Family Tree
Paternal
grandfather
Paternal
grandmother
Maternal
grandfather
Maternal
grandmother
Samuil
Mendelev
1882 – 1941
Sara-Haja
Mendelev
(nee Iljon)
1882 – 1941
Iosif Korobov
1879 – 1957
Sara Korobov
(nee Brauns)
1885 – 1964
Father
Mother
Alexandr Mendelev
1913 – 1944
Marcel Mendelev
(nee Korobovа)
1913 – 1995
Siblings
None
Spouse
Interviewee
Ruth Laane
(nee Mendelev)
1938
Valdo Laane
1934
Children
Alexandr Laane
1968
Eva Laanee-Reintamm
(nee Laane)
1972
1
The interviewee and his family
Full name
Ruth Laane (nee Mendelev)
Where and when were you born?
Narva, 1938
Where else did you live?
Tallinn
Your educational level?
Finished the Faculty of Russian Philology of the Teachers’ Training College in
Tallinn
What sort of work do/did you do?
Teacher of Russian language and literature at school, in college, editor in
publishing house
How religious was your parents’ home? How were you raised?
My parents were religious. They observed Jewish traditions, went to the
synagogue on Jewish holidays, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish holidays at home
and followed the kashrut.
What is your mother tongue?
Russian
What other languages do you speak?
Estonian, German, Yiddish
2
Where were you during the Holocaust?
Evacuation: Makhali village, Ural (today Russia)
What did you do after the Holocaust?
Lived in Tallinn, studied at school, in college, worked
3
Siblings
Their names
None
4
Spouse
Name?
Valdo Laane
Where and when was he/she born?
Viljandi, 1934
Where else did he/she live?
Tallinn
Is he/she Jewish?
No
What is his/her mother tongue?
Estonian
His/her educational level?
My husband finished the Faculty of Russian Philology of the Teachers’ Training
College in Tallinn
Occupation?
Teacher of Russian language and literature at the Teachers’ Training College in
Tallinn University
Tell me anything you know about his/her siblings (Name, date of birth and death,
occupation, place of residence, name of wife and children, whether their family is
Jewish and whether it is religious).
There was a brother, whose name I don’t remember, he died in exile in the 1940s
5
Children
Their names?
Alexandr Laane
Eva Laanee-Reintamm (nee Laane)
Were they raised Jewish/do they identify themselves as Jews?
Alexandr: identifies himself as an Estonian
Eva: She wasn’t raised Jewish, but she identifies herself as a Jew and
acknowledges her Jewish identity.
Where and when were they born?
Alexandr: Tallinn, 1968
Eva: Tallinn, 1972
Where else did they live?
Alexandr: Tartu
Eva: Tel Aviv (today Israel)
Their educational level?
Alexandr: Tartu University, Faculty of Philosophy, specialty: sociology
Eva: finished the Tallinn Art College, studies in the magistracy
Their occupations?
Alexandr: newspaper publisher
Eva: artist
How many grandchildren do you have?
Alexandr: son Mark, born in 1992, daughter Linda, born in 2001
Eva: son Karl-Philip, born in 2000, daughter Anna-Sophia, born in 2004
6
Father
His name?
Alexandr Mendelev
Where and when was he born?
Riga (today Latvia), September 1913
Where else did he live?
Tartu, Tallinn
Where and when did he die?
Perished on Saaremaa Island, 1944
What sort of education did he have?
My father studied first at the Medical Faculty of Tartu University, later at the Law
Faculty.
What sort of work did he do?
Accountant
How religious was he?
My father was religious. He observed Jewish traditions, went to the synagogue on
Jewish holidays, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish holidays at home and followed
the kashrut.
What was his mother tongue?
Yiddish
7
Army service: which army and what years?
Soviet army: 1941 – 1942 (Labor army)
Estonian Corps of the Red army: 1942 – 1944
Tell me about his brothers and sisters. (name, date of birth and death,
occupation, place of residence, family, etc.)
name
place and date of occupation
biographical data
biographical data
describe how religious
birth/death
and origins of
of children
they were
Yacob Gelbart,
Guidon-Ruben (m)
Sophia was religious.
spouse
Sophia Gelbart,
Riga (today
Housewife
Karmi
Latvia), 1910 –
(then changed
Tartu, 1939 –
She observed Jewish
(nee Mendelev)
Tartu, 1941
surname to
Tartu, 1941
traditions, went to the
(f)
Ella Zlaf
Riga, 1911 –
(nee Mendelev)
Tallinn, 1941
Housewife
(f)
Karmi)
synagogue on Jewish
Jelgava (today
holidays, celebrated
Latvia), 1902 –
Sabbath and Jewish
Tartu, 1941
holidays at home, and
Jew, doctor
followed the kashrut.
Shmuel Zlaf
Juudit Zlaf (f)
Ella was religious. She
Vilnius (today
Tartu 1937 –
observed Jewish
Lithuania)
Tartu, 1941
traditions, went to the
1903 – Tallinn,
Gille Zlaf (m)
synagogue on Jewish
1941
Tartu, 1939 –
holidays, celebrated
Jew
Tartu, 1941
Sabbath and Jewish
holidays at home, and
followed the kashrut.
Roman Mendelev
Riga, 1916 –
No
(m)
Estonia, 1941
information
None
None
Roman was religious.
He observed Jewish
traditions, went to the
synagogue on Jewish
holidays, celebrated
Sabbath and Jewish
holidays at home, and
followed the kashrut.
Pesse Mendelev
Riga, 1922 –
No
(f)
Tartu, 1941
information
None
None
Pesse was religious.
She observed Jewish
traditions, went to the
synagogue on Jewish
holidays, celebrated
Sabbath and Jewish
8
holidays at home, and
followed the kashrut.
Where was he during the Holocaust?
Soviet army: 1941 – 1942 (Labor army)
Estonian Corps of the Red army: 1942 – 1944
9
Paternal grandfather
Your paternal grandfather’s name?
Samuil Mendelev
Where and when was he born?
Riga (today Latvia), 1882
Where else did he live?
Tartu
Where and when did he die?
Tartu, 1941
What sort of education did he have?
No information
What sort of work did he do?
Dentist
How religious was he?
My grandfather was religious. He observed Jewish traditions, went to the
synagogue on Sabbath and Jewish holidays, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish
holidays at home and followed the kashrut.
What was his mother tongue?
Yiddish
10
Army service: which army and what years?
No information
Tell me about his brothers and sisters.
name
place and date of occupation
biographical data
biographical data
describe how religious
birth/death
and origins of
of children
they were
spouse
No information
Where was he during the Holocaust?
Perished in Tartu during occupation in 1941
11
Paternal grandmother
Your paternal grandmother’s name?
Sara-Haja Mendelev (nee Iljon)
Where and when was she born?
Riga (today Latvia), 1882
Where else did she live?
Tartu
Where and when did she die?
Tartu, 1941
What sort of education did she have?
My grandmother had some education, but I know no details.
What sort of work did she do?
Housewife
How religious was she?
My grandmother was a rabbi’s daughter. She was very religious. She observed
Jewish traditions, went to the synagogue on Jewish holidays and Sabbath,
celebrated Sabbath and Jewish holidays at home, followed the kashrut.
What was her mother tongue?
No information
12
Tell me about his brothers and sisters.
name
place and date of occupation
biographical data
biographical data
describe how religious
birth/death
and origins of
of children
they were
spouse
No information
Where was she during the Holocaust?
Perished in Tartu during the occupation in 1941
13
Mother
Her name?
Marcel Mendelev (nee Korobovа)
Where and when was she born?
Paris (France), 1913
Where else did she live?
Narva, Tallinn
Where and when did she die?
Tallinn, 1995
What sort of education did she have?
Finished the Russian gymnasium in Narva
What sort of work did she do?
Assistant pharmacist before 1938, worked as secretary after the war
How religious was she?
Mama was religious. She observed Jewish traditions, went to the synagogue on
Jewish holidays and Sabbath, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish holidays at home,
followed the kashrut.
What was her mother tongue?
Russian
Tell me about his brothers and sisters.
name
place and date of occupation
biographical data
biographical data
describe how religious
birth/death
and origins of
of children
they were
14
spouse
Philip Korobov
Paris (France)
Worked in
None
None
Philip was religious.
(m)
1908 –
Grandfather’s
He observed Jewish
Saaremaa, 12th
store as hat
traditions, went to the
October, 1944
maker
synagogue on Jewish
holidays and Sabbath,
celebrated Sabbath
and Jewish holidays at
home, followed
kashrut.
Where was she during the Holocaust?
Evacuation: Makhali village, Ural (today Russia)
If she survived, what did she do after?
Lived in Tallinn, worked and raised grandchildren
15
Maternal grandfather
Your maternal grandfather’s name?
Iosif Korobov
Where and when was he born?
Narva,1879
Where else did he live?
Tallinn
Where and when did he die?
Tallinn, 1957
What sort of education did he have?
No information
What sort of work did he do?
Hat maker
How religious was he?
My grandfather was religious. He observed Jewish traditions, went to the
synagogue on Jewish holidays and Sabbath, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish
holidays at home, followed the kashrut.
What was his mother tongue?
Yiddish
16
Army service: which army and what years?
No information
Tell me about his brothers and sisters.
name
place and date of occupation
biographical data
biographical data
describe how religious
birth/death
and origins of
of children
they were
No information
No information
No information
spouse
? Korobov (m)
Narva before
No
1877 - ?
information
Jenny Korobov
Narva, before
--
None
None
No information
(f)
1880s – Narva,
Housewife
? Leitman
None
Atheist
1900s
Haja-Duša
Narva, 1883 –
Leitman
Tallinn, 1973
(nee Korobov) (f)
? – Gulag, 1937,
Jew
Where was he during the Holocaust?
Evacuation: Makhali village, Ural (today Russia)
If he survived what did he do after?
Lived in Tallinn, worked as a hat maker
17
Maternal grandmother
Your maternal grandmother’s name?
Sara Korobov (nee Brauns)
Where and when was she born?
Ventspils (Vindava at the time, today Latvia), 1885
Where else did she live?
Narva, Tallinn
Where and when did she die?
Tallinn, 1964
What sort of education did she have?
No information
What sort of work did she do?
Hat maker
How religious was she?
My grandmother was religious. She observed Jewish traditions, went to the
synagogue on Jewish holidays and Sabbath, celebrated Sabbath and Jewish
holidays at home, followed the kashrut.
What was her mother tongue?
Yiddish
18
Tell me about his brothers and sisters.
name
place and date of occupation
biographical data
biographical data
describe how religious
birth/death
and origins of
of children
they were
? Gringut
Juliette ? (nee
Greta was religious.
spouse
Greta Gringut
Ventspils (today
Housewife
(nee Brauns) (f)
Latvia), before
? – Davos ?
Gringut) (f)
She observed Jewish
1885 – Davos,
Jew
1920s - ?
traditions, went to the
(Switzerland)
synagogue on Jewish
1970s
holidays and Sabbath,
celebrated Sabbath
and Jewish holidays at
home, followed the
kashrut.
Bertha
Ventspils, before
Kazerovich
1885 – ?
Housewife
(nee Brauns) (f)
Yacob Kazerovich George Kazerovich
Bertha was religious.
?-?
(m)
She observed Jewish
Jew, tailor
?–?
traditions, went to the
synagogue on Jewish
holidays and Sabbath,
celebrated Sabbath
and Jewish holidays at
home, followed the
kashrut.
Yetta Markovich
Ventspils, after
(nee Brauns) (f)
Housewife
Jacque
Susanne Markovich Yetta was religious.
1885 – Paris
Markovich
(f)
She observed Jewish
(France), 1940s
? – Paris, 1940s
?-?
traditions, went to the
Jew
Gille Markovich (f)
synagogue on Jewish
? - Paris, 1940s
holidays and Sabbath,
Raymond
celebrated Sabbath
Markovich (m)
and Jewish holidays at
? – Paris, 1940s
home, followed the
kashrut.
Hansa
Ventspils, after
Kreizburger (nee
Brauns) (f)
Housewife
Nathan
Sons Isaac and
Hansa was religious.
1885 – Ventspils,
Kreizburger
Haim, both
She observed Jewish
1941
? – Ventspils,
perished in
traditions, went to the
1941
Ventspils in 1941
synagogue on Jewish
Jew
holidays and Sabbath,
celebrated Sabbath
and Jewish holidays at
home, followed the
19
kashrut.
Businessman
1st wife:
Nathan Brauns
Ventspils, after
Bertha ? (nee
Nathan was religious.
(m)
1885 – Riga
Olga Brauns (nee Brauns) (f), born
(ghetto) 1941
Auguston)
in 1920s, presently traditions, went to the
? – Riga 1928
lives in Israel
synagogue on Jewish
2nd wife:
Samuel Brauns
holidays and Sabbath,
Yetta Brauns
(m)
celebrated Sabbath
(nee Breiz)
1920s – 1940s
and Jewish holidays at
? – Riga, 1941
Son from 2nd
home, followed the
Jew
marriage: ? Brauns kashrut.
He observed Jewish
Riga, 1930s –
Riga, 1941
Amalia
Ventspils, after
Abramovich (nee
1885 – USA, ?
Housewife
Brauns) (f)
Moisey
Jack Abramovich
Abramovich
(m)
Jew
Daughters Rosa
No information
and Norma
Where was she during the Holocaust?
Evacuation: Makhali village, Ural (today Russia)
If she survived what did she do after?
Lived in Tallinn, housewife
20