United States
There appears to be two Breyel lines in the United States. The first Breyel to settle in the New World quite possibly was Johannes Breyel. He arrived in Spotsylvania, Virginia in 1717 from Wurttemburg, Germany.
The other Breyel line in America is related to Matthais Breyel who immigrated to America from Wyhl, Baden, Germany in 1879. He homesteaded in Arkansas, and his descendents remain either in this State or have settled in Colorado, Missouri, Texas, South Carolina and other States in the southern US. Note: Much of the information on this web site pertains to his ancestors and lineage.
Germany
While the Breyel surname can be traced to Wyhl, Merdingen and Dusslingen, Baden-Wurttenburg as far back as 1635, records today indicate no people with this surname reside in these villages.
Church records in the Rhineland and Bavaria also indicate Breyels lived in these areas in the early 1700s. How and when these Breyel lines originated in these regions of Germany is not exactly clear.
Some Breyels also lived in Burwalde, Chortizt and Neuendor in the 1700s. They were Mennonites (see Russia below) who eventually migrated to the Black Sea region in Russia and lived in the community of Chortitza.
Andreas Breyel, who resides in Gifhorn, stated in 1997 that four generations pf Breyels had worked the silver mines in the Harz Mountains. His grandfather Reinard Breyel still lived in Altenau. It would thus seem that a Breyel line lived in northern Germany as early as the 19th century.
Today, many individuals with the Breyel surname are found in northern Germany. Public records currently show at least 16 people live in the towns of Altenau, Boblingen, Bremen, Didersee, Hamburg, Gifhorn, Langelsheim, Luneburg, Mittmann and Weyhe.
France
Genealogical records show that many persons with the Breyel surname appear in Strasbourg, France. The earliest record of a Breyel member is circa 1605 in Erstein, Bas Rhin. Most of these records were sourced from church archives in the various Parishes of Bas Rhin and Moselle as well as theDepartment of Archives, Strasbourg.
Many people with the Breyel surname can still be found living around the Strasbourg area in Bas Rhin, southeastern France. Records support this and former resident of Strasbourg, Rene Breyel, Jr. who now lives in Quebec, Canada with his family, confirms the existence of more than 100 people with the Breyel surname in France.
Belgium
A Breyel family is known to have lived in Ekeren, a village 10 km north of Antwerp. Records indicate that on 8 October 1627, Jacques Breyel, son of Jacques Breyel sold to Jacques Breyel, son of Boudewijn (Baldwin) Breyel who was a salesman from Antwerp, a castle surrounded by water. Situated in the village of Ekeren, the castle came with woodland and meadow acreage which had been heritage property belonging to his parents. The estate was originally divided between his brother and sisters in Antwerp on 14 September 1606.
The castle does not exist anymore. It was most likely destroyed in the wars of the 17th century (a war in this region raged until 1648). The family of Catherina van Veltwijck eventually became the owner. Another castle, the Veltwijck castle, is now the city house of Ekeren. This castle was built by her grandfather Arnold van Veltwijck.
Source: Wim D’Hooge, resident of Ekeren, Belgium.
Currently, public records show two persons (Peter and Sara Breyel) live in the Brussels area. They were originally from Hamburg, Germany.
Russia
In 1955, Professor Benjamin Unruh published a book entitled, Die niederlaendisch-niederdeutschen Hintergruende der Mennonitischen Ostwanderungen in 16, 18 und 19 Jahrhundertlisting a number of Breyels who once lived in the Black Sea region of Russia from 1795 to 1814. They were members of a German Mennonite community located in Chortitza. A compilation of those Breyels, including the variations in spelling of their surname, date/village of birth and maiden/married name, are found at the<span>Odessa Digital Library.
Malaysia
Timothy L. Breyel, originally from the United States, is the descendant of Matthais Breyel and currently lives in a satellite township outside Kuala Lumpur with his wife and daughter Zulaikha. He has lived in Malaysia since 1987.
