Just before an elderly relative died, he shared that my husband's Serbian ancestor had changed his name when leaving for the United States. The ancestor had been a "general of the villiage of Prizan" and had a choice to go to Russia or the US when he left in 1907 due to a coup. He spoke many languages including Russian, Slovenian, English, French, and possibly Italian ... and I assume Serbian as well. We always thought his name was Steffan Todorovich, but this elderly relative indicated verbally that his last name had originally been "Muldonovich".

The only Serbian name I have run across that is even close to this English pronunciation is the surname "Mladenovic." I do not know Serbian pronunciation so I don't know how close this name would sound to "Muldonovich" in English, although I have inferred that the final "c" must sound like a "ch" in English. I would appreciate any other ideas of what this original Serbian surname may have been.

The only information I can find on the "villiage of Prizan" leads me to "Prizren" in what is now Kosovo. Not exactly a villiage, but perhaps that is just how it translated to English. I would appreciate any ideas of other locations to consider, ideas of what it would mean that he was a "general of Prizan (or Prizren)," and ideas of the historical context for his leaving in 1907. I am just beginning to study the war torn history of the area and it is challenging to say the least.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions!