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| LIFE IN SOLERA | FEBRUARY 2023 | 33 Origins and Changes to Surnames The further back in your tree you go, the more apt you are to find variations in the spelling of your ancestor's surname. These changes could be a function of several factors, such as, a 'y' in a name becomes an 'I' like in Smyth to Smith. This change is also common in everyday writing of several hundred years ago. Then you have changes in where a surname first started. Several hundred years ago person's last name many times reflected what town or city the person came from. A 'de' or 'di' meaning 'of ' was placed before the town or city name where the person came from and that became a person's last name. Eventually, the 'de' was dropped or incorporated into the city name: such as, 'Deangelo' for a last name. This same context was used in the Dutch and Germanic family surnames only they used 'van' or 'von' to preface the city or area of their origin. Another way our names were changed was because many people long ago were illiterate and did not know how to spell, or the person writing the name 'heard' it sound in a certain way familiar to them and wrote it down as what they heard. For example, 'Moore,' 'Moor,' or 'Mure' are all parts of the same family. My great-grandfather was born a 'Cramsie,' but when he went to Philadelphia in 1849 he was recorded as 'Crampsie.' In 1852, he went to the goldfields of California and on the 1870 U.S. Census he was recorded as 'Cramsey.' When he became the Justice of the Peace for the town, he went back to the correct spelling 'Cramsie.' So, you can see that just because someone you find for your tree has their last name spelled differently does not mean that they are not related to you or in your family. You must do more research on the name and those ancestors in question to be sure that they are of your family. ~ Bill Cramsie ANCESTRY GROUP The History Group will meet Monday, Feb. 6, 4:30 to 5:30 pm at which Marty Mangan will present Part 2 of his interesting topic: The History of Slavery and the Civilizations in which it endured. Contact Richard Crowe at (951) 769-1580. HISTORY GROUP This month I've decided to list the first of many musical artist birthday lists. Here are a few recording artists born in February: Natalie Cole, born Feb. 6, 1950 Don Everly, born Feb. 1, 1937 Rick James, born Feb. 1, 1948 Lisa Marie Presley, born Feb. 1, 1968 Stan Getz, born Feb. 2, 1927; known for Girl From Ipanema Axel Rose, born Feb. 6, 1957; known for Welcome To The Jungle Roberta Flack, born Feb. 10, 1937; known for Killing Me Softly Melanie, born Feb. 3, 1947; known for Brand New Key Alice Cooper, born Feb. 4, 1948; known for School's Out Tennessee Ernie Ford, born Feb. 13, 1928; known for Sixteen Tons We meet on Sat., Feb. 18 at 5:30 pm in the Oakmont Room for a potluck, for those who contribute, followed by karaoke. If you have never been to our karaoke shows, we welcome you. You don't have to be a singer to attend our events. Just come to watch, sing and make new friends. For those of you who do sing, we will keep a warm disinfected microphone ready for you. If you have any questions about our karaoke shows and schedules, call Barb Miller at (951) 845-7265. HIGH NOTES FROM KARAOKE