Principles of transcription

1. Maintain the original writing - transcribe as faithfully as possible without correcting mistakes made by the writer.
    
2. The transcription should be written in columns i.e. in each line of the transcription, enter the entire text from the corresponding column (the line number of the transcription field corresponds to the column number on the scan of the document).
    
3. Punctuation - all punctuation (e.g. commas, full stops, hyphens, etc.) appearing in the original should be omitted.
    
4. Use of capital letters - the programme does not distinguish between lowercase and uppercase letters and treats both as correct.
    
5. Transcribing the letter ß (scharfes S) - enter this in the transcription as ss (double s).
    
6. Abbreviations - abbreviations used by the writer should be expanded, giving the full word. Do not use square brackets to mark additional letters that complete the abbreviation.

 

You can read the full transcription rules here.

Helpful tips

1. Please note that two different officials recorded the entry. The column "Pathen" ("Godparents") was completed by a different writer to the rest of the entry.
    
2. Please note that some of the text is written in Latin script.
    
3. The letter e can be easily confused with n, and the letter v can be confused with w. In case of difficulty, see the Model letters.
    
4. The document contains abbreviations, whose correct transcription will be made easier with knowledge of the German language (particularly knowledge of the declension of adjectives). Remember that you can find a list of abbreviations used by the writer under the Abbreviations button.

 

You can find more tips to help you transcribe old texts here.

Exercise 31

Model letters

Exercise 31

Abbreviations