Teresa Scharf was adopted by an American couple from Madera Baby Center in Athens when she was 7 months old. The American couple who adopted her at the time were both in the U.S. Navy, serving in Kénitra Port Lyautey, Morocco. “My adopted father was in the military until I was 12 years old,” says Teresa. “I had the privilege of traveling very often, because that was during the Cold War. He got orders for a new duty station every 18 months, so we went to Midway Island in the South Pacific from there. We went to Japan and I attended first grade. From there, we moved to Turkey and other places. W ..read more

In March 2024, we published 71 million historical records in 17 historical record collections from the United States, Australia, Denmark, England, France, Northern Ireland, and Wales. The records include birth and baptism records, marriage and divorce records, death and burial records, census records, immigration and emigration records, passenger lists, and telephone directories. Some of the collections also include images. Search them to discover a family treasure! Here are more details about each of the collections. Collection Name Collection Description Number of Records Link to Search ..read more

They say that today’s news is tomorrow’s fish and chip paper. Collective memory is short and the news changes frequently; who knows what will happen tomorrow? Still, people have always wondered what the future will look like. Just as they do today, 100 years ago, newspaper editors offered a platform to various sociologists, scientists, or intellectuals forecasting what the world would look like in a century… that is, in our times. The Research team at MyHeritage dove into the historical newspaper archives on OldNews.com and went back in time to see what the “experts” of yesterday predicted tha ..read more

In March 2024, we published 707 million historical records in 17 historical record collections from the United States, Australia, Denmark, England, France, Northern Ireland, and Wales. The records include birth and baptism records, marriage and divorce records, death and burial records, census records, immigration and emigration records, passenger lists, and telephone directories. Some of the collections also include images. Search them to discover a family treasure! Here are more details about each of the collections. Collection Name Collection Description Number of Records Link to Search ..read more

Mandy Punton’s mother, Shirley, discovered as an adult that the parents who had raised her since her birth in 1952 were actually her grandparents — and her “sister” was actually her mother. Throughout the rest of her life, she expressed no interest in finding out who her father was. However, her daughter Mandy was always curious about the identity of her grandfather. Her curiosity grew after Shirley’s death in 2010, and then again when Mandy took a DNA test and discovered that her ethnicity is about 50% Scandinavian. Since, as far as she knew, her mother’s maternal side is Irish, Scottish, and ..read more

We are thrilled to announce the 5th Annual 24-Hour Genealogy Webinar Marathon, hosted by Legacy Family Tree Webinars and MyHeritage, happening on April 11–12, 2024. Registration is now open, and it’s completely free! Join us for this amazing opportunity to learn from the world’s top genealogists and educators as they cover a wide range of topics, from tracing your ancestors to unlocking birth records and using artificial intelligence in family history research. With sessions covering everything from cemetery photography to DNA research, there’s something for everyone in every time zone. Pop in ..read more

Genealogy expert Thomas MacEntee of GenealogyBargains.com discusses how practicing intellectual humility – the recognition that one’s own beliefs could be wrong – could open up the doors to genealogy research success. And in this corner… Intellectual humility is a mindset that is essential for critical thinking — and has more to do with genealogy than you might think. It is likely that every genealogist has encountered a “genealogy feud” at least once during research. What do I mean?  In one such scenario, I was researching the family of my uncle’s fourth wife. I received basic informatio ..read more

Our Spring DNA Sale is here! This is your moment to uncover your ethnic breakdown, connect with long-lost relatives, and explore your family’s past. With Mother’s Day around the corner, there’s no better gift than a MyHeritage DNA kit to unlock the stories that span generations. Buy a kit today! As the world bursts into spring, it’s the perfect time to dig into your family history and discover your roots. And if you’re looking for a unique and meaningful Mother’s Day gift, a MyHeritage DNA kit is the perfect present. Together you can explore your family’s lineage and the stories that have shap ..read more

When Pierre Painblanc, a Belgian user from southwestern France, found a bilingual French/Dutch message in his MyHeritage inbox, his curiosity was immediately piqued. This is not the usual genealogical mail between two users investigating their relationships. The sender, Ellen de Visser, a Dutch journalist, explained to him that she was looking for the descendants of a Belgian resistance fighter, arrested and deported by the Germans during World War II. Pierre Painblanc In the Dutch archives, Ellen had found an envelope with the name of a certain Alphonse De Jongh. The envelope also contained ..read more

This year’s RootsTech conference was full of exciting announcements and enlightening sessions from MyHeritage staff — including a unique session with our Founder and CEO Gilad Japhet. Watch the full session below: In his talk, Gilad shared an incredible story about discovering a whole new branch of his family through DNA extracted from an artifact, and provided details about our RootsTech announcements and recent and forthcoming developments at MyHeritage. Watch the video to hear the full story and all the exciting news he shared! The post WATCH: Gilad Japhet’s Session at RootsTech 2024 appea ..read more