Jane's Genes

This series of guides uses real-life examples to explain how to use DNA and public records to research your own central European roots. While my focus is on Austria-Hungary, many of the methods described can [...]

Reading old documents in a foreign language isn’t easy, but old records contain plenty of useful information. This page is a compilation of some of my favorite translation sites and tools. Learn how to recognize some of the most common [...]

Village Lists and Gazetteers Identifying an ancestor’s village of origin is an essential step to building a several-generation family tree. Many small towns from a century ago no longer exist, or have gone through one or more name changes. The documents and  links on this [...]

Many small towns from a century ago no longer exist, have gone through name changes, or are more commonly known by alternate exonyms. The map links on this page can help identify the modern-day names [...]

Using DNA to Find Birth Parents: If you are an adoptee trying to locate biological family, you’ve probably found many websites full of adoptee resources, legal information, and even links to adoptee angels (volunteers who will assist in your search). [...]

When researching European ancestors, often the information we need isn’t easily accessible or available online.  These pages contain links to my notes, findings, and indexes.

Historical Guides and Compilations Munich Digital Library: Rare, antique Hungarian (German, and other) texts It’s possible to find books online here (download free pdfs) that can’t be found anywhere else, online or otherwise. I have found books listed [...]