Michael, Thank you so much for this explanation. It is interesting...... another lister told me that this might be the case as a village that he was familiar with was ruled by 6 different entities. THANKS again. Lowell Kuntz Michael Palmer wrote: > On Fri, 17 Nov 2000, Lowell Kuntz <jlkuntz@fuse.net> wrote: > > > A 1789 map of the Pfalz indicates that the village of Bruchweiler was > > under the control of Freiherr Schenk von Waldenburg. My Wordsworth > > Concise German Dictionary says that Freiherr means Baron. I am guessing > > that Waldenburg is an area-name for the region. What I can't determine is > > the meaning the word Schenk. Could this be the surname of the Baron who > > controlled the area? A different 1789 map says that the area was > > controlled by the Hochstift Speyer. Could it be that the Baron was > > appointed by the Bishopric of Speyer to administer to this region? > > Bruchweiler belonged to the Amt or Herrschaft of Dahn, which was ruled > jointly by the Hochstift Speyer (3/4; as part of the Oberamt Lauterburg) > and by the family of Schenk von Waldenburg (1/4). Source: Friedrich > Gilardone, 'Herrschaften in der Pfalz vor Ausbruch der franz"osischen > Revolution,' in _Beamtenverzeichnis und Statistik des K"oniglich- > Bayerischen Regierungs-Bezirkes der Pfalz_ (Speyer 1870), pp. 225 and > 228. Gilardone lists 45 separate jurisdictions in the Palatinate at the > outbreak of the French Revolution. > > Schenk von Waldenburg is a family name. It is derived from the medieval > office of Schenk or Mundschenk = hereditary cupbearer. There are several > German families unrelated to one another that derive their names from > the office of Schenk, the most well known of which is the family of Schenk > von Stauffenberg. > > Michael Palmer > --- > Michael Palmer > Claremont, California > mpalmer@panix.com