The Commandments of Genealogy

[coombs]

Thou shalt have a child at 50, and the previous one at 41, and make my researchers in decades to come to wonder if it was my last child or my illegitimate grandchild, and make them conclude it was an illegitimate grandchild when in fact I had a final burst of fertility at 49/50.

[PrawnCocktail]

Thou shalt give a different father's name at every opportunity - if thou art feeling generous, thou mayst use your grandfather's name (sometimes). And thy parents shallt not have thee baptised, thereby removing nearly all chances of discovering them!

[coombs]

Thou shalt have an illegitimate child then marry a man within a year and leave people in generations to come guessing as to whether he is the father or not.

[ladybird]

Thee and thy sister will each give one of thy children a surname as a middle name that bears no resemblance to other surnames found

[ladybird]

Thou wilt leave a box of family papers in the attic when thou movest....and not tell the family until 50 years later

[a chesters]

Thou shalt have the same fore and surname as a very popular sports person, but have two middle names  which only the marriage partner knows. That way every attempt to locate you in the news ALWAYS turns up the sports person, and not you.

[Countryquine]

To maintain anonymity for all time, thou shalt not move from the small village of thine ancestors, nor pursue any other career, and thou shouldst name thine offspring for thy greatgrandparents, so that cousins, second cousins, third cousins and many other cousins removed carry the same name.

[Rishile]

Thou shalt live in a very small village and be named John Smith but there shalt be at least two other John Smith's in this small village and their children and wives shalt share the same names as your own children and wife.  Wherever possible the other two John Smith's must have been born in the same year as yourself and the children and wife must also share the same birth years.

Thou shalt disappear at the time of the 1861 census along with all other male members of your family (even though the other male members of the family are married and living elsewhere) but all re-appear for the 1871 census.

Thou shalt take the surname of your step-father for ONE CENSUS ONLY but revert to your original surname in all other documents.  This must be the first census after moving away from your family home.

Thou shalt report in the 1841 census that you were born in 'Kent' but then disappear with no trace before the 1851 census.

Rishile

[andrewalston]

Thou shalt invent not just one surname, but at least two, and use them at random, ensuring thy children are confused and marry with a name they were not baptised with.

(Yes, I've researched such. It's a great feeling when you crack it.)