My Ancestors Research Paper

acing the Steps of my Ancestors
For many years, America has been known as the land of opportunity, where dreams and success can be achieved through hard work and dedication. This “American dream” is one reason that regularly motivates people to migrate to the country today. America’s opportunities are plentiful and they can be enticing, which is likely the main reason my family came here. America’s impacts on my own family are evident through my life today, which is the same case for my ancestors whose impact on America can be seen through the lives of many Americans today as well.
Many reasons can be attributed to the influx of migrants in America over the years. The most obvious one being the general idea of the “American dream”. This dream entails many reasons why someone may migrate, which includes “to live in freedom, to practice their religion freely, to escape poverty or oppression, and to make better lives for themselves and their children.” (Arizaga). These reasons including better economic opportunities, educational opportunities, and a better state of living often motivated people from all regions to come to the country. One particular migrant

Ortiz is a name that comes “from the Latin personal name Fortunio, which means fortunate.” (House of Names). The name comes from my father’s side and it represents a noble Spanish family. Saldaña is a name that comes from another region in Spain, called Leon. It is a name from my mother’s side and it was most often used as a way to identify a family’s location. Though the names came from Spain, my family’s ancestors were located in the lower northeastern region of Mexico called San Luis Potosí. This region was located in what used to be the Aztec Empire, which first made contact with the Spanish in the 1500s, leading me to conclude that I may be a descendant of both the Spanish and the ancient Aztec