The development of genealogy in Europe, based on the examples of Poland, Italy, Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina

Abstract

Amateur genealogy is becoming more and more popular in many countries. Thanks to the development of information and communication technologies, national genealogy has also acquired an international dimension, and websites presenting genealogical data contribute to an exchange of experiences between people from different countries. In this article, the authors traced the development of genealogy in four different countries: Italy, Poland, Turkey, as well as in Bosnia and Hercegovina, focusing primarily on sources of information regarding origin, methods of presentation, genealogy organizations, information exchange portals, and support in genealogical searches. As a result of the analysis, it can be concluded that these four countries - despite numerous differences - developed genealogical activities in a similar way.

Search, save and share: family historians’ engagement practices with digital platforms

“…Much of the previous research into family history has had an American focal point, likely linked to the fact that family history has long been a popular hobby in North America (Bidlack 1983 ). This is possibly fueled by the history of immigration and a wish to preserve memories of origin (Jurczyk-Romanowska and Tufekcic 2018 ). Even though its most common representations are closely tied to the Anglophone and Eurocentric constructs of sources and archives, family history is in essence a global phenomenon.…”