Tue, 12 Sep 2017

Genealogy Is Not Like Other Hobbies


The hobbies of people usually serve as means to express who they are. More than just showing someone that you have character due to your simple yet fascinating quirks, your hobbies also express your identity or at least a part of it. When you like sky diving or bungee jumping, you are identified as a person who likes living to the extreme. If you enjoy listening or watching every music album or film that ever existed then you're probably someone who does things more creatively than others. Whatever it is, it doesn't go without saying that people are more perceptive about who you are. Their perception about you gives them an idea on how to work, deal or get along with you, but how can they identify or perceive someone who is into genealogy?

Can you get along with someone whose interest is to acquire knowledge on the roots of everybody's bloodline? Perhaps if one can, he or she will find that genealogy is not like other hobbies and it is something to be deeply appreciated for several reasons.


Genealogy - The Study Of A Family's History


Genealogy, in general knowledge, refers to the study of a family's history. It involves tracing bloodlines and lineages as much as possible from the very root of a family's existence with the use of historical records, genetic data, and documented testimonies or the like. Hobbyist genealogists are often perceived as those who only pursue their own ancestry. Tracing other people's ancestry is sometimes done by hobbyists but on a more serious scale, it is usually done by professionals who are obliged to unravel the obscurity of a family's heritage by more significant purposes.

It is always interesting to find out if you may be the second cousin of someone whose uncle is a cousin of the great, great, great grandchild of Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Edison or probably some dude who invented the paper plane. Regardless, there are several reasons to take genealogy seriously, even if you are just interested about it due to your hobby, aside from the fact that you can get paid for it.

Acquiring the knowledge regarding your family's roots, with the right tools and resources, can be done from different angles. Whichever way you start with, you should always be wary of the essential items needed for your search. The Genealogical Proof Standard or GPS is the basic tool that enumerate the elements needed in successfully tracing your bloodline. It is a template made by the Board for Certification of Genealogists, an organization founded by professional genealogists since 1964. The elements are as follows:

  • Reasonable and thorough research - This involves thoroughly examining high quality sources of useful information.

  • Full and correct citations to the source/s of each information

  • Tests with the help of processes like analyzing and correlating all sources, information, and evidences

  • Conflict resolution among evidences - This involves substantiating the credibility of the conclusion

  • Sound, reasonable and coherent conclusion in written form - This element eliminates potential bias preconception or inadequate conclusion.


Discover Your Family's Medical History


The GPS, as solid a criteria it may be, should not be the only guide to your research. You should not forget to do this with integrity and that truth and meaning should prevail in matters such as this. Now what you do with the information you will receive will be up to you. You should take note that this information, if based on your own bloodline, can be detrimental to your own and your living family's future.

If one is to find significant proof with a well-done conclusion that he or she is of royal blood, an entitlement to a piece of their legacy may be in order. If you are considering a serious claim to an inheritance then consider getting a lawyer and someone from the National Genealogical Society or the like.

In terms of another significant and at the same time, less self-serving motive for Genealogy is that one can make new discoveries to add in the family medical history. As far though as history may take you, it shouldn't overwhelm you if you find that a relative from the 18th Century and his father before him had cancer. Still, it may be something good to know that your lineage did not grow as it did without the burdens of disease.

It's a good insight for you and your family to stay health conscious and be wary of possible diseases your relative from the renaissance period have suffered from.

Visit our genealogy page for more information about genealogy research.


More to read:
Genealogy Records
Discover Who Your Ancestors Were
When To Use A People Search Service
People Search Benefits
The Power of People Search Engine
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Many Reasons To Do A People Search These Days
It Is Easy To Use A People Search