English genealogy blogger Paul Chiddicks has written an article on his blog, The Chiddicks Family Tree, asking whether people call themselves genealogist or family historian, and the subject has attracted attention on Twitter.
Mr. Chiddicks poses the question, “What name do we give ourselves when we refer to our hobby and what we do? Are you a Genealogist or a Family Historian, or something entirely different? Is there actually a difference and at the end of the day, does it really matter?”
Genetic genealogist Louis Kessler from Manitoba tweeted his comment on the article, “As a genealogist and long time member of a historical society, I’ve always joked that a historian is interested in any topic, but a genealogist sleeps through the lecture until hearing a surname or place of their family wakes them up.”
Mr. Chiddicks wonders if we can change our title to suit every occasion, a bit like a chameleon does.
He also suggests other titles some may prefer, such as collector of stories, family researcher, historical researcher, and story teller.
Storyteller
On a similar note, American genealogist Kelly Wheaton on her blog, Wheaton Wood, wrote the article, REFORMED GENEALOGISTS: Turning Trees into Stories. She says a reformed genealogist is “one who has moved from filling in their family tree — to making the tree bloom through the telling of its family stories.”
Ms. Wood suggests, “A reformed genealogist pledges to write at least one story each year,” which probably leaves a lot of us behind.
She says a reformed genealogist finds stories to be the most compelling part about their passion. “It’s letters, diaries, photos, it’s knowing that great-grandma married at 14 and searching to find out why.”
How would you describe yourself? Would a different title help you focus on your research? Would it encourage friends and relatives to ask you about the progress you’ve made on your family history?
