Spanish research

[reynolds.nat]

Hello, I noticed someone asked about Danish records; and my question is very much the same, except that half of my tree is English/Welsh but the other half is Spanish. I would be thrilled to see someone with Spanish roots on the show eventually. Meanwhile, does anyone have any idea how one can look into the Spanish side of one's family?

I know that family research is not as popular as it is in Britain, I think partly because the dictatorship, the civil war, and the tightness among the sides are still quite fresh. Nevertheless, any tips would be much appreciated.

Natalie Reynolds

[callbrian]

Hi Natalie,
depending on how far you want to go back, the LDS site http://www.familysearch.org has some Spanish records. You may be lucky. On the home page just enter a search name, you can leave the rest blank, then search the country (Spain) in the drop down menu and click on search. You could also 'Google' Spanish Genealogy, there are several sites available.
Brian

[Editor]

We ran an article on tracing Spanish ancestors in our second issue. It hasn't been put onto our website yet (and I'm afraid it sold out a long time ago) but I will see if I can get it uploaded in the not-too-distant future.

Sarah

[Sylcec]

In addition to the regular IGI found on www.familysearch.org there are also some digitised records of Spanish Church Registers available on the Record Search Pilot; go to:
http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsea ... ollections .
Also, if you know which part of Spain your ancestors come from, then you can check the LDS Family History Library Catalog (same site as above) to see what is available for that place - there may well be microfilms of parish registers, notarial records, probate, population etc etc which you could consult to find your ancestry.
If your ancestors were not in fact Spanish, but British people in Spain for official or business purposes, then there is a completely different set of records available to you, ones which will be available in the UK.

Good luck.

[mattelton]

Hello,

I've managed to track down a copy of our second issue, and have just uploaded the article on Spanish ancestors here: http://www.bbcwhodoyouthinkyouaremagazi ... -ancestors

There's loads of information there, so I hope it proves useful.

Good luck!

Matt

[corinnejmurphy]

Hi.

Fortunately Matt, the second edition is not one of the editions I'm missing! Please don't ask which I am missing as I wouldn't have a clue - there are too many documents, too many scraps of paper and too much writing all over my study to even be able to find all those I do have.

I'm not sure whether it was a rumour started by my late Nanna or if it started beforehand but, before she became 'old' and confused, she used to chat to me about her family originally coming from Spain and that it would explain why so many in the family had dark hair and a darker complexion. This was many years ago now and I looked into it a little at the time before starting to research my ancestry seriously.

Her maiden name was Spain and at the time I looked into it, all I could find was that the name did originate from Spain. Unfortunately back to 1588 and the time of the Armada!

Was it just a silly rumour? I've checked Armada books and they all seem to say that although most Spanish ships went down around the Irish coast, a few did go down near the Kent coastline. Is this right? Before my Great Grandfather, Ernest Tasso Spain, they were all born in Kent and they did all work either on the docks or as merchant seamen. My understanding is that a son follows his fathers trade.

I have about another 220 years to go back but, big but, if I do manage to get back to the Armada in 1588, is there any way of tracing Spanish ancestors then? I would guess that they have crew lists of the Armada in Spain but apparently members of the crew who survived changed their last names, so those original crew lists would be of no use.

Issue 2 which you spoke of Matt, has no reference to the Spanish Armada at all but I'm sure there are many of us, especially in Ireland from where my father's side comes (surname Murphy!), who would be very interested in knowing how we might trace ancestors from Spain and from the time of the Armada. Would the magazine consider writing an article on this?

Corinne

[ksouthall]

According to my "Oxford Dictionary of Surnames", the surname Spain could derive from a variety of places.

Depending on when your family first arrived in Britain, it could be a locative name from either Epaignes in the Eure region of France; Espinay from Ile-et-Vilaine in Brittany; or later versions of the name probably derive from the country Spain, especially in the case of London merchants.

It is probably a good idea to keep an open mind about family myths such as "they came over with the Spanish Armada" as family legends often get changed and exaggerated over time. Although there may be some truth in your grandmother's story, it would be very difficult to prove, especially as, so far, you have only got back to about 1800. Two hundred and twenty years is a long time in family history as it covers several generations.

Sorry if this is not the answer you wanted to hear, but it is a good idea not to get your hopes up as records may not exist to prove or disprove your story.

[Sylcec]

Corinne - if you haven't yet found a definite link to Spain (i.e. an ancestor who shows up on the census as having been born there), suggest that you consider a range of other possibilities as Katherine suggested. I specialise in Colonial India and am well aware that many descendants of mixed race unions (of which the descendants may be unaware) have stories of dark looks have come from Spanish or Portuguese or Greek, or other Mediterranean ancestry.

When doing your family history it is very important not to jump over generations in trying to prove/disprove a family story, but instead work steadily backwards from what you know and have evidence of.
Good hunting! Sylvia