What Does “vel” Mean Between Two Given Names or Surnames?

It is not uncommon to see vel (often abbreviated as v. or v) between two given names or two surnames. It was used in all types of records in Poland: birth, marriage, death, books of residents, voter lists, property lists, and so on.

In Latin, vel means “or.” In Polish records, it essentially means “also known as” (“aka”). Here’s how and why vel might appear: Let’s say that at the time of birth a child’s father used the surname Goldberg, but when that child grew up and married he/she used the surname Altman instead. In the marriage record, then, that person could be recorded as Goldberg vel Altman. After marriage, however, that person’s children might be recorded as either Goldberg vel Altman or as Altman.

The use of “vel” is not rare! It appears in well over ten thousand CRARG records.

Here is an actual example of the use of vel. It involves the birth of a child named Aba in 1832, his marriage in 1852, the birth of his child Szaja in 1860, and the death of his child Izrael in 1867:

Birth of Aba, son Leybus Szklarz — Włoszczowa 1832 birth 47
vel illustration

Aba Szklarz v. [vel] Dyament — Włoszczowa 1852 alegata marriage
vel illustration

Abba Dyament — Włoszczowa 1852 marriage 5
vel illustration

Szaja, son of Aba Dyament Szklarz — Włoszczowa 1860 birth 40
vel illustration

Izrael Dyament, son of Aba — Włoszczowa 1867 death 36
vel illustration

Thinking of joining CRARG? Feel free to write to me (danielkazez@crarg.org) to ask if we have records for your family! —Daniel Kazez, CRARG President (a volunteer/unpaid position)

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