Ziezmariai, Lithuania

Alice Emails July 21

From: Alice Plebuch

Date: July 10, 2021

To: Rabbi Shmuel Kot

Subject: The Kot Family

Dear Rabbi Kot,

I was thrilled to hear from you and will send copies of my Kot research. It will take a couple of days to get it all pulled together.

Before I knew anything about my father’s family, but knew he was Ashkenazi,  I visited Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latina, and Russia on a tour.  If only I had known…

While you’re waiting for my paper research, I’m passing along some pictures of my great grandparents, Kopel Kot and Freyda Kot Rotinsky (probably actually Rudnitsky or a variant spelling.) The other picture is them at a wedding, obviously with family, although no one knows who the other people were. I automated and colorized the pictures the best I could. Amazingly, we discovered that my sister looks very much like Freyda. I’ll label the pictures of my grandmother, Ida Cott (neé Zlata Kot) and her sister Anna. Physically, they were short people, with Ida being all but 4’9” , 1.448 meters.

Alice

Freyda

Kopel

My grandmother from her naturalization papers.  Although it might not be apparent to you, my Dad looked very much like her.

Anna Cott Schwartz (Chana Kot)

My Dad

Dad’s niece, Phylis Pullman and me (she has the gray hair)

(To Eli

My first note through 23andMe’s messaging system is at the bottom, following the row of asterisks. Rabbi Shmuel’s notes (there were 3 of them) are first. I returned his notes in two longer emails. If you want to see them, just ask.

Alice)

Hello!

Amazing and unbelievable story.

My grand grandfather was Chaim Kot  was born in Ziezmariai to he's parents Shalom (Sholem) and Pese-Libe Kot in 1919 he moves to Israel.

Sholem father was Itscahk, probably as i can understand is the same Itska or the cousin of Itska the father of Kopel.

My gran grandfather Chaim buil he's own family in Israel today the Kot family is a very big and faomus family in the orthodox community in Jerusalem.

I'm working as a chief rabbi of Estonia one of the Baltic state.

Best regards

EK

https://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/ziezmariai/kot.html

I will be very grateful to you if you can share with me all information and research you have.

***************************

Hello cousin Efraim

My paternal grandmother was Zlate Kot (changed to Ida Cott in the USA). Her parents were Kopel Kot and Freyda Rotinsky (or something that sounds like that) who lived in Ziezmariai, Russia (current day Lithuania).  Kopel’s father was Itska.  Kopel had a contemporary first cousin of the same name with his father being Notel, brother of Itska.

I am considerably older than you since my sons are around your age. In addition, my father, Jim Collins, was born in 1913.

I’ve compared you to known KOT descendants, and there is no question we share a common KOT ancestor with you. Do you know anything about the KOT family you can share. I’ll be happy to share all my research, including photographs of Kopel and Freyda. Because of all the endogamy of the Jewish people, the relationship may be further than the 3rd cousin indicated.

Until five or six years ago, we were totally oblivious to the fact that we’re half Jewish.  Our father was switched at birth with an Irish child.  You might find the links I’m including  interesting reading. 

I look forward to hearing from you!

Alice Collins Plebuch

From my current iPad

On Jul 21, 2021, at 9:05 PM, Eli Rabinowitz <eli@elirab.com> wrote:

Hi Alice

Please let me know how you and Rabbi Shmuel first connected. Nothing that you don’t want to share (or too personal).

I would like to know how I helped with this - to encourage others to share!

Best

Eli

On 22 Jul 2021, at 10:53, Alice Plebuch wrote:

Yes, Rabbi Shmuel and I have been in contact.  He took a DNA test and we shared several large segments, including one 48 cM.  For Ashkenazi, that’s very indicative of of a common relative that can be found in historic times, which means born after 1800. 

On Jul 21, 2021, at 7:38 PM, Eli Rabinowitz wrote:

Dear Alice

Cc Rabbi Shmuel

Thanks for copying me in on this.

It seems that you have become an even more successful detective than before!

Have you heard back from Rabbi Kot or any of his family?

Rabbi Kot’s brother is also a rabbi, the last time I saw him a few years ago, he was at the main synagogue in Riga.

Best regards

Eli

On 22 Jul 2021, at 04:18, Alice Plebuch wrote:

I’ve spent hours and hours and HOURS going through records and your notes.  Your URL to KehilaLinks went directly to my family’s story and I (incorrectly) assumed you were letting me know you had seen my family story through Eli.  It dawned on me today that, perhaps you had your family history in the Ziezmariai KehilaLinks, and YES it was there! I am more than confident that your Sholom was the brother of my grandfather, Kopel Kot.  In trying to reconstruct Dad’s family, I’ve found that the translation of of Ashkenazi names is more an art than a science.  Once I learned to ignore vowels and look for names rhyme, It was much easier to understand who was whom.  Here’s my evidence for the relationships:

You list your 3X grandfather as  Izhak Manish (you already addressed that Izhak and Itsko are the same name translated into different languages).  My 2X great grandfather was Itsko Benyamin, also know as Itsko Benish.   The birth records I found associated for both Sholom and Kopel go back and forth between Itsko Benyamin and Itsko Benish.

We both have  a Sholom married to a Pesa Libe (or Liba) I’ve included the births I found for this couple (please note that first record for Mordukh is listed as a duplicate of the other, but in one Libe/e is spelled with an “a” and in the other an “e”!

Brothers Mordukh and David match up, perfectly.  But, where’s Chaim???

My big error — I thought Neakh was a sister, but NO, “she" had a Bris, so “she” was male.  Hum, Chaim Noach v Neaka???  I am sure that Chaim Noach’s birth was record and translated  as “Neakh”!  

Now, another thing of interest.  I think there’s a huge likelihood that Kopel’s and Sholom’s wives were sisters!  WHY?  Because they both consistently list their fathers’ names as Mordkhel Meyer under various spellings.  Assuming they were sisters, their parents were Mordche Meier ROTNISKI*** and Shayna Beile LEYBOBICH%%%

***the wedding certificates of all my immigrant Kot’s list their father as Mordche Meyer RATINSKY, but did not specify their mother’s maiden name.

%%% While trying to ascertain the relationship of a close DNA match,  the other woman found the US wedding certificate of her grandmother, Yetta Ratinsk.  Yetta named her parents as Mayer RATINSKY and Jenny LEYBOVICH.  I knew Jenny was probably not a name used in late 1800 Ziezmariai, so I researched the name.  The Yiddish name for Jenny is almost always Sheyna (Seina) The names matched up!

  These are the birth records for your family in Ziezmariai. I blocked out unrelated births so the heading could be found.    Ignore the comma between Itsko and Benyamin.  It’s obviously in error if you look at the other records.  The father’s and grandfather's names match up to those of Kopel, not Notel. 

One of my brothers and my sister offered to travel with me to Estonia and/or Israel.  You might have guests when the Covid pandemic eases!

Alice

I calculate that we’re 3rd cousins, 1x removed.  Your father and I are the exact same age, and my middle son and you share a birth year, too!