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Hints for searching the
data base
Once you have reached the search page you will see a number of items displayed (usually 25 per page) under "List of entries". Please ignore the "Home" and "Login" fields at the top of the page. You will just have to deal with the search field on the top right of the page ("Search in ....").
Searchable fields: Each bibliography item consists of fields, such as the author, title, date of publication, page numbers, abstract and keywords (=search terms). Once you have reached the search page by clicking on the "Click here to go to the bibliography" button on the Overview page, you can search the data base (a) in all fields, (b) the keyword field, (c) the abstract field or the (d) author field.
German characters: Type the special characters, such as ä, ö and ü, the same way as you would in your word processing program. Windows users can set their computer to type these letters through the Keyboard Control Panel under Settings; or insert the characters through the Character Map utility.
1. Searching the data base.
In order to facilitate fast and highly specific searches in this large data base, each entry has been catalogued by as many search terms ("keywords") as
possible. While one could search, for example, for "anti-German actions",
this would yield a very large, unwieldy number of hits. For this reason,
"anti-German actions" have been subdivided
in, for example, "arrests", "boycotts",
"censorship", "ban on
immigration", "charge of sedition or treason",
and so on. Where can these descriptors be found?
The hierarchically organized Keywords Page is organized alphabetically
by major descriptor (in bold
red), subdivided by intermediate descriptors
where applicable (in green), and finally by
"minor descriptors" where applicable (in black). For example,
Anti-German actions
Arrests
Ban
on immigration
Book
burning
Boycotts
Censorship
Ban on German music
Ban on German books
...
Charge
of sedition or treason
Compulsory
labor
Deportation
...
Searches by keywords should therefore be conducted
by minor descriptors
and/or
intermediate descriptors
FIRST to guarantee specificity of search
results. In some cases, the major
descriptors only serve conceptual purposes.
In such a case, the reader will be referred
to narrower search terms.
There are several minor descriptors which are used for more than one
intermediate or major descriptor. In this case, a search should be performed
by the minor AND the intermediate/major descriptor. For example, "Charge
of sedition or treason" is used for both "Anti-German actions" and "Anti-Nazi
actions". The search should therefore be narrowed down to "Charge
of sedition or treason" AND "Anti-German actions", or - if this
is desired - "Charge of sedition or treason" AND
"Anti-Nazi actions".
The keywords are also available in an alphabetical
listing.
2. Specialized keyword lists
There are two lists facilitating searches for businesses and occupations
in which members of the German cultural group have been active:
Proper names (e.g., personal names, church names, names of
clubs, groups or associations, social activities) are also available as keywords in following
lists:
CAUTIONS
Orthographic inconsistencies
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German words were either hyphenated - correctly or incorrectly - or not
written together when they should have been, e.g., Farmer-Feuer-Versicherung,
Farmer-Feuerversicherung, and Farmer
Feuer Versicherung.
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The old forms "th" and "ph"
were used inconsistently in German place names; sometimes "t"
and "f", respectively, occur in the original,
e.g., Friedensthal, Josefsberg.
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Some place names were spelled inconsistently with an "oe"
or "ö" or a "ue"
instead of an "ü"; in some cases the
umlaut was left out altogether; e.g., Bruderfeld
vs. Bruederfeld vs. Brüderfeld;
Düsseldorf vs. Dusseldorf.
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Very frequently, a "c" occurs in the original
when a "k" would be used in modern German;
this is especially true for all words relating to "Canada", e.g., Deutsch-Canadier,
Deutsch-canadische Vereinigung, Deutsche
Zeitung für Canada, Trans-Canada Vereinigung.
The originals forms have been retained in the keywords. However, in a full-text
search - where appropriate - forms with both "k" and "c" should be
used as search terms (e.g., West-Canada, Westkanada,
West-Kanada, Westcanada).
Inconsistencies in the use
of the names of clubs and groups
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In many instances, a group's or association's name was used inconsistently,
e.g., Motor Club Phoenix, Motorclub
Phönix, Phoenix Club, Phoenix
Motor Club, Phoenix Club. The "German-Canadian
Clubs and Groups" page provides all versions occurring.
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Occasionally, German or English proper names were translated in different
ways, e.g., the German-Canadian Cooperative Association
is referred to in Germans as Konsumverein
and Konsumgenossenschaft. On the "German-Canadian
Clubs and Groups" page all versions of the same term are listed.
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Many groups and associations have undergone name changes, e.g., the Deutschsprachiger
Kulturverband was renamed Canadisch-Deutsche
Vereinigung. The "German-Canadian Clubs and
Groups" page provides all versions where available.
Definitional difficulties
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Who was a "German"? Here, the term "German/s"
is used to refer to "speaker/s of German", no matter what their origin
or nationality. Consequently, there are "Germans" from Volhynia, Germany,
Rumania, the U.S., or Ontario. The term will also include Mennonites
and Hutterites.
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Self-identification as a "German". While many
"Germans" were proud of their cultural and linguistics heritage, there
were others - especially in difficult times - who wanted to hide their
background and appear either as a "Canadian" or "Russian" or "Polish".
Immigrants to Alberta from the U.S. and other parts of Canada - especially
when they were born on this continent - frequently dissociated themselves
from their ethnic background, especially when they were children from exogamous
marriages. The List of individuals mentioned
in the Bibliography will therefore contain many names of people who
are, in fact, "German" on the grounds of their background, but may not
have wanted to be classified as such. Moreover, the sources often do not
refer explicitly to a person's ethnic origin; a few individuals were included
in the bibliography when having a birthplace in Canada where large numbers
of immigrants of German origin are known to have settled (e.g., Berlin,
Ontario or Waterloo County, Ontario) and having a "German" name
may be taken as a strong indication of German background. In such cases,
a cautionary note has been attached to the entry.
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The settlers' national origin. This bibliography
tries to remain as close to the original text as possible; for this reason,
there are "Settlers from Russia" when no more information about their origin
is given, or "Settlers from Bessarabia" when this was indicated in the
entry. Of course, there are many overlaps because of shifting frontiers
and country assignments. Settlers from "Galicia", "Austro-Hungary", or
"Poland" may in fact have originated in the very same region.
Similarly, settlers are classfiied as "Settlers from Canada" when
no other information was given in the original text; otherwise they are
referred to as, e.g., as "Settlers from Ontario." All settlers from individual
states in the U.S. have been subsumed under the term "Settlers from the
U.S."
Note: Of course, in the majority of cases, the settlers' origin did
not appear explicitly in the source. Virtually all Hutterites are "Settlers
from the U.S.", with the exception of a few from Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
"Mennonites" could be "Settlers from Russia" or "Settlers from Saskatchewan" or "Settlers from Manitoba."
Please refer to the entries under "Immigrant groups" on the Keywords
page for categories describing the settlers' origin.
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