CHURCH RECORDS : USING CLASS AND STATUS ON CHURCH RECORDS TO GO BACK IN TIME : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #3

CHURCH RECORDS : USING CLASS AND STATUS ON CHURCH RECORDS TO GO BACK IN TIME : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #3

To bring up all posts in this series click on the tag/label Gen Pro Tip : Missing ? Church Records

The following information appeared in a slightly different form in a previous post which appeared as an addition to my series on using the Urbarium of 1767. The original post appeared in September 2022.  That series should come up if you click on the label/tag Pro tips: 1767 Hungaricana Urbarium

This series on Church Records is intended to help you bridge the generations and make connections as the trail of church records seems to leave you not knowing how to proceed in your research, perhaps because the records you want are "missing."

I mentioned that sometimes you will find in birth, marriage, and other church records the profession or "status" of the person listed. On church records, particularly before 1849, you will see notations about the person's status, not just their profession, but their class status.

On the Marie Theresa census, first is listed is the owner of the estate, then the Colony, then Inquilis and then Subinqulis.  I want to expand upon that.

I mentioned that sometimes in Latin or Hungarian (and sometimes in Slovak or German) the mention of Free People or People Free To Go.  These people are usually mentioned in COLONY.  I said that people in the COLONY list are sometimes called "Perpetual People" and that meant that they came with the land, or they were "always there." 

Some of these people did indeed seem to "always" live there, but some of the Free To Go or COLONY people were what is called Castle Warriors or the nobility of the lowest nobility, or sometimes nobility of the highest but for whom there is no more land or money to go around after generations have inherited land. Theoretically a castle was established and the ancestors of these people lived within it or near it.

These great noble families may have split land, sold land, lost land, or been disenfranchised due to the slaughter by the Turks or in war with them over hundreds of years. Now on small plots of land sufficient to feed their family and sell some on the side, they may also be listed in the 1828 land census. However, they are still nobles and recognized and honored as such. 

Let's say you are dealing with COMMON surnames. However you see on church records that someone with a common surname is listed as COLONY. If you see people of the same surname on the census in the COLONY you probably have a match. Colony people owned their land, so the may be matched with the names on the 1828 Land Census. Now, if the person with the common surname is listed as a subinquilis, a person sub-renting the land to farm on, thus close to the serf-landlord relationship with that surname, we can't link them with the family with that same surname in the Colony.

WE CAN LOOK AT CHURCH RECORDS and DETERMINE WHICH PERSON or FAMILY with a COMMON SURNAME is the one that we should accept as an ancestor, when their status matches up, provided that it also works on a timeline. Developing family groups to see if the timeline also works is a good check as well. (For instance, will the couple's marriage date and the births of other children allow for the history you've proven with documents unfold?)

The profession of the man itself does not determine if they are or are not a noble.  I've seen records in which a person was listed as a noble and also that they work as a weaver or tailor. 

However in some cases professions can provide another match, such as when the father and son are listed as both being in the same profession, say one the Master Craftsman in the vineyard business and the other is in an Apprenticeship in the vineyard business. (The term Master Craftsman isn't always specific and can include someone who has a large business as well as someone who toils in it. Even some of those in agriculture - farmers - will be listed as such.)

It's not a guaranteed match, for things did happen back in the day that were not usual.  It's always possible that someone who was a servant for the landlord inherited land from him.  It's possible that the beautiful maiden of a subinquilis married the landlord. (Or that the unmarried pregnant woman, who became pregnant by the Lord of the Manner, married another man.)  However, class structure was what it was, arranged marriages between people of very different status was not usual.

Arranged marriages continued the idea that one should marry in their own class. In farming communities who married who might be a community decision. Additionally, some landlords did act as though they owned every lesser man's woman, and might want to be with a virgin before she could meet up with her new husband on his wedding night. Such conditions were akin to what happened in American slavery, not all the time, but sometimes. I wish I could say that religion prevented this but I doubt it did. Sexism, as we see it, prevailed. 

Back in that day people were born into the circumstances that would effect, if not dictate, their entire lives. To have Choice is what Freedom as all about. Declaring freedom is not the same as actually having it. 

Noting class and status on records is important and may be just the thing that helps you connect correctly to the right ancestors.

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Quick note November 2nd 2023:  It is possible for a person who is COLONY to rent land to their own child or relative. That person might be elevated to COLONY upon inheritance. The rent might have been needed or seen as a way of teaching a child responsibility.

THE 1828 HUNGARIAN PROPERTY TAX CENSUS : CLASS - STATUS - IDENTITY : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #5

THE 1828 HUNGARIAN PROPERTY TAX CENSUS : CLASS - STATUS - IDENTITY : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #5

Genealogically, I use the 1828 census when trying to break through some brick walls, searching for the names of people who were adults in 1828 on this census. Then I try to find the same people in the church records for the same settlement. I also use this census to get more information about individuals and families, to better imagine their lifestyle which was highly depended on class and status. 

Your ancestors may also appear on the Urbarium 1767 - the census that I wrote a lot about previously. Or you may be able to go forward to the 1868 census.  If you're seeking Jewish ancestors, there are also special Jewish census to cross-reference. 

Just remember that this 1828 census is a census of people who are considered taxable - land owners.  The economy is mostly agricultural but your people may not own the land they work on!  Land includes the patch of land that someone owns a home on and vineyards which might be at another location or shared among family members.  

Let's say you found someone on this census who looks interesting. You're going to go to church records for that same habituation.

Let's say you locate someone in a church marriage record who was born in or before 1828. On some records the place that a bride and groom are from (or born) is listed. Some not. If you find the bride or groom (or both) listed with other locations, you want to check that other settlement in 1828 as well.  

A person is listed on this 1828 census as head of household so chances are he or she is an adult. Although it's possible they are teenagers due to inheritance and/or being orphaned, if I see there are 2 "productive" adults at a location, knowing that few people live to be very old, I start out by figuring that it's probably a married couple. Their children are not listed because they are not considered productive or they don't have any yet or they have left home.  I figure that the head of household was probably born about 1810 or earlier.  I might try the surname in a genealogy database such as FAMILYSEARCH along with the location (being careful that records now titled with SLOVAKIAN SETTLEMENT NAMES were once HUNGARIAN SETTLEMENT NAMES) and ask for BIRTH/BAPTISMAL records for years 1750 to 1810. This may bring up one candidate or many. 

More often, because most surnames are common, and it seems that as you get nearer to 1800 the records seem to be less informative and sparse, what you may find is the names of people in a settlement who could be the parents or grandparents of children born to them. 

My experience thus far is that however far they may travel to marry or live, the bride and groom seem most often to be of the same status. For brides this means living an entire life at the status level they were expected to live when they were born, which is their father's status.  This is because noble women who married down did not pass their class or status on to their children. Never the less, I believe that they and their children were given more respect in a community.

Despite the social and cultural restrictions imposed upon people because of their birth class or status, you can get a feel for who may have married "up."  Or "down."

This census takes place in feudal times. Therefore on most records from this feudal era, a mention of the person's status is made on all records. 

You may live your entire life as it was expected to be when you were born including having a limited number of potential marital partners. How could your status change?

Being the especially good "familiar" of a kind and generous nobilis - one who still holds land and is considered rich - might help you stash a little coin away for a rainy day. Bad luck might mean that your house or village burns down and you loose everything but people will still acknowledge who your ancestors were. Crop failure could do you in and take the entire village down. You might show yourself to be especially loyal, valiant, or efficient in a military action and become favored and given the gift of noble status or land. Maybe you're an especially beautiful young woman with natural graces and you get noticed by a man of a slightly higher rank than you whose proposal prevents you from accepting the hand in marriage of the boy next door. Maybe you are a noble woman who has an affair or is raped and you have an illegitimate child but if you're willing to marry a man of lesser status at least you'll have a husband and a roof over your head. Perhaps you become an esteemed priest or member of the clergy or join a monastery or nunnery. (Doing so may prolong your life!) Or maybe you're one of the few who manages to live into adulthood, with many children surviving, and into old age your descendants make sure you always have enough and more.

Here's another scenario.

Notice the surnames and relationships. How does a person with Subinquillis status, who has no animals, no vineyard, no orchards or forests or meadows, no house EAT?  They are not going to beg money at the intersection and then go buy fast food. They probably can't afford to dine out every night. Chances are they are related to another family with a higher status or more money such as being the younger brother of the wealthier person.  They probably show up at the old main house for meals. Of course we speculate, but if the speculations lead to a research path that provides certain proofs we can entertain it, if not accept it. Why would this person who seems to have nothing even be on this census?  Perhaps he is a craftsman or in business and owns a studio or a hut.  He is not a serf or slave or sharecropper renting land.

Building the families through births and marriages, also look into DEATHS. Knowing who is ALIVE in 1828 helps you match the names on the census. A recent death might result in someone else owning the house or land.

Using church records against the 1828, I found a young couple, married at 18 listed as servants, in a small settlement.  However, at the birth of their third child they were listed as Subinquillis, and after their fifth, as Inquillis. I believe the status change came with inheritance.  Of the several men listed on the 1828 with the same surname, one of them had the same GODPARENTS for his children as the man listed as being in the Commune/Colony, although of lesser status.  I consider that these two men are related, pending more research, likely the younger is the one with a lesser inheritance.

This post is part of a series.  To bring up all posts click on the tag: Gen Tips : 1828 Hungarian Census

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THE 1828 PROPERTY TAX CENSUS OF HUNGARY - PROFESSIONS and CROPS : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #4

THE 1828 PROPERTY TAX CENSUS OF HUNGARY - PROFESSIONS and CROPS : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #4

By reading the village or town information on this census, you get a good idea about how small or large it is, how populated, how many people have enough to live in their own little house or big mansion.  You will see if the village or town has a number of craftsmen who specialize.  Tailors, Weavers, Shoemakers, Coopers, Wagoners.  Mostly you see a lot of FARMERS. If you see one of the farmers in your heritage on this census, you may also learn if he grew grapes or rye, lentils or peas, apricots or apples.

Here are some popular professions:

priest - pap
nun - apaca
carver - farfarago 
gazda - farmer
szabo - tailor
takacs - weaver
cipőkészítő - shoemaker
kadar - cooper
kocsi készítő - cart maker
lo edzo - horse trainer
lótenyésztő - horse breeder
katona - soldier
kereskedő - trader
közvetítő - negotiator
borkészítő - wine maker

Here are some popular crops:
garlic - fokhagymaseeds 
nuts - magok

sunflowers - napraforgók

tomato - paradicsom

peppers - paprika

chilis - chillis
barley - árpa
rozs - rye
búza - wheat
maize - kukorica
peaches - őszibarack
apricots - sárgabarack

apples - almák

pears - körte

almonds - mandula

grapes - szőlő
beets - celka
potatoes - krumpli

This post is part of a series.  To bring up all posts click on the tag: Gen Tips : 1828 Hungarian Census

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THE 1828 HUNGARIAN PROPERTY TAX CENSUS : HEADS OF HOUSEHOLDS : HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO TIP #3

THE 1828 HUNGARIAN PROPERTY TAX CENSUS : HEADS OF HOUSEHOLDS 

HUNGARIAN GENEALOGY PRO  TIP #3

Since only the name of the head of household is listed on the 1828 census of Hungary, it may be quite difficult to know without a doubt if the person listed really is your ancestor. 

In the United States it was 1850 before the names of all the family members were given -the name, age, gender, occupation, and birthplace of every individual in a household. The early United States Census', which also only listed the head of household included a statistical analysis of females, males, and ages. Sometimes you can correlate an American head of households to named wife and children in later years. 

Unfortunately most of the censuses for Hungary were specific to counting Jews, general statistics, or most of the country's documents are not available or missing or lost forever.  (I check every few months even when I'm not hot on my personal genealogy and keep hoping that HUNGARY is going to find and release more 1869 census and other information on the HUNGARICANA / NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF HUNGARY website!  I read a comment on the site that was negative on the "Mormon" (meaning Latter Day Saints - LDS - FAMILYSEARCH) offerings.  It said new documents are received every day!) 

CONSIDER :

WIDOWS HELP!

When we see the given and surname of a woman listed as a WIDOW, who is now in possession of the estate due to the death of her husband, we may have her birth name or her married name.  Vid. KATALIN LUKACS can be searched for as KATALIN LUKACS.  You can find candidates who MARRIED and who are alive in 1828.  Vid. KATALIN LUKACSNE is a woman named Katalin who married a man named Lukacs who died.  Check deaths of men named Lukacs and see if any of the records mention his bride or widow Katalin.  Vid. JANOS LUKACS is a woman who was married to Janos Lukacs. Look for his death record and see what the name of the woman he married is. We focus on 1828 and before. Using this technique, we can possibly recreate the families and make the connections.

IS ANYONE LISTED AS A Junior / Jr. or Senior /Sr.?  Though rare, I have noticed this on Latin language records and in my personal genealogy.  What this means is that the man is named after his father, and they are BOTH ALIVE.  As soon as a Senior dies, there is no longer a Junior, unless he has a son named after him who then becomes the Junior, while he assumes the Senior. (Further research revealed that not only was there a Junior and Senior but that my Junior was the third in a line of men named Istvan.) So, if your ancestor's father is already dead and had the same given name, the Jr. isn't the man you're looking for.

ALL THE PERSONS WITH THAT SURNAME IN THE LOCATION
But mostly what you see are lists of men.  So, they are men alive in 1828.  If I see that there are 2 productive adults in the household, though it could be a couple people 60 or less, or any variation of householders, I start with an assumption that they are a husband and wife without adult children living with them, just youngsters.  I run a search for that head of household's name in BAPTISMAL databases and I subtract 16 years for a birth date for the youngest and 60 years for the oldest - so a birth range of 1768 to 1812. That narrows things a bit, especially if the surname isn't common in that location.

On the BIRTH RECORDS, MARRIAGE RECORDS, and DEATH RECORDS you want to look for notations of their status such as Commune, and profession, or class.  These may help you make a connection between a landholder candidate and the census versus a landless peasant. (You may also venture to the 1867 census to see if the same families are still in the location. Though populations did tend to stay put in a location for generations there was movement.)

LISTS of the ENUMERATION ARE NOT ALPHABETICAL - nor are there house numbers.

Pending more research on this, I looked over many lists, and I noticed that people who seemed to have about as much as each other were together. Possibly the census taker might have begun with the richest person in town and gone down from there or maybe it was just the neighborhood, just like now when people who own houses about the same size and worth are in a neighborhood together. Or maybe all the farmers were producing peaches to be sold at market are together. Remembering that these are LANDOWNERS who are potential TAXPAYERS, even seeing 300 or more listed, in a town were house numbers go into the 700's, I'm reminded that there are a lot of people who are workers who own nothing, who are serfs.

WHO DO YOU HAVE DOCUMENTED PERSONS AS ALIVE IN 1828?  Following them is probably the most popular tactic.

Here is where your previous research that documents births, marriages, and deaths can be extremely useful. You know who is alive, what the names of the adults are. You know who is widowed. You have a LOCATION and you go to the 1828 for that location, looking for the names. Perhaps this will help you go back in time.  More likely it will help enrich your understanding of your ancestor's lives or help you imagine their place in history.

FOUND A SUSPECT - READ MORE ABOUT HIM and HIS ESTATE
At the end pages for each location there are some written paragraphs. Seek through these for more information on the head of household / property owner and what he's up to!

More advice forthcoming!

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WHATS IN A "HOLD"? : 1828 HUNGARIAN CENSUS: HUNGARIAN GENEALOLOGY TIPS COMING UP!

1828 HUNGARIAN CENSUS 

WHATS IN A "HOLD"?  

The "Hungarian acre" is called a HOLD.

What Americans call an "acre" Hungarians call an "Angol Hold" (English Hold)

When you see plots of land on Hungarian census, they are in HOLDS.

A hold is actually 1.0665 X 1 acre - so larger than an Angol Hold.

This post is part of a series.  To bring up all posts click on the tag: Gen Tips : 1828 Hungarian Census

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