Norway, Census, 1891 - FamilySearch Historical Records

Norway

Why Should I Look at This Collection?
This census enumerates all persons in Norway on 1 January 1891. Separate schedules were kept for sailing vessels. The census was ordered by royal decree 31 October 1890. In rural areas the population was canvassed by a door-to-door enumerator, while in the cities the head of household was required to provide the information. Forms containing information about agriculture and animal husbandry were lost in 1939 during a fire.

What is in This Collection?
The 1891 census is made up of three forms: Hovedliste (Main list), Husliste (House list), and Personseddel (Person list). Each community is divided into one or more tellingskrets (enumeration district).

In rural areas the Hovedlist gives the tax registration number of each farm and sub-farm. In cities the house number and name of the head of household are given. The Hovedliste is used as an index to the Husliste. The Husliste gives the total number of persons in each dwelling, and divides that out by the number of males and females present, visiting, or temporarily away. The Personseddel gives specific details about each person in the household.

Reading These Records
These records are in Norwegian. For help reading these records see the following guides:
 * Norway Language and Languages
 * Norwegian Language Information
 * Norwegian Word List

What Can These Records Tell Me?
This census contains the following information for each person:
 * Name
 * Position in family
 * Marital status
 * Birth year and place
 * Nationality
 * Occupation
 * Physical handicaps

Collection Content
The complete census consists of four separate forms.
 * 1) Hovedsammendrag (Main summary) listing all the enumeration districts (tellingkreds) and their number in a place
 * 2) Hovedliste (Main list) for each enumeration district identifying each Husliste with the gaardsnummer (farm number), brugsnummer (sub-farm or croft), and place or head of household's name
 * 3) Husliste (House list) giving the name of the head of household and number of persons living in the residence
 * 4) Personseddel (Person sheets) with the particulars of that person

If you know the name of the farm an individual lived on you can search the Hovedliste to identify the husliste for that farm. If there is more than one farm with a similar name (like Sollied nedre, Sollied øvre, or Sollied nørdre) you should check the husliste for each farm.

The husliste are arranged numerically first by tellingkreds and then by husliste. When you locate the husliste for the farm it will identify the total number of persons living there. It will also identify by gender how many were present on the date of the census, how many were temporarily away, and if there were any visitors.

There is one personsell for each person in a household. The form has fields to be filled in by the enumerator and values to select. These forms are generally arranged with the male head of household first, followed by his wife, male children oldest to youngest, female children oldest to youngest, other family members, domestics, and lodgers. In cases where the head of household is a woman she would be listed first, and then others would be listed in the order described.

In Tromsø diocese (Troms and Finnmark counties) three additional questions were asked regarding nationality, language spoken at home, and if the family was nomadic or had a fixed place of residence. The forms for ships had an abbreviated list of questions.

The census also included sailors aboard Norwegian ships in foreign harbors.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Continue to search the index and records to identify other relatives
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct. Be aware that many individuals have the same name
 * You may need to compare the information of more than one family or person to make this determination
 * Be aware that, as with any index, transcription errors may occur

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, Now What?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities
 * Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals that may be your ancestor
 * There is also the possibility that a family was missed in the census

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in Norway.
 * Norway Guided Research
 * Norway Record Finder
 * Research Tips and Strategies

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.