Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Over 25 million Italians have emigrated between 1861 and 1960 with a migration boom between 1871 and 1915 when over 13,5 million emigrants left the country for European and overseas destinations.
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trinasignoriello
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Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by trinasignoriello »

Well, I had my appt today at the consulate and as I already knew, there are so many name spelling discrepancies for a 3 people, on at least 3 docs for each person (that don't match up).
On my GGM's MC it even states she was born in Italy which she was not!

Is it completely complicated to have these changes made? is it costly? Frustrating? Time consuming?

i cant put a value on what it would mean for me to have it, so that isnt even a factor in making the decision. The question here is the level of difficulty...

Thanks for your input and experience.
JJ313
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by JJ313 »

Frustrating and time consuming but only complicated and costly if a court order is required, but even that you can get through. Some jurisdictions will not make changes on documents where the individual is deceased without a court order. Did the consulate point out what they want changed?

If you can give us some more details we may be able to help lay out a plan.
vanessam
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by vanessam »

Oh poor you - it is something that we all go through, it's very soul destroying especially when you're dealing with a consulate officer with no sympathy like mine. All of my documents had some errors - some spelling, some even birth dates. While it is frustrating, it is more just time consuming and costly. It is not impossible to do. Sorry, I am not familiar with the US methods, but other people might be able to help you there. Just go through the right channels and have a little patience. Good luck!
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phil100a
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by phil100a »

It depends on the document. My GF had date discrepancies on this death certificate. I wasn't sure if I should change that but I didn't want to take a chance. It didn't cost me any money, just time - about 2-3 weeks to get it done. I had other discrepancies, like a misspelling of my father's first name. My Consular Officer said it didn't matter, because it was a common misspelling. Also, my father's name on most American docs was his Anglicized name. I just noted those discrepancies, and they let them pass.

Another problem I had was with my parents divorce docs. The State would not release the papers, because the law states that they are sealed for 50 years. I went around that by getting the City Clerk write a note stating that they were legally divorced.

If your Consulate is demanding, I recommend taking the docs on one at a time. Just keep at it. You will succeed!
trinasignoriello
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by trinasignoriello »

Here's the list:

NYC:
GGM MC states born in Italy (wasn't)
GGM BC last name spelled wrong by two extra letters

Pennsylvania: GGM DC contains anglicized name. Smetimes she is virginia other times vincenza.

NYC
GF BC is OK
GF MC is missing and the one from the church spells his name as Michael wihtout a middle initial, tho this certificate they wont accept anyway!
Pennsylvania GF DC lists him again as Michael but with the middle initial

i also need to get his second wife's BC and DC, as well as the divorce doc of my GF and GM

GM BC has a crazy spelling of her name, doesnt match her MC/DC

F-he decided to go from Francesco to Frank on his MC, middle initail/name left out
M-Sometimes her middle initial is included, sometimes not.

i also need to get the BC of my exH

just seems like a major pain. Now here is the best part.... i always wanted this because my heritage is very important to me. however, I will automatically receive dual because my husband is Italian and so will receive it after only a year in Italy. But its still not the same thing, if you know what I mean....
Drew927
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by Drew927 »

With regard to the documents from NYC. If they were issued by the NYC Dept. of Health you can have them fixed by the corrections dept if you provide supporting documentation. The office is located within the dept of health building. They are very helpful and have many people requesting the same thing for italian citizenship. If they were issued by the city archives then these cannot be changed.

I hope this helps,
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by jennabet »

.....just seems like a major pain. Now here is the best part.... i always wanted this because my heritage is very important to me. however, I will automatically receive dual because my husband is Italian and so will receive it after only a year in Italy. But its still not the same thing, if you know what I mean....trinasignoriello......

Yes, I definitely know what you mean. My fiancee and I are both Italian and we live in Italy. We both have the passport in our own right. I was already recognized when I met him and then I helped him become recognized as well. We would not have wanted to be forced to marry in order for him to become Italian. We don't see naturalization as being the same thing. Recognition is our birthright and it's also an honor.
trinasignoriello
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by trinasignoriello »

Thanks Drew.
How can I tell from whom the docs were issued? And when you say 'supporting documentation', what are you referring to?
JJ313
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by JJ313 »

The letter of exemplification will state whether it is from the archives or Dept of Health. Supporting documents are the documents that you are relying on to justify the changes that you are making. For example if you want to change the name on a marriage certificate then you would probably provide a birth certificate to support the correct spelling of the name.

The list of issues that you provided is that what the consulate is saying that you must correct? Or is this just a list of discrepancies? Some of the changes seem a bit odd even for NY. If you amend both your GGM and your GF DC to include an aka then that should take care of those issues. You can do the same thing for your mother and father.
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KarenChristino
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by KarenChristino »

On the NYC marriage certificate -- Have you gone down to the archives to look into your GF's record? Searching for this is a little involved and I don't know if they take the time when you order it without a certificate number. They told me they didn't have it and of course it was there. They are not all indexed properly, many from the 1920s are not indexed online. You need to search the alphabetized year directory and then go to the records by certificate number. You have the date, so it should not be too difficult if you or a family member can go in.
trinasignoriello
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by trinasignoriello »

The list from the consulate seems longer! They want names to match. I will look at the letters of exempl. to see which dept issued them.

Do i have to base the name change by what is on the BC or can it be based on the name used most often?

How does one include an aka?

I have looked on microfilm for the mc, but will try andt ry again. Still dont know if this is all worth it. Seems aggravating and frustrating. Thanks for your advice and understanding my confusion etc.
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KarenChristino
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Re: Name changes... Making them... Too much trouble?

Post by KarenChristino »

Generally we use the BC since it's the base and because it's often the most difficult to change. In NYC the Consulate did not ask me to correct the DC's but they are easier to do. My parents' marriage, too, was easy to correct but they were both alive at the time.

Trina, the challenge with the NYC marriage microfilm is this: They are organized both somewhat alphabetically and chronogically as well as by bride and groom. And of course the handwriting and clarity may not be great and there are often name and spelling inconsistencies. You may have a reel that goes A,B,C grooms for April to June, then switches to the bride, then forward to July through August grooms, etc. You just need to take your time and be thorough, be sure you know what you're looking at, checking both the bride and groom. That should give you the Certificate number. The certificates are by number in another set of microfilms.

I just went through this, trying to find my grandparents' marriage certificate as well as my aunts' and uncle's. I was pretty successful overall, despite the fact that NYC said "no record" at first and I had no specific dates. They say that a lot of Catholic marriages were not recorded with the City, but that was inconceivable to me as my GM always did things by the book.

The question of whether we actually need the marriage records has come up regularly on this forum, and I don't know if we've gotten a solid answer. What if they weren't married, for example? What if they were only married by the church? You're still entitled to citizenship. But the city marriage record does provide a lot of family information, so perhaps that's why they want it.

Others have reporting doing the a/k/a and I imagine you just provide the back-up that shows they used both similar names. I plan on going back to add the a/k/a to my GF's DC and hope they will do it for me in NYC.
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