Can we have India suggested place names with pre-1947 states?

+5 votes
386 views

Most India place names in the list of suggestions are post-independence (1947). It would improve accuracy if the list included British-era names.

For example the birth/baptism record (1924) for Ballantyne-796, as transcribed from British India Office records, is Bhusaval, Bombay.

However the place name suggestion is Bhusāwal, Maharashtra, India, which should be accurate after 1947.

in WikiTree Tech by Rob Wilson G2G6 Mach 3 (30.0k points)

2 Answers

+6 votes
 
Best answer
If you are logged into FamilySearch and visit https://www.familysearch.org/research/places/ , you can type in a place name that needs adjustments, and click the "Improve This Place" button to suggest changes.

We don't have our own place database stored anywhere so we can't adjust places manually -- the suggestions come straight from the FamilySearch API.
by Jamie Nelson G2G6 Pilot (709k points)
selected by Rob Wilson

Jamie, thank you - a positive suggestion. I have done that (suggesting an alternate name) for Jabalpur; the previous name in "British India" was Jubbulpore. I cited the FIBIwiki entry here.

This gives other variants and also some external links.

+5 votes
1. You must not follow the suggestion. Write the correct location name into location field.

2. No, because the suggestions are not from WikiTree, the are from FamilySearch. If FamilySearch add the names you want, they will be on WikiTree as well.
by Dieter Lewerenz G2G Astronaut (3.2m points)

Re 1 - yes; that was not my question though!

Re 2: I know that they come from FS; I am asking if we can have a better list. It must be feasible?

Rob, that would be a huge undertaking. Millions of locations in different timeframes would need to be included. WikiTree does not have the resources available that would be required to attempt it.

Maybe not! Many FS records from that era pre-1947 have"original" place names (with the presidency name rather than the post-1947 state name).

So the FS database very likely has both names.

So maybe it's a question of having both names in the suggestion list, as is done for England, for example, pre- and post- Union.

Rob - which "suggestions" are you meaning?  Place-name dropdown?  Or is it the DBE "suggestions"?  If the latter - you can simply mark the error as false.
Melanie, I don't know what you mean by DBE! I am referring to the place names that pop up when you start entering a place name. Rob
So, location names.   
As already said, the drop-down offerings come from FamilySearch and can be ignored.
I'm pretty sure it has been discussed about WT developing its own location list, but there wasn't (that I recall) any time frame given for it actually becoming a thing.  There are so many other issues that are higher priority (or so is my understanding.)

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