Ziert
Ziert was a family name, but it was changed, i have no living relatives on that side of my family to explain the origin, or meaning behind the name. Family records through Ellis Island say the last place of residence was Wolynien, Russia in 1907.
I haven't been able to find the name anywhere, and I am unsure of the origin because I have been told it was German by family members before. The first names of the men who went through Ellis Island were Emil and Gustav-- if that helps at all. Someone please let me know any information you have, including similar sounding names. thank you.
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It certainly looks German rather than Russian, and Gustav and Emil don't sound very Russian. Perhaps they were from one of the old German communities settled in Eastern Europe. Wolynien looks like a German spelling of Volhynia, now in Ukraine.
The question is - does Ziert represent the German spelling or the non-German pronunciation? If the Z represents the sound then the surname might derive from some given name like Sieghart, and so be the name of a male ancestor. If the Z is the German spelling, then I can only suggest that it could be a corruption of Ziegert, which the "Oxford Names Companion" explains as a metonymic for a maker of goat's cheese (Ziegerkaese).
All very uncertain.
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