From Family Trees to an International Conference on Jewish Genealogy in Central Europe: Why I temporarily disappeared from my own Genealogy Jungle (and why you should come to Vienna)

How a few quiet months on Genealogy Jungle turned into the creation of a new international gathering for people passionate about Jewish genealogy in Central Europe.

If you’ve been following Genealogy Jungle, you may have noticed something unusual. Since January, the jungle has been… quiet.

No new posts, no fresh archival discoveries, no late-night genealogical rabbit holes. And if you’ve been wondering what happened, you deserve an explanation.

The short answer is that I haven’t abandoned the jungle. On the contrary, it recently reached the milestone of 75,000 intertwined people. I have simply been building something much bigger.

Last Rosh Hashanah 2025, a group of us founded the Association for Central European Jewish History and Genealogy (CEJHG). I had the honor of being appointed its Secretary General. Since then, much of my time has gone into building the organization from the ground up and preparing what will be our first major milestone.

That milestone is an international conference dedicated to Jewish history and Jewish genealogy in Central Europe, taking place in Vienna.

The conference is titled “Parallel Paths, Shared Past: Jewish History and Genealogy in Central Europe”. We are organizing it together with the Jewish Studies Department at Central European University (CEU), and it will take place 4-6 May in Vienna.

If you care about Jewish family history in Central Europe, you may want to be there.

A Community for Jewish Genealogy in Central Europe Is Already Forming

The response to the new association has been incredible.

Within the first six months, the association has already grown to 100 members from around the world, and I hope it will continue growing as more people interested in Central European Jewish history and genealogy discover it.

And here is something important:

You do not need a PhD in Jewish Studies or any academic degree to join.

If you are interested in Jewish genealogy in Central Europe, Jewish heritage, or the history of Jewish communities in the region, you are welcome to join the CEJHG!

There are two types of membership:

Full membership

For those who want to participate in projects, help shape the direction of the association, and have voting rights.

Associate membership

For those who want to follow our work, stay informed, and access the research materials we will publish, but aren’t free or interested to participate in the work.

Both cost 50 euros per year.

Why This Conference Matters for Jewish Genealogy in Central Europe

Our conference in Vienna (4–6 May 2026) will bring together historians, genealogists, archivists, and researchers who work on Jewish history and genealogy across Central Europe.

Over three days, we will explore the history of Jewish communities across the entire Central European landscape, including:

Austria

Hungary

Bohemia

Moravia

Galicia

Slovakia

Western Ukraine

Romania

and many other regions where Jewish communities flourished for centuries.

The goal was to create a program that offers something meaningful for everyone who studies or researches Jewish genealogy in Central Europe, whether you are an academic historian, a genealogist tracing family roots, or simply curious about the Jewish past of this region.

Beyond the lectures, the conference will also be a rare networking opportunity for people interested in Jewish genealogy and Central European Jewish history.

Participants will have the chance to meet researchers and representatives from institutions such as:

•       the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism

•       the Austrian Institute for Jewish Studies

•       the Jewish Museum Vienna

•       the Jewish Museum in Prague

•       Central European University

...and many others

For anyone researching Jewish family history in Central Europe, it promises to be a fascinating gathering.

A Personal Genealogy Story from Palárikovo

Something else beautiful happened along the way.

Following my earlier posts about the Jewish community of Palárikovo in Slovakia, I connected with local author Imrich Szabo.

And this is where genealogy becomes magical.

Imrich grew up across the street from my great-grandparents’ house on Štefánikova Street.

Even more incredible, he still owns a hand-knitted baby blanket that my great-grandmother Terezia made, which my great-grandfather Arnold left with his parents in 1960 before immigrating to Israel.

Since then, Imrich, my wonderful friend Lucia Zuštiaková, and I have been expanding the story of the Jewish community of Palárikovo.

What began as blog posts on Genealogy Jungle is now developing into a book project about the Jewish history of Palárikovo, which we hope to publish soon in Slovak and, if we manage to secure funding, also in English and Hebrew.

Naturally, this research will also appear at the conference.

My presentation is titled:

“Untangling the Hidden History, Relationships, and False Documentation of the Jewish Community of Palárikovo”.

Lucia will present her research on her hometown Námestovo, and the two of us will participate together in a panel dedicated to town histories in Jewish Central Europe.

In true genealogical fashion, our research has become wonderfully intertwined. I helped Lucia with research on Námestovo, she helped me with Palárikovo, and now we will present our findings side by side.

Genealogy Always Leads to Unexpected Family

And because no gathering of genealogists is complete without a surprise discovery, here is another one.

I recently learned that another conference presenter from Hungary, Dr. Dóra Pataricza, is actually my fifth cousin.

We are both descendants of Rabbi Leopold (Avraham Shmuel Leib) Oblatt of Ürmény, about whom I have written before.

At this rate, if we start comparing family trees at the conference, it might turn into a family reunion.

That is also part of the beauty of Jewish genealogy in Central Europe. The deeper you dig into the history of families and communities, the more connections appear.

Join Us in Vienna for the Jewish Genealogy Conference

Right now I am deep in the organizational side of producing the conference, but I am also incredibly excited about finally meeting many of you face to face.

If Central European Jewish history or Jewish genealogy is close to your heart, I would truly love to see you there.

The conference will take place 4-6 May 2026 in Vienna and will bring together historians, genealogists, archivists, and researchers from across Europe and beyond who work on Jewish history and genealogy in Central Europe.

And here is a useful tip:

It is actually cheaper to become a CEJHG member and register with the member discount than to register as a non-member.

You can explore the full program and register here.

I truly hope to see many familiar and friendly faces, and hopefully some new ones, in Vienna this May.

And I promise the next post on Genealogy Jungle will arrive very soon too ;-)

Yours,

Mattan