1ST INTERNATIONAL GREEK ANCESTRY CONFERENCE
January 29-31, 2021
Καλωσήρθες! Welcome! This is the official website of the International Greek Ancestry Conference, organized by Greek Ancestry and the Hellenic Genealogy Geek, from Jan. 29th through Jan. 31st, 2021. The conference was virtual, free and live-streamed on Greek Ancestry’s Youtube channel. Below you can watch all three days of the conference, and find details about our panels & guests!
Day 1 | Friday, January 29, 2021
Day 1 – INTRODUCTION
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Opening Remarks (7.45-8pm)
Day 1 – SESSION I: GETTING STARTED
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Carol Kostakos Petranek & Georgia Stryker Keilman, Records and Repositories in Greece (8-8.45pm)
This presentation focuses on the two key elements of getting started with your Greek ancestry research: How to find your ancestor’s village of origin and the correct spelling of their surname? Tools to help you use that information to find your ancestors in Greek records.
Sam Williams, Why Orthodox Christians Should Do Their Genealogy (8.45-9pm)
The majority of Greeks have ancestors who were Orthodox Christians. This presentation describes the relationship between family history and the Church: the God of our fathers; attitude of gratitude; relationships matter; memory eternal.
Day 1 – SESSION II: UNDER THE VILLAGE TREE
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Carol Kostakos Petranek, Chris Zervas, Dimitris Katsampis, Stelios Chagias and Tom Frangoulis (panel discussion), Reconstructing a Village Using Family Trees—You Can Do It, Too! (9.10-10pm)
Countless Greek villages have no written history books, but there are discoverable records for their families. Learn how ordinary people are doing extraordinary things as they build their family trees and, consequently, reconstruct their ancestral villages. Each of the panelists have created family trees that encompass their ancestral village and beyond! They will discuss why they did it, how they did it and what they have learned along the way.
Day 2 | Saturday, January 30, 2021
Day 2 – SESSION III: FREEDOM OR DEATH (Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος) – THE 1821 REVOLUTION
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Professor Emeritus Roderick Beaton discusses: The 1821 Revolution as Experienced by Your Ancestors (12.15-1pm)
Gregory Kontos of Greek Ancestry will interview Professor Beaton and discuss his recent book Greece: A Biography of a Nation with special focus on the 1821 Revolution and its impact on our ancestors’ lives.
Day 2 – SESSION IV: 19TH-CENTURY VILLAGE LIFE
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Ioannis Michalakakos, Family Life, Customs and Economy (1.15-2pm)
Ioannis Michalakakos will talk about everyday life in 19th-century Greece: the traditional Greek family, the role of women, traditional occupations and economy, religion, customs, and domestic migration.
Day 2 – SESSION V: LEAVING THE HOMELAND
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Prof. Alexander Kitroeff, Prof. Gonda van Steen and PhD (c) Gregory Kontos (panel discussion), Early Migration, Settlement in a New Land, Adoptions (2.15-3pm)
Why did they leave? What challenges did they face in new countries? What about the children who were adopted? The panelists will review the factors leading to Greek emigration from the mid-1800s to mid-1900s and discuss the challenges facing those who settled in a new land. The discussion will include the plight of adopted children and their quest to reunite with biological families.
From a young age, Gregory showed an interest in family history and genealogy. In 2014, he was the head researcher of the Greek episode of the PBS show “Finding Yours Roots”. From 2017 to 2019, Gregory worked as the Greek content projects manager for MyHeritage, and in 2020 he founded his own genealogy business, Greek Ancestry, aspiring to make Greek records available and searchable online, and create a culture and educational background around Greek family hstory resarch.
Day 3 | Sunday, January 31, 2021
Day 3 – SESSION VI: GREEKS ON AND ACROSS THE BORDER
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Dr. Ioannis Papachristou, Insular Genealogy: The Marmara Islands Case (2-2.20pm)
The presentation focuses on the genealogical traces of the Rums (Orthodox Greeks) of Marmara Islands (Marmara, Koutali, Aloni, Afisia) located in between the straits of Hellespont and Bosporus. Dr. Papachristou will address the issue of Rum insularity and identity based on the history of the islands.
George Topalidis, The Ottoman Greeks of the United States Project (OGUS) (2.20-2.40pm)
The presentation focuses on an overview of the project which includes oral histories, immigration maps, and over 50,000 images that include photographs, documents and objects brought by immigrants from the Ottoman Empire to the United States between 1900-1930.
Anastasia (Topsy) Douris, Insights into Ikarian genealogy (2:40-3pm)
This presentation includes information about the Ikarian family tree project and corresponding DNA testing initiatives. Ms. Douris has authored the book, Ikarian Tales, and she will discuss stories and folklore passed down from previous generations.
Gregory Kontos, Research on Greece’s Borderlands (3-3.30pm)
This presentation focuses on research methodologies and the availability of records for Greek refugees from Asia Minor, Greeks in Epirus, Macedonia, Chios and Samos.
From a young age, Gregory showed an interest in family history and genealogy. In 2014, he was the head researcher of the Greek episode of the PBS show “Finding Yours Roots”. From 2017 to 2019, Gregory worked as the Greek content projects manager for MyHeritage, and in 2020 he founded his own genealogy business, Greek Ancestry, aspiring to make Greek records available and searchable online, and create a culture and educational background around Greek family hstory resarch.
Day 3 – SESSION VII: NEW RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Gregory Kontos, Analyzing “Big Data” in Greek Genealogy (3.45-4pm)
This presentation focuses on what records can reveal, not just about our family, but about a region or an entire country. With new records coming forth regularly, new information can be gleaned about communities and their people, such as occupations, ages, naming conventions and more.
From a young age, Gregory showed an interest in family history and genealogy. In 2014, he was the head researcher of the Greek episode of the PBS show “Finding Yours Roots”. From 2017 to 2019, Gregory worked as the Greek content projects manager for MyHeritage, and in 2020 he founded his own genealogy business, Greek Ancestry, aspiring to make Greek records available and searchable online, and create a culture and educational background around Greek family hstory resarch.
Sam Williams, Applying DNA to Greek Genealogy (4-4.45pm)
Have you taken a DNA test only to be shocked by your ethnicity results? Discover common ethnicity estimates for Greeks from different regions, why they’re different, and why your results are perfectly normal!
Alexandra Kiritsy, Introducing the new Greek Genealogy Guide (4.45-5pm)
Day 3 – SESSION VIII: GREEK GENEALOGY – WHAT’S NEXT?
(All times listed in Eastern Standard Time)
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Carol Kostakos Petranek, Georgia Stryker Keilman, Gregory Kontos and Paul Pavlakos (panel discussion), The Future of Greek Genealogy (5-5.30pm)
From a young age, Gregory showed an interest in family history and genealogy. In 2014, he was the head researcher of the Greek episode of the PBS show “Finding Yours Roots”. From 2017 to 2019, Gregory worked as the Greek content projects manager for MyHeritage, and in 2020 he founded his own genealogy business, Greek Ancestry, aspiring to make Greek records available and searchable online, and create a culture and educational background around Greek family hstory resarch.
Handouts