Things people in 1854 Warsaw did for a living

July 8, 2006 7:31 PM

What does the Polish word "Haftarz" mean? I see it listed as the occupation of one of my ancestors in the 1854 Warsaw Police census, but I can't find a translation.
posted by Asparagirl to Grab Bag (6 answers total)

As I'm sure you googled, haft means embroidery, but I don't know arz. Could it be mispelled or abbreviated?
posted by dness2 at 8:02 PM on July 8, 2006

Best answer: If haft is embroidery, perhaps a haftarz is an embroiderer?
posted by Malor at 8:34 PM on July 8, 2006

Best answer: "arz" means "one who", so I'd wager Malor is correct.
posted by oneirodynia at 8:51 PM on July 8, 2006

Response by poster: Aha! At least three later generations of that side of the family were dressmakers and drapers and cloth cutters, so this makes sense. Thanks very much!
posted by Asparagirl at 12:01 AM on July 9, 2006

Things people in 1854 Warsaw did for a living

Here's a list of what people in 1929 Poland did for a living -- Polish, English, and French.
posted by pracowity at 12:16 AM on July 9, 2006

Response by poster: This comment is terribly late, but it has occured to me that I should have put this link in the original question: The 1854 Warsaw Police Census is online here. The website is entirely in Polish, but navigating it isn't too difficult. Click on the letters at the top of the screen to see a list of surnames beginning with that letter. Then click on the surname to see the listings of people with that name, which will include information on their occupation, address, and the name of the owner of their building.

My ancestor, the "haftarz", is here, in case anyone cares.
posted by Asparagirl at 12:47 PM on September 17, 2006