b. (abbreviation) born. B (abbreviation) black, indicating race. banns public announcement of an intended marriage, generally made in church. bapt. (abbreviation) baptized. base-born a base-born individual was an illegitimate child. bastard a bastard is an illegitimate child. biographies a biography is a book written about a particular individual. You can also find compiled biographies, which are books that contain short biographies of many different people. A compiled biography normally is about a specific group of people. For example, you can find compiled biographies about individuals who were involved in a particular profession or who lived in a particular area. You can usually find the following information in a biography: occupation, accomplishments, affiliations, and family information. birth records a birth record contains information about the birth of an individual. On a birth record, you can usually find the mother's full maiden name and the father's full name, the name of the baby, the date of the birth, and county where the birth took place. Many birth records include other information, such as the birthplaces of the baby's parents, the addresses of the parents, the number of children that the parents have, and the race of the parents, and the parents' occupations. bef. (abbreviation) before. bequeath term appearing in a will meaning to leave or give property as specified therein to another person or organization. bet. (abbreviation) between bibliography list of writings relating to a specific subject, some of which are annotated. A bibliographic citation describes and identifies the author, edition, date of issue, publisher, and typography of a book or other written material. Generally, bibliographies appear at the end of a publication to indicate the sources used by the author or to suggest titles for additional reading. Bibliographic citations appear in footnotes and end-notes to document the source of a statement made in the body of a writing. bond written, binding agreement to perform as specified. Many types of bonds have existed for centuries and appear in marriage, land and court records of used by genealogists. Historically, laws required administrators and executors of estates, grooms alone or with others, and guardians of minors to post bonds. It is not unusual to discover that a bondsman was related to someone involved in the action before the court. If a bondsman failed to perform, the court may have demanded payment of a specified sum as a penalty. bounds pertaining to measuring natural or man-made features on the land. bounty land land promised as an inducement for enlistment or payment for military services. A central government did not exist when the Revolutionary War began, nor did a treasury. Land, the greatest asset the new nation possessed, was used to induce enlistment and as payment for military services. Those authorized to bounty land received a Bounty Land Warrant from the newly formed government after the war. bp. (abbreviation) baptized. bpt. (abbreviation) baptized. bro. (abbreviation) brother. bu. (abbreviation) buried. bur. (abbreviation) buried.