Blog

Are you researching your Welsh family history?  If so, you have probably discovered the challenges of finding out which John Jones or Mary Davies was your ancestor. But why are there so many people with the same name in Welsh genealogy? Most articles ‘explain’ that this was due to the patronymic system of surnames used in Wales.  But the story is a little more interesting than that. And what does this mean when researching your Welsh ancestors?

How is researching your Welsh family history different from English?

If you are researching your Welsh ancestors, there are some key differences you might want to consider. This is the first article in a series of five blog posts that examines each one in turn.

1. Surnames – why so many John Jones and Mary Davies?
2. Welsh language – beautiful or impenetrable? Does it matter whether you speak Welsh or not?
3. Chapel or church – were they non-conformist? If so, what does this mean for your research?
4. Where have all the records gone?  Exploring what you are unlikely to find in Welsh records.
5. Special Welsh collections – some of our favourite sources to help find your Welsh ancestors

So why so many John Jones & Mary Davies?

Did your heart sink when you discovered your ancestor was a John Jones from Wales? The dominance of a narrow range of surnames is probably the biggest challenge in tracing your Welsh family history. Which John Jones or Mary Davies was your ancestor?  But why are there so many John Joneses? The answer is a combination of the switch from patronymic to fixed surnames about 500 years ago, combined with a narrowing of baptismal names that happened across Europe around the same time. Here is some more detail about how this came about.

A bad case of patronymics

Henry VIII’s Acts of Union (1535 & 1542) replaced the Welsh legal system with that of England. This meant that Welsh gentry took on fixed surnames. Prior to this, the Welsh had relied on a patronymic system. Each son included the word ‘ap’ between his name and his father’s to prove his genealogy. This was required under Welsh law created by Hwyel Dda in the 10^th century.  A man would need to demonstrate his descendancy from the original landowner if he wanted to farm the land.  This led to long, beautiful names spanning 9 or 10 generations. Such as John ap Rhys ap Gwynfor ap Llewellyn ap Tudur ap Gwasmeir ap Llwyarch ap Dewi ap Gruffydd. Through a combination of following the example of their lords and, more powerfully, the requirement of parish and court clerks, the Welsh began to abandon this method and switch to fixed surnames.  And they chose the names of their father rather than a nickname or place name.

But why such similar names?

At the same time, right across Europe, there was a move to streamline forenames. Instead of the wide catalogue of Celtic or Catholic forenames, out of fear of persecution, parents began to baptise their children by choosing from a shorter list of more respectable names.  So instead of Gwasmihangel or LLwyarch there were hundreds of Johns.  And in next generation, their son would be called John… and before you know it there would be John Jones, and so on. Eventually this led to thousands of them.

So what does this mean for researching your Welsh ancestors?

In short, this means that Welsh genealogy can be more time consuming and tricky.  Some parts of Wales kept the patronymic system alive into the 19th century.  However, for most of us, the first and biggest challenge will be distinguishing one family from another. How do we know that this is our Mary Davies? Whilst Ancestry will throw up its suggested related records, we need to be really skeptical.  Achieving the desired standard of proof will require several sources before you can be confident you have the right person. And probably more besides. Here are some tips

Some tips

1. NEVER just accept what someone else says as a fact without testing their sources. Just because lots of people say it, doesn’t make it true. Other people’s trees are the worst for this.
2. Remember that the record may not exist. So don’t just accept the record because it is the only one you can find.
3. Look for several sources to confirm your suspected ancestor. This is good genealogical practice anyway, but vital in Welsh family history research. Check the catalogue of the county archive. Are there school, employment or court records?  I found a client’s brickwall ancestor mentioned in records of a local Drainage Board!
4. Location, location, location.  Find out all you can about the earliest place you have found your ancestor. Which churches and chapels were nearby? Understand the local geography and transport links available. Genuki is a good starting point.
5. Create a timeline. Put every event you know about in sequence, including dates and locations. This can give you some great clues about where to search next.
6. Eliminate suspects one by one. It is likely that you will have to follow several people of the same name and do what you can to eliminate them as a possible ancestor. For example, sorting out the sequences of children’s baptisms can be a way to distinguish one family from another.  
7. Follow FANS. Follow family & friends, associates and neighbours.  They can give you clues. For example, it was common for a widowed parent to end up living with the youngest child. And they have moved out of the area to do this.
8. Get some help. Use a professional genealogist who knows the area and the records. Or just ask the genealogy community on Facebook or the local family history group.
9. Stay motivated by working on less difficult research tasks.  And sometimes parking a problem and coming back to it with fresh eyes can help.
10. Don’t give up.  It takes patience, discipline and determination. It took me nearly 20 years to find one of my Welsh ancestors and there are still some I have yet to find.

If you want to know more or want some help researching your Welsh ancestors please get in touch.