Zimbabwe Instructions Don't Make Sense
Zimbabwe, Archdiocese of Harare—Church Records, 1897–2021 [Part B][M3BR-BTG]
The project instructions explain that Nomen Patris and Nomen Matris are GIVEN NAMES.
This doesn't seem right. There are many entries that suggest the first name given is the surname and the second name is the given name. The same is the case with Nomen Xtianum and Nomen Pagenum. And in other cases the second name given for the father's or mother's name is clearly a given name. e.g. Susan
Answers
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maybe the scribe didn't know which column to input where. I guess index it as the instructions say... it should help the researcher find the record.
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Regarding the batch you referenced, it does not have Latin names, so there should be no confusion. I have italicized field helps for errors I found.
Christian name: is "Given Name."
Sex: Index the sex only if it was specifically recorded or you can tell what it was from relationship terms, such as "s" (for son) or "d" (for daughter), titles or terms, or other evidence in the language.
Baptism Day: Do not include zeros written at the beginning of a number. For example, "03" would be typed as 3.
These particular baptism forms with Latin can be confusing as they are filled out differently by different churches (and sometimes incorrectly by the priests and/or scribes). See the discussion referenced below and Gary Noble's examples.
I agree with you about the surname often appearing the parents' names, so it doesn't match the example in FamilySearch's example. If you don't feel comfortable indexing/reviewing these particular records by following FamilySearch's instructions and examples, return them and someone else will index them.
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