I have my own page on the GOONS website here. It doesn't say very much and is just a very brief introduction to my research into the Kingshott family worldwide. 

 

An ONS is generally distinct from family history, in that it is the surname that is of interest, rather than the family tree of members of the same family with several different surnames. However, it does involve many of the same research skills and techniques as family history, and most one-namers are actively researching both their own family and their ONS.

 

People often start ONS when they get stuck on part of their own ancestry, and believe that if they were to collect all references they find to the surname then this will lead to a break-through. Often it does. Even if it does not, having collected this data the one-namer becomes an expert on his or her name, even when the name is carried by apparently quite separate family groups.

 

One-namers build up a unique understanding of their name and its significance both geographically and historically. As a recognised centre of information on the name, they will also receive enquiries from, and exchange information with, members of the public with an interest in the name. Over time, they become the worldwide expert on the name and make new friends around the world.

 

I am very lucky that the Kingshott surname, and its derivatives, is a very rare name globally speaking, and am in the enviable position where my ONS actually records the occurrence of a single distinct family. The two distinct disciplines, genealogy and one-naming, with me, merge into one genealogical beast.

 

As a result of all of this research, and without wishing to blow my own trumpet, I have come to be the worldwide authority on the Kingshott family.