What Can Your Surname Tell You?

Posted by Ancestry Team on June 10, 2014 in Search

At least for purposes of research, just about every genealogist rues the ancestor whose last name is common, and therefore hard to trace, and rejoices in their ancestors with more unusual names. While an unusual surname undeniably can make genealogical research easier, it doesn’t corner the market on interesting and informative origins. In Western Europe, Read More

How to get the most out of Searching the Records

Posted by Web Operations on November 30, 2012 in Search

Refine Search: Easily add information or remove it from your search – no more scrolling to the bottom of the page Categories: Narrow your search by new, better organized content categories and subcategories Matching Person: Get the best matches possible from family trees on Ancestry Record Preview: Hover over a search result to preview more detailed information without having Read More

Default Search Settings

Posted by Web Operations on August 3, 2012 in Search

With over 10 billion records on the site, utilizing our search options can help you find your ancestors quickly and easily. When you use the default settings in our search form (like the one shown below), we look through every name we have recorded in our more than 29,000 data collections, and pull out any Read More

Tips for discovering your royal ancestors

Posted by Web Operations on April 14, 2011 in Search

If you’re trying to find royal or noble connections in your family tree, check out our handy hints below: 1. Explore surnames: cross-reference surnames in your family tree with those found in Burke’s Commoners and Landed Gentry of Great Britain and Ireland as this group, mostly descended from royalty or the aristocracy, is when the Read More

Ancestry Search: Controlling your results with filters

Posted by Web Operations on January 14, 2010 in Search

Having spent much of last year listening to what you wanted, we will be launching a series of filters in new search with the aim of giving the experienced searcher a lot more control over your searches and therefore making it much easier to understand your results.