A Brief History as told to me by Badie Shakir Katen

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 We can trace the Katen family to be 1735 in Homs, Syria.  Our tree begins with a man named Saman. We don't know his wife's name. In Syria, children used their father's first name as a "last name". For example, Saman's children are Georgis & Jousef Saman. Daughters weren't always recorded. Samir Katen discovered and translated a letter from 1992. In it, the writer states that Saman migrated from his birthplace in Greece to Homs, Syria.

The Katen family begins with Saman's great-great-grandchild, Khaten Efram. His wife is the first woman mentioned in our family history. M'surra Daoud Nicola was born on Feb.10, 1842. Their children became the Katens.

Most of their grandchildren journeyed to different lands. Some stayed in their home town, others ventured to parts of the Middle East. A few went to South and North America. Recently, some moved to Europe.

By the beginning of the 20th Century, most had made the decision to leave or to stay. Kamel Katen was the first to emigrate. He went to Sao Paulo, Brazil before coming to America. He helped others come to the United States.

Today, there are over 400 direct descendants of Saman spanning 10 generations. Saman's offspring were born in Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Canada, the United States, Brazil, Chile, England, Denmark, and Germany. We have spouses who were born in many of these countries plus Norway, Italy, Argentina, Mexico, Cuba, and, I am sure, many more.