Family Overview
The Karelitz family of this website consists of the descendents of
Zundel Karelitz and his wife Leah. We estimate that Zundel lived during
the very end of the 18th and the first half of the 19th centuries. (The oldest grandchild
is probably not before 1840. There are grandsons with the name "Zundel"
born in 1858, 1862 and 1868.) He came from
Kosow, a town in modern-day Belarus.
The Eight Branches
Zundel and Leah had eight children, which are shown (with spouses) in
the chart below.
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Reference codes
Each person in the chart is identified with a reference code.
These codes come from the original family album, where
Samuel Karelitz identified each person using
a modified Henry system code. The eight children of Zundel Karelitz
are referenced with the letters A-H, and form
the eight branches (A through H) of the Karelitz family tree. Descendents of
these branches are given a reference code which is their parent's code
plus a digit indicating which number child of their parents they are. For example, my great-great
grandmother, Gittel Karelitz, is G. My great grandfather, Jacob Kosowsky, her
fourth child, is G4. My grandfather, Samuel, Jacob's fifth child, is G45.
People marrying into the family get their spouse's code plus the letter "a"
if they are the first spouse, "b" if they are the second, etc. Thus I am G4512
and my wife is G4512a. In the case where both husband and wife are part
of the tree in their own right, children follow the husband's numbering,
but the wife is still referred to by her (maiden) code.
People in the photos of the family album are identified with these codes.