Menu:

• Home
• Media Archive
• Genealogy
• Speculations
• Vignettes

Related websites:

- BreastFree
- Barbara Kriss blog
- Famosity blog
- Fair Isle Press
- Lewis Browne
- Joseph Kriss art
- One in a Million film

The cover:

The illustration above is taken from a pastel by Joseph Kriss, circa 1950.

Contact:

info@
krissfoundation.org

Rights Reserved:

Site contents may not be published or transmitted for any purpose other than personal use.

Kriss Foundation

This site explores family history in the context of cultural and political events.

Media Archive

We are continually adding photographs, documents, and audio media relating to our family history. Please email new digital images or other media you wish to share. Our goal is to digitize the entire existing collection of 1880-1950 materials for future generations. And your comments are always welcome!

Genealogy Online

The interactive online genealogy application, Webtrees 2.1x, covering over 2700 relatives in more than 1000 family groups is continually updated. You can view living family members only as a registered user.

Surname origins

Browne

Originally Buchwach in Russia and changed in London by Lewis (Buchwach) Browne to appear more English. Buchwach is a composite name from the German Buche meaning beech tree or beechwood, plus the German wachtel meaning quail. This may have derived first from the Yiddish vakhtl for quail. Possibly related to the more common Buchwald meaning beech forest. Likely a chosen descriptive name when Jews were forced to take surnames between 1750 and 1850 in Germany and Eastern Europe. Buchwach is best translated as 'quail in the beech tree'. Western Ashkenazic Jewish origin, German and Polish location.

More surnames >>

Copyright © 2011-24 Kriss Foundation. All Rights Reserved.