Bukovina, Austro-Hungarian Empire Genealogy

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

Historical Geography
The Austrians entered into negotiations to obtain a ceded territory of about 10,000 square kilometres (ca. 4,000 square miles) they called Bukowina, which they formally annexed in January 1775. Bukovina at first was a closed military district from 1775 until 1786, and then was incorporated as the largest district, Kreis Czernowitz (later also Kreis Bukowina) of the Austrian constituent Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria. In 1804, the region became part of the newly established Austrian Empire. When Kreis Bukowina was elevated to a duchy in its own right in 1849, it was initially still administrated from the Galician capital Lemberg. In 1867, with the re-organization of the Austrian Empire as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it became part of the Austrian territories. Romanian control of the province was recognized internationally in the Treaty of St. Germain, in 1919, and the Treaty of Trianon, in 1920, when both the Republic of German-Austria and the Kingdom of Hungary renounced all claims to the Bukovina. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchy_of_Bukovina Wikipedia, Duchy of Bukovina)

Research Help
For help with genealogy in this region, see Romania Genealogy.

Online Records

 * Romania, Vital Records from Selected Regions, 1607-1914, ($). Index. Incomplete.

For Austria-Hungary Research, You Must Know Your Ancestors' Town

 * To begin using the records of the countries formerly in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, just knowing that your family came from the country will not be enough. Records are kept on the local level, so you will have to know the town they lived in.
 * Details about the town will also help:
 * the county of that town,
 * where the closest Evangelical Lutheran, Catholic, Greek Orthodox, etc. parish church was (depending on their religion),
 * where the civil registration office was, and
 * if you have only a village name, you will need the name of the larger town it was part of.

Research to Find the Town
If you do not yet know the name of the town of your ancestor's birth, there are well-known strategies for a thorough hunt for it.
 * Use Gathering Information to Locate Place of Origin as a guide in exhausting every possible record to find what you need. It was written for Germany, but the same methods apply.

Microfilm Copies of Records at a Family History Center
If the locality and time period you need are not included in the online records, the next step is to check for them in the microfilm collection of the Family History Library. These microfilms may be ordered for viewing at Family History Centers around the world. To find a microfilm:
 * a. Click on Places within Austria, Bukowina.
 * b. Select your record type: Church records and civil registration are the most important.
 * b. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * c. Choose the correct record type and time period for your ancestor.
 * d. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the microfilm. Clicking on the microfilm reel will lead to information on how to rent the film. Family History Center staff will assist you in ordering the film.