![]() ![]() Additionally, because these Germans were surrounded by Russians, their language started to change. The Volga Germans had to leave their traditional clothing styles behind in order to be adequately dressed for the Russian winters. As you may know, the climate in Russia is VERY different than the climate in Germany. Just by looking at an ethnic Russian and a Volga German side by side, you likely wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. So how did Volga Germans differ from their “main land German” counterparts? Let’s say you could time travel and visit a German colony along the Volga River in the late 1700s. Things were good for a while the German settlers were able to construct homes, farms, communities, religious buildings, and cemeteries that reflected their German heritage. Many settlers left their homes in Bavaria, Baden, Hesse, the Palatinate, and the Rhineland in order to seek out a better life for themselves and their families in Russia. They were exempt from military service as well. They were able to become Russian citizens and gain farmland in Russia while maintaining their German language and culture and gaining more religious freedom. A fresh start and new opportunities in Russia were just too good to pass up. The Seven Years’ War had ended, but left much of Germanic Europe in poverty and ruin. For my ancestors, things weren’t going so well in Germany. The Volga Germans, or Germans from Russia, were ethnic Germans who moved to Russia after Catherine the Great, the Empress of Russia at the time, published manifestos in 17 welcoming Europeans to come to and settle in Russia. When I tell people that my ethnic background can mostly be traced back to the Volga Germans, they are usually very confused. The Volga Germans are a very misunderstood and little known ethnic group. ![]()
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