Birth Record Question

Ponster

I've just come across this on a Roots Ireland cert

THE MOTHERS NAME IN THE REGISTER IS O'DONNELL. THE STANDARD IS
DONNELL.

4 years later for the next birth I find this

THE MOTHERS NAME IN THE REGISTER IS DANIEL. THE STANDARD IS DANNIEL.

Do they mean that that particular family's standard was 'Donnell' or the local standard was Donnell ?

shanew

I think that's an interpretation by the transcriber - I wouldn't agree with the term 'Standard' for spelling of surnames, I'd say a better phrase would be 'more commonly used spelling by this parish at the time'.

Ponster

Yes, it was the use of the word standard that I couldn't understand.

I'm not sure where though they get this idea from. Surely it's possible for a family to be called O'Donnell and another just Donnell without presuming that one is correct and the other not ?

It's not like RootsIreland paid people to transcribers who know about the area from which the records come from.

In the example above it's the same person that they are referring to although apparently there are 2 'standards'

shanew

I wouldn't pay too much attention to it, especially prefixes like O and Mc, which can be dropped or restored depending on timeframe and who writes the document.

My north Co. Dublin Kavanagh's are the leaders on the surname variation leader board in my lot - I've come across all sort of variants e.g. Cavanegh, Cavanagh, Kavana, Cavenaugh etc

ei9go

Have a similar dannell / o Donnell for people from a place called Anns Gift in Co. Tipperary.

Ponster

ei9go wrote: »

Have a similar dannell / o Donnell for people from a place called Anns Gift in Co. Tipperary.

Who was Ann ?

ei9go

Ponster wrote: »

Who was Ann ?

Good question.

This is where the townsland is:

https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Annesgift,+Co.+Tipperary/@52.4921337,-7.73738,14z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x485cd280874f6285:0x7e9a688e3ed108a3