37 AUTUMN 22 DESTINATION IRELAND
There ’ s a community of searchers and sleuths among the 70 million people around the world claiming Irish ancestry , but with the help of online databases and genealogy resources it ’ s never been easier to join in and start your own investigation .
A good starting point is the Irish Government website www . irishgenealogy . ie , which has records of births , baptisms , marriages and burials from a number of counties . The National Archives website contains early 20th-century census returns while www . rootsireland . ie has over 20 million records from the various county genealogy centres on the island of Ireland . Simply key in your name and the journey begins .
Armed with your online discoveries , a trip to Ireland is a great next step in unearthing your family history .
Head for the National Library , National Archives and General Register Office in Dublin or , if your history points to Northern Ireland , visit the Public Records Office in Belfast .
If you already know which county your ancestors hail from you can find out more from the professional genealogists in the many county genealogy centres .
Tracing your ancestry is an exciting adventure but it can be time-consuming and complicated . Happily , there is also the option to commission the Association of Professional Genealogists in Ireland to help .
They ’ ll find not only your ancestors but also living relatives , and getting to meet long lost cousins in the land of your forefathers is a thrill worth waiting for .
The immense Irish diaspora is the result of hundreds of years of emigration . For those seeking to know more about how and why their family emigrated a visit to Epic Ireland in Dublin is a must .
This hi-tech , interactive experience tells the authentic stories of 10 million epic journeys and how Irish emigrants helped shape the world .
Epic Ireland also contains an Irish Family History Centre operated by genealogical specialists , Eneclann .
They offer consultations with experts , access to Irish family history records and information to help with genealogical research .
There is even the opportunity to purchase a Family Tree DNA Kit to see if Irishness is in your genes .
So why not get on the trail ? Next time you visit Ireland you could be coming home .
www . ireland . com www . accreditedgenealogists . ie www . eneclann . ie www . nidirect . gov . uk / proni www . facebook . com / IrelandFamilyHistory