Adrienne Horne

Genealogy Mania: a Study of Genealogists in Western Canada Adrienne Horne

Popular genealogy is the collection and study of genealogical information in non-kinbased societies, i.e. those in which kinship institutions do not primarily govern the determination of social status and the devolution of property and political authority. Over the past thirty years in North America, genealogy has grown considerably as a leisure pursuit, partly as a result of the worldwide trends toward digitization of records and access to personal computers. This book is an anthropological study of popular genealogy in the city of Calgary, Alberta. Framed in the serious leisure perspective, it uses a variety of descriptive and analytical methods to document (1) who participates (2) what they do when they are practicing genealogy, (3) how they relate socially to one another around the pursuit of genealogy, and finally (4) how they conceptualize and explain their genealogical activities. Genealogy Mania can have an impact on all aspects of a person's life, from one's self-identity to their social interaction and the value they place on family, tradition andhistory.