Croatian Heraldry

PUSKARICH - PUSKARIC

Puskarich either means gun, puska or puskar, or gunmaker. The name is found in great numbers all over Croatia. The Ogulin area of Croatia has the largest concentration with many families from Donje Zagorje, Gornje Zagorje, Podvrh, Kolici and Zagrad in the Ogulin, district.

Arms were granted to Paul Puskarich of Varazdin and are on the file at the Croatian Archives.

Gunsmiths were a very important part of the Croatian military frontier facing the Turks and Puskarich became as common as Smith during this period.

Records do not indicate the ancient origin of the name or if they may have moved west because of the Turkish invasion of Croatia.

Many names originated in a person’s trade or occupation and I do believe Puskarich probably originated in this fashion.

Courtesy of the Croatian Genealogical and Heraldic Society, 2527 San Carlos Ave., San Carlos, California, 94070. Phone: 650-592-1190; E-Mail croatians@aol.com; Web www.croatians.com. Adam S. Eterovich.