Switzerland Genealogy

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

Country Information
Switzerland is a landlocked country in Western and Central Europe surrounded by France, Austria, Germany and Italy. Switzerland's east and central cantons are primarily German speakers, western areas include many French speakers, and Italian speakers are found in southern Switzerland. The Swiss Republic is now over 715 years old, making it the oldest republic in the world.

Finding Your Ancestors' Town in Switzerland

 * Genealogical records are organized by geographical locality. Civil registration (government birth, marriage, and death records) and church records (christenings/baptisms, marriages, and burials) were kept at the local level.
 * If you do not know your ancestors' town, follow the advice in the Wiki article Switzerland Finding Town of Origin to search a variety of records that might provide that information.

The Register of Swiss Surnames
Switzerland has one unique feature that can speed up your search for your ancestor's town. Citizenship was held by specific town. The Register of Swiss Surnames is an online tool, based on the reference book, Familiennamenbuch der Schweiz, which lists for every surname the towns where that family held citizenship. Here are the Instructions for using the register. Also, watch the '''Online Class: Names and Places: The Register of Swiss Surnames

Switzerland Clickable Map
Genealogical records are kept at the local level in Switzerland. Cantons:

FamilySearch Resources
Below are FamilySearch resources that can assist you in researching your family.
 * Central Europe Genealogy Research Community (Facebook)
 * Switzerland Course in the Learning Center
 * FamilySearch Historical Records
 * Family History Center locator map

Research Tutorials

 * Introduction to Swiss Research
 * Beginning Swiss Research Part 1
 * Beginning Swiss Research Part 2
 * Switzerland Research Strategies
 * Swiss Census Records
 * Swiss Chorgericht Records
 * Swiss Names and Places
 * Switzerland Records Online: Resources for Swiss Genealogy
 * Calendar Changes in France, Germany, Switzerland, and the Low Countries
 * Switzerland Compiled Genealogies
 * Reading German Handwritten Records
 * Lesson 1: Kurrent Letters
 * Lesson 2: Making Words in Kurrent
 * Lesson 3: Reading Kurrent Documents
 * Old German Script
 * Part 1
 * Part 2
 * Part 3 (German Church and Civil Records)
 * Reading French Handwritten Records
 * Lesson 1: The French Alphabet
 * Lesson 2: Key Words and Phrases
 * Lesson 3: Reading French Records
 * Reading Italian Handwritten Records:
 * Lesson 1: The Italian Alphabet
 * Lesson 2: Words and Phrases
 * Lesson 3: Reading Italian Records