QOTD: Who are you from?
Geographical distribution of the name 'Hobson' in the UK. Source: http://www.dynastree.co.uk
With St. Patrick’s Day coming up tomorrow, a quarter of me will be getting my Irish on, courtesy of my grandmother Mary (nee Driscoll), whose family came from County Cork. Other bits of me hail from Scotland, the Channel Isle of Guernsey, and Derbyshire–at least by name origin. I am generations removed from my multiple old countries and think of myself as plain old American, sans hyphenation. But I feel I’m missing out on something, when those whose immigrant/ethnic roots are less tangled and nearer in time than mine take the opportunity to strut their stuff.
Today’s Question of the Day comes from Barb Heller:
Which part(s) of your ancestry do you relate to most? Why?
Tags: qotd
Since I am 100% German, German.
My mother was Mary Madden. Her ancestors came from Ireland.
My father’s ancestors trickled out of Russia through Czechoslovakia, Poland, Germany and Austria.
I’m proud of my ancestors. They were all great achievers, full of common sense, and good manners. Those traits come from one place, regardless of ethnicity: good parents.
I too am American. No hyphen. One side came across the Atlantic in 1893 and the other before 1700. One side English, the other Scots-Irish and there is known to be some German. What I ponder these days is what made one grandfather have such a temper and his brother’s family (they lived next door for a time) allow their son to drink at an early age plus take the money he sent home from the service that was to be banked for his college education and use it for their own purposes. The kid was cowed so much that despite the GI bill he could not overcom ehis mother’s objection to college and worked in the steel mills. Over on the other side a great grandmother acquired land at a rather young age and invested to acquire more and developed coal mines-counter to what most women did (or could do legally) in the mid-late 1800s.
I admire what Barb wrote:
“I’m proud of my ancestors. They were all great achievers, full of common sense, and good manners. Those traits come from one place, regardless of ethnicity: good parents.”
Here’s to good parents, in every corner of the world!
And here’s to passing those qualities on, as best we may.
My mothers people came from Italy via Ellis Island and were pretty well organized folks. there are pictures and church records and relatives in the old country and everything.
My fathers people however, well, they claim Scots-Irish heritage, and they must have come here somehow ’cause they’re here aren’t they? But that history is anyone’s guess.
I like to claim the mantle of story-teller because of the Italian inability to stop talking, and the Irish inability to stop lying…