Please note the following:

• Searching for names should account for variance in the spelling of names. There are two groups of sources for this variance. First of all, spelling of names is inconsistent until the end of the nineteenth century, with variants due to deformation over time, dialectical differences, personal idiosyncrasies, and a general lack of concern for consistent orthography. Second, despite the prevailing use of German or German dialects in Burg Reuland during this time, Latin or latinized variants are common in the parish register while French variants are favored during the French occupation. Note that the Latin parish register also changes names based on the Latin language's extensive use of case. For example, "Maria" might also appear as "Mariam" or "Mariae" depending on context. The index records the name exactly as it appears, regardless of case.
• The use of house names, or other aliases, remained common during the years covered by this index. They are always entered just once alphabetized based on how they appear in the register. For example, a name recorded as "Beyer modo Theis" (i.e., "Beyer known as Theis") appears under B in this index. To find the name as "Theis" would require searching text in either the Excel or PDF document for the name "Theis."
• While the civil registers list births as a key event, the baptismal register lists baptisms rather than births. In many cases, the parish register also identifies the date of birth, which is often either the date of baptism or previous day. 
• The parish register also includes an invaluable census of residents by village conducted by the parish priest in 1670. All names are included in the index, with "census" listed as the key event.
• No entry has been made in the name index for entries that lack both a last name and first name. Entry of partial names occurs occasionally in the civil records (more often in earlier records rather than later records), more often in the parish register.
• Dates of events are entered in two different columns. The first of these lists the date in conventional format, e.g., Jan. 5, 1831. Each date is also listed as a four-digit year, followed by a two-digit month, followed by a two-digit date; the sortable date column converts Jan. 5, 1831 to 1831.01.05. These sortable dates permit just that: sorting dates sequentially. If an event records only a year with no month or date, the sortable date is a four-digit year followed by zeroes. For example, the events for the 1670 parish census have a sortable date of 1670.00.00.
• The civil register during the time of the French occupation lists dates using the French Republican Calendar. These dates have been converted to Gregorian dates in this index. 
• The civil records include numerous pieces du marriage, that is, entries made from registers from other localities to document parents of expected (publications) or actual marriages. A few of these are included in the transcriptions and are therefore included in this index; the majority have been omitted from our transcriptions

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