[Genealib] SOUNDEX CONFUSION

[Karen Stanley]

Clayton Library has posted a good summary of the Soundex rules as applied to the U.S. Census Soundex microfilm at:
   
  http://www.hpl.lib.tx.us/clayton/soundex.html
   
  But keep in mind that some of the online Soundex-search options may not have applied the rules correctly - the W/H rule is one that is often disregarded, for example.  Also, it's important to know about alternative spellings and likely misspellings that could completely change the Soundex coding, and search under those as well.
   
  For online searching, I usually prefer wildcard searching when it's available, particularly when looking for relatively uncommon names that share a Soundex code with something common like Smith or Brown.  If I'm looking for Mallory, for example, I'd have more luck searching for "Mall*" (which will pick up transcription errors such as "Malling") than wading through all the Miller names that would be included in a Soundex search.
   
  Karen Stanley
  Houston, TX

janet tomkins <janettom at vpl.ca> wrote:
  
Hi, I am hoping that someone can help me get a better handle on one of the
Soundex rules, specifically the one that states that if two consonants have
the same soundex code and are separated by a vowel, the consonant to the
right of the vowel is coded, e.g. Tymczak, T-522.

I’m a little confused by the example (which I have seen on several web
pages). The “T” and the “5” are straightforward. But then comes
the “cz”. According to another Soundex rule, these should be coded as
one letter, because ”c” and “z” have the same Soundex code and are
adjacent.

Then comes the vowel and the “k”. As I read the first rule cited
above, one should then code the “k” (being to the right of the vowel)
and ignore the so-called single letter “cz”. This would yield a
Soundex code of T-520.

Can anyone elucidate this for me? Or better yet, provide a more
straightforward example of the rule? I know there are lots of online
Soundex converters, but I would like to understand the system properly.

Many thanks!
Janet Tomkins
Genealogy librarian
Vancouver Public Library
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