Hi- I'm new to this forum and am hoping that someone might be able to help me. I'm working on my family genealogy. My stepfather's surname is Spurney. I can trace his father's information in the 1920 U.S. Census but have been unable to find any information on the name Spurney to research further. The grandfather immigrated to the U.S. in 1913, born in Bohemia, surname Spurney. In talking to my stepfather, he said that he's sure that the name Spurney was changed from his original name in Bohemia. Can someone help me to find what the original name might have been for Spurney? Also, any assistance with a surname of Bielas, born in Mahren would be most appreciated. Thank you in advance for any assistance.
I think the original form was "Spurný" (female form "Spurná"). That's relatively frequent name (today, there's 1307 holders of this name in the CR).
Thank yo so very much for the fast response. Could the name be anything else? I've tried several different variations of Spurney.... I think Spurny as well. I really do appreciate the help. This has been very frustrating for me. With all of the world wide web at our fingertips, I can find nothing on the history of this name or how it was translated along the journey. Thanks again, Kim
Mahren, I believe, is the German name for Moravia (perhaps someone who speaks German can correct me if I'm wrong). Bielas sounds like a Polish surname. The most common Czech equivalent is perhaps Bílý (fem. variant Bílá), although there are variants closer to Bielas (e.g. Běla, Bělaška, Bělák, Bělka, etc.). Note that the Czech ě is roughly equivalent to "ie." Also, the root of the surname means "white."
