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Who Should You Include in Your Family Tree?
As I do my genealogy, things get crazy fast when you’re from a yours-mine-and-ours type of family. Especially when you’ve got two brothers (one from another mother) with the same first name. The family tree gets complicated quickly. But do I leave someone out just to simplify? Who should you include in your family tree? […]
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Can Anyone Today Trace their Family to Roman Times?
Roman history is full, rich, and deeply nuanced. It’s fun to imagine what it would be like back then – and it’s intriguing to wonder what your ancestors did back then. Were they part of the vast Roman empire? Or were they elsewhere in the world? Can anyone trace their family to Roman times? While […]
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How Many Generations Until You Are No Longer Related?
Tracing genealogy is a fun thing, but it can bring up some interesting questions – especially in relation to marriages, relation, and potential inbreeding. For example, how many generations until you’re no longer related to someone? The distance (or the number of generations) required before no longer being considered related to someone depends on how […]
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Last Names that Come from Nature: 15 Origin Stories
Finding out about your last name is cool. But what if your family’s name has ties to nature? Can that help you learn about where you’re from or how your family took up that nature-based last name? Last names that come from nature can give clues to where a family comes from, where they lived, […]
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How Accurate is Mormon Genealogy?
Growing up, I assumed that all records were both boring and infallibly correct. As it turns out, not all records are boring – and it’s important to question the validity of every record. How accurate are Mormon records? Mormon genealogy records are based on a shared database, which means there can be errors due to […]
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Ancestry: How Far Back Do Records Actually Go?
While indexing isn’t one of my favorite activities, I know it’s important because it creates digital access to vital records. But how far back do ancestry and genealogy records actually go? And how far back can I expect to find genealogy records? The earliest genealogical records are from China in 1500 B.C. European-based records go […]
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Can Anyone Trace their Lineage Back to the Bible?
While reading the Bible, I’ll admit – I struggle during the sections where they list all of the genealogies. Even so, it’s cool to think that all of those names could contribute to our genealogical knowledge – if only we could trace a lineage back to them. While there are individuals who claim to trace […]
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Why Are Some Last Names So Common?
Growing up with a rarer (and deceptively simple to pronounce) surname, part of me envied kids who had more common last names – that didn’t get tripped up on during that first day of school’s attendance. But it has made me wonder – why some last names are more common than others. So, I asked […]
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How Do Family Trees Work with Cousins?
Some of my best memories growing up involve my cousins. They’re amazing people and I’m lucky they’re part of my family – but where do they fit in my family tree? How do family trees work with cousins? Cousins aren’t traditionally included in a family tree. However, expanded family trees can be built to include […]
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Where to Find Old Yearbooks (Do Schools Have Them?)
Sometimes it’s fun to browse school photos – whether your own or of an ancestor’s. But where can you find them? Do schools have old yearbooks? Or is there a better way to find old yearbooks – like maybe while at home and from a computer? Old yearbooks can be found in various places online […]
