{"id":34135,"date":"2018-07-24T10:34:20","date_gmt":"2018-07-24T14:34:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=34135"},"modified":"2023-08-01T15:41:59","modified_gmt":"2023-08-01T19:41:59","slug":"genealogy-101-what-is-a-wiki","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/genealogy-101-what-is-a-wiki.html","title":{"rendered":"Genealogy 101: What Is a Wiki?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/em><\/strong>: In this article \u2013 part of an ongoing \u201cIntroduction to Genealogy\u201d series \u2013 Gena Philibert-Ortega explains what wikis are and how they can help with your family history research. Gena is a genealogist and author of the book \u201cFrom the Family Kitchen.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Have you used a wiki for your genealogy? Wikis can be good starting points to learn more about history, a location, events, or genealogical records. Not sure what a wiki is or how it can help you with your genealogy? Read on to learn how wikis can help you with your family history.<\/p>\n

What Is a Wiki?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Hawaiian word \u201cwiki\u201d means fast or quick. A wiki is a type of website, but it\u2019s not your ordinary website that has one specific author and is updated (or not) at their discretion. What makes a wiki unique is that it is a collaborative project where anyone can update or add information from their internet browser. No special software is required.<\/p>\n

The benefit of this collaborative approach is that those with expertise in a subject can provide information that benefits the community. The downside is that anyone can add information, which means that some who contribute may not be as knowledgeable \u2013 or they may decide to purposely add information that is erroneous. When this happens the reader of the wiki may believe something as \u201cfact\u201d that is blatantly false.<\/p>\n

One of the wikis that\u2019s well-known and has had a less than perfect reputation is Wikipedia, a wiki encyclopedia with information on every topic you can imagine. While there can be misinformation on Wikipedia, there is an effort by various groups including scientists and academics to upload expert information.<\/p>\n

In general, you should take the information you find on Wikipedia as a clue, and continue looking for information in books, periodicals or other sources. Also, check out the footnotes for the Wikipedia article that you are reading and see if those sources appear credible. This can help you determine the accuracy of that information. Hyperlinks in those footnoted sources will take you to other articles on the same topic.<\/p>\n

As genealogists we should always carefully evaluate and verify any source we use to ensure that we are providing truthful, accurate information.<\/p>\n

Wikis and What You Can Find<\/strong><\/p>\n

So how can a wiki help you with your family history? Let\u2019s take a look at two specific wikis: Wikipedia, and the FamilySearch Family History Research Wiki.<\/p>\n

Wikipedia<\/strong><\/p>\n

You might be thinking: \u201cHow is Wikipedia going to help me with my family history?\u201d To give you some ideas, the following are suggestions for Wikipedia pages that might be helpful:<\/p>\n