Comments on: Family Tree Maker: Surname Changes

By: Andy Hatchett

Andy Hatchett — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 00:36:41 +0000

It can’t (and shouldn’t) be changed- but you can add an alternate name to add to the index to help others find it.

By: Sarajane Edwards Smith

Sarajane Edwards Smith — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 02:38:03 +0000

After looking for another of my husband’s
relative I discovered that in the 1920 census
the name was copied Noll which was really Nall.
It was the census taker penmanship. I know this
was his family, because all the children’s names were there. how can this be changed. It won’t
add to our family tree because of thr spelling.

By: jan costic ihrig

jan costic ihrig — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 22:37:29 +0000

I have Family tree maker 2010. I use the AKA feature. However is it sensitive in its search to pick up a lead when you have relatives who have changed the first and last name COMPLETELY!!! Two of my relatives changed both their surnames and first names. Their new names aren’t even close to their given names.
Jan

By: Tana L. Pedersen

Tana L. Pedersen — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 17:28:38 +0000

Thanks for all the comments. It makes me feel better I’m not alone in trying to deal with these problems. It’s also fascinating to me that each culture and country seems to have their own version of the problem. Definitely something to do more research on.

By: John Donaldson

John Donaldson — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 05:18:12 +0000

# 10 Brenda McNabb-Stange

This can be easily fixed by a very old trick that works in all versions of FTM, the use of the non-breaking space.

Using your numerical keyboard add your name as follows:

DesormierditCusson

Note that I have used to clearly show the Alt+0160 keyboard action. Don’t use the when you actually do it.

Pressing the Alt key+0160 (sing the number keypad) will insert what seems to be a space but it is in fact an invisble non-breaking space which forces FTM to treat your surnmae the way you want it.

It will look the same eg Desormier dit Cusson but in fact it will be one word.

You can also do the same thing with slashes eg

/Desormier dit Cusson/ which don’t show up in reports butI have always felt the Alt+0160 is more elegant

John D

By: Brenda McNabb-Stange

Brenda McNabb-Stange — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 22:40:27 +0000

I have a different but similar problem. Several of my ancestors have 2 last names. For example, many are “Desormier dit Cusson”. When I upgraded my Family Tree Maker, all of these were changed to the last name of “dit Cusson”. There are several other combinations of “dit” names in my tree as well. I don’t know what to do to straighten this out in the program, but it also adds to the difficulty of finding ancestors by both names.

By: Rebekah Tomlinson Mendoza

Rebekah Tomlinson Mendoza — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 19:27:23 +0000

#8 – Looks like ancestry.com has a mini-mandate to come up with that article, or maybe a whole book on naming customs and conventions. Way to go.

By: Monika

Monika — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 16:17:08 +0000

#7 –Don’t you just LOVE all these customs? I love to learn this sort of thing. Found your info very informative. My (now 95 year old) mother is French. She has seven given names, as do most members of her family! Don’t know what the background of that is, if somebody wants to explain that to me!

By: Rebekah Tomlinson Mendoza

Rebekah Tomlinson Mendoza — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 14:32:25 +0000

Naming conventions – what a great idea for an article/blog, etc. I’ve had to use the AKA fact as well as alternate. My husband’s family is from Mexico and the “latins” have several different customs about names (all his brothers and sisters have the same middle name – their mother’s maiden name). My family is Scottish/English/Welsh/French with entirely different customs. Many of my earlier ancesters all went by their middle names and you could make very good guesses about the birth order by who they were named for. Get cracking – let’s have that great article.

By: judy

judy — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 14:05:30 +0000

i know i am of subject here but as many of you won’t know this ancestry has allotted a new blog site to the UK users its been in operation now for about a month and was launched with out any advertisement from what i can see so hardly any one is commenting lets change that. ancestry.co.UK is still the same company as ancestry.com so the things they decide to blog about will affect you too after all the world is a small place and many of you will have relies in England just as i have in the us and the records are held all in the same place accessible to as all which ever site we use.

http://blogs.ancestry.com/uk/