The genealogical site Geneanet has a free search engine allowing you to learn more about family names, such as their geographic distribution over a certain period of time.
Digging a little into our family history, it is not strange that we sometimes wonder where the surnames that we inherited from our ancestors come from and where in the world there are more people who bear them.
The digital age has made it much easier to access this information in just a few minutes. One of the specialized platforms in this area is Geneanet which makes it possible to trace the origin of family names, their geographical distribution and even their meaning.
The tool to find out the origin of your last name
To use the Geneanet tool, it is not necessary to download any application, but it can be done by visiting the official website and searching for the option “Resources” then go to “Origin of surnames” .
Entering this section you must write the surname that interests you in the search box, press the red button in the shape of a magnifying glass and from there an interactive map will be displayed on the screen with its distribution in the world. In areas where the legacy name is more concentrated, the site reflects it with green dots.
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At the top of the map, users will see a timeline with which they can explore the evolution of the surname over the years, both in older and more recent records. For those that are more common, Geneanet also offers a brief description of their meaning.
Other data that can be obtained are number of people with this surname in certain regions, the family trees that bear it, and the variations it might present in other regions. These resources are free, although to use others you must pay for a premium subscription on the platform.
Geneanet works from genealogical data that the community itself enters and which today, according to its website, is made up of 5 million people.
Source: Latercera
I’m Rose Brown , a journalist and writer with over 10 years of experience in the news industry. I specialize in covering tennis-related news for Athletistic, a leading sports media website. My writing is highly regarded for its quick turnaround and accuracy, as well as my ability to tell compelling stories about the sport.
