Genealogy Chat

Next to one of my relatives in a census it says Imbecile, what would that translate as these days? Would if be someone who is suffering from a mental illness? It's a woman if that makes any different.

Description from Wiktionary.

A person with limited mental capacity who can perform tasks and think only like a young child, in medical circles meaning a person who lacks the capacity to develop beyond the mental age of a normal five to seven-year-old child (not commonly used today)
(informal, pejorative) A fool, an idiot.

Unmarried mothers were often labled imbeciles so really it could be anything going under the title of not thinking 'their' way which in our terms isn't always someone with a mental illness

She could have been suffering from post natal depression..

They were so cruel back then (ignorant)

Unmarried Mothers were put into mental institutions and sometimes spent the rest of thier lives in them! ....(it also 'saved face' for the Family)


My Mum was a mental nurse SRN and knew lots of old ladies that had spent all thier adult lives in a mental institution just because they had a baby out of wedlock.

They also diddnt reconise depression back then...

Kirstie
How old was your rellie and in which census?

Gerri x

Imbecile was used to denote that the person was suffering from dementure.

Here are some terms used on census forms and an explanation of what they mean:-

Annuitant ~ The term annuitant could describe someone on an annual allowance as well as someone receiving annual income from an investment. Often however, it was also used for institutionalized pensioners.


Boarder ~ a person who shares the dinner table with the family.


Lodger ~ a person who has separate accomodation to the householder.


Lunatic ~ a mentally ill person with periods of lucidity.


Imbecile ~ persons who have fallen in later life into a state of chronic dementia.


Idiot ~ persons who suffer from congenital mental deficiency.


Scholar ~ from 1861 onwards a child was described as a scholar if he/she was over 5 and receiving daily schooling or regular tuition at home. There was no definition of the latter. In 1871 the census officials in London broke the confidentiality pledge and divulged the names of all children 3-13 and their parents (with addresses) to the London School Board to help enforce compulsory education.


Dressmaker ~ the occupation of 'dressmaker' was commonly given by prostitutes.


In-Law ~ terms such as Brother and Brother-in-Law were used interchangeably and somewhat unreliably. Likewise Sister and Sister-in-Law.

Thanks for your help everyone.