Re: Anna Sabina "Hannah" Gabbert - Augusta Co., VA
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In reply to:
Re: Anna Sabina "Hannah" Gabbert - Augusta Co., VA
Richard Osburn 10/25/04
"...But the big question is... when did the Germans in this country stop using this method of naming their children?..."
I really can't say for all German families.In the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia it persisted well into the 19th century.Remember that Lutheran/Reformed church services there were conducted exclusively in German up until WWI, and German was still spoken at home.Still, not every family followed the custom to the letter, so you can't always reconstruct the previous generation from the names of the children.It's just one more clue we can use to help us sort things out - or further confuse the issue depending on your point of view :-)
Arlene