I assume you don't know Rosaria's birth parents. At what age was she adopted? If she was adopted as a young child or infant, she may have been living with a foundling organization such as a Roman Catholic Institution in the town. If the Sconza Testa family adopted her, there must be a record of her adoption especially since the mayor of the town gave her a surname. Have you checked notary records, town records, church records? If you trace the Sconza Testa family back in time you may find a name change or figure out why the dual surname. Mike
In necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus autem caritas. In essentials unity, in doubtful things liberty, but in all things love. St. Augustine (A.D. 354 - 430) ________________________________ From: Ruth Nerud <baber...@worldnet.att.net> To: LegacyUserGroup@legacyfamilytree.com Sent: Friday, August 14, 2009 1:55:08 PM Subject: Re: [LegacyUG] Re: TESTINI Yes, I'm pretty good at reading the Italian records. These happen to be in Italian. Since Rosaria was a foundling, the mayor gave her a name similar to the surname of the family she was being given to - Sconza Testa, a double surname, somewhat unusual in Italy. All other children in this family including my father are Sconza Testa's, but this one adopted child's records all continue to say Testini, even to her death record, and all indicate parents unknown. Ruth ----- Original Message ----- >From: michael barberi >To: LegacyUserGroup@legacyfamilytree.com >Sent: Friday, August 14, 2009 2:44 > PM >Subject: [LegacyUG] Re: TESTINI > > >I > don't know precisely the record you are referring to about the name Rosaria > Testini. I am new to this forum. I may be drifting far from your > question and presuming too much or to little about your research. > Nevertheless, I offer these few thoughts to be helpful. > >As you probably > know, Italian Church Baptism Records are written in Latin and use all kinds > of > abbreviations. Civil records are written in a dialect Italian. If > you see the words "Rosaria Testini, Salvatore, Giovanni", it most likely > means, "Rosaria Testini, daughter of Salvatore (son of Giovanni)". Since > these records are hand-written, noting the "tense of the Latin" and the > small > words "fu" and "di" are also very important. The Latin tense and these > other words change the meaning of what you are reading. You > probably are aware the the word "fu" means " of the late" and "di" > means "of" as in "of the late Giovanni" or "of Giovanni". Thus these > words tell you if the father, mother, grandparents, etc, were deceased at > the > time of the record in question. > >The surname TESTINI and TESTA are very > similar. Sometimes you will find a surname like TESTINA or > TESTINO. If so, they are the singular form of the family name > TESTINI. It could be possible that the surname was changed to TESTA, or > the surname was spelled that way in one or two records only. You would > need to trace your family's surname back in time to determine the real > surname > and its spelling. Adopted children sometimes use an "Alias". > In a late 1500s, I found the use of two surnames by the father of a > family. Some of his children were baptised with the alias surname and > some with the other surname. I continue to research the use of two > surnames, apart from logical explanations. > >Hope this was > helpful. > >Mike Barberi > > In necessariis unitas, in dubiis > libertas, in omnibus autem caritas. >In essentials unity, in > doubtful things liberty, but in all things love. >St. Augustine (A.D. 354 - > 430) > > Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp
