Dorianfinder
Regular Member
- Messages
- 472
- Reaction score
- 49
- Points
- 28
- Location
- Western Cape
- Ethnic group
- European
- Y-DNA haplogroup
- R-FGC13617
- mtDNA haplogroup
- T2b1
This is the overarching question I have in my own family history. If I go back far enough I find my family may have continued to live in the same place but the language, culture and circumstances may have been very different. This is all part of cultural & political turbulence in the world we live in, the problem is how does one find the truth about a family and it's origins. It's very subjective and people forget in the blink of an eye.
Most family names (surnames) can be found in more than one country and most regions will have their own unique perspective of the world and with that, a different hypothesis concerning the origins for the same family name.
So, how does one go about searching for the original identity of a particular surname?
1. Family tradition
2. Linguistics (Etymology)
3. Loose association (What does the name remind you of?)
4. Political beliefs (Nationalistic/Patriotic mythology)
5. Popular opinion (Hearsay)
6. Personal preference (What floats your boat?)
7. Cross-cultural (Alternative)
8. Inclusive (All variants, exhaustive)
Most family names (surnames) can be found in more than one country and most regions will have their own unique perspective of the world and with that, a different hypothesis concerning the origins for the same family name.
So, how does one go about searching for the original identity of a particular surname?
1. Family tradition
2. Linguistics (Etymology)
3. Loose association (What does the name remind you of?)
4. Political beliefs (Nationalistic/Patriotic mythology)
5. Popular opinion (Hearsay)
6. Personal preference (What floats your boat?)
7. Cross-cultural (Alternative)
8. Inclusive (All variants, exhaustive)