Figuring out the answer to that question could land a genealogically minded Ross-shire resident a trip to remember — and an opportunity to fill in some gaps in the family tree.

The launch of Highlander, a genealogy challenge to encourage people all over the Highlands to trace their roots, ties in with the Year of Homecoming and the opening next month of the new Highland Archive and Registration Centre.

People wanting to take part in the competition can do so free of charge by collecting forms at any of the participating UHI Learning Centres. It's then just a case of completing the family history form and submitting it with a short narrative explaining which ancestor shines out and why.

Highlander is part of the Highland Family Tree (A' Chraobh) project, which offers support for communities and individuals to get involved in this October's Highland Homecoming Festival.

UHI Learning Centre Manager Margaret Boyd, pictured outside the new archive centre in Inverness with Alistair Macleod, a genealogist with the Highland Council Archive, said, "We want to encourage as many people as possible to get involved in this challenge. It's open to anybody living in the Highlands, is fun, free of charge and could reveal fascinating insights into the history of many families. And there are great prizes for the winners. First prize is a trip to Edinburgh to visit the Scotland's People Centre and the Scottish Parliament."

All entrants will be offered a special guided tour round the new Archive and Registration Centre with the family history team. The centre opens to the public on October 26 and will have a dedicated family history centre.

Professor James Hunter, director of UHI's Centre for History, said "There's a fascination with family — who we are, where we come from — that seems to grow stronger with each passing year. A combination of a hugely successful TV and radio series with widespread family-tree websites and software has made genealogy one of the most popular leisure phenomena of the decade.

"I am delighted that the UHI Learning Centre Unit has been invited to take the lead in this Highland-wide challenge."

To find out more about this exciting project contact the Highlander team on 01397 874402 or visit www.achraobh.com

editor@rsjournal.co.uk

Printer friendly version

Email this article to a friend

Bookmark this

---