Finding out what it means to be Boricua through a genetic & genealogical journey through my family history
Many of the sources we use for research in Puerto Rico are vital records – we use birth, marriage, and death records to learn new names of our ancestors as we climb up genealogical trees. Sometimes we get lucky and find confirmation records (the Catholic sacrament) or church dispensations for marriages of consanguineous relations between
Puerto Rican Newspaper: El Mundo Read More »
Some time ago last year I realized that the Familysearch collection for Puerto Rican church records included some indexed record entries for people in my family who were either still living or had recently passed away – basically from the recent generations which are harder to research. Except since they were indexed records only and
Update to Santurce records on Familysearch Read More »
If you grew up speaking Spanish or speak the language with elders, then you have likely heard the terms “Don” and “Doña” thrown around. Don Juan, Don Cheo (nickname for José), Doña Pancha (nickname for Francisca), or Doña María are some examples of this type of title being used. Generally, it is used nowadays to
Genealogical use of Don & Doña Read More »
This week I will celebrate what will be the 12 year anniversary of my blog! Which is a bit insane to think of since it feels like just yesterday that I was writing my first post on blogspot. My first post was published on July 4, 2011 titled “What Started It All – Part I”
Blogiversary – 12 years later Read More »
Last week on May 23rd, I was able to attend an event in Paris just two days shy before leaving France. I had been living abroad teaching English the last eight months and my last wish was to attend this event hosted by CM98 (Comité Marche du 23 Mai 1998), a genealogical group I am
Limyè Ba Yo: Honoring my Ancestors Read More »
Recently on Ancestry I was asked what I knew about Tomás Anzalota, an Italian immigrant to Puerto Rico who appears in my tree. Though Tomás is not a part of my main line of ancestors, whenever I find crossovers of people who married cousins or members of my family that are fairly interesting or a
An Italian in Puerto Rico – Tomás Anzalota Read More »
One of the biggest difficulties with Puerto Rican families when it comes to genealogy is the idea of consanguinity – when you share the same ancestors across a few of your branches. This is a common occurence on the island since many lines have been present in Puerto Rico for various generations and many date
Three Layers of Consanguinity Read More »
All photos of Sóller included in this post were personally taken by me during my genealogical visit to Sóller, Mallorca in February 2023. Researching is not just sitting hours in an archive, pouring over tomes of religious/civil acts, and deciphering old handwriting. It is also visiting the places your ancestors would have walked by, the
Research in Mallorca (Part III): another visit to Sóller Read More »
Another place I want to highlight on my trip to Mallorca is the Arxiu del Regne de Mallorca (Archivo del Reino de Mallorca) or simply the ARM. It is probably not so commonly known to researchers coming to the island since many people researching are interested in looking for birth, marriage, and death records which
Research in Mallorca (Part II): A visit to the Arxiu Del Regne Read More »
Last month, I had the privilege of going to Mallorca to continue some of my family research. Given that I had two weeks off for winter break, I wanted to use that time researching on the island since it was a long stretch of time and I knew there would be no holidays in Spain
Research in Mallorca (Part I): A visit to the Arxiu Diocesà Read More »