Hello,
I am Martin. Nice to meet you. I am learning about how people trace their roots, and I am hoping to be able to locate my lineage.
Well, here is the information I have so far about my ancestors. It started with just names/dates of births and possible village and has since expanded after I asked my parents for any more information they had, as well as my cousin in Hong Kong who knows my dad's siblings:
My dad's family
Grandfather's name: (賀高荣) - Official - (from Dad's Birth Certificate - handwritten) (賀高榮 on the printed certificate is traditional - changed to simplified, it is this: 賀高荣)
Occupation: Sailor (from my dad's Birth Certificate)
Date of birth: December 3rd, 1906
Place of birth: Chi Kiang, Shanghai, China (Chi Kiang seems wrong and does not seem to exist anymore)
He was from the following area: 中國淅江省寧波縣鎮海大碶頭九村 (my dad said my grandfather lived here, but it is not known if that is his village or if he moved there.
His mother provided the information to him and that is all he knows. This was written down in his notepad)
The village translates to: Hetou Village, Zhenhai, Ningbo County, Zhejiang Province, China - this might be key information, but it is not known if it is the village he was born in, but if my dad's mother said he lived there, it might mean he was born there or he moved there later.
Deceased: August 22, 1987
(80 years old)
My cousin remembers my grandfather's name as 賀高雲 (traditional, my mom says) and it’s written on his grave. He said 賀高荣 (simplified) might be wrong because my grandfather didn't know Cantonese well when he moved from China to Hong Kong and it is possible that the official wrote down that information by mistake. Why he never pointed out the mistake is a mystery.
Grandmother's name: 周佩英 - Official - (from Dad's Birth Certificate)
Born in Shanghai, China on April 9, 1917
Occupation: Housewife
Deceased: October 31, 2006
(89 years old)
I am still looking for more information
Alternate name: 周珮瑛.
My cousin in Hong Kong provided this name for my grandmother. This one might be more accurate, but I'm awaiting answers. This one is simplified.
My mom's family
Grandfather's name: 黄錦裕 (birth name)
Date of Birth: December 11, 1905
Place of Birth: Baisha (白沙镇), Taishan/Toisan (臺山) [and formerly known as Xinning or Sunning (新寧)], Guangdong, China
Died: June 1, 1983 (77 years old)
Alternate name: 黄金棕 - I was given this by my mother as well as it is the simplified Chinese version (changed later)
A
pparently, this person's brother's son recently passed away in the village that my grandfather grew up in. My mother can contact her cousin who visited that area for more information.
Grandmother's name: 馬玉蘭 (birth name)
Date of Birth: October 1, 1916
Place of Birth: Baisha (白沙镇), Taishan/Toisan (臺山)
Died: March 18, 1984 (67 years old)
(9 days in coma)
Alternate name: 馬玉阑 - I was also given this name. This one is the simplified version. Changed later.
I am currently still asking questions and reaching out to others for more details. I hope your expertise and knowledge can help me narrow down my ancestral roots.
If so, I might visit both of these places to gather more information. I am not sure if I should go alone or whether to be accompanied by someone since I speak no Chinese.
Any help will be much appreciated. I am asking for gravestone information of my father's parents in HK, and any other information that might have been passed down when my grandparents passed. My parents are in Canada now but a lot of my relatives are in Malaysia (mother's side and where she was born) and Hong Kong (father's side and where he was born).
Thank you in advance,
Martin
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