I concur! I also use a "Witness" event as well as His/Her Godfather/Godmother and Godfather/Godmother to record baptismal data. If anyone would like to see examples, I can direct you to my website.
Mary -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Jenny M Benson Sent: Saturday, December 09, 2006 7:42 AM To: LegacyUserGroup@LegacyFamilyTree.com Subject: Re: [LegacyUG] signatures & names SKL 1750 wrote >1. When researching various records - marriage certificates, court >papers, etc. - I would like to capture the fact that the person has >signed the document (as an indicator for literacy). Does anyone of you >capture this information and how do you think it's best done. I include this information in the Notes, if it is something like a Marriage. A typical entry in Marriage Notes would be "The marriage was solemnised by Rev John Doe, Vicar, after Banns. Witnesses were Jane Doe and Fanny Adams. The bridegroom signed and the bride made her mark. (Incidentally, if the Witnesses were relatives who appear on my tree, they would have an Event named "Witness" to record this.) > >I guess I should create an event but I'm not sure how to name it or how >word it: "[HeShe] signed the document"... or "the document is signed by >[Name]". It isn't really an Event in its own right, though, is it? Just part of another Event - the Marriage or whatever. > >2. Also how is best to capture veriations of the name - for example, >the person is recorded on the document as THIJS, but he has signed THYS >(presuming he's literate). So far, I'm just added both as AKAs with the >details of where the version appears and by whom. In that case, who do >you think know better - the official (who often seem to make a complete >hash of even simple name) or the person? You have to appreciate that the spelling of people's names was very fluid "in the old days." Even a literate person might not use the same spelling every time. (cf William Shakespeare!) For use as the "main name" in my file, I would choose the most commonly used spelling. > > >3. What do you consider the official name esp. in 17th and 18th >century? I'm researching Belgium and of course in a short period of 30 >years, I can have the same person with a Latin name (Birth certificate; >say "Petrus" or "Joannes"), then French (for the Marriage, "Pierre" or >"Jean") and then Dutch (for the death certificate, "Pieter" or >"Jan")... All those are technically official because they were recorded >by the authorities. > As you say, all these are the "official name" - they are really all the same name but with different spellings. Again, for the main entry in my file I would use the one the person was most often known by in their daily life and enter the other versions as AKAs. -- Jenny M Benson *** Give the gift of Legacy for the holidays! Order online at http://legacyfamilytree.com/Redirect/Store-Legacy.asp or call 1-800-753-3453. *** Legacy User Group guidelines can be found at: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp To find past messages, please go to our searchable archives at: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ For online technical support, please visit http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp To unsubscribe please visit: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp *** Give the gift of Legacy for the holidays! Order online at http://legacyfamilytree.com/Redirect/Store-Legacy.asp or call 1-800-753-3453. *** Legacy User Group guidelines can be found at: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp To find past messages, please go to our searchable archives at: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ For online technical support, please visit http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp To unsubscribe please visit: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp
