Professional Genealogist
Reem Awad-Rashmawi, JDReem Awad-Rashmawi, JD, is a Palestinian American immigration attorney, professional genealogist, published author, and community historian. Her research and teaching focus on U.S. genealogical documentation, immigration records, DNA analysis, oral history, adoptees and unknown parentage, dual citizenship, family and community history, and Arab, Arab American, and Middle Eastern/SWANA genealogy.
Reem is the founder and president of NSAB, the National Society for Arab & Arab American Genealogy, and serves on the National Genealogical Society (NGS) Board. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, the Oral History Association, and regional, state, and local genealogy organizations.
Her chapter, “Arab American Genealogy Research as a Form of Public History,” appears in Arab American Public History (2026), edited by Edward E. Curtis IV. Her work emphasizes exhaustive research, thoughtful analysis, and the preservation of family stories. She connects individual and family experiences to community history, public history, and narratives that have been underrepresented, overlooked, or erased. Reem has researched her own family since the 1980s and has broad experience locating and analyzing records in U.S. collections, Ottoman records, immigration records, international repositories, online databases, and family-held archives. She holds dual bachelor’s degrees in international relations and sociology from the University of California, Davis, and a JD focused on international and immigration law. Her genealogical and oral history education includes Boston University, the UC Berkeley Oral History Center, SLIG, IGHR, GRIP, and ProGen.
