2. The Friesen Name

Our ancestors were Mennonites, in particular, Mennonites who came from Holland, migrated to the Vistula Delta, then to southern Russia, and finally to Canada and the USA.  There are many other Mennonites who migrated at different times to different places, but our ancestors were all from this particular line of Mennonites.  Our surname 'Friesen' is one of the most common names among our line of Mennonites.  There are two primary root sources for this name, one being Mennonites who came from Friesland, Holland, and the other being 'from Rijssen' or 'von Riesen' in the province of Overijssel of East Netherlands.  The Peter D Friesen ancestors are from the 'von Riesen' branch of the Friesens.

Friesland and Overijssel are at the top right of the map.

More information about Rijssen in Overijssel can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rijssen

http://www.map-of-netherlands.co.uk/map-of-overijssel.htm

Rijssen can be seen in the lower middle of this map.