Courses

Understanding Latin in Italian Records

Every country-specific certificate program at The National Institute for Genealogical Studies includes courses for Religious Records. In many cases, the religious beliefs of our ancestors became a vital part of their family story. We explore the records of baptisms, marriages and burials, along with other religious ceremonies relating to their beliefs and customs, to discover information not found in the civil records. In the course Italian: Catholic Church Records-Part 1, we will examine these records, but one of the first challenges may be language. A useful resource is the Italian Genealogical Word List for translating Italian to English. However, Latin may be a bigger challenge. Here are some tips. A Lesson in Latin: Understanding the Italian Records Latin is an inflected language in which all verbs are conjugated, and all the nouns and adjectives use different cases. This means that words have different endings according to the function they play in a sentence, so it really does not matter in what order the words in a sentence are presented. This is different than the English language. Names and words can be seen in the normative, genitive, ablative, and accusative forms. These are defined as: “Nominative (nominativus): Subject of the sentence. Genitive (genitivus): Generally translated by the English possessive, or by the objective with the preposition of. Accusative (accusativus): Direct object of the verb and object with many prepositions. Ablative (ablativus): Used to show means, manner, place, and other circumstances. Usually translated by the objective with the prepositions “from, by, with, in, at.””[1] Some examples include: Nominative Genitive (of) ex + Ablative (from) Accusative Italian Antoni-us Antoni-i ex Antoni-o Antoni-um Antonio Joseph-us Joseph-i ex Joseph-o Joseph-um Giuseppe Anna-a Ann-ae ex Ann-a Ann-am Anna Joann-es Joann-is ex Joan-e Joann-em Giovanni Recurrent words have different endings: Nominative Genitive Accusative English Fili-us Fili-i Fili-um Son Fili-a Fili-ae Fili-am Daughter Infans Infant-is Infant-em Infant Months are often abbreviated: English Latin Abbreviation(s) September septembris 7ber, 7bris, VIIber, VIIbris October octobris 8ber, 8bris, VIIIber, VIIIbris November Novembris 9ber, 9bris, IXber, IXbris December Decembris 10ber, 10bris, Xber, Xbris Are you researching your Italian Catholic ancestors? Our course Italian: Catholic Church Records-Part 1 can help you to discover part of their stories through the records they left behind. Check the Course Calendar for the next time this course will be offered. [1] “The 6 Cases of Latin Nouns,” ThoughtCo. (https://www.thoughtco.com/cases-of-latin-nouns-117588 : accessed 16 September 2019). —————————————————- Visit our website for a complete list of online courses offered by The National Institute…

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New Year ~ New Goals

Happy New Year 2021! The holiday celebrations are coming to a close and most schedules are returning to a more regular routine. Hopefully, you were able to complete your 2020 projects. Perhaps you were fortunate enough to have opportunity to interview family members, or break through one of your break walls in 2020. Don’t forget to record any family stories you were able to discover over this holiday season, as well as recording your own 2020 memories. It certainly was a year to remember! Now it is time to get ready for new genealogical opportunities for 2021! What will you discover? Instead of making “New Year’s Resolutions” that may or may not be attainable, make Realistic Genealogical Goals that will benefit your research, both in the short term, and with long lasting rewards. To begin, what do you want to accomplish? Make a plan! Do you need to get your files and documents organized? Implement a system that works for you. Have you lost where you left off in your research? Review the notes for your findings and make a proper research plan. Forgot where you found that information? Be sure to cite your sources! Review your work and make sure you will be able to find that source again. At a time when many repositories are closed to in-person visits, work on what you can achieve at home. Make a list of what has been left undone and needs follow-up. Then set your goals for how you will complete each research project. You have a brand-new open calendar before you, plan your time wisely. Do you have education goals for 2021? Make a list of topics you want to pursue. How can you accomplish this goal? Is there a new book to read on the topic? Are there webinars to watch? Does the topic require more in-depth study? Is online education on your list of goals for 2021? The National Institute for Genealogical Studies offers quality online education with over 230+ courses to choose from. Some of our courses are topic/country-specific, or provide insight into research methodology, while others are skill-building courses to maximize your research time. The first Monday of a new month means another rotation of courses will start on January 4th. You can still join the class until this Friday. Most courses feature 6 modules over an 8-week period, easily adapted to most busy schedules. Many…

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Grandmothers, Mothers, and Daughters

Our female ancestors played significant roles in history. Yet, researching and writing about the women in our families can be a daunting task. If you have hit a brick wall in the quest to find information about your female ancestors, consider registering for our Research: Grandmothers, Mothers & Daughters – Tracing Women course, which is just one of the online genealogy courses from International Institute of Genealogical Studies. This course is designed to guide you through the process of researching your family’s history by covering strategies and key sources you will need to access in order to overcome common challenges when tracing female ancestors. It will show you how to document “her” story and reveal the often-hidden aspects of their lives. The untold journey of our Grandmothers, Mothers & Daughters needs to be told and should not remain silenced any longer. Check out course highlights in the following blog posts: Part 1: Researching HER Story Part 2: What’s in a Name? Part 3: Digging Deeper into HER Story Part 4: Timelines for the Ladies in our Tree The Research: Grandmothers, Mothers & Daughters – Tracing Women course description can be found here. Check the Course Calendar schedule below to find the next start date for this course and register today! —————————————————- Visit our website for a complete list of online courses offered by International Institute of Genealogical Studies. Check our Course Calendar here. Follow us on Social Media: Blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest. *Note: Please be aware our social media accounts are monitored regularly, but NOT 24/7. If you have any questions, please contact the office directly. Contact information: 1 (800) 580-0165 Email: admin@GenealogicalStudies.com Website: www.GenealogicalStudies.com Blog: blog.GenealogicalStudies.com LEADERS IN ONLINE GENEALOGY EDUCATION

Genealogy in a Package

What’s on Your 2021 Wish List? Tis the season for packages! We all love to receive them and to open them. However, some package contents are better than others. We have made our genealogy wish lists and dropped several hints, but what will we receive? Slippers and socks are fun (usually), but how much better if your package was genealogy-related? The National Institute for Genealogical Studies can make sure your package has just the right courses for your 2021 genealogy education plan. You can choose any of our 230+ courses individually, or one of our specific Course Packages listed below, but did you know that you can also create your own unique package? Choose 4, 7, 8, 10 or 13 courses and make your package with the exact courses needed for your own distinctive research project. See details for all Course Packages here. Special Genealogy Course Packages DNA Packages These packages include courses relevant to your understanding of DNA and how it can be used in your genealogical research. DNA and Relevant Topics: 8 Courses DNA – Understanding Testing and Research Strategies: 4 Courses Skill-Building Package The four courses included in this package will help you expand your research skills. Genealogy Ethical Guidelines & Standards Skill-Building: Breaking Down Brick Walls Skill-Building: Evidence Analysis and Evaluation Using Case Studies Skill-Building: Nuts & Bolts of Reporting Research Business Skills Package This package includes all the courses needed to give students a good understanding of how to start and manage a genealogical business, and what niche business opportunities are available to genealogists. Business Skills Package: 18 Courses Professional Learning Certificates At the heart of The National Institute for Genealogical Studies online education is our Certificate in Genealogical Studies Program. Each certificate includes the study of specific topics and record groups relevant to certification. For all certificates, students are required to complete 40 courses, which includes specific compulsory courses and a choice of electives. The Methodology Certificate is at the core of all of the certificates. The exception is the Librarianship Certificate, which includes only 12 courses. There is an option to combine the Librarianship Certificate with a country-specific certificate as the elective portion. The Professional Development Certificate program will benefit those who wish to pursue a career in genealogy, create a genealogy business or to augment their income potential by adding niche areas to their business plan. Skill-building courses are of high importance in this…

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Keeping in Touch

Keeping in Touch… Communication is so important in genealogy in order to keep abreast of constantly evolving information. The same is true within The National Institute for Genealogical Studies. As a student of The National Institute, there are various ways you can communicate with us and your fellow students (see below). We want all of our students to enjoy their learning experience. Please do not worry or fret over your courses by yourself. We are here to help you! **** NOTE: Our social media accounts are NOT monitored regularly. If you need an answer quickly, please do the old-fashion thing, pick up the phone. We can be reached at 1-800-580-0165, ext. #1 (North America) or 416-861-0165. Please leave a message if no one answers. #1 By email to The National Institute **** NOTE: When contacting us please INCLUDE your FIRST & LAST NAME and the COURSE TITLE including the COUNTRY, if a records course. It is also helpful if you include the module number and section title you are referring to. **** i) admin@genealogicalstudies.com –  for general questions; ii) alert@genealogicalstudies.com – to advise us of broken links in your course materials and assignments–please be specific as to where problem is; iii) exam@genealogicalstudies.com – questions pertaining to your course exam. #2 By email to a fellow student When you view a fellow student’s public assignment SUBMISSION/ANSWER and you would like to contact them about something in their posting, simply click on the envelope icon to the right of the student’s name. A new window will open where you can type your message. For privacy reasons, you will not see the recipient’s email address and they have the option to reply or not. #3 Attend a Virtual Meeting VIRTUAL MEETINGS ARE THE BEST PLACE TO COMMUNICATE with an instructor and fellow students. Anyone can participate! You do not have to be registered in the course to attend. When attending virtual meetings, please bring questions applicable to the topic being discussed. Watch for our emails outlining upcoming virtual meetings dates and times. Or visit our website at www.genealogicalstudies.com, click on Information in the top menu bar, and then Virtual Learning Room for the full schedule. #4 Follow The National Institute’s Blog Go to http://blog.genealogicalstudies.com/ and scroll down. On the right hand side of the page you will see Subscribe to Blog via Email. In the text box, enter your email address and click on the Subscribe button. Once subscribed, you will receive an email each time we post an article. Each blog article includes a link to write a comment or share via social media. Look for these options at the end…

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