Max’s family name was Zuckerman (though most likely spelled in the German form, Zuckermann, with a double n. His Hebrew name was Mordechai, but his given name was Markus (or Marcus), and this is what his family called him. Interestingly, Markus seems to be a very common first name among Bukovenian Jews.

Markus (Mordechai) Zuckermann’s father’s name was Aaron Zuckerman, according to Margo’s notes, but Avrum according to Adela. Avrum seems the right name, as Max’s first son, Albert was named Avrum, after his grandfather. In fact, after Max and Becky sat shiva for Albert, Max wanted his first grandson, Joel, to be named Avrum in his place. The interesting part is that Max would only name his son after his father if his father had died. As Albert was born in 1925, and it seems Max was in contact with his family until at least 1930 if not later, that he knew his father had died in the interim. This is not impossible, as he could possibly have been killed during the First World War.

Avrum (or Aaron) Zuckermann came from Bukovina (though Max didn’t specify where exactly), but his family had come originally from Russia. He worked as an interpreter at the courts, and he spoke many languages. Put into the context of the time and place, it seems a very practical job. The languages he must have spoken were Russian, Romanian, German, Yiddish, Polish and Hungarian. We also know Max spoke many languages fluently. We can assume the courts were in the capital of Czernowitz, to which his father may have traveled each day. Max stated his father was also a farmer and liked riding horses. Max would often take the horses to pasture in the field. He loved riding horses bareback through the fields. He would sleep nights in the field, covering himself with a jacket. He doesn't ever remember being fearful doing this.

After searching through Czernowitz school records, I found an Aron (Adolf) Zuckermann, who graduated grade 8 (fourteen years old), in 1883 from the Ober-Gymnasiums in Czernowitz. This means this Aron Zuckermann was born in 1869. This would make him 26 when Max, second oldest child in the family, was born,. He is the only person with that name listed as attending the school from 1850-1890. We know his father was born in Bukovina, and most probably in the region where he lived in Oprischeny, and near where his wife came from in Czernowitz. Could this be his father or uncle?

Max’s mother’s name was Toba (Taube) Blum, and came from the capital city of Czernowitz. Blum is a common name in Czernowitz, and if there are any relatives around today, it would most likely come from the Blums of Czernowitz. There are records of Blums in the local cemetery, school records, businesses as well as immigration records. This also lends weight to the idea that Max would have traveled regularly to the capital to visit family. Toba Blum came from a small family that had originally come from Bucharest, today the capital of Romania.

Max was the second oldest child, among 11-12 brothers and sisters. When he left, there were five boys and five girls, as some of his siblings had died. In 1895, records show for every 1000 Jewish births, 27 children were born dead. The only names of the siblings Max mentioned are a brother named Jossel (Yossel- from Yosef), and the youngest two, Avram and Toba, who were twins. There is an interesting discrepancy here, as Max told Adela his parents, not the twins, were names Avram and Toba. This may account for Margo’s notes, as to why he calls his mother and sister by the same name. Adela’s notes show the listing of all the brothers and sisters in order of age. There are two more girls listed there, Liddy and Shoshanna. Therefore Aaron most likely would have been the name of a brother. Max told a story of how one day, someone came into the family store and saw one of the twins, and said it was the most beautiful baby. The next day the child died, from the “eyan ha-ra”. We all know how superstitious both Max and Becky were, using red string as amulets to keep the “eyan ha-ra” away. Max’s older brother had joined the Austrian army sometime before 1910.

A funny fact, that in 1895, out of every 1,000 Jewish births, 700 were illegitimate. This can be attributed to the fact that Jewish ritual marriages were not recognized by the state.

Other names in the online records are those of Moses and Golde Zuckermann who lived in Kupka, and owned a restaurant in 1909. This is only two villages directly west of Oprischeny. Could this be Max’s uncle?
There was a Feivel Zuckermann who attended grade 1 in 1909 in Sereth (ie. Born 1903). A new listing of the Jewish cemetery in Czernowitz shows several people named Zuckermann.