Oslo County, Norway Genealogy

Guide to Oslo ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.

Oslo is the capital and largest city in Norway. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the town was largely destroyed by a fire in 1624. The Danish-Norwegian king Christian IV rebuilt the city as Christiania (later spelling Kristiania). Oslo, then an alternative name, became official again in 1925.

The city of Oslo was established as a municipality on 3 January 1838. It was separated from the county of Akershus to become a county of its own in 1842. The rural municipality of Aker was merged with Oslo on 1 January 1948 and simultaneously transferred from Akershus county to Oslo county.

The urban municipality (bykommune) of Oslo and county (fylke) is the same entity, making Oslo the only city in Norway where two administrative levels are integrated.

Parishes and Congregations in Oslo City
 Aker Arbeidsanstalt, Sykehus og Fattighus Bekkelaget Bredtvet Bøler Domkirken (Vor Frelser) Døves Fagerborg</li> Frogner</li> Gamle Aker</li> Gamlebyen</li> Garnison</li> Grefsen</li> Grorud</li> Grønland</li> Hauge</li> Hospital (Gamlebyen)</li> Jakob</li> Johannes</li> Kampen</li> Kvinneklinikken</li> Lilleborg</li> Majorstuen</li> Manglerud</li> <li>Markus</li> <li>Matteus</li> <li>Nordberg</li> <li>Nordstrand</li> <li>Paulus</li> <li>Petrus</li> <li>Piperviken</li> <li>Rikshospitalet og Kvinneklinikken</li> <li>Ris</li> <li>Røa</li> <li>Sagene</li> <li>Slottsmenigheten</li> <li>Sofienberg</li> <li>Tonsen</li> <li>Torshov</li> <li>Trefoldighet</li> <li>Tugthus</li> <li>Tugthus og Akershus Fæstnings Slaveri</li> <li>Tøyen</li> <li>Ullern</li> <li>Ullevål Sykehus (Hospital)</li> <li>Uranienborg</li> <li>Vaterland</li> <li>Vestre Aker</li> <li>Vor Frelser</li> <li>Vålerenga</li> <li>Wexels Menighet</li> <li>Østre Aker</li> <li>Oslo and Drammen (Katolske Apostoliske, 1872-1932)</li> <li>Oslo (Militärgemeinde, 1942-1945)</li> <li>Oslo (Christian Science Society, 1908-1923)</li> <li>Oslo (Unitarisk Samfund, 1922-1927)</li> <li>Oslo (Christi Menighet, 1903-1936)</li> <li>Oslo (Første Metodistkirke, 1865-1927)</li> <li>Oslo (Den evangelisk-lutherske frikirke østre menighet, 1878-1978)</li> The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints <li>Oslo Branch, 1850-1950</li> <li>Oslo District, 1850-1952</li> </ul>

Church Records/Civil Registration
These are the most important records you will use, and a majority of your research will be found in them. All civil registration was kept by the church parishes until 2012. You do not have to be fluent in Norwegian. These records use a very limited, specialized vocabulary that is easy to learn. For help reading and interpreting theses records, see Norwegian Genealogical Word List, Norway Handwriting, and Reading Scandinavian Gothic Handwritten Records Lessons, , and
 * Digitalarkivet: Digitized parish registers of Oslo
 * Norway Indexed parish register transcriptions
 * The Family History Library has microfilms for all Oslo parish registers up to about 1920. These can be viewed at the library or at a Family Histor Center near you.

[[Media:Parish Register Headings for Norway.pdf|Parish Register Headings for Norway]] is available as a PDF file and gives the translation of headings for the records in different time periods. When a record is written with labeled columns it is much easier to search. Much of the material you read in each column will just be names and dates, since the meaning of those names (child, parents, godparents, minister) only has to be read once, in the column heading.

For more detail on the contents of these records and how to use them, see Norway Church Records and Norway Civil Registration.

Alphabetical Street Index for Kristiania (Oslo) year 1899
A description of the 17 districts (krets) in which the city was divided in 1899. A list is provided for all the streets in Oslo and which district they are located in. Since people usually attended their local church, this allow the researcher to know which church books to search as long as the street is known. A PDF file is also available, [[media:VEIVISEREN (Street Index).pdf|Veiviseren : Samlagsafstemmingen i Kristiania 1899 : Kredsinddellingen med Alfabetisk Gadefortegnelse]].

Cemeteries
Cemetery data for Oslo The name of a person can be entered along with a date if known. Click on the work "Søk" in the lower right to find possible matches. Sometimes entire families are found buried together.


 * DIS-Norges Gravminner i Norge
 * Gravferdsetaten i Oslo

Censuses
Census records available in a scanned database online at Digital Archives:


 * Bragernes prosti, Prestemanntall 9, 1664 - 1666 (Priest's census)
 * fogderi, Follo fogderi, Nedre Romerike fogderi, Øvre Romerike fogderi, Fogdemanntall 2, 1664 (Bailiff's census)
 * Census for Vaterland in Christiania 1714


 * 1801 Census for Oslo


 * — index and images


 * 1865 Census for Christiania


 * 1875 Census for Christiania


 * 1885-teljinga for 0301 Kristiania


 * 1891-teljinga for 0301 Kristiania


 * 1900 Census for Christiania


 * 1910 Census for Oslo


 * Kommunal folketelling 1923 for 0301 Kristiania kjøpstad

Cenuses available in a searchable database online at the Norwegian Historical Data Centre for the years 1865, 1875, 1900 and 1910.

See The Norwegian Historical Data Centre at the University of Tromsø.

Census records available on microfilm/microfiche at the Family History Library.


 * Fogd og sorenskrivers manntall 1664-1666. The 1664-1666 civil census for Vestre Aker and Østre Aker clerical district in Oslo microfilm no. 122977 item 2.


 * Sogneprestenes manntall 1664-1666. The 1664-1666 clerical census for Vestre aker and Østre Aker clerical districts now in Oslo city on microfilm no. 122968 item 2.


 * Folketellingen den 1ste februar 1801 (Akershus). 1801 census index for Oslo city and Akershus County, available on microfiche at the Family History Library.


 * Folketellingen den 1ste februar 1801, Norge. The 1801 census for Oslo city available on microfilm no. 122986


 * Folketellingen den 1ste februar 1801, Norge.  The 1801 census for Vestre Aker clerical district available on microfilm and microfiche.


 * Folketellingen den 1ste februar 1801 (Oslo og Akershus). The 1801 census for Oslo city and Akershus County available on microfilm.


 * Folketellingen den 1ste februar 1801 (Akershus). 1801 census for Akershus County including Olso city available on microfiche.


 * 1815 folketelling for Oslo by (Oslo). The 1815 census for Oslo city available on microfilm no. 1694663 item 2.


 * Folket i Fjerdingen. The 1816 and 1824 census for Olso city available inbook no. 948.1 A1 no. 18.


 * Manntall for Grønland 1834. The 1834 census for Grønland in Oslo city available in book no. 948.221 X2v 1834


 * Folketellingen den 31te desember 1865. The 1865 census for Østre Aker now in Oslo city.  Available on microfilm no. 123012 item 3 and 4


 * Folketellingen den 31te desember 1865. The 1865 census for Vestre Aker now in Oslo city.  Available on microfilm no. 123012 items 1 and 2.


 * Folketellingen den 31te desember 1865. The 1865 census for Vor Frelsers menighet in Oslo city.  Available on microfilm no. 123107, 123108, 123109.


 * 1865 census for Trefoldighets menighet in Oslo city. Available on microfilm no.  123110, 123111, 123112.


 * 1865 The 1865 census for Grønland congregation in Oslo city.  Available on microfilm no. 123113.


 * 1865 census for Oslo menighet in Oslo city.available on microfilm no. 123114 item 1.


 * 1865 census for Game Akers menighet in Oslo city available on microfilm no. 123114 item 2 and microfilm no 123115


 *  1875 census for Oslo city with a given name and surname index available on microfiche.


 *  1875 census for Kristiania (Oslo) available on microfilm.


 * 1875 census for Østre Aker parish now in Oslo City available on microfilm.


 * 1875 census for Kristiania (Oslo). This census is available on microfiche and is kept by the University of Tromsø.


 * 1885 census for Kristiania 


 * 1900 for Vestre and Østre Aker clerical district now in Oslo city available  microfilm.


 *  1900 census for Oslo city. available on microfilm sorted by street names.

Church Records

 * Photos of churches in Oslo

The Norwegian Church (Den Norske Kirke) kept the vital statistics of the population. See Church Records for the contents and in-depth descriptions of the records. The links to the records available at the Family History Library are found in the individual parish under Parishes and Congregations in Oslo City Section.

The National Archival Services of Norway maintains a website, Digitalarkivet, in which you can search in transcribed source material for free. Images of the original church books have also been placed there. The Digitised Parish Registers interface can be used in English, Norwegian (Bokmål), Norwegian (Nynorsk) or Samisk (Davvisámegiella). However, the records are written in Norwegian.

Later church records which not have been microfilmed by the Family History Library can be found at Digitalarkivet. They are for Bekkelaget, Botsfengselet, Bredtvet, Bøler, Christi menighet (Dissenter), The First Methodist Church (Dissenter), Døves (deaf) congregation, Fagerborg, Grefsen, Hauge, Iladalen, Lilleborg, Majorstuen, Mangelrud, Markus, Matteus, Nordberg, Nordstrand, Ris, Røa, Sofienberg, Tonsen, Torshov, Tøyen, Ullevål sykehus, Vaterland, and Vålerenga.

Legal procedure, Penitentiary

 * Botsfengslet (in Christiania), Photographs, no. 62: Prisoner album 1889-1894 with searchable register
 * Register til fangealbum 1901-1910 for Akershus Festning Arbeidsanstalt og Landsfengsel
 * Register til fangealbum 1885-1906 for Christiania politikammer
 * Register til fangealbum 1857-1913 for Botsfengslet i Kristiania

Military Records

 * Militærrulle 1693 for det Østlandske dragonregiment
 * Militærrulle 1748 for Ullensakerske infanterikompani

Occupations

 * Citizenships in Christiania, 1698-1799


 * Borgarar i Christiania, 1815


 * Innleverte borgerskap og attester for Kristiania

Other
Register of performing artists in Kristiania 1891-1903 (archived version of the website)

Passenger Lists

 * Emigranter over Kristiania 1867-1927, tilleggsliste


 * Emigranter over Oslo 1867-1930


 * Emigranter over Kristiania 1871-1930, redigert utgave

Prison Records

 * — index and images
 * Register over fangealbum 1885-1894 for Botsfengslet i Christiania (List of prisoners 1885-1899)
 * Register til fangealbum 1901-1910 for Akershus Festning Arbeidsanstalt og Landsfengsel
 * Register til fangealbum 1885-1906 for Christiania politikammer
 * Register til fangealbum 1857-1913 for Botsfengslet i Kristiania

Probate Records

 * Digitised probate records for Oslo
 * 1640-1903 - at FamilySearch — index


 * 1656-1901 - Probate records and indexes are found for Vestre Aker and Østre Aker in Aker judicial district at the . The indexes are by farm name and/or given names. There is also a separate card index.
 * 1692-1899 - Probate records for Kristiania (Oslo) city judicial district are found at the . There are indexes by farm name or by given name in most of the books. Book 24 is an index for the years 1802-1833. It contains the record no., name of the deceased, when probate began and ended, name of the heirs and other miscellaneous information. The death registrations (dødsanmeldelser) contains the date recorded, the deceased's name, occupation and residence, heirs and whether or not there is a probate for the deceased.

Family History Resources

 * Ten tips on finding ancestors in Oslo

Government Offices and Sites

 * Oslo Government Offices

Archives

 * Oslo Byarkiv
 * Statsarkivet i Oslo