One of the most interesting discoveries through family history research is that there are very few people who fit a stereotype. This particularly applies when investigating Italian migration to Australia.
Pre-1945 arrivals, 1945-1955 arrivals, 1956-1986 arrivals, and post-1986 arrivals. My husband's family were all pre-1945. I am a post-1986 arrival myself.
After looking at time, in other words, dates, I look at space - geographical origins. Italy is even more regional than Britain, and for that matter, Australia. Someone from the Veneto is likely to find a person from a peasant background in Calabria completely incomprehensible in conversation!
I spent much of the first half of my life in various parts of England, Wales and Scotland. I know, from first-hand experience, the difficulties regional languages and dialects, and unfamiliar accents and phrases, can cause.
Mass multicultural migration has been a post-1945 phenomenon in Australia. I put it into three categories because of the influence of television in people's lives. In Italy, most people did not have access to television until the mid 1950s.
more prevalent in some eras than in others.
If you are just starting to research your Italian heritage, and even if you have very little understanding of the Italian language (like me), I recommend the online resources at the Italian Historical Society in Melbourne.
27 August 2014
24 August 2014
Why is an understanding of history of any significance to ordinary individuals in their everyday lives?
How does an understanding of history help people to make important decisions?
Who knows most about life as it was in Eynesbury and St Neots in Huntingdonshire in the 1840s and 1850s?
What was life like in Southwark in London in the second half of the 19th century?
What were the duties of an inspector of London post offices in the 1850s and 1860s?
Where can you trace the Second World War experiences of members of the 6th Battalion of the Green Howards?
Why did people migrated to Soho in London from elsewhere in Europe in the 19th century?
I think I have asked enough questions for one day, and I am looking forward very much to hearing from you if you have some answers to any of the above questions.