To transcribe generally means to write it down, as exactly as possible. For example, if you were to transcribe an interview, you would write down the questions and answers heard in the taped recording exactly as they were said. This is different than writing an abstract, or a summary. Transcriptions should be exact replications of original text or audio.
Let’s say you’re in a church in Italy, and you found a book that has a record of your great-grandfather’s baptism. You can’t take the book with you, and they won’t let you bring it to a copy shop, so you take a photo with your phone’s camera. But remember when you dropped your phone in the canal on your last trip to Italy and lost all those photos? You better find a back-up way to record the information just in case! So you take out your pen and notebook, and start writing it down. When you get back to your computer you’ll type it up and add it to your other records.
First, you would write your name and date. Then the name of the church, the location, and the name of the priest or person who helped you find the record with their contact information if available. Now onto the record itself: write down the title of the book, with the authors and any publishing information. Add the page number, and title of the collection, i.e. “Baptisms in Abruzzi, 1848”, and where on the pages the record is found, like “bottom left page continued onto top right of the next page.” Now start writing down the record itself, with the same language, punctuation, grammar, and spelling - even if there are mistakes. Include any notations made on the page. If you’re unable to read handwriting make an educated guess. If there is missing text or it is too hard to read, use square brackets with a question mark in the middle, such as “he was [?] the town of Abruzzi”.
Add your notes below the transcription. For example, you may want to remark there is a date in red ink next to the person’s name, which may indicate it was added later. You may want to ask someone to translate the document for you while you’re in Italy, and include that translation in your notes.
Reasons to transcribe records:
You are unable to make a photocopy or take a picture, or don’t have a high quality camera, and need to record the information
You are able to take a photo, but would still like to transcribe in case you lose the photo or it is not clear
The record is in a format that is not easily copied
You would like audio or video information, like that in an interview, in text format
You are copying information from a microfilm or other outdated technology
You are helping preserve, record, or index records for future genealogists and others looking for this information
You would like to preserve the original and keep it safe, and reference the transcription during your research process
You want to make a record or document easier to read, because of difficult to read handwriting or hard to see text
You would like to analyze the document on a deeper level
When transcribing records, you should always:
Copy the information as exactly as possible, including spelling mistakes, punctuation and capitalization, grammar, and all.
Do not expand abbreviations or make translations or corrections.
Copy the same format as close as possible, including tables, columns, and underlining
Use square brackets for your notes or comments, or where there is illegible writing, with optional question marks
Mention and describe any images and where they appear in the document
Treat the original with as much care as possible, and leave it in the same condition you found it
Record the source information, including how, when, and where you accessed it
Follow any rules others may have if doing transcription projects on their behalf. When typing up text, many prefer you do not add any styling or text formatting as it can make it difficult for their search engines to find the text.
Tips for transcribing:
Turn off your software’s spell-check and grammar check so nothing is automatically corrected
You can use free voice-to-text tools to capture audio quickly, but watch for and correct mistakes
Further research & reference:
Transcription Tips from the National Archives, archives.gov/citizen-archivist
See also: Handwriting