Category: – Dr. John Elcik, IV

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My Deer

On Feb 5, 2021, at 3:12 PM

Beth & Nancy,

There are no prizes for getting the answers right.  The reward is in participation.
I could, for example, ask you to name the deer in these three photos.  But you could lie, and I would never know. Therefore, my question to you is, can you name their companions?  I use the term loosely as the relationship between deer and individuals is not all that friendly.
John, IV
I could tell you the answers, but I won’t.  It is enough to say that both Beth and Nancy know. – John P. Elcik, IV
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Goldie

On Fri, Feb 5, 2021, at 6:18 PM
Goldie,
Thank you for catching this.

Is It Easy to Change the Spelling of Your Name?

You wanted to know if I had considered using the old-world spelling of our surname, Ilcsik; I now believe that it would be. Just weeks ago, I would have said Elsik or Ilcik.
It is not as easy as you might think. First, in the “old” days, it was easy to change your name. In fact, no paperwork was required. You always could (and still can) be known by anything you please, as long as there is no intention to deceive.  Today, not only is their paperwork, but many people have documents issued with our surnames needed for identification. To date, I am the only John P. Elcik with an earned doctorate.  I suspect that JP may change that and earn one as well. In the teaching profession, this would be a good career move for him.

J.P. Declares New Evidence Moot

Adding a sixth-generation to my family’s tree has resulted in an interesting conversation with my recently married son: JP.
Only recently have I learned details about my Great-Grandfather’s parents. It seems that my Great-Grandfather, who was known to have used Sr. in his name, i.e., John P. Elcik, Sr. may not have known the whole story of his name.  Records show that his father (married to Elizabeth Baron) was also John P. Elcik.  If true, he should have been named Jr.; I should be John P. Elcik, V; and my son should be John P. Elcik, VI. At least we did this by generation. I still can’t believe that George Forman named all five of his sons George Edward Foreman.
I shared with J.P. he would need to change his name to reflect the new reality; he wasn’t thrilled. In fact, he wouldn’t even play that game with me. He was NO fun.  And I was surprised, as he just got married and Ana, his wife, will be taking his surname as hers. Thus, he knows that changing a name can be done even if it comes with paperwork.
I can’t fight the good fight. J.P. says it is a moot point. So, it must be.

Why Did Our Ancestors Change Their Names?

Here is the article on names which is a fascinating topic for genealogists. And yes, the practice of reusing names when individuals die young is also prevalent in my family.
Illiteracy – The further back we take our research, the more likely we will encounter ancestors who couldn’t read and write. Many didn’t even know how their own names were spelled, only how to pronounce them. When they gave their names to clerks, census enumerators, clergymen, or other officials, that person wrote the name the way that it sounded to him.
Regards, from your cousin,
Janos Ilcsik, V (a.k.a. John Elcik, IV)
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Games

February 7, 2021, 1:00 AM

Beth & Nancy,

In Jeopardy, one gets to choose their category provided they ask it in a question. Would you like more hunting questions?

Since I asked the question, I choose hunting. There are two identified photos in this category.  The winner (first to submit an answer that we all agree to use) gets to pick the next category and receive a surprise family photo. They may choose to share or hoard their prize until the eBook gets published. November 3rd, all mysteries will be resolved. Well, not all, but a lot. Really! Lol.

Get ready.  

The pictures are attached. May the games begin.

John, IV

P.S. Jeff is ineligible to compete. He is being copied, so he knows what I’m doing with the cache of photos and documents he gave me.

P.P.S. Lol. The game master gets penalized if an answer is not possible because the picture crept out of a mouse hole and didn’t belong to us.  In this case, two prizes will be awarded. 

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Re: You Are a Writer

Sun 2/7/2021 12:37 PM
Goldie,
I do enjoy playing with words and ideas. I also try to entertain when possible.  And I suppose my training as an educator shows up too.
Your day is getting off to a pleasant start. Very nice.  I stayed up far too late scanning photos and slides. A few (actually, only one) family members have shared stuff for me to digitalize.  In the last several days, I have scanned over 1,500 items. Now the hard part begins. I need to identify each item and add captions. 
On my Ancestry.com profile and elsewhere, I share with everyone my favorite quote:

Tell me, and I forget, teach me, and I may remember, involve me, and I learn. ― Benjamin Franklin.

Thus, my genealogy goal is to involve others.  There is a popular genealogy saying, “that a family tree without sources is a myth.” I’m working hard to involve family in writing life stories and sharing photos. Both are just as critical to today’s genealogy.  It is a difficult journey.  Beth, my co-author for the eBook, has been outstanding in getting others involved. I admire that ability.

Pam and I will have dinner tonight with our son J.P. and Ana, his wife.  They are both teachers and for two weeks were in isolation at home after having tested positive for COVID-19.  So, while I have a late start, my day promises to be a good one.

John, IV

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Re: You Are a Writer

Sun 2/7/2021 10:27 PM
Beth,

The U.S. statesman Benjamin Franklin and the Chinese philosopher Confucius have both received credit for these words.

The history behind whether Ben even said this or not is a great read.

It is my favorite quote, especially with the history.

Yes, it has been fun corresponding with her.  Did I copy you on the message where I changed her name to “Goldie?”  She has earned the nickname.

I have not a clue how to pronounce Zlatica. Lol.

John, IV

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Final Answer?

Tue 2/9/2021 8:41 PM
Beth,
A response on the Ancestry Messenger Boards.
I feel better already…  
John
Re: Are Pal Ilysik (Pavol Ilcik/Ilycsik) and Janos Ilscik (Jan Ilcik/Ilcsik) related? Or, Why is there no “Y” in Ilcisk? by JPmiaou

In Hungarian orthography, ‘ly’ is a digraph (two letters treated as one) denoting a sound that has been lost from the standard dialect but still existed in some dialects up to the early 20th century — i.e., just long enough to screw up modern spelling rules. The sound is basically a palatalized L; people who don’t have this sound in their “arsenal” generally hear it as a consonantal /y/ as in “yellow,” but in some contexts, it can sound like a plain /L/ as in “long.” The č/cs (/ch/ like in “church”) sound in Ilčik/Ilycsik would naturally have caused palatalization of the preceding /L/; the Slovak spelling doesn’t mark this, but the Hungarian one does. ~~~~~ The other thing to consider or keep in mind is that surname spelling was variable right up into the twentieth century. In a society where illiteracy was normal, it was only the sound that mattered. There are countless examples of families who didn’t agree on a single spelling, with brothers or cousins using and passing down different versions. This is true even for people who stayed where they were born; for immigrants dropped into yet another language/spelling context, relatives spelling their names the same is the exception.