In order for me to begin research into your family history, we need to do some homework. I also need your knowledge.
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You may have old letters, documents, emigration data, birth, marriage or death certificates with names of your ancestors, names of farms and towns, etc., which give me important hints to find out the origin of your ancestors. I know by experience that sometimes your sources are much more important than you might imagine.
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Please provide me with as much information regarding your family as you know. It is a fallacy to think a lot of information is required for starting a successful research project. Usually it is possible to work from just your ancestor's full name and place/date of birth. Bear in mind, though, that often records like marriage registers give only fathers' names of the bride and groom; in which case tracking down maternal lines can be challenging, although not entirely impossible. The use of the patronymic names sometimes confuses or complicates the issue.
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As a rule your old family documents are handwritten and normally of course in Norwegian or Danish. Unavoidable problems are reading mistakes (family names, birth places, places of residence) which easily happen and may lead you on the wrong path. I kindly request you to provide me with all your papers—at least the definitely important ones—in a good electronic (scanned) format or photocopied (for your interest).
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Before extensive research begins, I develop a research plan for you which among other things includes the total estimated costs. To prevent inaccurate estimates and other misunderstandings, you should think ahead of time about what course of research you most desire to endeavour.
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