Anbytarforum
Särskilda ämnen & övrigt => Discussions in English => Swedish history => Ämnet startat av: Adham Loutfi skrivet 2015-04-17, 01:14
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In researching my ancestors in Färingtofta and Väsby from the 1700s, I'm finding one man whose wife appears to be German because of her last name (Westphal).
I also found records for her in northern Germany. From that I started learning about the territory of Swedish Pomerania, in what is now Germany and Poland.
Does anyone know how common it was was for Swedes to marry Germans and move back and forth between the Swedish mainland and Swedish Pomerania?
Thank you!
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Hi Adham
I am not an expert on this field but have encountered Swedish Pomerania in my research as well.
Swedish Pomerania existed between 1630 and 1815 i.e. almost 200 years. Try to google it for more information. Due to the military presence there was a lot of movements as well as marriages during the time. (Not only during the period but also after it, one of my ancestors was born in Stralsund 1818 and came to Sweden to join the Army in 1837. He married a Swedish woman.) Historically for Swedes and Germans to get married is relatively common. Not only for soldiers but a lot of craftsmen, especially smiths and glass blowers, moved to Sweden. Before that there was the Hansa in the Baltic so several cities in Sweden do have German parishes. I hope this is to some help.
regards
Anna
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Anna,
Thanks for this response! I read a little about the history of the area, but wasn't sure about the daily interactions between Swedes and Germans, so this helps.
Regards,
Adham