Denmark Cemeteries

It’s not uncommon to search for the grave of an ancestor, hoping to get some birth or death date from the gravestone (especially in U.S. Research). Before you plan a trip to Denmark to travel around their cemeteries, you should consider some of the social and cultural differences. Here are a few things to consider:


 * It has been deeply rooted in the Danish culture (for centuries) to be buried in the churchyard. The majority of burials, whether with a casket or an urn, are still buried in a Lutheran churchyard regardless of religious affiliation. The church yard may have sections for different religious groups for example: Jews, or Muslims.


 * With the limited space in the Lutheran churchyards, combined with a steady number of burials over many centuries, the Danes have had a practice of re-using burial plots. Currently they will re-use a burial plot after 20 years (with a casket burial), or 10 years (with an urn), unless the family has made special arrangements to take care of it. When a plot is re-used, the grave stone is removed.


 * While a family member’s burial plot is intact, the surviving family will take beautiful care of the grounds. After the remains have returned to the earth, and the actual plot is re-used, the churchyard remains a special place where they feel very connected to their deceased family members.

Websites

 * Cemeteries in Copenhagen
 * Denmark's Find en grav
 * DK-Gravsten - Links to all photographed cemeteries in Denmark
 * Copenhagen City Archives
 * Find forfædrene med københavnske begravelsesprotokoller (Find your forfathers with Copenhagen burial records)
 * Begravelser i København Overview of digitized sources that deal with funerals in Copenhagen