Getting Grounded with Genealogy
Family Links Convey Sense of Unity and Belonging
As decades unfold around us, we want to be part of something both tangible and yet immeasurable. Many have turned to genealogy. It links us to past, present and future in ways few things can.
Genealogy also conveys a sense of unity and belonging. Wrap around this the binding nature of family relationships, and genealogy becomes something to glue us together while the world tugs us in many directions.
When Civilization Is on the Move, Genealogy Gets Popular
The last time genealogy--a centuries-old pursuit--enjoyed such a resurgence was at the beginning of the industrial revolution. This is no accidental quirk. That was an era when people started moving beyond tightly knit small communities to find work. It was when greater numbers of families became separated by miles as transportation modes notched up from the horse and buggy days to railroad links between suddenly growing city populations and steamboat travel over waterways both small and large.
America was on the go and people began to feel displaced. It was a microcosm of what we are experiencing today.
Internet Makes Impact on Genealogy
The internet has also caused a recent genealogy boom. The phenomena of online genealogy is marked by strong pros and cons.
Some older, experienced genealogists are horrified at some aspects of online genealogy. Growing numbers of younger family members have had their curiosity piqued and some have developed a ravishing appetite for family factual fare served up on their computer screens. We will explore these dichotomies in weeks to come.
DNA Message from Our Ancestors in Every Cell
The most productive enhancement to genealogical research has come in recent decades with the advent of DNA testing. Recent milestones in genetics have scientifically disproven commonly held family myths common to many surnames. It takes our view of past ancestors and clarifies the avenues we trek to clearly define who they were. Each of us has an identity message from our ancestors in every cell of our body! In many cases, a q-tip swab inside a male relative’s cheek can be sent to a lab, tested and yield a categorical outline of a patrilineal ancestral line.
Amazing Genographic Project
Other new approaches to unlocked secrets in our ancestry include the amazing Genographic Project being undertaken to identify our ancestors’ migrations back beyond presently known history.
So, if the genealogy bug is nibbling at you and you have visions of a gi-normous genealogy puzzle with more blocks to be filled in than those in a book full of crossword puzzles, check in here to get your information kit going.
