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You say Pokrassa ... or Pokrasse, Pokross, Pokras, Pockrass, Pockross, Pockriss, Parkrose, Pokris, Pockrus, or Pockrose... a clearing house for these families. a potpourri of Porkassa families, celebrities (this is our fun page, don't miss!), success stories, comments.

Pokrassa and its variants is a Ukrainian last name often found in  Jewish families in and near the Kiev Gubernia of the Ukraine(a Gubernia is a governing unit of the Russian empire which usually shares the name of it's most prominent city), especially southeast of Kyev along the Dneiper River. The name may be derived from an old Ukrainian word related to decorating, and probably refers to an occupation.

how to use this site: After reading this page, learn about the beginning of this site on  the creation page, then read about our success stories from top to bottom. Then check out the list of families, celebrities, and comments.

This site can help Pokrassas connect with each other. Connecting might could be as simple as reconnecting with extended family members that have lost touch as the generations pass and disperse.  It could also include reuniting  lost branches of  families that have branches both in and out of Russia.  Under Stalin and his successors it was difficult and dangerous to communicate with the outside world. These difficulties were compounded by the Holocaust. Family history has been often been preserved on both sides of the Iron Curtain.  Our success stories illustrate both types of reconnection.

Here is a list of some of these families. Do you have a question or a family to add? Send  me a message. To help match families I need as much information as possible: where is your family from in the Ukraine, where did they immigrate to, through which ports? when? a family history including who is the child of whom. A family tree or gedcom would be helpful. Also contact information should I need to call you. This is confidential. To protect your privacy only limited information will be published about living people.  There is no charge for the use of this site. If you need extensive help doing research, I can assist with reasonable rates. Begin your research by viewing  a list of  eligible Pokrassa voters in the Duma election in 1906.

Now let's have some fun. Watch the following two videos, and then read the  success stories

   " Did you know that an episode of "Car 54, where are you?" was about the Pokrass family? Here's what genealogy superstar and Pokras family member Alan Hait had to say, "Anyway anyway - on cable we get this channel, MeTV, that shows old TV shows 24/7. They were showing an episode of "Car 54, Where Are You?" in the middle of the night - entitled "See You At the Bar Mitzvah". So I recorded it on TiVo.

"When I watched it I was blown away - the name of the bar mitzvah boy was Joel POKRASS and Officers Toody and Muldoon were trying to get people to attend the bar mitzvah, because the boy's father was a nasty slumlord name SAM POKRASS. No one wanted to go - not Katz the butcher, not even Officer Leo Schnauzer.

"As you can imagine I nearly fell off my chair. The writers (or Nat Hiken, the creator) must have known a Pokrass somehow and decided to name the nasty character after him. Here is the entry for the show in IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt053638."

Thank you!I am indebted to Alan for his contributions to this site. 

It's nice to have a songwriter in the family.   Lee Pockriss. Do you remember "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini?" I do. The words and music were by Lee and his collaborator Paul Vance. More information about Lee and other Pokrassa notables is on the celebrities page. Read read the  success stories,

 This site was created by Aaron Ginsburg. Learn more about Aaron. Join our mailing list or send a message!