Week 15: How Do You Spell That?

     I can't tell you how many times my last name has been misspelled in my life. Both married and maiden! Most of the time people don't even ask "How Do You Spell That?" but just assume they know. I've made it a habit of spelling my maiden name every time someone asks for it to hopefully eliminate any confusion. Yeah, that still doesn't always work.
    As we do genealogy research, we will constantly come across surnames that were spelled in many different ways. Either because it was misheard, or the family was illiterate and couldn't spell to begin with. When I first started, I stuck with the belief if it wasn't spelled it was supposed to be, they weren't family. Yeah, that didn't get me far in my research. I've since learned that I have to be flexible with the spelling and prove the family connection by other means. So these are some of the most commonly misspelled surnames in my family.

Fuchs

    My maiden name is Fuchs. It is of German origin and is usually pronounced like "fyooks"; although I grew up pronouncing it a different way: "fyoosh". I have no idea why we did that or how it got started, but it must have at least come from my Great-grandfather, Michael Fuchs because my grandpa, George Fuchs and all his siblings all pronounce it that way. Anytime I had a new teacher at school, I had to correct how they pronounced it. So much fun! But that isn't even half the problem.

1940 US Fed Census
Fuchs Family
Ancestry.com

    Do you see how it is spelled? It is too closely related to another word that is considered a cuss word. Oh yeah, this was grand growing up with a whole bunch of adolescent kids. One time a classmate got a hold of one of my papers and changed the 'h' to a 'k' (which is not hard to do) and then turned it in. So when it was time for the papers to be handed out, another student was reading out the names and said that word. Oh boy... I had to explain to the teacher I did not do that. And even showed them that the pencil mark on the page was different than my writing. That's just one example.
    Let me tell you, I have friends from high school that STILL don't know how to spell my maiden name. It usually ends up with extra letters or sometimes they drop the 's' on the end. I always felt like I was cursed. Once I started researching German records, I was curious to see how the spelling had changed if any. And it really didn't. Once I got into the records, I saw the surname "Fuchs" everywhere! And spelled like we spell it! But that still doesn't help me today when I meet someone new and I tell them my maiden name. 

Rickards

    I thought when I would get married my troubles would be over. Boy was I fooled. I think I have more trouble with this surname than my maiden name. Everyone always immediately thinks it's supposed to be Richards. I usually tell people it's Richards except with a 'k'. I have to admit even I had trouble when I first met my husband.
    Unlike with Fuchs, Rickards has been misspelled for YEARS. I've lost track of how many variations I have come across in my research. These are just some examples: Rickard, Ricard, Records, Rickert, Ricketts, and of course, Richards. It is unclear how the original was spelled, but research has suggested the original was Rickard. The family came from England, but I haven't traced the family back there myself. 

1850 US Fed Census Records Family Ancestry.com	1920 US Fed Census Richards Family Ancestry.com

Ilg (ILG)

    Now this surname threw me for a loop when mom first told me about it. I was like, um, what did you say? Haha! The 'i' in the surname makes a short i sound, like igloo. This is my grandma's maiden name. I had never heard of this name before and for sure never met anyone with this surname. This family line has been my most researched.

1930 US Fed Census
Ilk Family
Ancestry.com

    The family came from Germany in the mid to late 1800s. I've traced the family pretty far back in Germany and like Fuchs, Ilg was always spelled the same. But pronouncing it I believe is a little different. I think the 'g' makes more of a 'k' sound which makes sense why I've seen the surname spelled with a 'k'. I've seen it spelled Ilck and even Ilk, which is why I couldn't find the family easily in the 1930 census. It's also been spelled Illg, Illig, Ilges, Llg, Elk, and more. when I go looking for them in the City Directories, I have to check under all these spellings. 

    While I've run into other surnames that have been misspelled before, these are the top ones I've dealt with. It's best to include variations of spellings you've come across for the surnames in your tree for anyone who reviews your research or for your own personal notes. 

So, what surnames have you come across in your research that has been constantly misspelled?