Jewish Genealogy
Getting Started
Resources relating to Jewish genealogy are located in the Humanities and Social Sciences Department at the Toronto Reference Library, including general handbooks and guides for various countries. The collection includes Canadian, British, European and Holocaust-related material, aided by a strong map and atlas collection.
Searching the Library Catalogue
Suggested Subjects and Keywords:
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)
- Jews – Genealogy
- Jews – [Location] – Genealogy E.g., Jews – Canada – Genealogy
- Names, Personal – Jewish
Suggested Titles:
Biographical Resources
- Adler, Michael. British Jewry Book of Honour
- Cohn-Sherbok, Dan. The dictionary of Jewish biography
- Emden, Paul H. Jews of Britain: a Series of Biographies
- Lipsitz, Edmond Canadian Jewry Today: Who’s Who in Canadian Jewry
- Marcus, Jacob Rader. The Concise Dictionary of American Jewish Biography
- Rosenstein, Emanuel. Latter Day Leaders, Sages, and Scholars: Born between Late 18th and Early 20th Century (index to biographical sources)
- Rosenstein, Neil. The Unbroken Chain: Biographical Sketches and the Genealogy of Illustrious Jewish Families from the 15th-20th Century
- Tapper, Lawrence F. A Biographical Dictionary of Canadian Jewry 1909-1914, from the Canadian Jewish Times
Geographical Resources
- Barnavi, Eli. A Historical Atlas of the Jewish People: from the time of the patriarchs to the present.
- Gilbert, Martin. The Routledge Atlas of the Holocaust
- Great Britain. Foreign Office. Geographical Section, General Staff. Europe, Scale 1:1,000,000. 1915-1918. Covers Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Greece, Poland, Romania, Switzerland, Yugoslavia and northern Italy, eastern Germany and western Russia. MAP DRAWER: Eastern Europe
- Kowallis, Otto K. A Genealogical Guide and Atlas of Silesia
- Lenius, Brian J. Genealogical Gazetteer of Galicia
- Poland 1:100,000 [microfiche]. This microfiche series reproduces topographic maps of Poland issued in the 1920’s and 1930’s. It covers what is now Poland and parts of Germany, Slovakia, Ukraine, Byelorussia, Lithuania, Latvia and Kalingrad Oblast.
- Postal, Bernard. The Traveler’s Guide to Jewish Landmarks of Europe (lists some European Jewish burial grounds)
- Wynne, Suzan. Galician towns and administrative districts
Handbooks and Guides
- Amsel-Arieli, Melody. Jewish lives: 1750 – 1950: a guide for family historians
- Beare, Arlene. A Guide to Jewish Genealogy in Latvia and Estonia
- Ellmann-Krüger, Angelika G. Library Resources for German-Jewish Genealogy
- Glicenstein, Ze’ev. Roots and Remembrance: Explorations in Jewish genealogy
- Himka, John-Paul. Galicia and Bukovina: a research handbook about Western Ukraine, late 19th and 20th centuries
- Joseph, Anthony. My ancestors were Jewish 4th ed.
- Kronik, Aleksander. Some Archival Sources for Ukrainian-Jewish Genealogy
- Kurzweil, Arthur. The Encyclopedia of Jewish Genealogy
- Kurzweil, Arthur. From generation to generation: how to trace your Jewish genealogy and family history
- Malka, Jeffrey S. Sephardic genealogy: discovering your Sephardic ancestor and their world
- Mokotoff, Gary. Getting started in Jewish genealogy
- Rottenberg, Dan. Finding Our Fathers: a Guidebook to Jewish Genealogy
- Sack, Sallyann Amdur. A Guide to Jewish Genealogical Research in Israel
- Skyte, Thea. A Guide to Jewish Genealogy in Germany & Austria
- Tapper, Lawrence F. Archival Sources for the Study of Canadian Jewry
- Wenzerul, Rosemary. A Beginner’s Guide to Jewish Genealogy in Great Britain
- Wenzerul, Rosemary. A Guide to Jewish Genealogy in the United Kingdom
- Wenzerul, Rosemary. A Guide to reading Hebrew inscriptions and documents
- Wynne, Susan F. Finding Your Jewish Roots in Galicia: a Resource Guide
- Zubatsky, David S. Jewish Genealogy: a Sourcebook of Family Histories and Genealogies
Holocaust
- Anders, Edward. Jews in Liepaja, Latvia 1941-45: a Memorial Book
- Buber Agassi, Judith. The Jewish Women Prisoners of Revensbruck: Who Were They?
- Czech, Danuta. Auschwitz Chronicle, 1939-1945
- Dobroszycki, Lucjan. Survivors of the Holocaust in Poland: a Portrait Based on Jewish Community Records, 1944-1947
- Garrard, John and Carol. The Bones of Berdichev: the Life and Fate of Vasily Grossman (Contains lists of Jews from Berdichev)
- Klarsfeld, Serge. Index to Memorial to the Jews Deported from France
- Kugelmass, Jack. From a Ruined Garden: the Memorial Books of Polish Jewry
- Robinson, Jacob. Guide to Unpublished Materials of the Holocaust Period
- Schneider, Gertrude. Exile and Destruction: the Fate of Austrian Jews, 1938-1945 (Lists 2,017 survivors)
Canadian Sources
Local History
- Cochrane, Jean. Kensington
- Medresh, Israël. Montreal of Yesterday: Jewish Life in Montreal, 1900-1920
- Speisman, Stephen A. The Jews of Toronto: a History to 1937
- Thompson, Austin Seton. Spadina: a Story of Old Toronto
Names
- Abensur, Philip. Moroccan Jewish Surnames
- Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Ashkenazic Given Names: Their Origins, Structure, Pronunciation, and Migrations
- Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia
- Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from the Kingdom of Poland
- Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from the Russian Empire
- Beider, Alexander. Jewish Surnames in Prague: (15th-18th Centuries)
- Faiguenboim, Guilherme. Dictionary of Sephardic Surnames: including Christianized Jews, Conversos, Marranos, Italians, Berbers, and their History in Spain, Portugal and Italy
- Guggenheimer, Heinrich W. Jewish Family Names and Their Origins: an Etymological Dictionary
- Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German-Jewish Surnames
Periodicals
- Avotaynu (1985- ) Teaneck, New Jersey. The international review of Jewish genealogy. Access index online.
- Shem Tov (1988- ) Willowdale, Ontario. Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada; Jewish Genealogical Society of Toronto. Access index online.
Other Sources
- Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies. Jewish Genealogical People Finder
- Auslander, Jordan. Index to the Jewish Vital Statistics Records of Slovakia
- Goldstein, D.B. (David B.). Jacob’s Legacy: A Genetic view of Jewish History
- Kleiman, Yaakov. DNA & Tradition: the genetic link to the ancient Hebrews
- Leeson, Daniel N. Four Indices to the 1784 Census of Alsatian Jews
- Mokotoff, Gary. Index to Name Changes in the Palestine Gazette
- Moser, Geraldine. Hamburg passengers from the Kingdom of Poland and the Russian Empire: Indirect Passage to New York 1855-June 1873
- Sack, Sallyann Amdur. Index to Russian Consular Records
- Stern, Malcolm H. First American Jewish Families: 600 genealogies, 1654-1977
- United States. Dept. of State. Index of Jewish Names from the U.S. Department of State Decimal File (RG59) Series on Protection of Interests of U.S. Citizens for Germany, Poland and Romania, 1910-1929; Austria-Hungary, 1910-1939
Jewish Genealogical Society of Toronto Deposit Collection:
Additional resources are available through the Jewish Genealogical Society of Toronto deposit collection which is housed in the Humanities and Social Sciences Department, 2nd floor, Toronto Reference Library.
To view the holdings of the JGS Toronto's Library Collection, visit their website:
Click: Research/JGST Library Collection
Choose: Subject File/Author File/Title
Established as a registered charitable organization, the Jewish Genealogical Society of Toronto provides a forum for the exchange of knowledge and information through their website and newsletter, The Shem Tov, and through its collection of books at the Toronto Reference Library, regular monthly lectures, workshops and special interest groups.
External Resources:
Ontario Jewish Archives
4600 Bathurst Street.
Telephone: 416-635-5391
For further assistance contact the library:
Answerline: 416-393-7131
answerline@torontopubliclibrary.ca
Humanities and Social Sciences Department, Toronto Reference Library 416-393-7175
Contact us: Ask A Librarian
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