We are the Rurikovichi: Russians are massively carried away by their pedigrees
Compiling a family tree is one of the main hobbies of our compatriots today. This is not the first surge of such interest in recent history. At the turn of the century, Russians were also actively looking for roots. At that time, noble origin was considered a matter of special pride, which gave rise to many jokes: "Where did so many nobles come from, if all the gentlemen are in Paris?" Modern young people are honored by the fact that they try to get an objective picture and are proud of their ancestors, no matter what class they belong to. How to make a family tree and whether genetic expertise will help in finding roots is in the Izvestia material.
How to start looking for ancestors
The surge of interest in their roots is not accidental. Ekaterina Suvorova, a historian, researcher of ethnopsychology, and co—organizer of the International Educational Project Genexpo, emphasizes that today interest in family history is growing primarily because archives have become closer and the search is clearer. Genealogy ceases to be a matter of enthusiasts and becomes part of the cultural norm, where personal memory is combined with the history of the country.
"When information is available to people, there is not only curiosity, but also confidence that the search is possible at all," she argues. — Digital catalogs, electronic databases, digitized metric books, regional archival publications, local history communities and genealogical projects make the first step much easier. A person can start researching at home, without special knowledge, and only then move on to more complex archival work.
According to the Izvestia interlocutor, interest in origin has increased not only because individuals have begun to think about their family more often, but also because society as a whole is looking for support in sustainable values.
— As part of the discussion of Presidential Decree No. 809 "On approving the Foundations of State Policy for the Preservation and Strengthening of Traditional Russian Spiritual and Moral Values", it is very clear that genealogy is not a narrow hobby, but part of a broader theme of identity, continuity and the future. When a person knows where they come from, they better understand themselves and their connection to generations," the historian continues.
According to her, the modern study of the genus is based on the intersection of classical archival work and new digital tools.
— The base remains metric books, revision tales, confession sheets, family lists, military documents and family archives. But today, digital services, open catalogs and educational platforms are being added to this, which help not only to search for a surname, but also to embed family history in a historical context," explains Suvorova.
She emphasizes that the main strength of genealogy is not in a beautiful legend, but in the documented connection of time. In the early noughties, many people really tried to find "noble" roots, the editorial interlocutor adds.
— Then it was fashionable to look for noble origins or create embellished biographies. Now the request has become much more honest. More and more often, people do not want to invent a beautiful legend for themselves, but to learn the true story of a family — with all its social transitions, labor, relocations, losses and victories. And this is a very important shift: simple parentage is no longer perceived as a cause for shame, on the contrary, it is seen as the true power of family history," says the historian.
The expert also explains that the public demand to find roots demonstrates an interest in continuity, intergenerational connection and the need to combine meaning with practice. This is especially important for the topic of family history, because the archive is a practical tool for returning meaning. Through documents, a person sees not an abstract past, but a living chain of people, thanks to whom he exists today.
— Even if a person knows only two or three generations, the chances of finding their roots remain, - says Suvorova. — Sometimes a full-fledged study begins with a minimal set of information: name, place of birth, photograph, marriage certificate, military ID, family letter. Next, consistency is important: comparing archival data, checking the spelling of the surname, moving through parishes and settlements, accounting for migrations and changes in administrative boundaries.
Internet and archives
Artyom Kopylov, a leading researcher at the Family Tradition NGO, advises first of all to communicate with your relatives, both near and far. Family friends, neighbors, and people who have communicated and worked with relatives in different periods of their lives can help in finding roots.
— Ask them for the names and surnames of other relatives; and based on the results of the survey, start making a plan "horizontally" for one generation, — says the interlocutor of the editorial office. — Next, I recommend sorting through archival documents: photographs, letters, birth and marriage certificates, workbooks, military ID cards, certificates, diplomas, fragments of publications from newspapers and magazines. If possible, scan them and start creating a family digital archive.
The expert advises to first make a primary diagram of the future family tree.: specify the last name, first name, patronymic, dates of life of relatives, their place of birth. This way, gaps in the family's history will become visible and it will be possible to determine the direction of further searches.
— If your loved ones participated in the fighting of the twentieth century, then you can find factual information about them on the Internet using a regular search engine. Even electronic copies of scanned archival documents may fall out somewhere," he continues. — If a relative was repressed during the Soviet era, then data on him can be found on the relevant websites — there are several of them in the public domain, with different functionality.
The algorithm of action is not so complicated, the specialist explains, adding that the Internet will help in this.
— If you type the query "archive search", then the first site with automatic decryption of documents will appear, artificial intelligence helps in this. Neural networks recognize archival documents from the middle of the 18th to the beginning of the 20th century," explains Artem Kopylov.
At the same time, the main and most useful sources of information about people born in Russia before the 1917 revolution, the researcher calls metric books, revision tales and confessional sheets. Periodicals and reference publications can be found using online archives. Automatic document decryption speeds up the search process and efficiency, as it can be very difficult to sort out entries in old books, he explains.
The Izvestia interlocutor also recommends not to forget that the lack of information does not guarantee that ancestral data is nowhere to be found. It is important to study the documents yourself, using transcription as an auxiliary tool, because there may be typos or typos in the materials.
According to him, an indispensable stage of the search is requests to the registry offices and (or) the MFC. But you should know that documents older than 100 years (75 years for death certificates) are transferred to the state archives. You can contact the above-mentioned authorities for more up-to-date information at the place where the act was drawn up. Such requests must be sent in writing, but this is a paid service.
— When the entire Internet is worked out, it's worth turning to the archives, — Kopylov continues. — To do this, you need to determine which one can store the documents you need. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that they do not issue originals. Many archives (federal and regional) began to post inventories of funds and even digitized documents on their websites.
The expert recalls that last fall, the State Information System for the Remote use of Archival Documents began operating. It is actively updated with materials from the federal archives.
You can study documents in the virtual reading rooms of archival institutions.:
— regional archives keep church metric books and registry office documents for the last 100 years on their territory, audit tales, population censuses, confessional murals, and sometimes other useful sources containing genealogical information.;
— you can find documents on noble families, officials, large merchants, and public figures in federal sources;
— the military will be useful when searching for information about the ancestor's service in earlier periods (World War I, Civil War) and detailing data on the Great Patriotic War.
Artyom Kopylov suggests that if an ancestor worked in a large company, then you should contact the archive of the personnel department of this organization. Usually, such information is given for free if there is no secret information. And some facts can be found in large libraries. There you can find address and commemorative books, collections for anniversaries of organizations, diaries and correspondence.
How do geneticists determine kinship?
In addition to archival memory, you can also "rummage" in the genetic memory. Alexander Rakitko, Director of Science at Genotek, Candidate of Physico-Mathematical Sciences, confirms that genealogy and self-knowledge, including through DNA tests, are becoming increasingly popular among young people.
"First of all, a DNA test can determine a person's ethnic composition," he explains. — In addition, a DNA test allows you to find distant relatives: now a person can get about 2-3 thousand genetic matches with people with whom you can contact, exchange photos of common ancestors and start building a family tree together.
By analyzing the Y chromosome and mitochondrial DNA, it is possible to trace a person's ancestry along the paternal and maternal lines, explains the geneticist.
— For example, using a DNA test, you can check whether a male-line clan belongs to the same genetic branch as representatives of the Rurikovich or other famous historical clans. Finally, modern tests make it possible to find DNA fragments of ancient people, such as Neanderthals, in the genome of modern humans," the expert comments.
To assess a person's ethnic origin, scientists compare fragments of their genome with the genomes of reference representatives of different nations — that is, people whose grandparents all come from the same ethnic group or region.
— The more isolated the populations were and the earlier they separated, the more they differ due to genetic drift, migrations and features of historical development. Therefore, different peoples have their own characteristic genetic profile," explains the source.
In this way, geneticists can assess which ethnic components are present in a person's origin. For example, how similar is his genome to that of Russians, Tatars, or other ethnic groups, and from which peoples his ancestors might have come.
— At the same time, it is important to understand that we are not talking about one specific "nationality trait", but about a variety of genetic markers throughout the genome, — explains the specialist, adding that the accuracy and information content of the tests are growing every year.
According to him, this is largely due to the increase in the size of databases, the expansion of reference samples and the improvement of bioinformatic algorithms. All this also fuels interest in finding your roots.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
