My last name is SHAWGO. Can you help my determine which Eurpoean country my ancestors are from?

Question

I was told by my aunt that my ancestors are from an area of Poland that used to be Germany before the borders were changed after World War One. I also have been told that Shawgo is "low-Dutch" but I do not know if that refers to an area in Pennsylvania where the Shawgo's originally settled or the Netherlands.

Answer 1

http://www.ancestry.com/learn/facts/default.aspx?ln=
doesn't have it, so I looked it up on the LDS mega-site,
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/frameset_search.asp
They have one person from the Netherlands, one from England, and dozens from the USA. Here are the two Europeans:

International Genealogical Index - British Isles
51. Rosa May Shawgo - International Genealogical Index / BI
Gender: Female Birth: 20 NOV 1885 Haynes, Bedford, England

Matches: International Genealogical Index/British Isles - 1

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International Genealogical Index - Continental Europe
52. Peggy Shawgo - International Genealogical Index / CE
Gender: Female Birth: 1775 , , Netherlands

Matches: International Genealogical Index/Continental Europe - 1



Sorry. The only way to know for sure would be to trace your ancestors back to Europe individually, which would take you anywhere from two weeks to two years.

If your ancestors were originally Polish. German or Dutch they may have americanized the name or shortened it, which adds to the complexity.

I realize this isn't the answer you wanted. At least I didn't lie and say "France", with no backup. Not all Q's have straight answers.

Answer 2

On Ancestry.com it says there were 6 Shawgo's who left Poland and sailed to America. 3 Shawgo's served in the Civil War on the Union side. They immigrated in 1875 and settled in Pennsylvania. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Shawgo

Answer 4

It sounds Russian to me.