First Name Variants and Standardization

First names can appear with different spellings in historical Quebec records. This LAFRANCE standardization tool lets you search for a first name and find its associated standardized form to help with genealogical research.

Search for a First Name

Enter a known spelling. Results show the associated standardized first name and the variants listed for the selected sex.

Search help

Enter a full first name or use the wildcard characters below to broaden your search.

% Matches zero or more characters. For example, “mar%” searches for spellings that begin with “mar.”
_ Matches exactly one character. For example, “ann_” can search for spellings such as “anna” or “anne.”
[ ] Matches one character from the specified range or set. For example, “[A-M]arie” searches for spellings beginning with a letter from A to M, followed by “arie.”
[^ ] A caret at the start of the brackets excludes the listed characters. For example, “[^M]%” searches for spellings that do not begin with M.

Why Do First Names Have Different Spellings?

In historical documents, a first name could be transcribed in several ways. Spoken languages, local usage, pronunciation and the habits of the people recording an event all contributed to spelling variations.

LAFRANCE associates recorded spellings with a standardized form to make them easier to find in the tool. Standardization provides a starting point for exploring variants; it does not change the spelling written in an original document.

Try the spelling you know, review the associated forms, and reuse relevant variants in your research. A matching first name alone is not enough to identify a person: also check dates, places, the recorded sex, family relationships and other details in the record.