The Far North

Updates have been made to the Germans from Russia Settlement Locations and German Settlements in European Russia maps to show where Germans were known to have lived Far North region of the former Russian Empire. As with the other regions, the provinces listed are those that were in existence around 1914, near the fall of the empire. In addition to the provinces of the Far North, this region will include the Baltics and the Grand Duchy of Finland in future updates. 

For now, the provinces included in this update are the following. Individual maps for each province will be created once the entire region is complete. 

Arkhangelsk Province (1796-1929). According to the Imperial Census of 1897, there were 346,536 inhabitants in the province of Arkhangelsk, with 163,784 male and 182,752 female. Of those, 309 (.09%) reported speaking German as their Mother tongue, 118 male, 191 female.

Novgorod Province (1727–1927). Moved from Great (Central) Russia with updates and additions. According to the Imperial Census of 1897, there were 1,367,022 inhabitants in the province of Novgorod, 651,901 male and 715,121 female. Of those, 4,188 (.64%) reported speaking German as their Mother tongue, 2,104 male, 1,994 female. Novgorod was a known location of many German Daughter colonies from the Mother colonies in Saint Petersburg province. 

Olonets Province  (1801-1922). According to the Imperial Census of 1897, there were 364,156 inhabitants in the province of Olonets, with 171,718 men and 192,438 women. Of those, no inhabitants reported speaking German as their Mother tongue. However, EWZ records from the 1940s indicate that there were Germans living in the city of Vytegra as early as 1900. 

Pskov Province (1722-1927). Moved from Great (Central) Russia with updates and additions. According to the Imperial Census of 1897, there were 1,122,317 inhabitants in the province of Pskov, 539,632 male and 582,685 female. Of those, 3,885 (.35%) reported speaking German as their Mother tongue, 1,886 male, 1,999 female.

Saint Petersburg Province (1708-1927). Moved from Great (Central) Russia with updates and additions. According to the Imperial Census of 1897, there were 2,112,033 inhabitants in the province of Saint Petersburg, with 1,121,048 men and 990,985 women. Of those, 63,457 (5.66%) reported speaking German as their Mother tongue, 28,992 male, 34,465 female. St. Petersburg was home to many early German colonists who came from the same places and arrived along with those who would go on to the Volga region. In addition to colonists who settled around St. Petersburg for agricultural purposes, there were many Germans living in the city who were professionals—architects, engineers, merchants, scholars, musicians, etc.

Vologda Province (1796-1929). According to the Imperial Census of 1897, there were 1,341,785 inhabitants in the province of Vologda, with 635,664 men and 706,121 women. Of those, 226 (.02%) reported speaking German as their Mother tongue, 118 male, 191 female. 

Those provinces in this region not mentioned above did not have any evidence of German habitation and were therefore left off. 

In total, this update includes 120 locations, either new or updated. The full list is in the Change Log. 

Up next: the historical provinces of Estland, Kurland, and Livonia.

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Last updated 22 March 2026

Remembering the German Settlements in Ukraine 2026

Today marks four years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.

Between 1766 and 1944, Germans lived in over 3,000 places within the borders of Ukraine today, in both urban and rural settlements, in the former imperial empires of Austria, Hungary and Russia. These places—whether they still exist today or not, whether their names are the same or not—remain in the hearts of the descendants as one our ancestral homelands.

This is the fourth year I have posted this illustration map, or some variation of it. This year, it shows the frontline of the war as it was yesterday, 23 February 2026. At present in Ukraine, there are over 600 former German settlements in Russian-occupied territory. View the updates in the change history. 

The first time I compiled and posted this illustration was a week after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. There were many questions and comments about it, both positive and negative. What are all the pins? What do the colors mean? All the Germans are gone, so why does it matter? Up to that point, I had not shown a map of former German colonies focused in a modern country’s borders. The image above seemed to be a revelation to many German descendants, and it was a teachable moment—one of those moments that arise from curiosity that present an opportunity to have a conversation, in this case about the present events and our collective past. 

Since then, I carried that moment forward in a class I taught two years later about Germans in Ukraine. The maps below are from that class. 

German settlements in historical imperial Austrian, Hungarian, and Russian provinces/regions on a modern map of Ukraine. 

German settlements in historical Soviet Republics on a modern map. 

Still standing with Ukraine.

Slava Ukraini!
🇺🇦🌻

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Last updated 24 February 2026

Documentary: Past and Present of the Black Sea Germans (2026)

“The cultural heritage of the Black Sea Germans has not disappeared despite the trials and tribulations of history. It lives on in the rustling of leaves from centuries-old trees, in the architecture, in the silence of old photographs, and in the stories passed down from generation to generation. And as long as we remember it, it continues to live, inspire, and remind us of the power of work, the value of peace, and the importance of hope.”

— from “Schwarzmeerdeutsche: Menschen. Kulturerbe. Zukunft” (Black Sea Germans: People, Cultural Heritage, Future).

A new online documentary film premiered this morning from the Council of Germans in Ukraine and the Virtual Museum of the Germans of the Black Sea Region: “Schwarzmeerdeutsche: Menschen. Kulturerbe. Zukunft.” This new video footage from expeditions in 2025, “filming historical settlements, cultural heritage sites, meetings with memory bearers, and living testimonies about the past and present of the Germans of the Black Sea region.” If you have visited Odesa and your ancestral Black Sea German villages in the past, either by private tour or with one of the Journey to the Homeland heritage tours (photo albums from 1996-2019) with the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection, you may find the places and faces familiar. 

Turn on closed-captioning (CC) and auto-translate in the settings to whatever language required to enjoy this short film. 

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Starting is easy...

Ten years ago today, 11 February 2016, the Germans from Russia Settlement Locations project began with 103 German villages on a Google MyMap. While I do not call this out every year, I would be remiss if I skipped this anniversary. 

There is a German proverb that goes “Anfangen ist leicht. Beharren eine Kunst.” It translates to “Starting is easy. Perseverance (or persistance) is an art.” 

Yes, I concur. 

Fueled by curiosity and coffee, I continue to go where the data takes me when life affords me time to do research. The map has filled out quite nicely, with many locations still in the queue. After a short winter break, data and blog posts will resume. After 10 years, it is nice to see the emergence of the answer to the question of where exactly Germans settled in Russia. I finally see what the end of this project looks like. 

One data point I have never shared before is the number of map views the project has garnered. There is not just one map but several. Google automatically keeps track of how many views maps have had. This is not something I set up. A “view” is the same as a session. No matter how long you stay on the map or search it, it counts as one view until the page is refreshed or closed. Cumulatively from all the maps in the project, as of yesterday afternoon there have been 4,491,724 views. Not bad. 

There are also now 360 posts on this blog. The early ones show how little I knew, while the later ones show much I had learned. Also, not bad. 

This project is still and will always be free. Information is useless if it is held hostage behind a digital paywall, or in a tome collecting dust on a shelf. I am not financially supported by advertisements, or by any for-profit or non-profit organization. This affords me full freedom in both the direction of my research and the words I choose to describe my findings. I like this model and have no intention of changing it. Any presentation stipends I receive or donations made to me personally are forwarded at the end of the year to research organizations of my choice. 

If you have found this project useful and want to support it, consider paying it forward in some manner to organizations in our Germans from Russia community worldwide. If you are reading this, you are very likely a part of that community and know best where and how to contribute so that the stories of our ancestors and where they happened are not lost. 

Mappy Birthday to this little project. Onward. 

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