Drawing up a pedigree. How to find out about your ancestors by last name on the Internet and archives?

Almost everyone eventually has a desire to learn more about their family and ancestors. Who they were and what they did, what kind of memory did they leave about themselves? But, unfortunately, few can boast of a good knowledge of their pedigree. In daily bustle, people do not have time to listen to the stories of elderly members of the family about distant and seemingly completely unimportant things. After all, you need to work, educate children, do household chores. Where can we now patiently listen to grandmother's memories of people who are no longer alive?

Nevertheless, with age, the craving for its origins appears in almost every person.

Finding the roots. Where to begin?

So how do you know the history of your ancestors? You can ask questions to the senior representatives of the family - they will talk about their parents, grandmothers and grandfathers. Older relatives will tell much more than any archive, because they are living witnesses of history. Such memories are best recorded on any medium or outlined, but only then systematized.

Old photographs play an important role in the restoration of the history of their ancestors. They are usually signed, and so you can find out what the relative looked like, with whom he communicated, where he lived.

Diaries and letters must necessarily be collected. The stamp on the envelope can talk about where one of the ancestors worked or served, and the records will help to restore the chronology of events.

What can the surname tell?

You can learn a lot about your ancestors by name. As a rule, she can tell about the origins of the genus of the genus, to indicate belonging to a particular estate. Among ordinary people, peasants and artisans, the surname was often formed on behalf of, profession, nickname or appearance, and among representatives of the nobility from the name of the possessions of the clan.

Special reference books contain information on the history of the origin of the surname. Sometimes she can say a lot about her carriers, for it is not without reason that the main character traits inherent in the family were reflected in family coats of arms and seals from noble people.

Using archives

Unfortunately, not everyone has relatives who can learn about their ancestors. Surname - both by chance and on purpose can be substantially changed. Some representatives of the nobility could give their children truncated or changed surnames. Entries in church books are also sometimes erroneous. Therefore, the exact result should be sent to the archive.

The population census in our country has been conducted since the XVIII century. All important documents, such as certificates of marriage, birth and death, were issued in two copies, one of which remained in the church and the other was transferred to the vault.

Visiting the archive requires a lot of free time and painstaking work. Some of the departments are closed to ordinary visitors, and they can be visited only by special passes. A huge number of documents significantly complicates the task of restoring the history of the family. Those who do not have time to visit archives can turn to professionals for help.

But it is important to understand that before starting the search it is necessary to collect at least minimal data on their ancestors, to find out both the name, year and place of birth. Without such information, even specialists are unlikely to be able to help.

Finding relatives on the web

Some archival data is now translated into electronic form, and therefore more and more people are trying to learn about their ancestors on the Internet. By the name and place of birth, you can find the burial places of soldiers who died or were missing during the war, clarify the fate of relatives, if information about them was posted on the Web. If there is no data on the Internet, but it is known that they are in the archive, then you can try to write a query there. It is important to understand here that some documents still have a classification of secrecy, and no one will be able to provide this information.

On specialized sites devoted to genealogy, you can find many useful tips on where to start. Recommendations will help you to understand the intricate terminology of kinship, prompt what information and where to look for, will teach to systematize the data obtained, and on their basis correctly make up the genealogical tree of the family.

Drawing a pedigree

All found papers, photos, collected in one heap, have an unattractive appearance. Therefore, all the known information about their ancestors must be systematized. A universally recognized method is the compilation of a family tree, which is a schema of all family ties.

There are certain rules for registration: the roots of the tree are the oldest representatives of the genus, the trunk is the main representatives, the branches are descendants. Sometimes there is an opposite arrangement of family ties.

When composing a genealogical tree, one must also take into account the inheritance of the genus. In Russian families, it was passed only through the male line, and if the family had no children or only girls appeared, the genus was considered interrupted.

You can create a genealogical tree both independently and by contacting specialists for assistance. It will be a real gift for any family celebration and will be passed on from generation to generation, building up with new branches-descendants.

Moscow was not built in a day…

Drawing up a pedigree is a painstaking affair, requiring a lot of time and a great desire to understand the history of your ancestors. Find out by name, as practice shows, you can not all, because it could undergo various changes or get lost for several generations.

The difficulty is also that many of the information was lost or specially destroyed in the whirlwind of the bloody events of the 20th century. The revolution and the wars that took millions of human lives, hundreds of thousands of children who found themselves in orphanages after the loss of their parents, and sometimes even those who do not know and do not remember their family, are all a serious obstacle in establishing genealogical roots.

Great desire, patience and painstakingness are indispensable in this difficult matter. Many abandon the work begun in the middle, failing to break through the intricacies of kinship ties, a huge number of documents and information. But when the information that has been collected with little bitterness begins to take shape - this is the best incentive in continuing such a great cause as restoring the history of your Family.