In some ways, bringing the Luxembourgish branch of my family
history to life is much more challenging than the American or English. It is
much more difficult to find sources relative to remote regions of Luxembourg,
and when I do find them, chances are they aren’t in English. On the other hand,
the primary research is often much easier. Once I made it over the hurdles of
learning to read Gothic script and understand records written in French,
German, or Latin (none of which I studied in school), it turned out that the
primary sources are very easy to navigate. Although the names are often
variously spelled in their French, German, or Latin counterparts, the records
leave very little room for doubt about a person’s identity. They consistently
refer to women by their maiden names even when married, and often identify age,
birthplace, and parents. Sometimes a document will record even more information
than that.
Now that so many of Luxembourg’s civil records are available
for free online at FamilySearch,
the potential for research on your Luxembourg line is immense. However, the
task looks daunting at first glance. The records are not only unindexed, but
they are in another language—some in French, some in German, some in Latin—and
both the handwriting and the typeface is difficult to decipher. All your
experience in interpreting nineteenth century American handwriting will help
you little, because this is an entirely different kind of script. Known as
Gothic script, it can be extremely challenging for the modern genealogist,
accustomed to our Roman style, to read.
Fortunately, a period of unemployment a couple years ago
furnished me with ample spare time to devote to going through these Luxembourg
records and teaching myself to read Gothic script. I found the chart in this piece of immeasurable value in understanding both the script and the typeface. Even
the preprinted parts of the records can be difficult to understand without aid.
Practice Gothic Script
I am not going to reiterate all that has already been said
on reading Gothic handwriting; it has already been said very well and
succinctly at the link I mentioned before. I will, however, share a few of my experiences and some hard-won advice in the
civil records from Luxembourg specifically.
I recommend beginning to familiarize yourself with some of
the later records first, because it can be easier to translate the printed
portions of the records rather than immediately diving in and trying to figure
it out in Gothic script. Often what was customary to write in the blank spots
in the earlier records became pre-printed in the later records. Therefore once
you know what you’re looking for, such as “geboren zu (born in)” or “wohnhaft
zu (residing in)” or “sohn der (son of), ” and realize approximately
in what order the information is likely to appear, it is much easier to locate
the pattern of words in the handwritten portions. The letters that were once
indistinguishable as s, f, or h begin to organize themselves into coherent
words.
 |
| A rather simple example of later typewritten records clarifying earlier handwritten records, but it serves to show the concept. |
Often, although the record may be written in Gothic script, the
names will pop out easily in Roman script. This can be exceptionally helpful in
scanning through the records for your ancestors. In birth records, I usually
look for the name following “erschienen,” as that is almost always the name of
the father, to see if a record is relevant to my search. The signatures, in the
eternal nature of signatures, are often much more difficult to read. They do
not follow the pattern of names being in Roman script, as the people sign
however they are accustomed to write.
Occasionally, a completely handwritten record will be tucked
in the pages. Now that you are used to German, this record is unaccountably in
French! Don’t despair. Firstly, it is likely in Roman script, easier to read.
Secondly, although the words are different, it tends to follow the same
pattern. Usually I scan these for relevant names and, if I find something of
interest, I return to them later. It can be difficult to switch back and forth
between French and German, Gothic and Roman script, so I look at them when my
mind is not so full of the Gothic German.
If you do not speak French or German or Latin, don’t give
up! You may have gleaned from the preceding paragraphs that I am not fluent in
any of those languages. As a matter of fact, prior to this experience I had no
training in any of those languages. I did, however, take several years of
Spanish, and my passing familiarity with that grammar served me in the
challenge of comprehending another grammar. As long as you have tenacity, a
modicum of language ability, and access to Google translate, you will
be able to figure out the records more or less successfully. I used a
combination of Google translate and a physical printed German-English
dictionary in my translation. This was partly because of the well-publicized
deficiencies of computerized translators. (Just translate a sentence from
English into German and then back again and see what you get!) You have to use
your brain in combination with the help from the translator. Sometimes it will
get hung up on word combinations that are probably legalistic and don’t make
sense to it. I had to often frequently cut down the sentences and translate a
phrase rather than the entire sentence in order to get to the meaning of the
sentence. The physical dictionary also helps in occasions where a word is
spelled phonetically or dialectally. The online translators cannot help you
there, but a physical dictionary provides a word list from which you can often
pick out what was meant.
Helpful Lists
Make a list of the months of the year, the numbers from 1-10
and the tens from there, days of the week, and the ordinal numbers—first,
second, third, etc.
|
English
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German
|
French
|
|
one
|
eins
|
une
|
|
two
|
zwei
|
deux
|
|
three
|
drei
|
trois
|
|
four
|
vier
|
quatre
|
|
five
|
fünf
|
cinq
|
|
six
|
sechs
|
six
|
|
seven
|
sieben
|
sept
|
|
eight
|
acht
|
huit
|
|
nine
|
neun
|
neuf
|
|
ten
|
zehn
|
dix
|
I also keep a list of Luxembourg place names in their
French, German, and Luxembourgish stylings.
Every once in a while if you cannot identify a town, you will find it is
written in its Luxembourgish designation. This list is comprehensive; I prefer
to make a smaller list of my own, including only the towns that I have found
relevant to my search and referring to the larger list only when stumped. Also
helpful to refer to a list of German occupations such as the one found here.
French Republican Calendar
Once you get back to a certain period before 1804, you might
come across another surprise: suddenly the records you were expecting to see in
German are written in French. Or, perhaps more surprising, the records written
while under French rule are written in German. I found one such marriage record
for Henri Mertz (AKA Heinrich, etc) and Catharina Audrimont. The date
was puzzling to me because no matter how I looked at it, all I could get for
the year was “11” and for the month “Nivos,” which means nothing in either
French or German. Finally I discovered that during this period of time
Luxembourg was under French Republican rule and was compelled to use the French
Republican calendar, which, believe it or not, is a metric calendar. Ten days
in a week, and months that one British wit once translated to “Wheezy, Sneezy
and Freezy; Slippy, Drippy and Nippy; Showery, Flowery and Bowery; Wheaty,
Heaty and Sweety.” The years are dated from proclamation of the French
Republic. Therefore, the year I was reading was correct—it was the year 11,
which roughly translates to 1803. (However, due to the non-coincidence of new
year’s days, part of FR 11 was in 1802.) The month was a misspelling of the
month Nivôse.
Dates found in the French Republican calendar (and a number
of other calendars, for that matter) can be looked up on this calendar converter.
However, before you use the converter, make sure you read a little about the
French Republican calendar so that you understand how it works (i.e. what the
décades are) or you will end up with the wrong date.
Don’t Give Up!
Although looking at the original Luxembourg records can be
challenging at first, it is well worth the effort. Each record is likely to
contain a wealth of information. That same marriage record of Henri Mertz and
Catharina Audrimont which I mentioned above yielded results I hadn’t dared
dream to anticipate:
|
Henri Mertz
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Catharina Audrimont
|
|
b. 28 Jan 1780 in Keispelt
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b. 19 Nov 1774 in Medernach
|
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Occupation: nurse
|
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Parents: Theodor Mertz and Susana Trauscht of Keispelt
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Parents: Peter Audrimont and Margreta Arens of Medernach
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