Genealogy is the study about one’s ancestral lineage. It comes from the Greek words genea (family) and logos (knowledge). Once an area popular only to the higher echelons of society like officials and royalties as a symbol of wealth, fame and power, genealogy has now become a common household name.
A genealogist collects names and information about relatives, may they be dead or living. The information will be used to establish relationships and thus build a family tree.
One of the important purposes of the studies of genealogists is to understand people in terms of their lifestyles, motivations, special talents and attributes. Understanding these aspects in the lives people often lead to having broader knowledge about laws, social echelons, immigration trends and political boundaries. Many genealogy studies have also helped find missing relatives or relatives in sad conditions such as being separated by war and natural catastrophe or living in foster home since birth.
Modern science has made genealogy a lot easier and more accurate. Genetic genealogy takes out one’s DNA and analyzes to establish relationship or non-relationship between two or more persons. This method is very important in accurately tracing migratory patterns of human beings and determining ethnic and bio-geographical origins.
Genealogy can be done as hobby by any person – from teenagers to old retirees. A person can simply ask relevant questions from relatives and plot the names and information on the family tree. Some records used in genealogy include birth, death, marriage and divorce records, biographies, medical records, cemetery records, diaries, personal letters, oral history, passports, wills and probate records.
Data gathered from genealogy research using the question method should be thoroughly verified and validated. Many stories handed down from former generations have diminished their accuracy through time. Also, many of the potential respondents for the research are old people as they have vast experiences but the problem with them is that their memory may be failing. Hence, there is a need to validate the stories they will tell.
A more efficient way to do genealogy is through internet data sharing. There are a lot of softwares available in the market today. These softwares can store existing database of family names so that when one queries a single name, matches can be found and family tree formed within a few seconds. These softwares have export capacity in GEDCOM format. These data can be shared in newsgroups, forums, emails or added to many databases online.
Hundred of web sites have become popular for their outstanding genealogic features. Some of the websites allow a person to create an account and enter his basic family tree. The website will be responsible of promoting the family tree until many people from around the world add information to the tree and thus creating a larger tree. With this information, new relationships are found, new trends are spotted and new histories can be drawn. People around the world have experienced the excitement of finding out relatives and ancestors that never occurred even in their wildest dreams and imaginations.
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Do you want to know exactly who your ancestors were: where they lived; what they did for a living; whether that story of highwaymen, criminals and corrupt relatives is factual, or a figment of Grandma's over-active imagination? |
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