ORIGINS ITALY

Blog

Italian Genealogy, Family History, Travel, Culture, and More!

Learning Italian Genealogy from the Irish

  • March 17, 2015

Believe it or not, you can learn a lot about Italian genealogy by attending Irish family history lectures. The beauty of the genealogy skill set is that it can be applied to nearly any nationality or ethnicity. When researching our immigrant ancestors in the United States, research methodology tends to be consistent across the board whether your family is Irish, Russian, Croatian or Chinese. Certainly, there are unique aspects of research (like language, record sets, repositories or collections) that may require specialized skills. But in general, the methodologies remain constant. This means that by attending a lecture about finding Irish immigrant origins in the United States, Canada, or anywhere else, the information will directly apply to your Italian genealogical research. In fact, the practice is quite common, since very few Italian lectures are offered regularly at this time. Some of us are also lucky enough to be of both Italian AND Irish ancestry, so attending Irish genealogy lectures makes even more sense.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

-Mary M. Tedesco, ORIGINS ITALY.

Mary M. Tedesco on BlogTalkRadio with Bernice Bennett (30 March 2015)

  • March 17, 2015

ORIGINS ITALY’s Mary M. Tedesco will be interviewed on BlogTalkRadio with Bernice Bennett on Monday, March 30, 2015 @ 9:00 PM Eastern Time. The topic is “Problem Solving in Genealogical Research.” If you have brick walls in your family history research, you won’t want to miss it!

UPDATE: Click here to listen to this Podcast.

Sign up for the ORIGINS ITALY mailing list!

  • March 10, 2015

Never miss a blog post, announcement or update from ORIGINS ITALY. Signing up is FREE, and we will not share your email address with third parties. Thank you for your interest in ORIGINS ITALY and Italian genealogy!

Sign up for the ORIGINS ITALY mailing list:

5 Reasons Everyone Should Visit Their Ancestral Town in Italy

  • March 5, 2015

A visit to your ancestral town in Italy will change your life. Nowhere else will you feel a more familiar sense of deep connection than at the epicenter of your Italian roots—your ancestral town. Here are five reasons you should get on the next plane to visit you ancestral town in Italy:

  1. THE GENEALOGY. (Of course!!!) In Italy, every town has its unique grouping of surnames that make it like nowhere else. When you return to your ancestral town, your surname will likely be familiar to the citizens there. It may seem like your family never left. Some of the local folks may know all about members of your family in Italy and may even have heard about them in America. The oral history in your ancestral town, as in every Italian town, is a beautiful component of the culture, and a valuable source of information about your genealogical background. So while you are there, stop in at the local café and chat a bit. Don’t speak Italian? No problem. Someone will offer to help you. The Italians love to talk and feel privileged to answer questions about their local history, traditions, customs and culture. Also, don’t forget to stop into the Ufficio Stato Civile [Civil Records Office] and the Parish Church to further your genealogical research!
  1. THE FOOD. Want to taste nonna’s sauce again? When you dine in your ancestral town, you will perceive the origins of your family’s cuisine. Some ingredients may seem foreign, (from substitutions made in America), but the concept and preparation methods of your family’s dishes will be quite similar to those still enjoyed in your ancestral town. What a treat it will be to try out many local dishes, and maybe to reintroduce some traditional subtleties back in America. Genealogy can be so much more than research. It can become a personal advocacy for your family’s traditional culture. Bring it back home!
  1. THE SOUNDS. In your ancestral town, the dialect or accent that you hear, especially as spoken by the older generation, is similar to how your ancestors sounded. You may remember these sounds from your childhood in America—the beloved Italian intonations from lively chatter in your grandmother’s kitchen, or the gruff cajoling cadences of your grandfather and his friends at the neighborhood barber shop. Your ancestral family’s dialect is part of who you are. So, sit at a local café one afternoon and just listen. Take it all in…and remember your past.
  1. THE CONNECTIONS. Meeting new cousins is a priceless experience. Some of your newfound family may even look like you or like relatives back in the USA. In turn, they may recognize you by your facial features. There is no shortage of pleasant surprises when it comes to finding family connections in Italy. Italians truly love family. Don’t miss out on this great experience.
  1. THE MEMORIES. You will make memories, friends, and connections that will last a lifetime! An enduring love for your ancestral town will be forged deep within you. It will become part of your being and your character—something that can never be erased. You will find yourself always planning your next trip back to your Italian ancestral town, because you know that each visit brings you closer to who you really are.

There is nothing more enchanting than to walk into the town square of your ancestors and begin a conversation with “Io sono italoamericana e mio nonno e’ di qui!” / “I am an Italian-American and my grandfather is from here!”  The experience will give you a new appreciation for your Italian heritage, a love for Italy, and a unique connection to the land where your ancestors originated. Don’t miss out!

(Pictured above is San Pietro a Maida, Catanzaro, Calabria, Italy, ancestral town of the author. Image copyright 2015 Mary M. Tedesco.)

-Mary M. Tedesco, ORIGINS ITALY.

PBS “Genealogy Roadshow” Season 2 Episode Guide 2015

  • March 3, 2015

Season 2 of PBS’s “Genealogy Roadshow” (2015) is officially on the books. Thank you to PBS, Krasnow Productions, our research team, everyone else involved, and a very special THANK YOU to our viewers and fans for watching the show!

Here is a guide to the PBS “Genealogy Roadshow” Season 2 episodes. Watch episodes and previews from season 2 at PBS (click here), on YouTube (click here) and purchase full episodes on iTunes (click here).

New Orleans – Cabildo 
Premiered, January 13, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

A team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family stories at the famous Cabildo, home of the Louisiana State Museum. A couple whose ancestors hail from the same small Italian town explore the chance they may be related; a woman is desperate to find out who committed a gruesome murder in her ancestor’s past; a home held by one family for more than a century renders a fascinating story; and a woman discovers the difficult journey her ancestor took on the path to freedom from slavery.

St. Louis – Central Library
Premiered, January 20, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

At Saint Louis’ historic central library, a team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family stories from Missouri’s famous gateway city. A mystery writer discovers her mother has hidden a life-changing secret; a woman finds out if she is descended from the infamous pirate Blackbeard; a mother and daughter seek connections to a famous author; and a young man seeks connection to the Mali tribe in Africa.

Philadelphia – Franklin Institute
Premiered, January 27, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

At Philadelphia’s Franklin Institute, a team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family histories. A man learns that the event that drove his family to the City of Brotherly Love changed the course of history; a man may be a Viking descendant; another’s family could have part of one of history’s biggest scams; a young man hopes to confirm his relation to a signer of the Declaration of Independence; and two sisters learn their ancestors were part of the great Irish migration.

New Orleans – Board of Trade
Premiered, February 3, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

A team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family stories at the New Orleans Board of Trade. A local man seeks to recover essential history washed away in Hurricane Katrina; a woman discovers she has links to both sides of the Civil War; another unravels the mystery behind her grandfather’s adoption; and one man explores a link to the famous New Orleans Voodoo Queen, Marie Laveau.

St. Louis – Union Station
Premiered, February 10, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

At St. Louis’ historic Union Station, a team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family stories from Missouri. A musician hopes to find connections to a famous St. Louis jazz composer; two sisters explore links to a survivor of the legendary Donner party; an Italian-American woman finds out if she is related to Italian royalty; and a schoolteacher who has all the answers for her students has very few about her own past.

Philadelphia – Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Premiered, February 17, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

A team of genealogists uncovers fascinating family histories at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. One woman’s ancestor may have sparked historic labor laws; a pastor may have an outlaw in her family tree; a woman learns about slave genealogy and, with the help of DNA testing, gets the answer she has waited for; and another woman learns her ancestor may have helped others escape the Holocaust.

Best of Genealogy Roadshow 
Premiered, February 24, 2015 at 8:00 p.m.

Enjoy the most intriguing stories selected from both seasons of the series. From immigrant voyages and famous ancestors to murder mysteries and family connections, the episode revisits the journeys in cities across the country as people uncover their family histories.

1 … 8 9 10 11 12 … 19