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  • Share what you know about your family's ancestry. See all answers
    • May 20, 2011 by rrjwj
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    • My Ancestors' Stories
    • What ethnicity I come from, What I would like to know about my ancestry, and The Differences between two very different Grandmas, with two very different nationalities and up bringing.


      My family's history is wide and varied. I am a mixture of Canadian, Irish, Scottish, Swedish, and Austrian/Bohemian. When I was young I just thought that I was Swedish due to a very active Swedish branch of my family. My Grandma, a staid Swede, would always say, "It's the Bohemian in you." When I did something like sitting cross-legged on the floor. I thought she was talking about my Dad's side of the family. But when I started researching my family tree, I realized she was talking about her husband, my Grandpa. His Mothers family was from Bohemia/Austria and I suspect Germany. My Grandma would also say, "Breeding tells, Rachel, breeding tells." She was my staid Swedish Grandma. A very serious minded, devout Lutheran. My Dad's Mom said things like, "If your palm itches, you are going to come into money." That side of the family had been in the United States since the 1600's. Some of her other pieces of advice were, "If you get the shivers for no reason, someone is walking over your grave." Or " If your ear itches someone is talking about you." Two very different Grandma's, from two very different family histories. It was what made life fun. I have probably gotten more from my Dad's Mom. I now use some of her colorful sayings. People always ask, "Where did you hear that?"
      I would love to know how the Burlands from Ireland and Canada are connected to the English Burlands. My Great Grandma Atkinson would always say, per my Father, that everyone thought the Burlands were English. But they weren't. They were French. And they were pirates. I would love to know if this were true.

       
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