The answer is, depends. If you know someone who writes and reads German well, who is willing to help you, then I suggest you write your newly found cousin in German. Ask that if possible they respond in English. You probably don't want to wait for translator to translate. <G> If you don't know someone, then write in English--at worst they won't respond. Christina Date: Wed, 20 Aug 2003 15:26:21 -0700 > From: "Ginni L. Morey" <glmorey@earthlink.net> > To: HESSE-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: [HESSE] Emailing Germany Protocol > > I have a question that I hope someone can help me > with. I have recently > found thru Ancestry.com someone in Germany who might > be a cousin. They have > posted their data in Ancestry World Tree in English. > When emailing this > person do I assume that they speak and read English > or do I have someone > help me write an email in German? I don't want to > offend them and very > ignorant about protocol when emailing foreign > countries. Thank for the > help. > - > -------------------------------------------------------------- > Ginni Morey from Campbell CA > Santa Clara County Historical & Genealogical Society > Web Master: > http://www.rootsweb.com/~cascchgs/ > Personal Home page: > http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~reinwald > mailto: GLMorey@earthlink.net __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com

A bit more free advice - about worth what you paid for it-- A lawyer, Max Knecht, in Switzerland seeing my last name on e--mail was kind enough to suggest that since he lived near a village - Baldingen, Aargau, where there were many Laube families he would look up a few facts for me in local churches. We developed this plan - I wrote him in my language - English - and he wrote me in German. This way at least the writer gets the facts down on paper in the language in which he is least likely to make mistakes. This developed over the years into the most interesting correspondence. Max was able to get access and understood local records that I could never have done! I have lost track of him. He did not answer my last e-mails - several years ago now. His Knechts were intermarried with a Laube family, but we could not for many years connect that Laube family with my tribe. Then following up on a remembrance still alive in my family - that one Laube brother was born in Germany and the other in Arrgau. Switzerland. We narrowed our search down the northwest corner of Arrgau where there remained until after 1800, a German-Arrgau border, and there in a local church he found a Laube family that could have resided in house on the border - so open bedroom was in Germany and the other was in Switzerland. And that Laube family had a Knecht that was in his line and the Laubes were in mine - we were -from memory - sixth cousins. For you there are ways of getting very quick rough inaccurate translations - and in the meantime you can send your German text to on-line translators who will do an excellent job for free - in a week or ten-days Or at least this was so several years ago-- Keep your sentences very short and to the point. Do not try to make jokes. Limit each e-mail to one subject if at all possible. Be brief not windy as I am - best regards and I do hope this works out for you - it is an invaluable contact. Hal ----- Original essage ----- From: "Wilson Christina" <fmlyhntr@yahoo.com> To: <HESSE-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2003 9:03 AM Subject: [HESSE] Re: Emailing Germany Protocol > The answer is, depends. If you know someone who writes > and reads German well, who is willing to help you, > then I suggest you write your newly found cousin in > German. Ask that if possible they respond in English. > You probably don't want to wait for translator to > translate. <G> > > If you don't know someone, then write in English--at > worst they won't respond. > > Christina > > Date: Wed, 20 Aug 2003 15:26:21 -0700 > > From: "Ginni L. Morey" <glmorey@earthlink.net> > > To: HESSE-L@rootsweb.com > > Subject: [HESSE] Emailing Germany Protocol > > > > I have a question that I hope someone can help me > > with. I have recently > > found thru Ancestry.com someone in Germany who might > > be a cousin. They have > > posted their data in Ancestry World Tree in English. > > When emailing this > > person do I assume that they speak and read English > > or do I have someone > > help me write an email in German? I don't want to > > offend them and very > > ignorant about protocol when emailing foreign > > countries. Thank for the > > help. > > - > > > - ------------------------------------------------------------ > > Ginni Morey from Campbell CA > > Santa Clara County Historical & Genealogical Society > > Web Master: > > http://www.rootsweb.com/~cascchgs/ > > Personal Home page: > > http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~reinwald > > mailto: GLMorey@earthlink.net > > __________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software > http://sitebuilder.yahoo.com > > ______________________________