Q. Do you have names from all over the world on your database?
A. We currently have in excess of one million family names from all over the world on our database. In addition we have the largest library of its kind in the world with access to information on millions of other names. While the majority of names on our database tend to be of European origin we also have Asian, Middle Eastern and African-American names on our database.

Q. Are the Family Name Histories completely authentic?
A. Yes, each of our Family Name Histories has been individually researched at the specific request of a customer. Each fact contained in our family name history has been inserted because of its relevance to that particular family name.

Q. What is a Coat of Arms?
A. A Coat of Arms is an identifying mark or heraldic form of identification dating back to the European middle ages. The practice has its origins in the necessity to enable identification on the battlefield and out of this it developed, in parallel, into a form of denoting military or other types of distinguished recognition for individuals, families, organizations or institutions. The symbols in the Coat of Arms represented hopes, ambitions and aspirations - basically, what a family stood for.

Q: How long has The Historical Research Center been in business and doing this?
A: The Historical Research Center was founded in 1988 - Names.com has been on-line since 1996. Heraldic Family Names has been operating in Australia for the past 18 years as a licensed operator from the Historical Research Centre.

Q: I'm not sure of the origin of my name...can you tell?
A: This what we are qualified to do and our research historians, using our library of resource materials, will study all aspects of your name to determine its origin. This will include the country it originated from.

These are just a selection of the most frequently asked questions coming to us through our website and other sources. We envisage this as a constantly expanding and changing Q&A, reflecting new issues and questions as, and when, they arise. If you have a question on any aspect of the HFN website or products that we haven't addressed here, please do not hesitate to e- mail us with your question.