Niederbronn les Bains and Historic Background

by Joe
(USA)

Hi Suzele,

My ancestors came from Niederbronn les Bains in the 1700s, and I was always told they came from Germany.

Was Niederbronn a part of Germany in the 1700s.

Thank you for your help

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Niederbronn les Bains in Alsace
by: Suzele

Alsace was in France in the 1700s, not Germany. So Niederbronn les Bains was part of France then.

Alsace became part of France in th 1600s. It didn't become part of the German Empire until 1871 when France lost the Franco-Prussian War.

But Alsace has been a Germanic culture since the Germanic tribes crossed the Rhine river after the Roman Empire collapsed. This is why most of the village and city names don't sound very French.

Some of them have been turned into French, but they were not always like that.

Alsatians have only been speaking French on a regular basis for the last 70 years (more or less). Most of them spoke a version of the Alsatian dialect at home, although some of them needed to speak French at work.

If you're thinking about visiting Northern Alsace and particularly Niederbronn les Bains, you'll find lots of interesting information on the history of Alsace and its culture here.

Hope it helps,
Suzele

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Finding a Ludwig Family in Niederbroon
by: Bert Silverman Virginia USA

Hello Suzele,
First: You have a great web site.
Second: How does the Alsatian language differ from French.

Third: I am trying to contact any Ludwig in Niederbronn. My Great Grandfather Antoine Ludwig may have come from there in 1868.

Any hints you have on finding a contact in Niederbronn would really be appreciated.

(Antoine Ludwig changed his name to John Anthony Silverman before leaving or on arriving in US.)

Thelbert R. Bert" Silverman

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Niederbronn
by: Suzele

Hi Bert,

So happy to hear that you love the website!

To answer your first question, Alsatian has very little to do with French.

I have a few pages about the Alsatian language on the website if you're interested ;)
https://www.getalsaced.com/alsatian-language.html

Alsace is a germanic region with germanic traditions.

As for finding people in Niederbronn les Bains, I can't really help you there.

It's quite hard to find living relatives through official records, mostly because it's against the law. Except if you have proof of direct descent. And there are still other restrictions on what is possible.

If you were able to find someone, you would have some challenges communicating with them.

They might speak some English, but it would be very minimal if any.

French or German would be necessary in these areas for an interesting conversation.

Sorry for the bad news.
Good luck with your research!
Suzele

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