In a message dated 98-08-03 00:22:24 EDT, woody@nni.com writes: > Can you tell me what Alsatian means? It was mentioned in a previous > note that the Geiger surname was derived from German/Swiss//Alsatian Scott, Alsatian means they came from Alsace. Alsace is a part of western France which has had a rather unstable history being part of Germany and France at different times. Strasbourg is in Alsace if you look at a map of current day France. The people of Alsace come from varied backgrounds and at one time many were German speaking. Villages of Alsace also have both German and French names due to the turbulent history (although they are known today by their French names). My own Geiger family came from Alsace as did the ancestors of several others on the list. At least some of the Geigers in Alsace were originally from elsewhere in Germany or Switzerland. Joan