Beringen Parish, Schaffhausen, Switzerland Genealogy

Guide to Beringen Parish, Schaffhausen, Switzerland ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.



Geography
The municipality of Beringen is in the Schaffhausen district and in the Schaffhausen canton. It is located in the upper Klettgau on the south base of the Randen mountains. Beringen is a linear village. Beringen (as of 2006) had an area of 18.68 km² (7.21 square miles). The land use was divided up as follows:
 * 28.6% - agricultural purposes
 * 59.8% - forested
 * 11.3% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 0.2% - unproductive land

History
In 965, Beringen was first mentioned by the name of Peringen. The Beringen municipality is in the Schaffhausen canton. Beringen ties back to the Ice Age and the Stone Age. It grew up along the creek that runs through the valley. In 1798, Beringen was part of Hemmental and included the hamlet of Griesbach. From 1798 to 1803, Beringen was part of the Klettgau district. Since 1803, it became part of the upper Klettgau and since 1877, part of the Schaffhausen district. On 1 January 2013, the municipality of Guntmadingen merged with the municipality of Beringen.

The population history of Beringen is: 1531 - 43 inhabitants 1771 - 702 inhabitants 1850 - 1,418 inhabitants 1900 - 1,208 inhabitants 1950 - 1,757 inhabitants 2000 - 3,027 inhabitants 2008 - 3,375 inhabitants 2011 - 3,538 inhabitants

Per the 2000 census:
 * 23.3% were Roman Catholic
 * 58.1% were Swiss Reformed Church

The Church of Beringen (probably dedicated to Saint George) may have existed since 1061. First official mention was in 1231. Additions to the church occurred in 1580 and 1642.

Church Records
The parish records for Canton Schaffhausen are found online from the Cantonal Archive of Schaffhausen. They can be accessed here.

Census Records
(see here for article describing the Zürich census records)

The following censuses are available for Beringen:

Genealogies
(see here for article describing Swiss compiled genealogies)

The following genealogies have been researched for Beringen families:

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Beringen prior to 1875:

Related Sources
The town's website (in German) can be found here.

Societies and Libraries
Cantonal Archive of Schaffhausen