Norway Death Record Search Strategy 1500-1813

1. Parish Register, Burial: Church records Beginning about 1500, usually much later, churches required their clergy to keep burial records. Before 1814 the name of the person who died may not be given, only the name of the principal male figure in his or her life. The printed record format introduced in 1814 included columns which asked for the deceased's name, death date, burial date, age, and so forth. You can estimate a person's birth year from his or her death or burial age.

What you are looking for Before civil registers began, church burial records were the best source for determining when a person died. They included nearly everyone in the community and either identified the complete name of the deceased, or made minimal reference to the male figure in the deceased's life, such as "Johan Olsen's wife/child."

Why go to the next record Not all Norwegian burial records have been microfilmed, and the beginning date of these records varies from place to place.

2. Parish Register, Christening, 1500-1874: Church records Beginning about 1500, churches required their clergy to keep christening (or baptism) records. The records give the names of the parents and the child and include birth dates. Information found in a christening depends on how detailed the minister made his record.

What you are looking for If the burial records do not exist, church christening records could be a source for determining when a person died. In the christening record next to the person's name, or in the remarks column, the minister may have put the symbol of a cross and death date, showing that the person died. When the father or mother appears in christening records with a different spouse, it means the former spouse died.

Why go to the next record Not all Norwegian christening records have been microfilmed, and the beginning date of these records varies from place to place.

3. Parish Register, Confirmation: Church records Churches required their clergy to keep confirmation records. The confirmation could occur between ages 12 and 20, though most took place between ages 16 and 18. Confirmation records before1814 contain the name of the child, and sometimes include the child's age or place of residence. These records may not begin the same year for every parish. After 1814 confirmation records may include the names of the parent(s) or head of house where the confirmed resided, birth or christening date, and vaccination date. If other records indicate the family remained in the parish and the child is not found in confirmation records, the child either moved or died.

What you are looking for If the burial records do not exist, church confirmation records could be a source for determining that a person died. If the family remained in the parish, and the child's confirmation record is not found between ages 12 and 20, the child either moved or died.

Why go to the next record Not all Norwegian confirmation records have been microfilmed, and the beginning date of these records varies from place to place.

4. Parish Register, Marriage: Church records Beginning about 1500, usually much later, churches required their clergy to keep marriage records. If the father or mother appear in the marriage record with a new spouse, you can be estimate that the previous spouse died about a year before.

What you are looking for Couples were married when they were in their twenties and thirties. Second and third marriages may have occured anytime after that. If christening records do not exist, parish marriage records are the best source for determining when a person died. When the father or mother appears in the marriage records with a different spouse, it means the former spouse died the previous year.

Why go to the next record Not all Norwegian parish marriage records have been microfilmed, and the beginning date of these records varies from place to place.

5. Census: Census The king ordered the church clergy to take national census records, beginning in 1701. Occasionally the clergy also took a ministerial census. You can use census record information to help identify all family members. When an ancestor no longer appears in a census, the person either moved or died.

What you are looking for When marriage records do not exist, census records are the best source for determining when a person died. When the father or mother appears in the census record with a different spouse, it means the former spouse died sometime between that census and the previous one.

Why go to the next record Not all Norwegian census records have been microfilmed, and the beginning date of these records varies from place to place.

6. Probate Records: Probate records Probate records are civil records, found at the parish level. They may begin before the actual parish records. You can use information found in probate record to estimate a person's birth, marriage and death date. Probate records can also help to identify the ancestral family.

What you are looking for When census records do not exist, probate records are the best source for determining when a person died. Probate records may not give a death date, but the date of the probate is usually the year of death.

Why go to the next record

Not all Norwegian probate records have been microfilmed, and the beginning date of these records varies from place to place.