Shared Photo: Ethnic German sisters in the Soviet Union

Question

I wanted to share this family photo of Emilia Obholz with the community. Location: Russia.

 

It shows my great grandmother Rosa (second to left) with her sisters. She died very early so even my father doesn't really remember her. 
The sisters were all ethnic Germans in the Soviet Union, they lived in an autonomous German colony near the Volga river called Mariental (today Sowetskoje). When WWII started the soviets started mistrusting them, they accused them of being spies and therefore deported them to labour camps/gulags. A lot of ethnic Germans starved to death during those times. I believe this photo was taken after WWII, when they were still suffering from the consequences.
The majority of them were rehabilitated in the 1960s, some of them even later.

Click here for the image details page or here for the full-sized version (865 x 608).

Comments

danke für dieses bild ,meine vorfahren fam. gottlieb und august schiller aus alt borowieck waren auch deutscher abstammung , wir machen mit den ahnen eine zeitreise die für viele sehr schwer war.aber wir verstehen jhren mut und fleiss sowie lebenswillen das alles zu beweltigen.welch grosse seelen ...

Answer 1

Thank you for your family treasure and history share .. !

Extraordinary Masterful Personas .. Masterpiece of Human Nature  !  

Strength of Character, Stalwart Hope and Unyielding Faith . Divine Champions of Their Souls ..

Beautiful Hearts ..

C'est Bon Magnifique !

Answer 2

Thanks for the great photo. In some German immigrant communities in the US Volga Germans were called "Low Germans" (vs. "High Germans" if you came from Germany.

Comments

That's interesting. A lot of Volga Germans actually spoke low German while it basically went extinct here in Germany.

My other great grandmother (who is still alive) speaks a mix of low German and Russian, because the Soviets forbid them to speak their native language and she forgot half of it. It's sometimes hard to understand her because of that, but it's somehow incredible to see how it affects survivors to this day.