Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry...and Mine!

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Scottish Bagpipe Graphic

After months of researching my ancestry through the use of multiple resources on the web, I have found out that I have a Scottish heritage; I was very excited to learn that some of my ancestors were viking warriors, some royalty and commoner family members as well. I love the history that genealogy offers to me, a family historian. Searching for ancestors is not just a hobby that can be completed in a weeks time. It's an ongoing process of learning and I've been pretty lucky to have found out the things that I have so far. Scotland has a fairly good system of records for people like myself, wishing to trace their Scottish ancestry. Compulsory registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages was introduced in 1855 and these records are accessible and held by the General Register Office for Scotland. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormons), who have a religious duty to trace their ancestors, have copied the parish records and included them in their database. Local libraries in Scotland may also hold copies, as will the family history societies and the genealogical societies. There are many options to choose from if you are just starting your family tree. Below are a few links to get you started.

Scottish Ancestry

Tracing Your Scottish Heritage

Genuki

Have a look on this site, which will help you make a start in understanding the principles of researching your family history Family Tree Folk , then download some family history sheets Genealogy Forms and starting with yourself fill one in, you will find the sheets act as a check list and you may also find that you don't have all your own information and have to go searching in your home and asking your parents/other relations about it.

Once you start researching you will notice many people don’t have primary information numbers on their research...which shows you it is hearsay, copied from others and guesswork and there is no place in research for guesswork. One wrong name in your tree and it means you are not researching YOUR family. Your best bet would be to just take your time, and just research your family at your own leisure. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was your family tree of ancestry. Pick one surname and research it; include your sources, without this documentation your research is pretty much just a fairy tale!

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Real Men Wear Kilts

As you may know by reading my past blog entries, I have been researching my Scottish ancestral lines beginning with the Sutherland surname. My ancestors were mainly from the Caithness and Edinburgh region (now called Midlothian, I think). Scottish names are as diverse and colorful as the country they represent. 


There is so much to write about when you think of Scotland. I could write about the culture, food or whiskey, or just the people and I would probably be typing out a blog post that may be uninteresting to some of you, as it would probably be closer to a book than a blog entry. There are many web sites that I could refer you to, just on Scotland's Genealogy, but that would take all the fun out of searching and finding it yourself! 


In all truth, I haven't completed much research this week and feel like I have neglected my poor blog page. I had been trying to post daily on a variety of different topics, but not this week. In today's blog, I will be discussing some of the customs and traditions of my Scotland family. 


Scotland clothing mainly features the tartan (or plaid), which is the traditional dress of the people. Some mainlanders' may think that a man wearing a "dress" is too feminine, therefore that makes the man wearing it, also more feminine. That is certainly not the case. It has more to do with tradition and their own culture than just flouncing around in a skirt all day, every day. The kilt is worn on special occasions much like our suit and tie events that we have in the United States. The Scots mostly wear these kilts to weddings and formal gatherings. 

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http://www.marianachawi.blogspot.com

Many years ago men wore one large sheet of tartan cloth over a long shirt. It was folded in such a way as to form the kilt shape as well as covering the torso and pinned at the shoulder. Have you seen the movie, Braveheart? The kilt was used as a blanket when sleeping outdoors and was easy to move around in. When formal armies were formed, a more robust garment was needed and the kilt as we know it was made.The kilt also represented their own Clan family. There were different kilts that were worn in battle a long time ago, but these were the more muted shades of the same tartan, almost like a camouflage I would imagine.

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Scottish Piper

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Great Scot!

Do you have Scottish ancestors like I do? There are some famous Scots out there too; Sean Connery for one, and he is pretty hot for an older gentleman, not to mention his accent! Love it! Well I'm not going to be talking about famous people today, I want to give you the heads up on Scottish genealogy resources that are just a few mouse clicks away! So read on and let me know if any of these have ever worked for you. There are so many resources that you can access through means of the internet. If you are currently researching your ancestral roots of Scotland, below is a list of related links that will take you to there. 


Scottish Clans, Myths, and Shops All In One Place


Clans and Castles Oh My!!


General Register Office for Scotland


Scots Origins


Scottish Heritage


Much of the research can be done by yourself, through online searches, talking with family members, library visits, or just reading books based on the type of search you may be doing. For myself, I am currently researching and learning about my ancestral roots by way of the internet; learning about Scottish people in general, the Highland Scottish people, and anything that may have to do with my search. When I visit one of the example sites listed above, there are always links to other sites too. Check those out, because it may just lead you in the direction you need to go. 

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Scotland Pride

Talk to your living relatives; they may be able to offer you information on a certain person in your search. They may even have photos, birth records, or death certificates that they have saved for whatever reason. I would love to find some of my Sutherland families photos from the time they lived in Scotland, but so far I haven't been so lucky. So does anyone know of a place that I may search for, that I haven't already thought of, as far as online photographs? 


"The cheapest solution is to find copies held by family members, and photocopy them! Scottish Marriage certificates gave the parents of both parties, including the maiden surnames of both mothers. Best year for detail in certificates is 1855, worst are 1856-l860. Prior to 1855, your main source is the registers of the Church of Scotland (OPR's, or Old Parochial Registers), all on microfilm, but with much less detail than civil registration."


Source:
(Family Records, Johnson, Gordon. "Do It Yourself - Where to start and other general information.."http://www.kinhelp.co.uk/KinHelp/genealogical-resources-hints/do-it-yourself-where-to-start-and-other-general-information. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jun 2011. <http://www.kinhelp.co.uk/KinHelp>.)

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Scotland Genealogical Society

As you know from following my blog, that my 3rd great grandmother, Phebie "Feby" Sutherland starts the line which leads me to my Scottish ancestors. As of today, I have applied online for a library card from the Edinburgh Library. This allows me to read free e-books on whatever subject I choose. Here is the link if you are interested in applying also. 
Get Your Edinburgh Library Card Today! 


Since I live in Hawaii, it's a little more difficult for me to access Edinburgh's Library, but now that I have applied for a membership I will have access to countless resources such as e-books, CD's, DVD's, and videos and countless other resources to help me gather information on my heritage!
This is actually my first time going to this site, so bear with me as I navigate through it. To access the library you will need this link, but I'm not sure it is accessible to you if you are not yet a member.
But for me, I just typed the word "genealogy" and it came up with some great results; over 1000 pages of references alone- and that's just the beginning! It is interesting to note that you can also choose a preferred library location, as your library card will let you gain access to the libraries of Edinburgh. So with that said, you can refine your searches by location, collection, subject, year published (if you happen to know, that is), author, and format. 


I don't know why I didn't check this site out sooner! By the way, I just typed in the word 'Sutherland' and this gave me a listing of other books to look at such as information on the Sutherland Highlanders, an autobiography of the Duke of Sutherland, Clan Sutherland, and so much more. This is a great start to learning about your heritage background. No matter what your ethnicity is, I'm sure there is a genealogical society out there to help you gain access to your family's  history.

The Scotsman Digital Archive allows you to search every Scotsman newspaper published between 1817 and 1950. Use it to find significant moments in the history of Scotland, major historical world events or discover if your ancestor appears in the births, marriages and deaths notices, or even in a news story.

Edinburgh Library Catalog Page

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