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In depth
Paleography is the study of old handwriting — the ability to read and interpret historical manuscripts. It is essential for CBD cases involving pre-1900 records, which are typically handwritten in styles that differ significantly from modern handwriting.
Different countries and periods used different handwriting styles: (1) Italian cancelleresca (chancery hand) and mercantesca (merchant hand) for Italian records, (2) German Kurrentschrift and Sütterlin for German records, (3) Russian skoropis (cursive) for Russian records, (4) Latin secretary hand for English and Latin-language records.
Our network of genealogists are trained in paleography and can read records in multiple languages and scripts. This is particularly important for CBD cases involving pre-1900 parish records and metrical books.
Related terms
Genealogy is the study of family history and descent, the foundational research discipline for CBD cases.
A parish record is a church document (baptism, marriage, burial) maintained by a parish, used as a substitute for civil records in historic CBD cases.
A metryka (metrical book) is a Polish parish or civil registry record book, containing baptisms, marriages, and burials, dating from the 16th century to the present.
A family tree is a diagram showing family relationships across generations, the visual representation of the citizenship chain in CBD cases.
A pedigree is a documented line of descent, the formal genealogical record used to prove the citizenship chain in CBD cases.
An ahnentafel is a numbered list of ancestors in a pedigree, using a specific numbering system that allows compact representation of multi-generational lineages.