Why Learn About the Past

By Genealogy Advisor | Mar 11, 2009

Creating and Preserving Family’s Oral History

Each family hold their own oral histories. These are stories passed on from one generation to another, which reveals so much about a person’s past or the traditions of their family. Hence, it is used as a determiner during research and data gathering procedures related to discovering about a family history.

Through genealogical research, you’d be able to trace from whom do these oral histories come from. And so, you’d be able to preserve that as those ancestors in your family’s lineage could eventually take these memories with them as they go.

It can be comparable to heirlooms, although these are non-material properties. However, heirlooms do have their own histories and stories that go behind the objects as well. Therefore, taking proper care of the object and knowing the value that is put into it are crucial in preserving its importance on the history of the family and the assurance of that legacy being continued in the future.

About Given Names

Names are crucial indicators and can provide valuable clues in your search for family roots. Therefore, it also reveals so much about your family’s history and tradition by unraveling more information that are related to your given name. Depending on the period from which you are born, there can be existing traditions in the society that can impact how your parents decide to name you. Or it can also be that you are named after your ancestors.

Since given names are voluntary choices of the parents, it can provide various insights into a person’s past. More often than not, you will find a given name duplicate within your family, although at different times in your family’s history. It therefore reflects a naming pattern existent in your family’s tradition. In some cases, parents would name their children after their great grandparents or after themselves. So, there really is no strict pattern followed when it comes to this.

Family History

Every family have existing stories and tales about certain events that are important to the entire family. Although the stories cannot be confirmed as real in itself, it can be a good starting point for further research.

More than just the story, the stories told by your ancestors are told in a different perspective than what you have when it is retold to you today. They were the ones who were there when these events happened, so you can use these stories as a way to experience your family’s history through them. Not only are you reliving those past memories but also encouraging the future generation to continue on with the tradition.

Genetic Reasons

There are several diseases that were recognized to have genetic components, and so some people are more susceptible to these diseases due to their genetic makeup. Several health research and studies are further conducted to identify those genetic factors to determine the effects and extent at which one is at risk for such diseases.

In fact, a specific field of study has been started for this exact purpose and it is called genetic genealogy. It involves the process called genealogical DNA testing to properly assess the level of genetic relationship amongst individuals belonging to the same family lineage.

This new branch to the field of genealogical research has new means to supplement or verify data already gathered. It can also provide confirmation for the existing theories about your ancestry.

Your Existence and Future

The biggest, and the most obvious, importance of conducting genealogical research is to recognize who your ancestors are. Although you might never see them, they are the reason why you exist today. While your lives differ from each other given the differences in time periods as well, there could be some similar patterns. The baffling questions would start to flood in once a person begins to take into account the immense difficulty that is inherent with conducting a study regarding your family’s lineage.

It is more than just honoring the people who were part of your ancestral line, but it answers several question in your past that impacts your life now. For instance, the place where you grew and how your parents have raised you to be, according to how they were raised themselves. By researching on your ancestors and their geographical location, you’d also learn more about where your relatives probably reside today and get to know more relatives you have never met before. Since humans are social beings, tracing that connection amongst members of your family is important.



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