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Guild of One-Name Studies

One-name studies, Genealogy

Is your surname here?

    • 2,336 members
    • 2,207 studies
    • 7,873 surnames

AGM Proxy Voting

Click here to register your votes for the motions at the 2025 AGM to be held on 31st May. Voting will commence on 4th May at 00:01 BST and close at 24:00 BST on 26th May

Home


Explore our online indexes, including marriages, probate records, inscriptions, and newspapers, many of which are unique to the Guild. We have a comprehensive Wiki and Library. You may find clues to help you overcome brick walls or find new avenues to investigate. Read more…


Discuss your research with friendly people from all over the world who share your interests. We have an active Members’ Facebook group, Guild forums, and an email list. You can ask questions, get helpful advice, and find offers such as record look-up services.Read more…


Improve your knowledge and skills by learning about a wide variety of topics from sources of information, choosing and using genealogy software, to analysing DNA results. Attend one of our highly-rated seminars or participate in an online course or webinar. Read more…


Promote your study through a Guild profile and share family stories in our Journal. We can help you set up a website on our server, saving you time and money. We can preserve your research for future generations either online or in our archives. Read more…

What’s A One-Name Study?

Family historians generally research their ancestors as far back as possible, collecting names and information on everyone related to them. A one-name study is rather different. It concentrates on those with a single surname, even if they are not related. Researchers often start by following a single line of their own family, but move on to collecting information on people with that surname, past and present, anywhere in the world. Read more …

Members’ Websites Program

We don’t require our members to undertake their one-name study in any particular way. Some people concentrate on family reconstruction, others on stories or collecting data. You can get a feel for the many different approaches our members have taken in carrying out their studies by looking at some of their websites. Through our Members’ Websites Project, we can help members create a website to publish and preserve their research. Read more…

SEMINAR BOOKINGS NOW OPEN

The next Guild Seminar is on 14 June 2025 in Bearley, Warwickshire, England. Come along to explore how our ancestors were educated and what the records can tell us. Follow the link below for full details, and how to book

Best days of your life

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Find Out More

Guild News

  • ‘Gateway to the World’ Conference, Liverpool 2025
  • Next Seminar: Working the Land, February 2024
  • Apprenticeships, Guilds and Friendly Societies Seminar
  • Test Knowledge Zone Post

Upcoming Events

  • 23 May 2025 – GOONS Friday Virtual Pub Crawl

Journal of One-Name Studies

See what’s in the latest edition of our quarterly journal.  Read more…

Feature Study: Hardcastle


The Hardcastle Family Study describes the history from the 15th to the 21st century and describes the emigration to the U.S.A, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other countries. This Study is my expression of gratitude to all Hardcastle descendants for contributing their information and stories in the past 40 years.

Other Guild Websites

You may find our other Guild websites of interest:

  • Members’ Websites Program
  • Surname Cloud
  • Guild Members’ records on FamilySearch
  • Guild Marriage Locator

Contact Us

Email: Guild General Contact
Postal address:
c/o Treasurer,
3 Windsor Gardens,
Herne Bay,
Kent, CT6 8FE. UK.
Call us free on:
UK: 0800 011 2182
US & Canada: 1-800-647-4100
Australia: 1800 305 184

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© 2013–2025 Guild of One-Name Studies CIO. Registered Charity in England and Wales, No. 1197944.