Understand the Meaning of a Maiden Name that Includes a Suffix

If you see one of the four suffixes below at the end of a woman’s maiden name, you will in most cases need to remove the suffix to reveal the woman’s actual maiden name.

1. z (= of) + name ending with ‑ów (a grammatical suffix in genitive plural)

Example: Malka z Altmanów = of the Altmans

Example: Malka z Lewków = of Lewek
Note that a given name (with or without a suffix) after a woman’s name is likely a patronymic^* rather than a true maiden name. For example, Malka z Lewków (or Malka Lewek) can mean either that Malka’s father had the given name Lewek or that he used the patronymic Lewek.

2. z (of) + name ending with ‑ich (a grammatical suffix in genitive plural for names ending in ‑cka [feminine of ‑cki] or ‑ska [feminine of ‑ski])

Example: Malka z Kremskich = of the Kremskis (but a woman would use a ‑ska ending: Kremska)

3. ‑ówna = daughter of

Example: Malka Altmanówna = daughter of Altman

4. ‑owa = wife of

Example: Malka Altmanowa = wife of Altman

Different patronymics^* through the years (for the same woman)

In birth, marriage, and death records, a woman’s name is often followed by the letter z, which essentially means “of.” After the z, you will see either a patronymic or a maiden name. The patronymic may be the name of the woman's father (e.g., Lewek), a name that refers to the woman’s father (e.g., Lewkowicz), or the patronymic that the woman’s father uses (which refers to his father.

In books of residents, each child is listed a date of birth and the name of each parent, as it appears on their birth certificate. It is common to see different patronymics (or a maiden name) listed for the same mother. The example below is an image from a volume of the Przedbórz books of residents. It displays the couple Dawid Szamsza Rinaldo, his wife Frajdla, and their six children (born in the 1860s and 1870s):

^*Patronymic: “a name derived from that of the father or a paternal ancestor” (Merriam-Webster).

Click on the image to see a larger version:

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