Reading amazing homes Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? On your answer sheet, write True
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Ancestry in the UK Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? On your answer sheet write True If the statement agrees with the information False If the statement contradicts the information Not given If there is no information on this Up until relatively recently, English school children were often obliged to learn the names of the kings and queens that ruled the country from the 8th century to the 18th, and understand how they were related. This was no easy task. Sometimes a king would pass his kingdom to his son, but very often it would be a much more distant relative that took over. To become king, you would have to show you had royal blood in the family tree, and to do this, you would need to know exactly who all your ancestors were. It was also necessary for landowners to knowtheirfamily background – so they could prove that a large castle or manor house really belonged to them, and not to another person further along a branch of the family tree who wanted it for themselves An interest in knowing who your ancestors were and what they did is, of course, something which is common in all cultures. Not all cultures, however, have a phrase which translates as family tree for when they want to describe earlier generations of the same family. We use this particular phrase because it was traditional in the past in some countries to put the oldest generations at the top of a drawing and the youngest generation at the bottom – sometimes just the child of a recently married couple. This meant the image would be wider at the top and narrower at the bottom – just like a tree. While some people are still interested in family trees as a way of making sure they can receive money or valuable items from a great-uncle or great-great grandparent, others have different motivations. Some people choose to research their family tree because they are simply curious about their origins. Or perhaps they have heard an unusual story about an ancestor and wish to discover the truth. They may even have a more serious and useful purpose, for example wanting to find out about a medical condition which runs in the family. Part of what makes family-tree research so fascinating is the sense of uncovering a mystery as you find more clues – just like a detective would. This kind of process was shown in the hugely popular programme ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’, which featured well-known TV personalities exploring their family origins. The show’s researchers often found surprising information. One person, interviewer Jeremy Paxman, was disinterested at first. He believed it was more important to be ‘forward-looking’ – and think about the future rather than the past. Then he learnt that his great-grandmother had managed to raise nine children by herself after her husband died, even though she was extremely poor. He soon wanted to know more. Certainly this kind of programme has encouraged people to look for their own ancestors. Before the age of the internet, if you wanted to find out about your family history, you would have needed to travel to different locations. People used to visit churches to look at their records, for example of the names of people who were born and died in the area. Another way to investigate family history would be to look through old newspapers that were stored in the basements of libraries, or to search through birth and marriage certificates at the local town-council building. Not all of these visits, of course, would be successful. You needed to be very patient and have a lot of spare time to find out about your past. Researching your family tree has now become an ever more popular activity, partly for the reason that it has become much easier, faster and more convenient. Councils have uploaded many public records to their websites, including details of marriages, names of taxpayers and property owners, and the wills of people who have died. Many museums and libraries have also become involved, and offer guidance about the best tools and apps to use when searching for ancestors. One online company which helps people trace their ancestors was recently bought for over £2.4 billion – showing just how popular this method of research has become. Despite the advances of modern technology, it can still be a challenge to find your distant ancestors. Before the 11th century, a person would only sometimes share their parents’ surname. This was because a surname usually showed the town or region where you came from, e.g. John of Kent, or your occupation, e.g. John (the) Baker. So, if a child was born in a different place to a parent or had a different job, they might have had different surnames. This system also meant that thousands of people had exactly the same surnames even when they were not related. For wealthy people, it would also have been possible to have two different surnames if they owned land or property in two different locations. Of course, many old records have also been lost or destroyed, too. Many people who are keen on producing a family tree are interested in looking forwards rather than back. They recognise their role as an ancestor of people who haven’t even been born yet, and who may live in many different parts of the world. They want to create records for them – showing the different branches of the family today. Rather than writing out the family tree in a book in the traditional way, they record stories, images and voices using audio and video recordings for their descendants to see one day. We say ‘family tree’ to refer to our family background Technology has helped people research their ancestors Businesses benefit from the growing interest in family trees Knowing your family tree could lead to power and property People can learn their medical condition through learning their ancestors Researching family tree is now much more easier than in the past. People couldn’t have two surnames. A will is a last desire of a person written on paper. The people with the same surnames are all related Nowadays people use audio and video messages to make their descendants aware of them. Yüklə 35,83 Kb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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