Some of the anglicization of names is being a product of the time period. Literacy (even in America) was not then (1900, say) what it is today. So Machado sounded close enough to Marshall. Couple that with going through WWI and WWII in America and America being on the winning side and everyone wants to be American. I can't quite recall from my college studies, but I think it was more like the 1960s or maybe 1970s when there was more of a push towards multiculturalism. And literacy was higher by then.
How many legally changed their name though? I've met other genealogists and mostly it's just a corruption or anglicization from the past because of literacy. A couple had the name changed in the naturalization papers, and the most common reason was to make it easier in living here. (This was a name from Poland? Lithuania?) One person had the story that his family changed their name to their in-laws names on purpose because the first syllable was prounced "dumb" in English. I didn't see the paperwork on that, so I guess that's their family story. Cheri Mello Listowner, Azores-Gen Researching: Vila Franca, Ponta Garca, Ribeira Quente, Ribeira das Tainhas, Achada -- To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. Follow the confirmation directions when they arrive. For more options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the right that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my membership."
