My Ancestry

The recent generations of my family were born in Ontario, but once traced back six generations, I learned that the family on my father’s side descended from England and Ireland. My grandfather on my mom’s moved from Sri Lanka to Toronto; there he met my grandmother.
My ancestors on my father’s side from England and Ireland, though the majority of the recent ones were born in Ontario, Canada. After calling my grandparents, we were able to trace back our heritage about six generations, because our family tree had been recorded on ancestry.ca. Due to parts not being documented, there were some gaps in our family tree and ancestors who we were unable to trace back. As a young child, my great-great-great-great grandmother came from Canada with her parents. The reasons as to why she came here is unknown, but my grandmother hypothesizes: “it was for the land and opportunities available or to escape poverty and war” (Allen). Also on my grandmothers side, my great-great-great grandfather was born in Ireland, as were the generations before him. We weren't able to track my grandfather's relatives out of Canada, but the one's we did find were born in Ontario: Markhom, New Liskard, Stouffville, Scarborough, and Toronto. We do not maintain a direct connection to my Irish and English ancestors, because of all the generations between us, but we do continue to document our origins.

The family on my mother's side came to Canada more recently, though it was harder to date back because there's no written documentation and both my grandparents have passed. During his twenties, my grandfather was given the opportunity to move to a commonwealth country; with a brother already living in Halifax and another in Markham, my grandfather chose Canada. We do not maintain a connection to our Sri Lankan ancestry because my mom lived her mother when her parents divorce and she was never taught by her father. While being fluent in both English and Tamil from Sri Lanka, my grandfather only ever spoke English; he never felt the need to teach his children Tamil. He also never passed along any traditional cuisine or recipes; unable to say the ingredients in English, the language barrier prevented my grandfather from teaching his children about his culture (Allen). Over time, language and distance disconnected us from our roots.

Being seventh-generation Canadian on one side, my ancestors had all been assimilated into the Canadian culture; the connection to my original ethnic roots is very distant. I still highly value my roots because they are my history, I just do not partake in any traditions. Only visiting my grandparents around holidays, we do not get to frequently discuss our origins and their history; I had little prior knowledge of our family history. I hope one day have the opportunity to pass along my new knowledge of our ancestry to my own grandchildren.

Works Cited

Allen, Lesa. Interview. 2 Dec. 2017.

Allen, Nelda. Interview. 26 Nov. 2017.