|
|
|
The Laporte surname is sometimes written "de la Porte" or
"de LaPorte". The St-Georges surname has been submitted
to the following variations: "Saint-Georges", "St-George",
"St. Georges" or "St. George". The rules of the French
language would dictate that "St" is in error and that the form
"Saint" is mandatory but in practice, only common usage
can determine a name's form or forms.
According to our records, the great majority of Laporte
and Quebec-descended St-Georges in America have
the same common ancestor in
Jacques de LaPorte dit St-Georges.
In previous centuries, many people had a "dit" name
in North America. This habit disappeared in
the 1920s in Quebec following a decree responding to the
need to simplify the recording and control of the population
especially during censuses. If many Laporte and St-Georges now live in
Quebec, perhaps just as many have emigrated to the U.S.A. and there
are still as many in France (even though their number may be
smaller than those in North America in total). Some have established
themselves elsewhere in the world. There is at least one case
in Canada of a Portuguese Laporte born in Pondichery at the
Southern tip of India where two enclaves, one French and the
other Portuguese once existed with the same name.
Several Laporte and St-Georges are present on the Internet and
have their own personal Web pages.
|
|