Hi again Amanda, My father-in-law (the Slovak) is terribly uneducated, and when we have tried to trace his roots (even with a trip to Slovakia), we didn't get very far. But he did mention one time he thought the Stefan name might be German. I had tried to tell him that, especially since it doesn't follow the traditional spelling of true Slovak names. The fact there is illegitimacy in his lines doesn't help my research either. Since your g-father was b. in NW Slovakia, it could be he was one of the many Ger-Russians in transit from Germany to Bessarabia. Have you tried the Bessarabian lists? If not, check out these web sites: http://www.bessarabia.com http://www.AHSGR.org http://www.lib.ndsu.nodak.edu/gerrus/ On the last site, there is a link called "Electronic Discussion Groups" that will lead you to the various Ger-Rus lists. Also, to search the online records that have been indexed for Bessarabia, go to: http://pixel.cs.vt.edu/library/odessa.html then click "To the Library" and click on the Full Text Search button. Type in whatever name(s) you are looking for and see what might pop up. Also, don't ignore the HASS spelling when dealing with the HAAS name. You might even want to consider HAASE. After exploring these avenues, if you find something promising, get back to me and I'll put you in touch with someone more expert on the resources than I am. Good luck with your searching! Joy Hass Stefan :) ----- Original Message ----- From: "The Lovitts" <malovitt@aurum.net.au> To: <HAAS-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, February 01, 2000 12:23 PM Subject: [HAAS-L] Slovakia > > Although my HASS line is German-Russian, my father-in-law's heritage is > also > > Slovak. Small world, huh? He spent some of his youth in Belza, near > Kosice. > > > Hi > > It is strange, as my father always referred to his father as a German, > although the village he was born in is in north west Slovakia. With border > changes over the years, it has become a little fuzzy I think. > > Amanda Lovitt (nee HAAS) > Boulder, Western Australia > malovitt@wn.com.au > http://carmen.murdoch.edu.au/community/dps/research/lov01.html > > ______________________________