ViewMate - Image Archive, Image 25505 - Translation - German - Austria - Vienna - ZWIEBACH, GRAU

Information

Picture

Question

Category: Translation - German
Approval Date: 1/6/2013 4:22 PM
Family Surname: ZWIEBACH, GRAU
Country: Austria
Town: Vienna
Date of Image: August 1917

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Translation to English needed, please, direct, loose, or both. I have tried, but I am unable to determine whether my grandmother Henny Zwiebach, also known as Anna, wrote this postcard to Joseph Grau, her brother, in German or maybe in Yiddish. An assumption she may have written under duress in August. Her husband Abraham, was shot during World War One, and died at the Vienna hospital in May 1917, 12 days after Anna gave birth. Anna was left to raise her infant (my mother), a 5-year old son, and a 3-year old daughter. All translations will be greatly appreciated.

Response

1/6/2013 6:46 PM

Lieber Bruder,
schreibe mir ob
du hast erhalten
dem Breif was
ich dir geschikt ha-
be fon der frau
Simon wir grie-
sen Dich fon Welfel
haben wir schon
[?]a tage kein
schreiben
mit gruß anna
Zwiebach

Im August
1917
Oderfurt

Dear brother,
write me if you have received the letter that I sent you through Ms Simon. We greet you. We have not received any letter from Welfel for days. With regards, Anna Zwiebach.

Notes:
Written in a bad handwriting, possibly under stress or with a shaky hand. The language is German with Yiddish influence. There is no punctuation.
Welfel or Wölfel could be a diminutive of Wolf.

1/8/2013 2:41 AM

The missing word: "par."

"Haven't had a note from Welfel in a couple days."

1/8/2013 1:16 PM

"fon der Frau Simon" would literally be "from Frau Simon" (the spelling "fon" for the German word "von" being one of the Yiddish influences referred to by another responder). This would change the meaning- instead of referring to "the letter that I sent you through Frau Simon", it would refer to a "letter from Frau Simon that I sent to you", i.e, that I forwarded to you. This difference could have significant implications.
Kudos to the other responder for deciphering the handwriting!
Stephen Katz
NYC

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ViewMate Posting VM 25505

Submitted by Connie Malone