Tärna Parish, Västerbotten, Sweden Genealogy

Guide to Tärna Parish, Sweden ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

History
Tärna parish was broken out as a chapel law from Lycksele parish in 1780 with a chapel preacher. From 1783, the special service disappeared and the clergy in Lycksele and Sorsele regained responsibility for the activities in Tärna. The chapel team was part of the pastorate with Lycksele parish (mother parish) 1780-1822. The pastorate also included Sorsele parish and Stensele parish.

In 1822, Stensele parish (mother parish) was broken up with Tärna chapel law into a pastorate. In 1853, Tärna got its own preacher and the activities in Tärna became more permanent than before. On May 1, 1903, Tärna parish formed its own pastorate.

It was not until 1853/1854 that special church books for Tärna began to be kept. For the time before, see Stensele church archives. According to a royal letter in 1865, Skytteanska lappskolan, which had previously been stationed in Lycksele, was to be transferred to Tärna. The transfer was completed by the autumn term of 1867.

Place Names
Björkbacka, Björkfors, Björknäs, Björknäs Östra (Björknäs East), Björkvattnet, Björkås, Boksjön Fjällnäs, Fjällnäs södra (Fjällnäs south), Forsbäck, Frökenvik  Gardvik, Granås  Högstaby, Högås  Joesjö, Joeström  Klippen, Krokfors  Lajsholm, Laxnäs, Laxvik, Lövlund  Mellansjö  Otterås  Prästgård  Rödingfors, Rönäs, Rönnbäck  Sjönäs, Skarmardal, Solberg, Ström, Samer (Lapps)  Tengvattnet, Tärna, Tärnafors  Umfors  Vallernäs, Vilasund, Virisjö, Västansjö  Yttervik  Ängesdal

To see what kind of place it is you will need a Swedish Gazetteer.


 * Surrounding Parishes

Census Records

 * Sweden Household Examination Records (Husförhörslängder)--explanation of this church record which is functionally the census of Sweden.
 * Sweden Household Examination Books, 1840-1947, ($), index and images. Also on Ancestry.com ($), Digital ($), and SVAR''' at Riksarkivet.

Online Database Church Records
The easiest way to access the Swedish Church Records is through the internet, using these five sites (see links to specific collections below). Four of these sites require a subscription for access.
 * at FamilySearch.
 * MyHeritage.com ($),
 * ($),
 * Arkiv Digital ($), and
 * SVAR at Riksarkivet.

Help Using ArkivDigital: Online Databases for Sweden

 * These lessons will teach you how to use ArkivDigital:
 * ArkivDigital: Explore Your Swedish Heritage

FamilySearch Library Records
Click Sweden, Västerbotten Records for a full listing of microfilmed records (some digitized online) at the FamilySearch Library, that may be digitized. Check back occasionally to see if your records have become available. In the meantime, some of them might be available at a FamilySearch Center near you. Click on "Places within Sweden, Västerbotten" and then select your parish.

Military Records

 * Sweden Military Records
 * Central Soldiers Register InstructionsSearch Engine

Related Sources
Sweden Online Genealogy Records Ask the Community

Help Reading Swedish Records

 * You do not have to be fluent in Swedish to read these records! They have a limited vocabulary: mother, father, born, bride, groom, married, etc. The rest of the content will be names, dates, and places, which do not need translation.
 * This Swedish Word List covers typical terms found in the records.
 * Swedish Historical Dictionary Database, SHDD: This interactive dictionary allows you to enter a word in the search box and receive the translation.
 * Feast Day Calendar (Moveable) and Feast Day Lists (Fixed and Moveable) will help you translate dates written in feast day form.
 * Sweden surnames are patronymic and change every generation, so carefully study Sweden Names, Personal.
 * For help with reading the column headings found in more recent records, see [[Media:Swedenish_Par_Reg_and_Exam_headings.pdf|Swedish Parish Register and Household Exam Roll Headings]].
 * Instructions, document examples, and translations are given for Reading Swedish Birth and Christening Records 1717, 1752, 1771, 1792, 1803, 1834, 1854.

Help Reading Old Handwriting

 * Reading Gothic Handwriting for Swedish Genealogy, Lesson 1
 * Spelling and Phonetics for Swedish Genealogy, Lesson 2 — Names, dates, and key genealogical words
 * Reading Gothic Handwriting for Swedish Genealogy: Put It All Together, Lesson 3
 * Birth and Christening Records for Swedish Genealogy
 * Scandinavian Handwriting
 * Scandinavian Handwriting, part 3 - No part 2 available

Help With Research Objectives and Strategies
Sweden Research Strategies