Having Irish census trouble and having a hard time trying to find people? Make sure to try out these searching tips as one of these may be the key to try and get you back a further generation.

Tip #1 – Ages

Don’t assume that ages recorded are correct. Ages tended to be a few years (or more!) from where they should be.

Tip #2 – Name Variations

Try different variations of the persons names as they could’ve gone by a nickname or abbreviated format e.g. Patrick goes to Pat(t). Another thing that needs to be considered is the fact that the person’s name might be mistranscribed so, if you know any brothers’ or sisters’ or parent’s name try searching for them instead.

Tip #3 – Living in a Gaeltacht

Now, most people might be wondering what I mean by a Gaeltacht. A Gaeltacht is a part of Ireland where the people speak Irish and went by the Irish form of their name. So for example John Whelan would be written in the form Seán O’Faoláin. This doesn’t happen a lot but it could help you find more ancestors. If you want a way to find the Irish form of your ancestor’s surname click here.