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=== Baptisms [Taufen] === | === Baptisms [Taufen] === | ||
Children were usually baptized a few days after birth. Baptism registers usually give the infant's name, parents' names, status of legitimacy, names of witnesses or godparents, and baptism date. You may also find the child's birth date, the father's occupation, and the family's place of residence. Death information was sometimes added as a note or signified by a cross. The cross alone does NOT imply that the individual | Children were usually baptized a few days after birth. Baptism registers usually give the infant's name, parents' names, status of legitimacy, names of witnesses or godparents, and baptism date. You may also find the child's birth date, the father's occupation, and the family's place of residence. Death information was sometimes added as a note or signified by a cross. The cross alone does NOT imply that the individual died as a young child. | ||
Earlier registers typically gave less information, sometimes including only the child's and the father's names and the baptism date. A few records did not even give the child's name. This problem can sometimes be resolved if the godparents are mentioned in the entry. Boys were often named for the godfather and girls for the godmother. If this was customary in the parish, other baptismal entries should follow the same paatern. As a result it becomes important to look beyond the ancestral family and try to determine the local tradition. Until the later 1700s, pastors in some communities did not name the mother in the birth records, or they included only her given name. Sometimes only the baptism date was recorded, but in later years the birth date was given as well. | Earlier registers typically gave less information, sometimes including only the child's and the father's names and the baptism date. A few records did not even give the child's name. This problem can sometimes be resolved if the godparents are mentioned in the entry. Boys were often named for the godfather and girls for the godmother. If this was customary in the parish, other baptismal entries should follow the same paatern. As a result it becomes important to look beyond the ancestral family and try to determine the local tradition. Until the later 1700s, pastors in some communities did not name the mother in the birth records, or they included only her given name. Sometimes only the baptism date was recorded, but in later years the birth date was given as well. | ||
Because of social conditions in Germany, the birth of illegitimate children was not uncommon. Illegitimacy is usually noted in baptism records, sometimes by a note in the margin or an upside-down or sideways entry. | Because of social conditions in Germany, the birth of illegitimate children was not uncommon. Illegitimacy is usually noted in baptism records, sometimes by a note in the margin or an upside-down or sideways entry. | ||
=== Godparents === | === Godparents === | ||