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With any international genealogy research it is advised that you attempt to trace your family tree by going back at least five generations.  Apart from the usual basic information, you will need most substantial stories and information so as to give you a good foundation for more research.  However, never assume that finding the information you require is going to be a simple task.

You will certainly find information and records that unfortunately do not reveal a great deal of information, but this is only to be expected and you must persevere. When dealing with family history you should never assume the stories you uncover are totally accurate. Therefore, sometimes you may have to take a research trip to uncover the necessary information you require.

Guidelines to International Genealogy Research:

Genealogical researchers traveling the world is not so unusual. Many people have done genealogy research in the hopes of finding crucial information that would trace their family history and it would often lead to traveling foreign countries.

As if researching in your own country wasn’t already difficult, you’d be faced with more difficulties once you conduct research in a foreign country:

• Sometimes you may experience difficulty with international genealogy determining where to seek records and information.
• Unfortunately some countries are a lot more difficult to deal than others.
• You may want to seek the help of international genealogy research experts. They can direct you to libraries, archive centers, and other agencies that have the records you require.

You may find it convenient  to look up information on the Internet.  However, there is so much information available online, you may need to be very specific with your search terms.

The International Genealogical Index (IGI):

The International Genealogical Index, or IGI, is an essential source of information for your research on family background and history. Most of the information that  is provided includes baptism and marriage records in several regions such as Wales, Scotland, England, Ireland, and the Channel Islands. They also include records on burials and births, if you want to check with that.

Some off the types of information the IGI allows you to see is listed below:

• An individuals first and last name.
• Date of the event in question: most of their records go back as far as the 16th century, although they do have updated records for years beyond 1876.
• The place where baptism or marriage took place.
• The persons partner, spouse or parent’s name.

The Reliability of the Records:

When using the International Genealogical Index as a source for material, you need to approach each snippet of information you gather with a certain level of care as not all of it will be confirm able. This further confirms that you should not settle for a single source and look for other sources to add to the information you have collected.

Among the misinformation that arises from  international genealogy starts with multiple records on the same person after more than one researcher have submitted the information. Several of the entries, either earlier or those updated after the year 1876, are recorded by individuals. Hence, verifying those information contained might prove difficult.

In some of the records, you might have estimated dates for events and the possible places where they took place. However, in several instances, this information could be missing as well, which adds to the difficulty of the genealogical research.

Other possible in-accuracies when it comes to the information provided are as follows:

• Inaccurate transcriptions.
• Misspelled surnames.
• Inconsistent use of country boundaries, etc.

Archives and Heritage Feature of The International Genealogical Index:

When doing international genealogy research and you visit the Archives and Heritage Service, you will find the International Genealogical Index as a microfiche. You will be able to visit the library, which has  a very large database at your disposal to enable you to find the information you’re looking for. When starting a search you should enter the surname and country of the person you are trying to get information about.