Re: GEN-DE What is this fellas name >>>> Phil

Yes, it is Georg.

Richard van Schaik...

Explain please. (The english have a perfect word for it .......
elaborate in dutch "meer uitwijden graag"). In all cases please explain
why you read it that way. The characters I see do give an other solution
unless I'm very mistaken. I do read old dutch better, so maybe I'm in
this case ways off.

Aug. de Man...

I agree.
First I couldn't believe a G could look like this, but Richard, have a look
fifth row, fifth letter, there you have the basic form.

So it is
Georg Stephan, Gemein(stman?) allhier, und Elisabetha s[eine] e[heliche]
H[aus]fr[au].
Witnesses: Philips Stephan, Gemein(stman?) allhier, und Ottilia s. e. H.

I am not sure about the "Gemeinstman", which you find with many of these
people; I also see "Zimmerman", "des Gerichts", "Zöllner", so it probably
means "common worker".

August de Man

J. Anderl...

Good job! And thanks for the link to the letter-shapes. As to the Gemeinstman,
I found the word :
ge-meins-man stm. schiedsrichter GR.W. 6,26.
in the Mittelhochdeutsches Handwoerterbuch von Matthias Lexer, available
online at:

Aug. de Man...

Yes, that must be the word.
But I don't think all these people were "Schiedsrichter".

we find, with many examples:
Gemeindemann, auch gemeinds-, gemeins-, pl. auch -leute
= (vollberechtigter) Gemeindebewohner, Gemeindebürger.

So it is just "citizen".

Aug. de Man...

Reading further I think it will rather have the second meaning here,
"Angehöriger der großen Masse im Gegensatz zu Ratsherren, Beamten
und ähnlichem", so not far from the "common worker" I suggested first.
The class you came from and belonged to was very important.
So "common citizen".

August dM.