I Can’t Find My Ancestor

I know my ancestor came from Favale, but I can’t find him/ her in the database.  What do I do now?  Here are some reasons you might not be able to find your ancestor in the database:

1 - Your ancestor may still be living.  Due to privacy laws, we are only able to show deceased people on the internet.

2 - We may not know your ancestor’s death date.  When we do not have a death date, we assume the person might still be living.  Due to privacy laws, we are only able to show people with death dates on the internet.  Contact us with the information, including death date, of your ancestor and we will put him/ her in the database.

3  - Descendants of your ancestor may not have submitted information about your Favale connections.  Our database grows as people, like yourself, submits information about their Favale connections.  We would enjoy hearing from you and learning about your Favale ancestors.  Please Contact Us.

4 - Your ancestor may have used his/ her middle name as his/ her first given name.  Your ancestor’s name may have been Vittorio Carlo, but chose to take on only the given name Carlo.

5 - Your ancestor may be listed under an alternate spelling.  Ancestors are listed in the database as it would have appeared on their birth or baptismal record.  If the ancestor was born in Favale, they will be listed under the Italian or Latin spelling.  If the ancestor was born in Latin America, they will be listed under a Spanish spelling.  And, if the ancestor was born in the United States, they will be listed under an English spelling.

Birth entry for Aloysius (Luigi) Cereghino - written in Latin	Birth entry for Samuele Cereghino - written in Italian

“Let me explain something about my research method.  All names and surnames are written as they were found in the original baptismal records.  Since the names in the acts may change from one record to another, the spelling from the baptismal record is used for consistency.  That is, the name may be spelled one way in the birth record, and may change spelling or be abbreviated in the marriage or death acts.  This may occur because the parish priest was not always consistent with the spelling, or one priest wrote the names one way and another changed the spelling.  It may also occur that the records are written in Italian in one record, and in Latin or dialect in the others.

In most areas of Italy, before about 1839, the records are all written in Latin.  Thus, names like Giovanni (John) in Italian, become Joannes or Johannes in Latin.  Giuseppe becomes Josephus, Vincenzo becomes Vincentius, Bartolomeo becomes Bartholomeus, and so on.  Female names change less in Latin, but Maddalena can become Magdalena, Orsola becomes Ursula and Margherita becomes Margarita.

The surnames too can change their spelling.  You will note that your family name takes on many forms, and that almost every every parish priest wrote it differently.  It goes from CEREGHINO to CIRIGHINO to CHIRIGHINIS to CIEREGHINO and CIEREGHINI.    CEREGHINO is the Italian form and all others are Latin variations.

I did not Italianize the names or surnames as that is bad research.  In this period the official document is the baptismal act, and the way the name is written is this act is how I have left it.”
    –Trafford R. Cole, professional Italian genealogist, June 2002

Chart of Italian, Latin, Spanish and English given and surnames:

Italian             Latin                              English                      Spanish
Andrea           Andreas                        Andrew
Angelo           Angelus                                                            Angel
Antonio          Antonius                        Anthony, Tony         
Agostino        Augustinus                      August
Bartolomeo   Bartholomeus                  Bartholomew           
Carlo              Carolus                          Carl, Karl, Charles   Carlos
Cesare           Caesar                            Charles
Ernesto          Ernestus                           Ernest
Eugenio         Eugenius                           Eugene, Gene
Giam              Gian                                John                           Juan
Giovanni        Joannes, Johannes            John                           Juan  
G.B.                                                      John                           Juan
Gio Batta                                               John                           Juan
Giulio                                                                                       Julio
Giuseppe       Josephus                          Joseph                       Jose, Pepe
Beppe(Giuseppe)                                  Joseph                       Jose, Pepe
Luigi               Aloysius                          Louis, Lewis
Nicolo             Nicolaus                        Nicholas, Nick
Paolo                                                     Paul                            Pablo
Pietro                                                     Peter                           Pedro
Stefano          Stephanus, Stephano        Steven, Stephen      Estevan
Umberto                                                Bert
Teodoro                                                 Theodore

Here are some websites that might help is you do not find your ancestor’s name:
Behind The Name   http://www.behindthename.com/
My BirthCare             http://www.mybirthcare.com/favorites/pg1/Italian-names.asp
Babyhold                   http://www.babyhold.com/list/Italian_Baby_Names/

Italian                         Latin Variations
Barbagelata
Boitano                     Boitana, Boitani, Boitanis
Cereghino                 Cirighino, Chirighinis, Ciereghino, Ciereghini, Chirighinus, Chiereghinis
Consiglieri                 Consiliarij, Consiliarijs, Consigliario, Consiliari
Cordano                   Cordani
Ferretti                      Ferretto
Foppiano                   Foppiani, Fopiani
Pezzolo                      Pezolo, Pezzolis, Pezzoli
Segale                        Segalij
Serra
Stanghelino               Stangilino, Stangellini, Stangellini, Stanghellini