Genealogy is the study of tracing family lineage.
It involves collecting the names of your living and deceased relatives.
Additionally, you determine the connections between all family members based upon the primary, secondary or incidental facts that you collect.
An individual who is studying genealogy is known as a genealogist.
That individual must have an understanding of genealogical facts.
The facts you must be familiar with and study are the following: 1.
Family Name The family name (surname or last name) serves as a vital tool in genealogic research.
For some genealogists, it serves as the stepping stone to start the search.
Commonly, a family name originated from the name and/or nickname of the father himself, the location of your ancestors, and/or the employment of the individual.
To locate your ancestors' family name, you will want to look at birth, marriage and death certificates.
Census returns and trade directories can be helpful, too.
2.
Location Locating the place of your ancestor's birth is an essential part in finding out about your lineage.
To find the place names, you should search vital, land, court, probate and estate records.
Sometimes the location's name is puzzling due to the order of location names being cited.
It is vital to follow the standard place name writing protocol.
You need to record names of places from the smallest to the largest location.
For example, the city's name should come first before the county's name.
After listing the county, the state should follow.
The country is the last location entry.
3.
Given Name Long ago, the given name wasn't considered important in genealogy study.
But today, looking at given names (or first names) are now thought of as a necessary part of genealogy research.
Given names are said to be a representation of deliberate selection of the parents.
Some of the common naming patterns are: First name of a son taken from the paternal grandfather's name First name of a daughter taken from the maternal grandmother's name 4.
Dates The meaning of dates in genealogical research vary.
They may pertain to the birth, baptism, wedding or the death dates of your relatives.
Important dates can be found in the following records: vital, church, bible, military, and census.
Newspapers also are a tool for you to use to find important dates.
Other useful tools are the Social Security Death and International Genealogical Indexes.
5.
Employment Knowing the types of jobs your ancestors held may help you in your family lineage research.
Aside from knowing what your ancestors did for a living, the kinds of occupations of your ancestors may also help you to differentiate between two similar surnames.
You can find your ancestors' types of employment in birth, marriage or death certificates.
Other sources of employment information are town directories, obituary records, and the Social Security Administration.
Family name, location, given name, dates and employment are five key factors that will function as great helps for you as you trace your family lineage.
Just remember to consider the reliability of the sources of your information as you uncover facts about your family's history.
It involves collecting the names of your living and deceased relatives.
Additionally, you determine the connections between all family members based upon the primary, secondary or incidental facts that you collect.
An individual who is studying genealogy is known as a genealogist.
That individual must have an understanding of genealogical facts.
The facts you must be familiar with and study are the following: 1.
Family Name The family name (surname or last name) serves as a vital tool in genealogic research.
For some genealogists, it serves as the stepping stone to start the search.
Commonly, a family name originated from the name and/or nickname of the father himself, the location of your ancestors, and/or the employment of the individual.
To locate your ancestors' family name, you will want to look at birth, marriage and death certificates.
Census returns and trade directories can be helpful, too.
2.
Location Locating the place of your ancestor's birth is an essential part in finding out about your lineage.
To find the place names, you should search vital, land, court, probate and estate records.
Sometimes the location's name is puzzling due to the order of location names being cited.
It is vital to follow the standard place name writing protocol.
You need to record names of places from the smallest to the largest location.
For example, the city's name should come first before the county's name.
After listing the county, the state should follow.
The country is the last location entry.
3.
Given Name Long ago, the given name wasn't considered important in genealogy study.
But today, looking at given names (or first names) are now thought of as a necessary part of genealogy research.
Given names are said to be a representation of deliberate selection of the parents.
Some of the common naming patterns are: First name of a son taken from the paternal grandfather's name First name of a daughter taken from the maternal grandmother's name 4.
Dates The meaning of dates in genealogical research vary.
They may pertain to the birth, baptism, wedding or the death dates of your relatives.
Important dates can be found in the following records: vital, church, bible, military, and census.
Newspapers also are a tool for you to use to find important dates.
Other useful tools are the Social Security Death and International Genealogical Indexes.
5.
Employment Knowing the types of jobs your ancestors held may help you in your family lineage research.
Aside from knowing what your ancestors did for a living, the kinds of occupations of your ancestors may also help you to differentiate between two similar surnames.
You can find your ancestors' types of employment in birth, marriage or death certificates.
Other sources of employment information are town directories, obituary records, and the Social Security Administration.
Family name, location, given name, dates and employment are five key factors that will function as great helps for you as you trace your family lineage.
Just remember to consider the reliability of the sources of your information as you uncover facts about your family's history.
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