Biterman Family of Hrubieszow, Poland
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GENETIC GENEALOGY There is an oral tradition that the Biterman family is Sephardi, but genetic genealogy has proven otherwise. The Y-DNA proves that the paternal family line is within a large cluster within the haplogroup E1b1b1c1a-B (subclade E1b1b1c1a), a cluster that has no Sephardic history. Thus, the family is ancestrally Ashkenaz and from western Ukraine and eastern Poland. (Additional information: M34+M84+ Cluster B is a Jewish cluster. Members of this cluster have a very similar 12-marker haplotype to those in E1b1b1a2 (V13).) The Abrams family -- also in this cluster -- is from the Netherlands, but most other members of this haplotype group are from Eastern Europe (Poland/Ukraine). It is quite possible that Biterman ancestors were part of a Nusach Sephard congregations, in the region where Hassidism developed. Nusach Sephard was a movement that adopted some Sephardic style prayers, but they were not actually Sephardic. ASSUMPTION OF THE BITERMAN SURNAME By April, 1797, Jews in South and New East Prussia (including Poland) were required to adopt surnames, however many families escaped name assignments. It is unknown when or how the surname Biterman came about. There are numerous possibilities regarding the meaning of the surname Biterman. It is likely that the ancestors named Lejb, married to Chai, adopted the surname in the mid-to-late 18th century. The Biterman name, while virtually non-existent in the United States, was a fairly common surname in Poland. Derivatives (Bederman, Fiterman, Biderman, etc.) were also common. In a 1862 marriage document, the surname is spelled Bederman. One explanation of the surname is that "biter" is the Polish translation of gorzki (meaning bitter in Polish), a surname likely assigned to a sour, bitter, or severe person. If this is the derivative of the name, perhaps it was a surname assigned to the family by gentile Polish officials. An alternative explanation is that the surname is an occupational name derived from the Middle High German bitten, meaning 'to bid' for a bidder, broker, suitor, or municipal collector. 'Beder' may also indicate a 'better' man. Danuta Biterman in Sweden believes Biterman is the Polish spelling of German "Bittermann," as Polish forms of German surnames are very common among Polish Jews. The German-like surname would be indicative of our ancestors having lived in the territory that fell under Austrian jurisdiction after one of the successive partitions of Poland in 1772, 1793 or 1795. Until then Jews living in the Polish Kingdom didn't use any surnames, because Jewish community was granted some autonomy and paid taxes directly to the king as the collective, not individually. After partitions, when Jews became subjects in the Russian or Austrian Empire respectively, they were requested to pay taxes individually as everybody else. As such, Jews were required to take individual family names. The wealthy persons could buy themselves beautiful names, such as Goldszmit or Silberberg. The less wealthy must have depended on official's good mood. Danuta Biterman says, "Maybe this particular ancestor was not so rich and the official in question (not Polish, but Austrian) who assigned the name had a bad day (or, alternatively, didn't like him) and named him accordingly." FAMILY RELIGIOUS STATUS The Biterman family was middle class. Great-grandfather Josef Biterman (1870-1939) owned a dairy farm, but was said not to farm it formally. Grandfather Judah Biterman (1901/4-1975) dealt in commerce. That said, the family had yichus in the community. Yichus translates from Yiddish and means lineage, distinguished birth, or pedigree. But it means much more in Yiddish culture, demonstrating good blood and cherished genes. Biterman family members were trained in the Jewish traditions of their ancestors. Judah Biterman had no formal education; he was trained and instructed in Torah, Talmud, and Hebrew language. His father, Josef Biterman, was a devoutly pious man. In Poland, and definitely in Hrubieszow, families only would marry those who were in the same social status. That's simply how marriages were arranged. The Biterman family was among the more religious families of Hrubieszow, and, thus, married with other religious families. Families from Hrubieszow who are known to have intermarried with the Biterman family include ADLER, AJDELMAN, CIMET, CYMET, EDELMAN, FINGER, FOLK, GERYNG, GRUBER, GOLOMB, HARING, HERING, KIFER, and TRUK. |
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Biterman Family Tree |