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Portuguese Genealogical & Historical Society of Hawaii has a Website!

Portuguese Genealogical & Historical Society of Hawaii has a Website!

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I don’t know how this got passed me.  I was web surfing the other day and found that the Portuguese Genealogical & Historical Society of Hawaii now has a website.  You can visit them at:  PGHSH. The website includes information about their current location, hours, and contact information.  If visiting the society in person, be sure to inquire beforehand as they have to make arrangements to let you in. The website has a list of ships that went to Hawaii,…

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Caucasian But Not White: Race and the Portuguese in Hawaii

Caucasian But Not White: Race and the Portuguese in Hawaii

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How would you define your Portuguese ancestors who went to Hawaii?  You might start by calling them Azorean, Madeiran, and Portuguese.  You would call them Caucasian, wouldn’t you?  But, would you call them White?  Those who controlled Hawaii’s business and political interests in the 1870s did not.  The Portuguese who went to Hawaii were officially classified as “Caucasian But Not White”. How is that possible?  Aren’t Caucasians White? In order to answer those questions we need to transport ourselves back…

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Why Portuguese Surname Research Doesn’t Always Work

Why Portuguese Surname Research Doesn’t Always Work

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The desire to link people of the same surname from the same region is strong.  After all, how many families with the same surname in a small Portuguese village? The problem is that Portuguese surnames are fluid, they evolve, they come out of thin air (or so it seems).  Five children might use five different surnames and only one of them reflects the surname of either parent. While there are naming patterns that influenced different eras, they are guidelines not…

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10 Reasons Why You Can’t Find Your Portuguese Ancestors

10 Reasons Why You Can’t Find Your Portuguese Ancestors

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Genealogy is challenging. Portuguese genealogy has challenges all it’s own.  Have you fallen into these pitfalls and misconceptions along your research trail?  If so, you’re not alone.  I bet we’ve all made similar mistakes.  The important thing is to learn from them, then learn how to get around them. Let’s see this list of 10 reasons why you can’t find your Portuguese Ancestors and see if we can all get passed them.      1. You think they were from…

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Problem with Names Part 4: Inconsistency!

Problem with Names Part 4: Inconsistency!

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This is part 4 of the series the Problem with Names in which I discuss some of the difficulties surrounding Portuguese names.  In this article, I tackle inconsistency.  It can be the more confusing part for many genealogists to learn that their ancestor wasn’t all that hung up on their name or the spelling. The Compound Surname The main culprit of inconsistency is the compound or compound surname. Many Portuguese immigrants used compound surnames such as “Souza Medeiros”. To them,…

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