Netherlands Jewish Records

Jewish records [joodse dokumenten] include records about Jews or those created by Jewish congregations. The Family History Library has thousands of microfilms concerning Dutch Jews. Civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths, as well as census and population registers in the 19th and 20th centuries, include Jews since these records cover the entire population. Jewish people are found in tax records, and many (but not all) Jewish marriages will be included in the civil marriage records before 1811. In addition, there are records of name adoptions, many specific to Jewish people.

The Family History Library also has other types of Jewish records, including synagogue records, records of Holocaust victims, and cemetery records.

General Historical Background
German Jews (also called Ashkenazic Jews) moved to the rural areas of Groningen province in the 1570s. By 1672, German Jewish communities had been established in Rotterdam, Amersfoort, Leeuwarden, and Amsterdam. A community of Portuguese Jews (also called Sephardic Jews) began at Amsterdam in the late 1590s. One hundred years later Portuguese Jews were also found in the towns of Middelburg, Rotterdam, Naarden, Maarssen, Nijkerk, and ’s-Gravenhage. Jews were not allowed to settle in many places until after 1700. Only German Jews moved into the country after 1700.

The national government was replaced in 1795 by the Batavian Republic. This new government gave Jews full rights of citizenship. In 1809 only 2 percent of the country was of the Jewish religion, and 40 percent of them lived in Amsterdam. A useful book for Amsterdam Jews is:

Verdooner, Dave and Harmen Snel. Trouwen in Mokum (Jewish Marriage in Amsterdam, 1598–1811). 2 vol. ’s-Gravenhage: Warray, [1991?]. (FHL book 949.234/A2 F22v.)

Understanding the history of the Jewish people in the Netherlands can help you in your research. The following are useful reference books:

Gans, Mozes Heiman. Memorbook: History of Dutch Jewry from the Renaissance to 1940. Baarn: Bosch &amp; Keuning, 1977. (FHL book 949.2 F2g.)

Geschiedenis van de Joden in Nederland (History of the Jews in the Netherlands). Amsterdam: Uitgeverij Balans, 1995. (FHL book 949.2 F2gv.)

Information Recorded in Synagogue Records
Synagogue records may include the following:

Circumcision registers ("Mohel" books). These registers include the Hebrew given name for the male child, his date of circumcision (Hebrew calendar), the father’s given Hebrew name, and sometimes the father’s surname.

Marriage contracts. These contractual agreements include the names of the bride and groom. They may also give the marriage date and the parents’ names. In cases of second or later marriages, names of previous spouses and their death dates may be included.

Lists of deceased persons. These lists give the name of the deceased person and the death date.

Other Records
Taxes were collected on all marriages and burials for the provinces of Noord–Holland and Zuid–Holland from 1695 to 1805. A tax on burials was collected for the entire country from 1806 to 1811. These records contain entries for all religions, including Jews. See the "Taxation" section for more information.

Locating Jewish Records
Genealogical Societies. The society Nederlandse Kring voor Joodse Genealogie (Dutch Circle for Jewish Genealogy) has published many transcriptions of records relating to Dutch Jews. It also publishes a quarterly called Misjpoge (Family). Its address is:

Nederlandse Kring voor Joodse Genealogie Abbringstraat 1 1447 PA Purmerend The Netherlands Telephone: 0299-644498 Internet: www.nljewgen.org

Holocaust Records. Most of the Jews in the Netherlands were killed during the atrocities of World War II. Following is a list of people who died in the Holocaust, their birth and death dates, their places of residence before deportation, and the camps they were sent to:

Nederland. Ministerie van Justitie. Lijst van Nederlandse Joden, Gevangenen, en Vermiste Personen die Gestorven zijn in Concentratie Kampen Gedurende de Tweede Wereld Oorlog: Bijvoegsel tot de Nederlandse Staatscourant (List of Dutch Jews, Prisoners and Missing Persons Who Died in Concentration Camps during World War II). 3 vol. ’s-Gravenhage: Staatsdrukkerij en Uitgeverijbedrijf, 1949–1962. (FHL book Q 949.2 V23n; on 3 FHL films.)

Family History Library Records. To determine whether the Family History Library has Jewish records for the locality your ancestor came from, look in the Place search of the catalog under each of the following:

NETHERLANDS – JEWISH RECORDS

NETHERLANDS, [PROVINCE] – JEWISH RECORDS

NETHERLANDS, [PROVINCE], [TOWN] – JEWISH RECORDS

Information about Jews may also be found in the Place search under:

NETHERLANDS – JEWISH HISTORY

NETHERLANDS, [PROVINCE] – JEWISH HISTORY

NETHERLANDS, [PROVINCE], [TOWN] – JEWISH HISTORY

NETHERLANDS – MINORITIES

NETHERLANDS, [PROVINCE] – MINORITIES

NETHERLANDS, [PROVINCE], [TOWN] – MINORITIES

Additional information may be found in the Subject search under:

JEWS – NETHERLANDS