Part One: Stratigakos

by: Georgia Stryker Keilman and Carol Kostakos Petranek

Trying to accurately identify one’s Greek family immediately after the Greek Revolution and during the establishment of the modern Greek state is extraordinarily challenging. Records are scarce, and those that have survived are riddled with inaccurate or conflicting dates and names. This is because the original records which survived were later organized and compiled–thus subjecting them to human error.

The Male Registers (Mitroon Arrenon) now found in Archive and Municipal offices are typed lists, not original handwritten documents. The 1844 Voter Lists remain in their original handwritten format, but the 1872 Lists are typed and arranged in alphabetical order. These compilations, done by people years after their origination, have resulted in typographical errors, inaccurate transcriptions of scrawled handwritten names, and duplication of records.

To complicate this further, individuals and families changed their names, used multiple names interchangeably (even in the same documents), or were recorded with their nicknames instead of their baptismal names. The universal celebration of namedays instead of birthdays led to the common practice of estimating ages, with most people completely unaware of their actual date of birth. In addition, movements of people to reestablish themselves in areas now freed from Ottoman occupation led to families being “lost” and not found in records.

Yet with all these challenges, we CAN find our families. This post is the first of three case studies in which Georgia Stryker Keilman and Carol Kostakos Petranek share their research challenges and detail the steps taken to arrive at solutions.

Case #1: Stratigakos/Stratigopoulos
(Georgia’s family)

Research Question: What was the given name of my great-grandfather’s father?

Facts:

• Georgios Stratigopoulos was my great-grandfather.
• Georgios Stratigopoulos was married twice, both times in Agios Ioannis, Sparta. Neither of the marriage records indicate his father’s name.
• Georgios Stratigopoulos is not listed in the 1872 or 1873 Election List for Agios Ioannis.
• Georgios Stratigakos is listed as passing away 19 April 1921 – Death Records, Agios Ioannis, Agias Triadas Church Books. Father’s name was not listed.

Family letters received in 1960s mentions that Georgios Stratigopoulos had a brother named Panagiotis. Note: Panagiotis doesn’t show up in any records for Agios Ioannis.

The next step should have been for me to look for Panagiotis Stratigopoulos in a nearby village. I always meant to do this, but since I wasn’t keeping a To Do List, I forgot. Instead, I jumped at the first shiny object and went down a rabbit hole thinking that my great-grandfather was related to a Stratigamvros listed in the Agios Ioannis Voters List in 1844. Since the name Stratigamvros means son-in-law of Strati, and documentation of original name disappears, I assumed this could be a good reason why my great-great grandfather’s given name was not appearing on any records. I spent my research time trying to prove this relationship.

After consulting with Gregory Kontos, he did what I had meant to do – look for Panagiotis Stratigopoulos in a nearby village. He found Panagiotis in the 1872 & 1873 Election Lists for Parori (village halfway between Agios Ioannis and Mystras).

The father’s name is recorded as Efstratios. That makes sense–Georgios’ oldest son was named Efstratios.

Lessons learned:

• Keep a research log.
• Keep a To Do list.
• Follow the research methodically, generation by generation. Don’t jump back making assumptions.
• Keep an open mind and research possibilities such as a family member living in a nearby village.

Finding Panagiotis was the key to answering my research question: the given name of my great-grandfather’s father was Efstratios.