http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/migrations/seek2/sample2.html

 

Family Folklore
How to Collect Your Own Family Folklore

A Possible Questionnaire

Every family is unique. Every folklore fieldworker has his or her own special interests and style of interviewing. Because of this diversity, no single set of questions will successfully elicit folklore from all families. The most useful questions will be those that you develop through knowledge of yourself and your family.

For your initial efforts the following questions may be helpful. Just remember that they are meant to be suggestive, not absolute. Pick and choose among them as you see fit. By all means change the wording to suit your own situation and personality.

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SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

1. What do you know about your family surname? Its origin? Its meaning? Did it undergo change coming from the old country to the United States? Are there stories about the change?

2. Are there any traditional first names, middle names, or nicknames in your family? Is there a naming tradition, such as always giving the firstborn son the name of his paternal grandfather?

3. Can you sort out the traditions in your current family according to the branches of the larger family from which they have come? Does the overall tradition of a specific grandparent seem to be dominant?

4. What stories have come down to you about your parents? Grandparents? More distant ancestors? How have these relatives described their lives to you? What have you learned from them about their childhood, adolescence, schooling, marriage, work, religion, political activity, recreation? Are they anxious or reluctant to discuss the past? Do their memories tend to cluster about certain topics or time periods and avoid others? Are there certain things in your family history that you would like to know, but no one will tell you? Do various relatives tell the same stories in different ways? How do these versions differ?

5. Do you have a notorious or infamous character in your family's past? Do you relish stories about him/her? Do you feel that the infamy of the ancestor may have grown as stories passed down about him/her have been elaborated?

6. How did your parents, grandparents, and other relatives come to meet and marry? Are there family stories of lost love, jilted brides, unusual courtships, arranged marriages, elopements, runaway lovers?

7. Have any historical events affected your family? For example, how did your family survive the Depression? Did conflict over some national event such as the Civil War or Vietnam War cause a serious break in family relationships?

8. Are there any stories in your family about how a great fortune was lost or almost (but not quite) made? Do you believe them? Are these incidents laughed about or deeply regretted? If a fortune was made, who was responsible and how was it achieved?

9. What expressions are used in your family? Did they come from specific incidents? Are there stories which explain their origin? Is a particular member of the family especially adept at creating expressions?

10. How are holidays celebrated in your family? What holidays are most important--national, religious, or family? What innovations has your family made in holiday celebrations? Has your family created entirely new holidays?

11. Does your family hold reunions? How often? When? Where? Who is invited? Who comes? Who are the organizers and hosts? What occurs during the reunion? Are there traditional foods, customs, activities? Are stories and photographs exchanged? Are records (oral, written, visual) kept? By whom?

12. Have any recipes been preserved in your family from past generations? What was their origin? How were they passed down--by word of mouth, by observation, in writing? Are they still in use today? When? By whom? Does grandmother's apple pie taste as good now that it's made by her granddaughter?

13. What other people (friends, household help, etc.) have been incorporated into your family? When? Why? Were these people given family titles such as aunt or cousin? Did they participate fully in family activities?

14. Is there a family cemetery or burial plot? Who is buried with whom? Why? Who makes burial place decisions? If there are gravemarkers, what type of information is recorded on them?

15. Does your family have any heirlooms, objects of sentimental or monetary value, that have been handed down? What are they? Are there stories connected with them? Do you know their origin and line of passage through the generations? If they pass to you, will you continue the tradition, sell the objects, or give them to museums?

16. Does your family have photo albums, scrapbooks, slides, home movies? Who created them? Whose pictures are contained in them? Whose responsibility is their upkeep? When are they displayed? To whom? Are they specially arranged and edited? Does their appearance elicit commentary? What kind? By whom? Is the showing of these images a happy occasion?

Conduct Family History Interviews

 

http://www.familysearch.org/eng/lessons/L2_Family_History_Interviews.pdf

A Script for Video or Audio Interviews with Family Members

 

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lineage/famhist.htm

A Script for Video or Audio Interviews with Family Members

 

 

The tape should open with the interviewer giving their name, the date, the location, and any other descriptive information that seems pertinent.

Be sure to give the interviewee sufficient time to answer questions and/or think about their answers. Half the key here is don't rush...and feel free to stick in other questions that come to mind. It's surprising how digging out one memory will lead to others long forgotten....be sure to give the person plenty of time to talk.

Basic questions will be in the main color...followup questions that depend on the answer to the main questions will be in this color.

Family History Section

 

1. What is your full name?
2. Is there anything special or unusual about your name or the way you were named?
3. When and where were you born?
   So that makes you ____ years old now, right?
4. Do you have any brothers or sisters?
   What are their names and ages?
5. What are your parents' names and when and where were they born?
6. Are they still living?
   (If answer is no) When did (he/she/they) die?
7. What (are/were) your parents' occupations?
8. Did you know your grandparents?
   What can you tell me about them?
9. What can you tell me about your family farther back than your grandparents?
10. What is your ethnic origin, and how has it affected your life?
11. Is there anything else you can share with me about your family history?
    Any unusual events or famous persons?
    Is your family well known for anything?

Early Childhood Memories

 

1. Now I'd like you to think back to the earliest thing you can remember.....how old were you and what was going on?
2. What (else) do you remember about the time before you went to school?
3. Where did you live when you were little, and what did your house look like?
4. Did you go to school before elementary school?
   (If yes) Please tell me about it.

Elementary School Memories

 

1. Where did you go to elementary school and what year did you start?
2. Now I'd like you to think back to an incident in grade school which you remember well....what was going on?
3. What are some other vivid memories of your elementary school years?
4. How were your grades in grammar school?
5. How did you spend your summers during grade school?
6. Did you have any pets when you were little?
   (If yes) Please tell me about them.
7. While you were growing up, did you have any sense of whether your family was rich or poor, and what would you say now about your family's economic circumstances when you were growing up?
8. Were you happy as a young child?
9. What would you say about your relationship with your parents?

High School Memories

 

1. Where, and in what years, did you go to high school?
2. Where did you live during this time?
3. Now I'd like you to think back to an incident in high school which you remember well....what was going on?
4. How were your grades in high school, and did you graduate?
5. What subjects and/or teachers did you particularly enjoy?
6. What social group did you belong to in high school what kind of kids did you associate with?
7. Who were your best friends during high school, and are you still in contact with any of them?
8. Did you have a favorite sport, and were you on any teams?
9. Who was the first (boy/girl) you ever seriously kissed, how old were you, and what were the circumstances?
10. Did you attend your senior prom, and if so, who was your date, and what was it like?
11. If you could have changed one thing about your high school years, what would it have been?
12. What was going on in your family when you were in high school?
13. Did your family take vacations, and if so, what were they like?
14. How would you sum up your childhood and adolescence?

Higher Education

 

1. Did you attend any college or vocational school after high school?
   (If no, skip to the military section)
2. (If yes) When and where did you go, why did you choose to go there, and what did you study?
3. How did you do there, and did you graduate?
4. How did you pay for the schooling?
5. Now I'd like you to think back on an incident in this time that you remember well....what was going on?
6. Who were your best friends from this period of time, and do you still see any of them?
7. Who did you date during this period of your life, and what sort of things did you do on your dates?

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Military Service

 

1. Did you serve in the Armed Forces?
   (If no, skip to the adult section)
2. When, and under what circumstances?
3. What was it like?

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Adult Life

 

1. When did you leave home, under what circumstances, and where did you go?
2. Where have you lived during your adult life?
3. What did you do between the time you (left home/graduated) and the time you got married?

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Career

 

1. What was your (first, second, etc) job after you left home?
2. Did you enjoy this work?
   (Repeat the above two questions as necessary to get up to the present.)
3. What about your career have you found most satisfying?
4. What about your career would you like to have done differently?
5. Are you now, or have you ever been prominent, famous, or well known for anything?

Marriage

For this section, you need to ascertain how many times the person's been married....skip this and the children section if you're talking to someone who's never been married.
The first five questions should be repeated for each time the person's been married.

1. What is your spouse's name, and when, where, and how did you meet?
2. What did you do on your first date?
3. What was your courtship like?
4. How long after you met did you get married?
   (If more than one marriage) How did this marriage end?
5. What would you say is the most important thing about choosing a spouse?
6. In what ways has marriage turned out to be different than you expected?

Children

If you've ascertained that the person's never had children, skip this section

1. When were your children born and what are their names?
2. I'd like you to think back to the day your first child was born....what was the experience like for you?
3. What are some special memories of raising your children?
4. What is the best thing about children, and what is the most frustrating thing?
5. What is it like to be a grandparent?
   Skip this question if the person has no grandchildren

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Travel and Other Interests

 

1. Do you enjoy travelling, and where have you gone?
2. What would you say has been your greatest adventure so far?
3. What interests and hobbies do you have, and what do you like to do for fun?
4. What organizations do you belong to?
5. The last time you voted in a presidential election, who did you vote for and why?
6. Is politics important to you?

History

Choose the questions based on the person's age...and be creative, if the focus of their life was/is at a different historical time.

1. What impact, if any, did World War One have on your life or your family?
2. What impact, if any, did the Great Depression have on your life or your family?
3. What impact, if any, did World War Two have on your life or your family?
4. What impact, if any, did the Korean War have on your life or your family?
5. What impact, if any, did the Vietnam War and the Sixties have on your life or your family?

Taking Stock and Summation

 

1. Now to take stock.....as of this point in your life, has your life turned out as you imagined it would?
2. What's been your greatest accomplishment so far?
3. What's been your greatest disappointment or frustration?
4. What's the most important thing in your life right now?
5. What would you have done differently in your life, if you'd known then what you know now?
6. What are your goals right now and what do you hope to accomplish next?
7. If you could do anything you wanted to do, what would it be?
8. What do you think will be the major world events of the next ten years?
9. What are the most important things you've learned about life thus far?
10. What is your philosophy of life?
11. What role does religion play in your life?
12. Now...for some advice for your great-grandchildren....what would you say to them about the area of education?
13. What about choosing and managing careers?
14. What advice would you give them about money?
15. What do you have to say to them about love and marriage?
16. What about how to raise children?
17. Since future generations of your family will be watching this, what do you have to say to them?
18. Is there anything else you would like to add or to say to complete things?

At this point, thank the person for allowing you to interview them, state again for the camera the date, your name and the interviewee's name, and then have the person running the camera or tape recorder stop the tape.

 

 

Fifty Questions for Family History Interviews What to Ask the Relatives

 

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm

 

Fifty Questions for Family History Interviews

What to Ask the Relatives

By Kimberly Powell, About.com Guide

A great way to uncover clues to your family history or to get great quotes for journaling in a heritage scrapbook is a family interview. By asking the right, open-ended questions, you're sure to collect a wealth of family tales. Use this list of family history interview questions to help you get started, but be sure to personalize the interview with your own questions as well.

For more family history interview tips, see How to Interview a Relative. Then scroll down for the family history interview questions below.

1. What is your full name? Why did your parents select this name for you? Did you have a nickname?

2. When and where were you born?

3. How did your family come to live there?

4. Were there other family members in the area? Who?

5. What was the house (apartment, farm, etc.) like? How many rooms? Bathrooms? Did it have  electricity? Indoor plumbing? Telephones?

6. Were there any special items in the house that you remember?

7. What is your earliest childhood memory?

8. Describe the personalities of your family members.

9. What kind of games did you play growing up?

10. What was your favorite toy and why?

11. What was your favorite thing to do for fun (movies, beach, etc.)?

12. Did you have family chores? What were they? Which was your least favorite?

13. Did you receive an allowance? How much? Did you save your money or spend it?

14. What was school like for you as a child? What were your best and worst subjects? Where did you attend grade school? High school? College?

15. What school activities and sports did you participate in?

16. Do you remember any fads from your youth? Popular hairstyles? Clothes?

17. Who were your childhood heroes?

18. What were your favorite songs and music?

19. Did you have any pets? If so, what kind and what were their names?

20. What was your religion growing up? What church, if any, did you attend?

21. Were you ever mentioned in a newspaper?

22. Who were your friends when you were growing up?

23. What world events had the most impact on you while you were growing up? Did any of them personally affect your family?

24. Describe a typical family dinner. Did you all eat together as a family? Who did the cooking? What were your favorite foods?

25. How were holidays (birthdays, Christmas, etc.) celebrated in your family? Did your family have special traditions?

26. How is the world today different from what it was like when you were a child?

27. Who was the oldest relative you remember as a child? What do you remember about them?

28. What do you know about your family surname?

29. Is there a naming tradition in your family, such as always giving the firstborn son the name of his paternal grandfather?

30. What stories have come down to you about your parents? Grandparents? More distant ancestors?

31. Are there any stories about famous or infamous relatives in your family?

32. Have any recipes been passed down to you from family members?

33. Are there any physical characteristics that run in your family?

34. Are there any special heirlooms, photos, bibles or other memorabilia that have been passed down in your family?

35. What was the full name of your spouse? Siblings? Parents?

36. When and how did you meet your spouse? What did you do on dates?

37. What was it like when you proposed (or were proposed to)? Where and when did it happen? How did you feel?

38. Where and when did you get married?

39. What memory stands out the most from your wedding day?

40. How would you describe your spouse? What do (did) you admire most about them?

41. What do you believe is the key to a successful marriage?

42. How did you find out your were going to be a parent for the first time?

43. Why did you choose your children's names?

44. What was your proudest moment as a parent?

45. What did your family enjoy doing together?

46. What was your profession and how did you choose it?

47. If you could have had any other profession what would it have been? Why wasn't it your first choice?

48. Of all the things you learned from your parents, which do you feel was the most valuable?

49. What accomplishments were you the most proud of?

50. What is the one thing you most want people to remember about you?

Get Nosy with Aunt Rosie – Oral Family History

 

http://www.genealogy.com/70_tipsoral_print.html

Get Nosy with Aunt Rosie

by Genealogy.com

People say that talking to your plants can make them grow, and the same is true for family trees. While it's not always necessary to record oral histories to get the basic vital statistics about your ancestors, you may find that interviewing your family members provides some of the most interesting information about your family. Learning about hobbies, family traditions, and personalities can really bring the names in your family tree to life!

Making the most of your interview means keeping an ear open for good stories, and also asking follow-up questions on the details like dates and places. Below, you'll find some tips on how best to set up and record the interview, and some sample questions to get you started on the deeper roots of your family tree.

Tips for Recording Oral Histories

When you record an oral history, remember that you're an interested relative, not a hard-nosed reporter. Recording an oral history should be an enjoyable experience for everyone involved, and you're more likely to get good results if that's the case. Below are a few tips:

1. Schedule the oral history session in advance. Don't just show up on a person's doorstep unexpectedly.

2. Bring a tape recorder, or pen and paper, or both. If you want to use a tape recorder, make sure you get prior permission from the person you're interviewing. You may want to take a few notes even if you use a tape recorder, perhaps to get the correct spellings of places and people's names or as a backup in case the record malfunctions. If you use a tape recorder, be sure to test the recorder as well as the tape to make sure that each is working.

3. Make sure you record the date and location of the interview, as well as the name of the interviewer and the interviewee.

4. Ask questions to start things off, but don't be afraid to let the person you're interviewing talk "off the subject." You may get some of the best stories this way. If they really start rambling, gently steer them back to your questions.

5. Don't push for answers. If you're asking questions that seem to make the person uncomfortable, ask if they want to continue or if they would rather talk about something else.

6. If you ask "when" something happened, the answer will often be "I don't know, " because the individual doesn't recall the exact date or year. Instead of asking "when," ask the question in relation to another event. For example, did an event take place before or after the individual got married, or before or after the individual's parents died? You can also begin the question with "About how old were you when..." Using these techniques, you're more likely to get answers.

7. If you have any old pictures or other items that you have questions about, bring them along. You may get answers to your questions, and you will probably hear some good stories, too.

8. Keep the session relatively short, no more than one or two hours. Recording an oral history should be fun, not hard work. You can schedule another session at a later date if you want to continue recording the oral history.

Suggested Topics and Questions for Oral Histories

Below are some sample topics and questions that you can use when you record oral histories. Don't limit yourself to our suggestions, however. Every family is unique, and you can probably think of some special things to talk about. Make sure you get down the name and birth date of the person you're interviewing, as well as where they fit in your family tree. Then, choose any of the topics below and begin asking questions.

Childhood

• What do you recall about your childhood?
• Where did you live and go to school?
• What do you remember best about your parents?
• What did you and your siblings do in your spare time?
• Were you an obedient child or a mischievous child?
• What styles of clothing did children wear then?

Family Traditions

• Did your family have any special traditions, such as things that they did on holidays or birthdays?
• What about family heirlooms? Is there anything that's been handed down from generation to generation?

Growing Up

• When did you leave home?
• Why did you leave and where did you go?
• How did your life change? Did you feel grown up? Were you a little scared?

Historical Events

• Which significant historical events have taken place during your lifetime?
• Were there wars, natural disasters, or political changes?
• How did these events affect you?

Hometown

• What was the name of the place where you grew up?
• Was it a big city or a small town?
• Were there any special activities or festivals at different times during the year?

Immigration

• How old were you when you immigrated to the United States?
• Were did you come from and where and when did you arrive?
• How did you travel? By boat, plane, or train? How long did the trip take?
• What feelings did you have about coming to the United States? What was one of the biggest differences between the United States and your previous home?

Work

• What did your parents do for a living when you were growing up? Did you ever help them out?
• Was your family financially comfortable?
• What was your first job? How old were you at the time? How did you get your job?
• What different jobs have you had during your life?

Physical Characteristics

• What physical characteristics do people in your family share?
• Do they all have the same hair color or eye color?
• Whom in the family do you resemble?

Previous Generations

• Did you know your grandparents or great-grandparents?
• What were their names?
• Where did they live?
• What stories can you tell about them and their lives?

Religion

• What part did religion play in your family?
• Were you very religious?
• Did you go to religious services on a regular basis?

Other Possible Topics
Education, Politics, Military Service, Recreation, Entertainers of the Era, Family Personalities, Family Pets, Traveling, Dating, Clothing, Family Recipes, Favorite Songs or Poems, Family Medical History, Marriage and Raising a Family, and anything else that may be of interest to you and your family.

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About the Author
This article was written by Genealogy.com staff.