Tracing German Ancestry in Eastern Europe

Just because your relatives spoke German doesn't mean they came from Germany. Learn how to research the millions of Germans from Slovakia, Romania, Russia and other places beyond Deutschland's borders.

This 8-page guide to tracing ancestors in the German-speaking enclaves of Eastern Europe includes:

• history of German settlement in Eastern Europe from the 1700s to 1900s and the political factors that led to it
• overview of records to look for
• breakdown of the origins, destinations, migration history and genealogical records of seven groups: Deutschbalten (Baltic Germans), Bukovinans, Karpatendeutsche (Carpathian Germans), Donauschwaben (Danube Swabians), Gottscheer, Siebenburger Sachsen (Transylvanian Saxons), Volga Germans and Germans from Russia
• map illustrating the locations of these enclaves
• toolkit of websites, books, organizations and archives for further exploration