Discussion»Statements»Rosie's Corner» In America almost everyone of us comes from somewhere else. How far back can you trace your ancestors? What if you lived where they lived?
I can trace my maternal grandparents back to Russia. Had I lived there my entire life, I would have been looked down upon as a Jew. I no nothing of my father's family, as he left us when I was six.
My dad was born in Izmir, Turkey. I think the name of that city is different now. My mom in Amasya, Armenia. They met here so which/where would I go back to? I know nothing of anyone because I was too incurious to ask. By the time I figured out it would be nice know everyone who knew was dead. My timing has never been a strong suit. Condolences about your dad leaving you when you were so young. Our dad was our rock. He was the one who loved us (my younger sister and me) UNCONDITIONALLY. Of course mom loved us but she was critical and never quite pleased100%. There was always something we could have done better or should have done better. Whatever. I bet you are a GREAT dad. Thank you for your reply E and Happy Saturday to thee! :)
Wow! Good for you m2c! I know nothing about my great grands. Just my grandparents on both sides but that's it. I never asked. I never thought to ask. By the time I did it was too late. Everyone who knew anything was dead. SIGH. Thank you for your reply and Happy Saturday! :)
This post was edited by RosieG at November 7, 2020 12:04 PM MST
There are several sites available online for genelogy. Ancestry, Rootsweb are a couple of good ones. Rootswebs is free. Ancestry has fees. You might do a search there a relative may have asked and maybe posted on there.
One French Canadian, one Australian aborigine, one unknown (he called himself "John Smith", 'nuff said) and the rest are all Irish. Goes back quite a way - all eight of my great-granparents were born in the British colonies that became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901.
You know a lot more about yours than I know about mine R. My fault of course. I never really talked to my parents or grandparents about where we come from. Just never occurred to me. Once it did it was too late. SIGH. And which strain of your lineage do you choose? I mean you can't go back to everywhere. Thank you for your reply and Happy Saturday to thee and thine! :)
A little over seven-eighths Irish, it would have to be Ireland. No contest. The French Canadian great-great-grandfather married an Irish girl, Mary Kelly. My aboriginal great-great-great-grandmother married Paddy Monaghan, an Irishman. "John Smith" married an Australian-born woman, Kathleen Browne, of Irish parents. Eileen and Dennis O'Neill were transported for "political activity in Ireland". I won't iterate all of the others, I do have them at least as far back as the old country.
Begosh and begorra. Well m'dear I'm going to do a big reveal just for your eyes only. My maiden name was OHANESIAN and on St. Patrick's Day every year I'd spell it O'hanesian. Everyone has a wee bit of Irish within. Those names just tickle me bigly. I mean they sound THEATRICAL R. Mary Kelly. "But it was Mary Mary plain as any name can be". PADDY Monaghan? PADDY? Oh my goodness that is DELIGHTFUL! Kathleen BrownE. That E at the end makes it so classy. Isn't there a song about a Kathleen? And Eileen and Dennis O'Neill? I can see them now. You should write a book about your family using their real names. About Kathleen. Is there a song "take me home again Kathleen"? You didn't invent those names right? They are your family tree for sure. Begosh and begorra! Is Maureen Irish too? I mean there is Maureen O'Hara in the movies. You know what? This conversation just cheered me up bigly. What's in a name? Why is it so much fun to talk about what we talked about? Beats me but I'll take it any day! Thank you for your nifty reply R! Ever look for a leprechaun? They are supposed to know where that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is. :)
Maureen is an Irish name (either the Irish form of 'Marian' or a contraction of 'Mavourneen', ie 'my darling') but her ancestors weren't. Her sister has recently started exploring their family tree, mostly Scottish and Welsh, with a little gypsy and English petty aristocracy - in particular the family that Baroness Orczy based The Scarlet Pimpernel on. Maureen has a family heirloom - a pimpernel ring that was her g'g'grandmother's. It's also believed there's indigenous Australian there too, but harder to prove as that branch of the family never kept written records (or if they did, same have been lost).
This post was edited by Slartibartfast at November 7, 2020 12:05 PM MST
Scottish Welsh Gypsy and English? Oh my goodness she must be GORGEOUS! And firy! A bonny lass. Wasn't Richard Burton Welsh? Very CHARISMATIC. And Brigadoon! A Scottish town that awoke for one day every hundred years? All I know about me is that my heritage is Armenian. Were there other cultures mixed in there somewhere along the line? Probably but I'll never know. Maybe it's better that I not know.But if there is a next time we go around the merry go round I hope I will do things differently. Thank you for your informative reply R. For sharing it. It's infinitely fascinating to know where we all come from (when we know)!
This post was edited by RosieG at November 7, 2020 12:05 PM MST
My father's side of the family is of Italian descent and my mother's side of the family is of German descent. My father's ancestors are all from northern Italy, mostly Turin, Genova and Firenze. My mother's ancestors are mostly from around Frankfurt and Wiesbaden in Germany. The earliest records I could find about my ancestors are from the Century XVII. Some branches of my family tree kept good records. Others didn't keep any records. My mother's side of the family changed their family name from a German name to a Spanish name after they arrived in Argentina. I don't know who I would be if European immigration to the Americas never occured.
Thank you so much for sharing your family history with us Sirena. Isn't it fascinating to know where we came from? Those of you who have pursued it when people who know were still alive were very smart. Me? Not so much. By the time I thought to ask everyone who knew was dead. I lost my chance so mostly I'm in the dark. Entirely my fault. That's an excellent point you bring up. My parents met in America so if their parents and they hadn't come here my folks would likely not have met and I would not be here chatting with you. Hope all is well with you and your family viruswise and otherwise. Happy Saturday m'dear! :)
This post was edited by RosieG at November 8, 2020 1:52 AM MST
I did that whole thing a handful of years ago. No one else in the family seemed interested in my findings. Anywho, I traced my family way back to the 1700's. On my mom's side. As for my dad, I couldn't find anything before the early 1900's.
Wow! Good for you Zack! I cannot believe they weren't interested in your findings. I mean I believe you that they weren't. I just can't fathom why after you did all the heavy lifting they were indifferent. Weird. Thank you for your reply and Happy Tuesday to thee and thine! :)
This post was edited by RosieG at November 17, 2020 1:01 PM MST
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