as Fanster in dialect) maker whose given name was Hans. To lend credence to this idea, it is known that when my grandmother prepared the soil in her household vegetable garden behind the house, she found many small pieces of glass. Other examples of house names in this village are: Klaneschclose, possibly from the fact that the occupant was klein (small), which might be spoken as klanesch in the dialect of the area, and named Clos (short for Nicolaus). Thus, Little Nicolaus. Mellichbaeuersch may have signified Milch (milk), spoken as Mellich in dialect, and Bauer (farmer), spoken as Bauersch in dialect. Thus, Milkfarmer. This is how it works: My mother's name was Katharina Berthold and she lived in the Fansterhanse house. She was referred to as Fansterhanse Katharina. Everyone knew that a Berthold family lived in the Fansterhanse house. Since there was not a great variety of names used in this village, there were many people with the same names but the distinguishing feature was the house name. There might have been more than one Berthold girl with the name Katharina in the village, but there was only one Fansterhanse Katharina. Her mother, Eva Ullrich, had been born and raised in the Lense house and thus was known as Lense Eva, even after she married Johannes Berthold and lived in the Fansterhanse house. In that way, people could identify from which family she stemmed. When I visited Oberkalbach in June 1999, oval ceramic house name plaques were displayed with pride on most of the houses. Even today, villagers are referred to with the use of the house name, even though in the church and civil records their official names are recorded. The following is a list of house names and the family names of the occupants in the late 1900's. This list was created by my cousin Hans Juergen Berthold who still lives in Oberkalbach.
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HOUSE NAMES = FAMILY NAMES Ackerts = Loeffert Allerhanse =Jost Angerbuergesch=- Loeffert/Schaefer Backesch = Dorn Backeschwilli = Ommert Baehme = Muth Baehmjes = Boehm Baltesch = Rueffer/Dorn Baltesche = Jost Balzer = Foeller Balteschedora = Jost Bawels = Lamp Beieresch = Sauer Biene = Heil Bortels = Ommert/Berthold Buchstowe = Rueffer Buernruefferesch = Rueffer/Dorn Buettnersch = Boehm Cloesjes = Schmidt/Lang Close = Voegler Danjels = Mueller Dornahnse = Ommert Dornhengesche = Dorn/Voegler Dornschneiresch = Faust/Hornung Drewesch = Schmidt Fansterhanse = Berthold Fanstermaechersch = Schaefer/Dorn Fauste =Jost/Richter Flaschmitz = Mueller Flurschuetze = Jost/Mueller Foellerhanse = Ommert Fretzperesch = Ullrich/Jost Fuersterlense = Heimel/Mueller Gehammperesch = Schaefer Geisbergerhunungs = Hornung/Jost Geisbortels = Lins Goetzehanse = Heimel Grotze = Mueller Growegehannjes = Ullrich Groweschusteresch = Kraushaar Haeusjes = Jost Hamels = Heimel/Sauer Heilschusteresch = Heil Heinesch = Schaefer Heineschclos = Schaefer Heinzbahlse = Heimel Heinze = Schmidt Heinzjuerje = Hohmann/Schmidt Herwets = Herbert/Muth Hoehls = Foeller Holl = Dorn Hunungs = Hornung Ickelesch = Jost/Ommert Icklesch = Blum Janne = Lang Jordans = Schomann/Ommert
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HOUSE NAMES = FAMILY NAMES Joste = Jost Juergs = Baus Juerjels = Berthold/Frohwerk Kare = Heil Klanesch = Foeller Klaneschclose = Glock, Berthold, Ullrich Klaneschneiresch = Heil/Roerig Klanheinzjes = Glock/Dorn Kluehs = Klueh/Blum Kockclose = Kraushaar Konrodschneier = Jost/Schaefer Krasse = Jaeger Krause = Schomann/Dorn Kraushaare = Kraushaar/Roerig Kraushaarsch = Rueffer/Heimel Krugs = Rueffer Kuertjes = Heil/Hach Laffelhanse = Lamp Lamphanse = Mueller Lense = Ullrich/Dorn Lohmuehle = Mueller/Joerges Lubis = Rueffer Luebislies = Voegler Mannse = Frischkorn/Manns Martahannes = Kraushaar Mechelschreineresch = Dorn Mellichbauersch = Jost/Berthold Melchjes = Blum Moelljost = Jost Neuhanse = Breitenbach Nickels = Mueller Nickelschneiresch = Mueller Ochse = Ochs/Ommert/Jaeger Oewerbuergesch = Jost/Malkmus Oewerfretzperesch = Ullrich Oewerhamels = Heimel Richtesch = Voegler/Lamp Ruppelhanse = Mueller Saueresch = Sauer Schuljuerje = Hommel/Jost Schmitz = Breitenbach Schmitzullesch = Berkel/Kolepp Schneiresche = Jost/Schmidt Schoeffesch = Ickler Scholze = Jost/Kirchner/Hornung Schustesch = Jost Schwetesch = Mueller Stampels = Ullrich Troegesch = Heil Ulljes = Hornung/Kolepp Voegelesch-Frischkorn Wanesch = Malkmus Weichhans = Gaetner/Rueffer Weisbeneresch = Mueller Wethanse = Jost/Dorn Zimmermanns = Jost/Schomann
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Copyright 2000-2010 by Sue Foster. Please contact me for permission to copy. I am interested in knowing why this information is interesting to you :-)
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