Sample Alphabet Letters

When trying to puzzle out a particularly tricky word, sometimes it helps to see several different examples of how certain Gothic letters were written.  I decided to compile a list of sample letters -- most of these samples came from online matriky books (vital records) on the Czech archive websites, and a few of them came from some of our old family letters.  I placed each letter in relationship to the line as it was written in the original source.

You are welcome to print these sample alphabet letter pages to use as a research help only, please do not use for any other purpose without permission.  Thank you!

J vs. I

I've been teaching my 10 year old niece how to read our ancestors' old Bohemian records, and we came across an excellent example of how the capitol letters I and J were written identically by many German scribes.  In these cases, the only way to differentiate between these two capitol letters is to keep reading: if the letter is followed by a vowel it is a J, or if it is followed by a consonant it is an I.  

Here we see the given names Joseph and Ignaz
written with the same initial letter.

Deciphering Handwritten Records

When learning to decipher German & Latin vital records written in Bohemia, an alphabet chart with sample letters can be invaluable.  There are many such sample alphabet charts online, but this is my chart of choice.  This chart sat beside me through my first few years of intense research, and I still reference it today when I get stuck on a tricky bit of handwriting.  

This Alphabet Chart came from the 2011 article, "Helps for Translating That Old 
German Handwriting," an article with several other helpful handwriting samples and tutorials.