Monthly Archives: February 2018

Favourite Book(s) #8 – A Town Like Alice by Neville Shute

Anyone who has been reading my blog for a while will probably know that this is one of my absolute favourite books. My copy was purchased probably 30 years ago from a wonderful bookshop in Guildford called Thorps, which has … Continue reading

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Webinar – How Understanding & Researching European Surnames Can Help Your Genealogical Research

I am delighted to be talking to the Wisconsin Genealogical Society about how Understanding & Researching European Surnames can help genealogical research. The webinar is to take place on 20 February 2018 at 7pm CST, which is the early hours … Continue reading

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Favourite Book(s) #7 – Alphabet Series by Sue Grafton

I have long been an avid reader of the Alphabet series by the late Sue Grafton. The series of books follows the life of a fictional private detective, Kinsey Malone in the United States. The series begins with A for … Continue reading

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Learning and One-Name Studies

Having decided to work on a One-Name or surname study you will want to be as well informed as possible in terms of methodology, ideas, hints, tips, tricks and everything in between. The Guild offers seminars to members and non-members … Continue reading

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The Three P’s ~ Publicise, Publishing and Preserving

The ability to publicise a study, publish material and preserve a study are very much entwined. The best way of advertising your study is to share information and talk about the fascinating characters we meet as we build our studies. … Continue reading

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What is your oldest possession?

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Communication with others and Responding to Enquiries

One of the Guild commitments expected of study registrants is to respond to all enquires received. In fact study holders like nothing more than talking about their study and sharing the gems they have discovered. They too, welcome submissions to … Continue reading

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Drawing Conclusions from Data

One of the elements of drawing conclusions is understanding the meaning of the surname. Surname are typically formed from the following, withe those in bold the most common: Patronymic – based on the given name of a male ancestor and … Continue reading

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I’ve Collected Data, now What?

Having downloaded and acquired data you need to do something with it. Not every member of the Guild does family reconstruction, and that might depend on the size of your study and your personal preference. Personally I do reconstruct families … Continue reading

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Quick Wins for Surname Collection

Any One-Name and surname research project will involve the collection of material, what I refer to as raw data. Regardless of where your surname originated from or where you reside, to undertake a One-Name Study and register this with the … Continue reading

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