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How to Start Your Irish Genealogical Quest

Monday, June 8th, 2009

Are you ready to begin your own Irish genealogical quest? You’re not alone. Today, over 34 million people in the United States alone have Irish ancestry. It’s one of the most commonly searched nationalities in American genealogy. Thanks to a huge wave of immigration in the 19th and early 20th centuries, Irish roots are found in every part of American life.

Not only is Ireland well-represented among the population of the United States, it can be found throughout the world. People in nearly every nation on earth have ancestry that could ultimately lead them on an Irish genealogical quest. The people of Ireland have been fanning out throughout the world since as early as the 7th century, when monks from the “Emerald Isle” set out to bring Christianity to the masses in Europe. Emigration continued at a steady pace until the 19th century, when it exploded! The infamous potato famine was happening then, and it caused 2 million Irish nationals to emigrate to nations all over the world, but particularly England, Scotland, Canada, Australia, and the United States.

If you want to identify your Irish ancestors and get to know who they were, there’s now plenty of opportunity to do so. Today, there are more records than ever that have been opened to the public, and even made available online! Lots of websites, such as the Origins Network, now make Irish genealogical records available online for a small monthly fee. You can use these websites to find such important records as birth, death, and marriage records, church registers, census records, and rosters of property owners (also known as Griffiths Valuation). So, get out there and get started on your path to discovering your Irish ancestors! They’re looking forward to meeting you!

Are you ready to dive head-first into the wonderful world of Irish genealogy? Are you excited by the prospect of discovering new ancestors from the Emerald Isle, but don’t know how to start? Come to Irish Genealogical, the Internet’s best place for Irish genealogy, where you’ll learn everything you need to know about uncovering your Irish ancestry!

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How to Use Irish Naming Traditions to Learn More About Your Irish Roots

Monday, June 1st, 2009

Many genealogists use surnames to dig up their Irish roots. This is an important and sound technique, because surnames can often point to the Irish county from which your ancestors came. However, surnames aren’t the only type of name you can use to trace your Irish ancestry. Thanks to common traditional naming patterns across the country in the 19th century, first names can also often provide an important clue as to the identities of your elusive family members. Here’s how:

Nineteenth-century Irish family naming patterns usually followed the guidelines in the list below pretty closely:

1. The oldest son was named after the father’s father.

2. The oldest daughter was named after the mother’s mother.

3. The second son was named after the mother’s father.

4. The third son was named after the father.

5. The fourth son was named after the father’s oldest brother.

6. The second daughter was named after the father’s mother.

7. The third daughter was named after the mother.

8. The fourth daughter was named after the mother’s oldest sister.

As you can see, this type of naming pattern can potentially provide important clues to your Irish roots. It’s especially useful in cases where you don’t know the names of the parents of a particular ancestor. By looking at how he named his children, you can have an idea as to what his parents (and siblings) names may have been. While the above guidelines were by no means set in stone, and sometimes varied, the pattern was usual enough in the 19th century to be of real use to genealogists searching for Irish ancestors.

By looking at naming patterns when searching for the parents of an ancestor, you can keep a closer eye out for potential candidates by looking at their first names. Of course, you should always verify and document all information, and never assume to know an ancestor’s name simply by what it would be according to the above list. But, for example, if you’re looking for the parents of an Irish ancestor named Michael Donnahue, and you know Michael’s first-born son was named Martin, then this might be a clue that Michael’s father’s name was also Martin. In this case, you can look more closely at men by the name of Martin Donnahue who lived in the same area as Michael and were of the right age to be Michael’s father.

Knowing the traditional naming patterns helps you find your Irish roots by alerting you to clues of identities you may have otherwise missed. Use it cautiously, but do use it! It can help you tremendously!

Are you ready to dive head-first into the wonderful world of Irish genealogy? Are you excited by the prospect of discovering new ancestors from the Emerald Isle, but don’t know how to start? Come to Irish Genealogical, the Internet’s best place for Irish genealogy, where you’ll learn everything you need to know about uncovering your Irish ancestry!

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