In looking at Irish records ( e.g. GRO and parish records) of the 19th century I have come across many minor variations in the spelling of both family names and first names in records referring to the same person- Catherine and Kathryn; Keogh and Kehoe. Recently, however, I have come across a perplexing series of records which, if my assumptions are on target, appear to go far beyond the creative spelling practices of local clergy and registrars. I would appreciate the experiences and opinions of anyone who might help explain these gross variations in spelling: In my paternal great grandparents' families (William J. Weekes and Mary Anne Leavy) the typical spelling of their family names (ca. 1850 to 1900 in Dublin, Kildare, Limerick and Waterford) are Weekes or Weeks and Leavy, Leavey or on one occasion Levy. These records come from church baptismal and marriage records and GRO B/M/D records and Griffith's valuation records. However in trying to piece together records for my great great grandfather's family - Henry and Catherine Weekes - ( the records are from Dublin ca. 1850 - 1870) I found very few appropriate records which relate to Weekes or Weeks. I did find baptismal records (1860 and 1863) for a Sarah and Anne Weeks at St. Michans RC church which is the parish church where most of my great grandparents children were baptized. The father is Henry Weekes, the mother Catherine Delany Weeks. I found GRO birth records under the name WAX for these same children- father Henry WAX, mother Catherine Delany WAX. The address is the same as that of the Weekes girls who got baptized at St. Michans and the dates match. I can not be certain that these girls are our relatives, but the circumstantial evidence is good. My great grandparent' s marriage cert lists my grat randfather's father as Henry Weekes , confectioner; his mother as Catherine -Weekes -no maiden name even on the original church records. Their address is in St. Michan's neighborhood. So it seems likely that they are also the parents to the Sarah and Anne mentioned above. I have since found a large number of civil records from the 1860's relating to Henry Wax and Catherine Delany Wax, but I have found no corresponding Weekes records to date other the two baptism records previously mentioned. The Wax records include births at one maternity hospital but several different "informants" (apparently attending physicians or midwives )including one birth reported by Catherine Delany WAX. There are also several death records recorded by two different registrars - all using the name WAX. Since the use of Weekes predates the this frequent use of WAX, and since I have never heard the name WAX used after 1872 I am perplexed. Can anyone suggest an explanation or offer similar experiences? Also what do you think of the logic connecting the Sarah and Anne Weekes to my great great grandfather w/o further substantiation? Thanks, Dennis Weeks Dennis Weeks Chairman, Dept. of Fine and Performing Arts