Canton Genève, Switzerland Genealogy

Guide to Canton Genève ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.

Getting Started
If you are new to Swiss research, you should watch this introductory course. Then study the articles on church records and civil registration, as almost all of your research will be in those two record groups.
 * Introduction to Swiss Research
 * Switzerland Civil Registration
 * Switzerland Church Records

History


In the first half of the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation reached Geneva. The subsequent religious strife saw the end of Savoy rule, with Geneva allying itself with the Swiss Confederacy. By the 18th century, however, Geneva had come under the influence of Catholic France. In 1798, revolutionary France annexed Geneva, and created the French department of Léman. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1814-1816, new Catholic territory was added to Geneva from France and Savoy, and Geneva was admitted to the Swiss Confederation. In 1907, the separation of Church and State was adopted. Genève is a French speaking canton. Geneva (Wikipedia)

Compiled Genealogies
Many Genevan families have been compiled by several genealogists into published volumes. These include:
 * J.A. Galiffe, Notices généalogiques sur les familles genevoises (seven volumes)
 * volumes 1-2 at FamilySearch
 * volumes 3-4 at FamilySearch
 * volumes 5-6 at FamilySearch
 * volume 7 at FamilySearch
 * A. Choisy, Recueil généalogique suisse (three volumes)
 * volume 1 at FamilySearch
 * volume 2 at FamilySearch
 * volume 3 at FamilySearch
 * É. Bungener, Filiations protestantes
 * volume 2 part 1: Switzerland in print

An index to the surnames featured in these collections has been published by the Geneva State Archive.


 * Geneva, Personal Pages on Swiss Families

Emigration Records

 * 1792-1910 Répertoires des passeports (Passports) at FamilySearch; restricted to a FamilySearch Center near you
 * 1814-1910 Index to passport registers and files at Geneva State Archive

Civil Registration
Civil registration began in Canton Genève on 21 July 1798 after being annexed by France. To understand the records available, read the Wiki article Switzerland Civil Registration.

The following civil registration records have been deposited in the Geneva State Archive:
 * Births through 1899
 * Marriages through 1929
 * Deaths through 1959
 * exception: Genève through 1935


 * Civil registration office contact information can be identified here.
 * You will be able to write your request in French with the help of the French Letter Writing Guide.

Church Records Online
Genève parish church records have been digitized online and can be accessed in the following ways:


 * The Genève archive has digital records in color. A list of all digitized church and civil records can be found here.
 * FamilySearch also has microfilmed and digitized records for the entire canton. These records can be accessed from the FamilySearch Catalog (click on Places within Switzerland, Genève to select the parish). There may be restrictions on viewing these records.

Indexes
Some handwritten indexes are found at the Genève archive and can be found here.

For information on the coverage and content of church records, read Switzerland Church Records.

Citizenship
Citizenship in Canton Genève can be divided into two broad categories.

Citizenship before 1792
Prior to 1792, there were many types of citizenship in Genevan territory:
 * bourgeois/burghers - this social class, mostly well-to-do citizens of the merchant class and restricted to approximately 1500 men, included the right to vote and serve in office.
 * natives - this class consisted of approximately 5,000 lower-middle-class men born to long-standing Geneva families living in the city but excluded from voting or serving in office; this class comprised primarily of artisans and craftsmen in various trades, principally watchmakers.
 * residents - this class was comprised of residents of the city of Geneva whose roots lay in the rural Genevan territories or whose families had immigrated to Geneva from elsewhere.
 * subjects - these individuals resided outside the city in the rural territories of Geneva and held no residence rights inside the city.

The following book contains information about the bourgeois/burghers class of pre-1792 Geneva (the earliest entry dates to 1339):


 * A. Covelle, Le livre des bourgeois de l'ancienne République de Genève at FamilySearch

Citizenship after 1792
The 1792 revolution in Geneva abolished all distinctions between the different classes in Genevan territory. In December 1792, citizenship was granted to all within the abolished classes, as well as to those domiciled persons whose father was Protestant. From 1794 onward, all citizenships were recorded in a single series, replacing the old registers. The earliest volume is available online:
 * Registre unique de tous les citoyens at the Geneva State Archive; a typed index is at the back of the book

Geneva kept annual lists of newly-naturalized citizens in the series Receuil authentique et chronologique des lois. These volumes are available at the Geneva State Archive until 1934.

The Genevan authorities also tracked foreign residents of the canton. The Geneva State Archive has indexes available onsite of all foreign residents through 1929.

FamilySearch Microfilmed/Digitized Records
All parish records have been microfilmed and have been digitized. These records may have a restriction for use only at a FamilySearch Center near you.

Instructions:
 * 1) Click on Switzerland, Genève FamilySearch Catalog.
 * 2) Open the list "Places within Switzerland, Genève". Select your town.
 * 3) A list of record categories will open up. Click on "Church records".
 * 4) A list of available records will appear. Click on the record title you are interested in searching.
 * 5) Scroll down to the list of microfilm numbers. 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.

Reading the Records

 * French Genealogical Word List
 * [[Media:Swiss_Genealogical_Word_List_approved.pdf|Swiss Dialect Genealogical Word List]]

Search Strategy
This search strategy will help you determine what to write for. Limit tour requests to just one of these steps at a time. Once you have established that the parish is cooperative and perhaps more willing to do more extensive research (for a fee), you might be able to ask them for more at a time.
 * Search for the relative or ancestor you selected.
 * When you find his birth record, search for the births of his brothers and sisters.
 * Next, search for the marriage of his parents. The marriage record will have information that will often help you find the birth records of the parents.
 * You can estimate the ages of the parents and determine a birth year to search for their birth records.
 * Search the death registers for all known family members.
 * Repeat this process for both the father and the mother, starting with their birth records, then their siblings' births, then their parents' marriages, and so on.
 * If earlier generations (parents, grandparents, etc.) do not appear in the records, search neighboring parishes.