Alexander family
The Alexander family was a prominent Croatian Jewish family whose members played an important role in the economic and social life of Zagreb for approximately a century.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
The Alexander family was a prominent Croatian Jewish family associated primarily with Zagreb. Its ancestors moved to Zagreb from Güssing in Austria, after which the family developed into a large and socially influential clan. Over roughly a century, members of the family participated in the economic and civic life of Zagreb and became part of the city's Jewish communal history. The family was not a single commercial enterprise or modern consumer brand. Rather, the name refers to an extended kinship network that included several branches, marriages, and descendants through both male and female lines. The Zagreb Alexanders grew substantially over successive generations. The reference material records Samuel and Julija Alexander as the great-grandparents of the Zagreb family and identifies their five sons and several daughters as the foundation of later branches. When deceased and living members, including descendants through the female line, are counted, the family comprised 224 people across seven generations. The family's prominence was severely disrupted by the Second World War and the Holocaust. Many members were murdered under the wartime persecution of Jews in the Independent State of Croatia and in concentration camps, including Auschwitz and Jasenovac. The recorded victims include Zora Marić, born Alexander, and her husband Artur Marić; Đuro Alexander, his wife Ines, and their son Miljenko; Otto Alexander and his mother-in-law Frieda Weiss; Zlata, also known as Aurelija, Breyer, born Alexander, and her husband Sigismund Breyer; Stanko Kreč; Ella Boran-Plachte, born Marić, and her second husband Filip Boran; and Ilka Alexander and her husband Otto Vinski. These deaths substantially reduced the family and form an important part of its historical record. Named members associated with the family include Samuel David Alexander, Šandor Alexander, Viktor Alexander, Oskar Alexander, Oton Vinski, Zdenko Vinski, and the later descendant Ezel Alexander. The source material does not establish a continuing corporate organization, a current headquarters, a commercial product portfolio, or a contemporary operating business under the family name. It states that only a few descendants today bear the surname Alexander. The family is therefore best understood as a historical Croatian Jewish family and subject of genealogical and communal history, rather than as a conventional brand.
History
The Alexander family was a large Croatian Jewish family centered in Zagreb. Its ancestors came to Zagreb from Güssing in Austria, and the family subsequently became involved in the city's economic and social life. The family name covered multiple branches and included descendants through both sons and daughters, making it an extended clan rather than a narrowly defined household or business dynasty. Samuel and Julija Alexander are identified as the great-grandparents of the Zagreb Alexanders. Their family included five sons and several daughters. Across seven generations, the wider family numbered 224 people when living and deceased members and descendants through the female line were included. This scale helps explain why the Alexander name appeared in several interconnected areas of Zagreb's Jewish and civic society. The family's history changed catastrophically during the Second World War. Until 1941, the Alexanders remained a large clan. The establishment of the Independent State of Croatia brought state persecution and the Holocaust to the Jewish population. Numerous members of the family were killed, including people who died in Auschwitz, Jasenovac, and other wartime sites. The documented victims include Zora Marić, born Alexander, and Artur Marić; Đuro Alexander, his wife Ines, and their son Miljenko; Otto Alexander and Frieda Weiss; Zlata or Aurelija Breyer, born Alexander, and Sigismund Breyer; Stanko Kreč; Ella Boran-Plachte, born Marić, and Filip Boran; and Ilka Alexander and Otto Vinski. The surviving and later family record includes figures such as Samuel David Alexander, Šandor Alexander, Viktor Alexander, Oskar Alexander, Oton Vinski, Zdenko Vinski, and Ezel Alexander. Some listed individuals used surnames acquired through marriage, illustrating the broad genealogical scope of the family history. The available material says that only a few descendants now bear the Alexander surname. It does not provide evidence of a present-day corporate entity, commercial brand operation, or organized family business, so the subject is principally historical and genealogical.
- 1941
Wartime persecution begins in the Independent State of Croatia
[1]The establishment of the Independent State of Croatia marked the beginning of the period in which many Jewish members of the Alexander family were persecuted and killed.
Migration of the family ancestors to Zagreb
[1]The ancestors of the Zagreb Alexander family moved to Zagreb from Güssing in Austria, establishing the family's later Croatian base.
Expansion into a seven-generation clan
[1]The family expanded through several branches and female-line descendants. The historical account counts 224 members across seven generations, including both deceased and living relatives.
Holocaust destruction of family branches
[1]Members of the family were murdered during the Holocaust, including in Auschwitz and Jasenovac. The losses greatly reduced the previously large Zagreb clan.
Survival of a small number of descendants
[1]The available account states that only a few descendants bear the Alexander surname today.
Sources1 sources
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