I have been using several different place name entries for the same physical
location. This is OK for me but makes it difficult to exchange information
with other researchers, in charts or reports, because they would be confused
by location names I use. Even Germans do not attempt to use names as they
were during the German Holy Roman Empire. Many do not even use place names
used by the FamilySearch location standardiser.
This is why I would like to expand the Legacy option which allows selection
of Short Location Names, to also allow selection of other name variations.
Before sending reports to others, I could select a more contemporary
location name e.g. instead of using: Püttlingen, Kriechingen, Wied-Runkel,
German HRE [1776 to 1788], I could select: Püttlingen, Saarland, Germany.
While writing my family history book, I included explanations of location
name variations and the geopolitical implications. I use Genelines timeline
software a lot. I research the histories of their towns, counties, provinces
etc. and add the events to Genelines. First, it helps me to get my head
around their histories. Second, I can include Genelines individual’s charts
in my book to complement my narrative, to help readers understand the
context of ancestors’ lives.
European locations can have very complex and fluid histories, especially
during the German HRE. Even if I have few errors in how a specific time
period relates to a specific town, or county, or province etc., my location
names still appear to be more specific/accurate than they are any other
family trees I have seen.
John
-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Hayes
Sent: Friday, April 14, 2017 3:36 PM
To: Legacy User Group
Subject: Re: [LegacyUG] speaking of location names
On 14 Apr 2017 at 10:35, johnbernac...@iprimus.com.au wrote:
A few months ago I sent a suggestion to Legacy for the ability to add a
number
of name variations for locations, instead of only a short version. I have
diverse ancestry from different parts of Europe where it is very common
for
the same location to have been under various countries or empires through
history. Genealogists are supposed to use the location name as it was at
the
time of the event. You also learn a little more about the lives of
ancestors
if you know whether they lived under the Russian and /or Austrian Empires
and
/or Napoleon Bonaparte´s empire etc. Geo location can distract family
historians from researching the actual borders of the time, finding
interesting information and factors causing ancestors to emigrate etc.
Yes, I try, where possible, to do that, but FamilySearch seems to want to
use
the current name of a place, regardless of when the event took place. And it
sometimes has standardised on completely inaccurate place names, and
suggests
"standard" names that would mean that a place would have to be in two or
more
different places, none of them within 500 miles of where it actually is.
The German ones are particularly difficult, and, being unaware of all the
historical nuances, I usually enter things like "Woddow, Brandenburg,
Ueckermark, Prussia" even for periods when I'm not sure how accurate it is.
It does, however, mean that in Legacy, one can had 3-4 different place name
entries for the same physical location.
For example, I have
Johannesburg, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (short form ZAR)
Johannesburg, Transvaal
Johannesburg, Transvaal, South Africa (short form RSA)
Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.
and there was even a period when Gauteng was known as PWV
FamilySearch now wants to tack "United Kingdom" on to places in England,
Scotland and Wales, at the very time when the Brexit vote makes it uncertain
hoe long the UK will last, and it wants that name for periods even before
the
United Kingdom was formed.
I'm reminded of the book which features Lewis Carroll's Cheshire cat from
"Alice in Wonderland", only it introduces itself as "the Unitary Authority
of
Warrington Cat".
Of course one can always record a history of the changes of name and
jurisdiction in the location notes, and perhaps that is the way to go.
I admit however, it can get very complicated. I am the only family
historian
or genealogist that I know of who is "nutty" enough to attempt using
accurate location names for the extremely complex territories of the
German
Holy Roman Empire- I think Family Search only uses locations as they were
after the 1815 Congress of Vienna which made enormous changes to borders
throughout Europe.
You can however be rewarded with very fascinating stories e.g. I have
ancestors who lived in a culturally German district which was a tiny
French
exclave which had been geographically located within a bigger exclave of
the
Duchy of Lorraine. These ancestors emigrated to a corner of "Poland" which
had been taken by the Austrian Empire. They, with other German families
established their own colony/settlement. This region then fell to
Napoleon,
becoming part of the Duchy of Warsaw. It then went to the Russian Empire
("Russian Poland"). All this in one ancestor´s lifetime! Other branches
of my family tree also have fascinating stories relating to locations.
Researching locations takes time so I mostly research my direct ancestors
and
sometimes their siblings, rather than spending time finding thousands of
distant cousins which to me seems pointless and much less interesting.
John
--
Steve Hayes
E-mail: sha...@dunelm.org.uk
Blog: http://khanya.wordpress.com
Web: http://www.khanya.org.za/stevesig.htm
Phone: 083-342-3563 or 012-333-6727
Fax: 086-548-2525
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