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Getting Started With Your Scottish Research: Difference between revisions
Getting Started With Your Scottish Research (view source)
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== Gazetteers and Maps <br> == | == Jurisdictions, Gazetteers and Maps <br> == | ||
Scotland is organized into counties, parishes, and towns, villages, or hamlets. Ecclesiastical (church) boundaries for parishes are similar to civil (government) boundaries for the same. Parishes were the basic unit of society for life and for record keeping. | Scotland is organized into counties, parishes, and towns, villages, or hamlets. Ecclesiastical (church) boundaries for parishes are similar to civil (government) boundaries for the same. Parishes were the basic unit of society for life and for record keeping. | ||
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Maps also vary in size and content. The size of your place, creation date and the purpose for which the map was made are factors in whether or not you will find it. In general, most Scotish places did not drastically change their names, or have major jurisdictional changes. Topographical maps show the elevation of the terrain by the coloring, to indicate the elevation of the terrain. Study a map to see how your place relates to the surrounding area. Usually parish maps are available for each county, indicating the relationship between parishes. How does the parish boundary correspond to the topographical area? Is your place near the border by the sea, another county or country? Where are the hills, rivers, canals or main roads? Is it an urban or rural area? All of these factors influenced your family and their movements. | Maps also vary in size and content. The size of your place, creation date and the purpose for which the map was made are factors in whether or not you will find it. In general, most Scotish places did not drastically change their names, or have major jurisdictional changes. Topographical maps show the elevation of the terrain by the coloring, to indicate the elevation of the terrain. Study a map to see how your place relates to the surrounding area. Usually parish maps are available for each county, indicating the relationship between parishes. How does the parish boundary correspond to the topographical area? Is your place near the border by the sea, another county or country? Where are the hills, rivers, canals or main roads? Is it an urban or rural area? All of these factors influenced your family and their movements. | ||
For more information, go to the pages for [[Scotland Gazetteers|gazetteers]] and [[Scotland Maps|maps]]. | For more information, go to the pages for [[Scotland Gazetteers|gazetteers]] and [[Scotland Maps|maps]]. | ||
== Definition of Terms == | == Definition of Terms == | ||