GRO entries

[Durham Lady]

I'm researching my daughter in law's paternal family and have come across 2 entries for the year and district, Sheffield, with correct surname and mmn
1 has Volume 2D page 137 and the other has Volume 2D page 137A
What is the significance of the A could these be twins or just a co-incidence of having the correct parent's surnames. Thought I'd ask opinions before I spend money on ordering certificates. Might have sent for pdf's at £2.50 but will wait as they are not available for the year in question.

[Merry]

I probably shouldn't be answering as I don't have a definitive answer, but I did a search with the details you gave and, by chance, turned up two examples of the issue you are referring to, one of which is probably 'your' pair of entries.

I don't think these are twin entries as with twins the two certificates would either have the same page number, or one number different if the second twin's entry was recorded on the following page to the first twin's entry. Normally no 'a' would be involved!

In both the instances I'm looking at, the names without the additional 'a' are quite unusual and in both cases there are no marriage or death entries in that name anywhere in England/Wales, but there are further entries for the names with the additional 'a'. Of course this could be a fluke, but I'm thinking it's more likely in both cases the child's name was changed soon after the original registration. I presume this happened in the same Q as the original registration as neither of the 'a' entries appear at the bottom of the index page as an amendment.

Let's see if anyone else can come up with a more definitive answer though!

[kiterunner]

There is someone in my tree whose name was changed after their birth was registered (in 1924), and they are indexed twice on FreeBMD, once with the original name and once with the changed name, with the page number for the second entry having an additional "a". On the GRO site only the original name is indexed but it says "Occasional Copy: A" after the page number.

[Merry]

"Occasional Copy: A" is what I would have liked to have seen for the entries I looked at, but they were all out of the date range for the GRO site.

[Durham Lady]

Thanks Merry and Kite, I didn't add given names as 1 I know is alive. Does occasional Copy mean the name has been changed? It might be worth investing in certificates. I don't want D in L to spend money she doesn't have too. Her family are very cagey at giving anything out and her mother refuses to have anything to do with genealogy so won't tell her anything.

Would it say on the occasional copy what the changes were?

[kiterunner]

"Occasional copy A" doesn't always mean that the name was changed, but that something was. There is some information about it on here:
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=862475.9

[Merry]

If I was ordering a copy of a cert that either showed the 'a' after the page number and/or "Occasional Copy: A" on the GRO site, I would always order using those details over any other index version.

In theory you could order the cert from any of the available references and you should always receive the document showing the changes (as the original registration details without the change(s) should have been suppressed), but I always imaging 'in theory' might not work in every instance!!

[Durham Lady]

Thanks again, I'll suggest D in L gets one or both certificates.

[Olde Crone]

In my head (if nowhere else!) "a" stands for alteration. Sometimes it's a name change, sometimes it's a middle name added etc - I was told by an experienced researcher that sometimes a baptismal name was added after registration because many religions believe(d) a baptismal name was more important than a secular name. How true that is in modern times I don't know.

OC

[Merry]

Thanks again, I'll suggest D in L gets one or both certificates.

There should only be one certificate - just two index entries leading to it.

If your daughter-in-law orders the one with the 'a' and there's an amendment to the first name on the certificate, there will be no point in getting the other one, as it should be exactly the same.

[Durham Lady]

The difference is the first names are different, don't even start with the same letter so could they just cancel one name and change it to another? Like you Merry I couldn't find a death or marriage for 1 of them. I'll have a word with D in L and pass on your suggestion re certificates.

[Merry]

Is the 'a' index entry the name someone is aware of as a relation? If they get this cert then it will become clear what the amendment was. If it's something other than the first name being completely changed that's when you need to think again about the other index entry!

Reminds me of when my grandfather went to register one of my aunts. She was born in May so that's what he registered her as, because he forgotten the name his wife had told him as had been to the pub on the way to the RO! They never changed her name though!!

[Durham Lady]

I have now seen a copy of D in L's father's birth certificate. As he's still alive I can't give names. The certificate has the original first name given at Registration and in the name column for Baptismal Name if added after Registration, has the name he has always been known as.
What D in L has now asked me is, how does his passport only have the added name and not the first name give as well? Would he not have to submit a copy to obtain his passport? Does adding the second given name change his original name?

[kiterunner]

There is some info on here about changing a baby's given name which suggests that the baptismal name replaces the original name even though both are shown on the long form birth certificate:
https://www.tameside.gov.uk/Registrars/Changing-a-Child-s-Name-After-Registration

[kiterunner]

I have just received a PDF copy of the birth certificate of my great-grandmother's 1st cousin once removed, another "occasional copy A". Her name wasn't changed, but when her mother registered her birth in 1876 she made up a father's name and occupation, and a maiden name for herself, and it was corrected in 1927 on production of a Statutory Declaration made by the mother, just a few months before her (the mother's) death.

[Durham Lady]

There is some info on here about changing a baby's given name which suggests that the baptismal name replaces the original name even though both are shown on the long form birth certificate:
https://www.tameside.gov.uk/Registrars/Changing-a-Child-s-Name-After-Registration
Thanks Kite, That's obviously what happened.
I've learnt something new today. :)

I have just received a PDF copy of the birth certificate of my great-grandmother's 1st cousin once removed, another "occasional copy A". Her name wasn't changed, but when her mother registered her birth in 1876 she made up a father's name and occupation, and a maiden name for herself, and it was corrected in 1927 on production of a Statutory Declaration made by the mother, just a few months before her (the mother's) death.

Came back to say, I expect the mother wanted to die with a clear conscience before she met her maker.