Iceland Church Census - FamilySearch Historical Records

Iceland

What Is In This Collection?
The church censuses are annual lists of persons living in each parish. The lists were created by the parish priest and were intended to record the education of the children in the household and the Christian behavior of each person. Indexing of this collection by FamilySearch began 23 November 2016. Indexes will be published as they are completed.

These records will show you the composition of each household in a parish. These communities were very small and there was a high degree of interaction with people on related farms both in their personal lives and in their labors to maintain the farmstead. It is possible that persons on adjacent farms may be related by blood or marriage.

These records are arranged by county (sýsla), then parish (sókn), then by the farm or village. Each book contains several years. Households are listed together, but not all persons in a household may be related. Generally the information includes the individual's given and surnames, age and occupation. These records were largely discontinued in 1953 with the introduction of the National Registry (Þjóðskrár).

Reading These Records
These records are written in Icelandic. For help reading them see Icelandic Genealogical Word List and Scandinavian Handwriting.

What Can these Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records: It may also include information about when they were confirmed members of the Lutheran church and how well they can read the Bible and catechism.
 * Name of the farm where the family lives
 * Name of each person
 * Age
 * Occupation

Coverage Table
The table below lists what parishes will be included in this collection. The start and end dates indicate the earliest and latest years available. These ranges may not be consecutive and there may be considerable gaps in the records.

Inventory
For a detailed list with links to images can be found at Iceland Church Census Inventory

How Do I Search This Collection?
You can search the index or view the images. Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * The name of the person
 * The name of the parish where they were living

You may need to search the collection by image. Find the images for the parish and year you want and examine the entries for other localities in the parish to see if the person you are looking for is living at another residence. It is not uncommon for young persons to be working on other farms separate from their families. Older persons as well may move to be supported by an adult child or relative. You may need to search the records of another locality and check the parish burial records to see if the person had died since the last time they were registered. Keep in mind:
 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * Your ancestor’s patronymic surname may be abbreviated. Women’s surnames are frequently abbreviated to end with only the letter d rather than dóttir. Men’s surnames may be abbreviated to end only with the letter s rather than søn.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found Who I was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Use the age given in the record to find an approximate birth year to begin searching church records
 * Use the birth year of the oldest child as a starting point to search for the marriage of the parents
 * Evaluate the information given in the record. This information may give you new details about the person.

I Can’t Find Who I’m Looking For, What Now?
Also, consider alternate spellings of the person’s names.
 * Try searching by surname only
 * The person may be recorded with an abbreviated or variant form of their name
 * Remember that spelling was generally not standardized until the early part of the 20th century
 * Check gazetteers to see if there are other places with similar names and check there.

Research Helps
The following articles will help you research your family in Iceland.
 * Record Finder
 * Iceland Research Tips and Strategies

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.

Islândia, Censo da Igreja (Registros Históricos do FamilySearch)