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For information about records for non-Christian religions in Norway, go to the Religious Records page.

Historical Background
Christianity came to Norway around 1152 to 1153 in the form of the Catholic church. The church was organized with an archbishop in Nidaros (now Trondheim), with ten bishop seats under him: four in Norway, two in Iceland, one in Greenland, one in the Faeroe Islands, one in the Orkney Islands, and one in the Hebrides Islands and Isle of Man.

From the time of the Reformation in 1536, Norway became a Lutheran nation. From then until 1843 it was against the law to practice the Roman Catholic religion in Norway. Notable exceptions include Catholic congregations in Fredrikstad (since 1682), Kristiansand (since 1686), and Oslo (Kristiania) (since 1843). A few Quakers were also allowed to live near Stavanger in 1826, provided that they did not move out of the area.

The Norwegian government recognized only the state church prior to 1845, when it became legal to organize churches of other denominations. St. Olav's Catholic congregation in Oslo was organized that year. Its church building was completed in 1856, the same year Catholic missionary work was started in Northern Norway, with Alta as its seat. This work, also called the North Pole Mission (Nordpolmisjon), was abolished in 1869, and resumed its seat in Oslo.

There are no church records from the pre-Reformation times in Norway. Therefore, the earliest church records available are the Lutheran church records.

At a Congress of Deans held in April 1668, a resolution was adopted to introduce keeping parish records in Norway. However, it was not until 1688 that record keeping was required by law. Some pastors began keeping records much earlier. The earliest parish record dates from 1623. Church records for the state church are available in most areas beginning about 1700.

In 1845, the Nonconformist Act recognized Christian dissenter churches; however, the act required that everyone from all denominations notify the pastor of their local Lutheran parish of all births and marriages. The Nonconformist Act did not apply to Jews until 1851, when a constitutional provision repealed the exclusion. Few Norwegians belong to nonconformist religions. In 1989, only six percent of the population listed their religion as other than Lutheran.

A uniform system for keeping church records was introduced by royal ordinance in December 1812. The use of a standard form began during the winter of 1814. This form was replaced by a new one in 1820, and another in 1870. The form adopted in 1870 is basically the same one still in use today.

Because of concerns over possible destruction of church books by fire or loss, the Ordinance of 1812 required that a duplicate register be kept in a separate place. These records, called klokker bøker (clerk books), were kept by the parish clerk. The clerk books are designated as such in the FamilySearch Catalog by the use of "kl" to the left of the volume and time period of the record.

Lutheran Church Records
The Lutheran church records are the primary source for genealogical research in Norway. Church records [kirkebøker] provide excellent information on names, dates, and places of births, marriages, and deaths. Almost everyone who lived in Norway was recorded in a church record.

Records of births, marriages, and deaths are commonly called vital records because critical events in a person's life are recorded in them. Church records are vital records made by the pastor or his assistant. They are often referred to as parish registers or church books and include records of christenings, marriages, and burials. In addition, church records may include lists of members, confirmations, marriage banns, and accounts of people moving in and out of the parish.

Church records are crucial for Norwegian research. The Evangelical Lutheran Church became the state church (Statskirken) or national church (Den Norske Kirke, lit. The Norwegian Church), after the Reformation in 1536. As such, it is an arm of the national government. The church keeps the vital records for the government.  Exploring Church Records in Norway - Research tutorial at FamilySearch

Historical Background
Den Norske Kirke (The Norwegian Church), or Statskirken (the State Church) was separated from the state May 21st 2012. Prior to this date there was no separation of church and state. From this date the Norwegian Lutheran Church is not an arm of the state and does not have any more power than any other church (religion) in Norway.

After the Reformation in 1536 the Evangelical Lutheran Church became the state or national church of Norway, and as such was an arm of the national government. The head of the church was a cabinet member, Kirke- og Undervisningsminister (Secretary of Church and Education). There was no ordinary civil registration organized and in earlier times all registration was entrusted to the ministers of the Evangelical Church, and up to May of 2012 it was the clergy who by entries in the church registers were responsible for the greatest part of this work. Most of these records are available online at Digitalarkivet (Digital Archives) of Norway; as well as on microfilm at the Family History Library.

You may also be able to find more recent family by contacting the Folkeregister (Register of Vital Statistics) but only if you are a direct line descendent.

There was no civil registration organized in earlier times when all registration was entrusted to the minister of the Evangelical Church, and for the purpose of this class these are the records we will learn about.

Many people have the misconception that there always were records kept, and that something has happened to the earlier ones. One common belief is that when the Catholic Church was outlawed, and the Lutheran Church took over after the Reformation, the Catholic priests took the records with them when they left. This is not so, there were no records. In many cases the last Catholic minister was the first Lutheran minister. Before 1876 there was no form of civil registration, but that year a law was passed to send all information about births, death, and marriage to Statistsk Sentralbyrå (Bureau of Central Statistics) for statistical purposes, and in 1905 a law was passed that a copy of the ministers records of birth, death, and marriages should be sent to the bureau, but this information is not available for public use. In 1915 the government established Folkeregistre (Register of Vital Statistics) on a community/city level, but the information there is not available to the public.

Responsibility of Record Keeping
The highest level of ecclesiastical jurisdiction is the bidpedømme (diocese), and the next level down is the prosti (deanery). These are of little importance in regards to genealogical research. The next level is the prestegjeld (clerical district), then the sogn (parish). The clerical district and the parish are the ones we will use in searching the church records for Norway. A clerical district may contain one or more parishes.

Record keeping varies from one clerical district to the next. Thus in some, all parishes within the clerical district were kept in the same book, while in others, the records of the different parishes were kept in separate books. The sogneprest (parish priest) was the head of the clerical district. Sometimes he had a residerende kappelan (curate) serving with him in the annex parish. A klokker (sexton) – literally translated this means “bell ringer” resided in each parish. He was also the gravedigger, and sometimes the record keeper, teacher and general assistant to the minister. From 1814 a second set of books was kept by the sexton. This was discontinued in 1820, but in many clerical districts the duplicate recordkeeping was continued, and then it became compulsory again in 1870.

A set recorded which was recorded by the parish priest, may not have been sent to the archives for filing until 80 years after the last entry was made. If a set of records (usually post 1880) was not sent to the archive, you may contact the parish priest directly. The duplicate set of records, kept by the parish clerk should have been deposited in the archives as soon as they were completed.

Language of the Records
The language used in the early church records was the accepted written Norwegian, which was at that time closer to Danish than many of the different spoken Norwegian dialects. Most ministers were educated in Copenhagen. The German influence on education was strong throughout Europe, and the script used in the church records in many countries was Gothic. This was also the case in Norway, until the middle of the 19th century.
 * Norwegian Genealogical Word List.

Many Latin phrases were used as well. Some of these you will need to become familiar with.
 * Latin Genealogical Word List


 * [[Media:Parish_Register_Headings_for_Norway.pdf|Parish Register Headings for Norway]]: This pdf gives the translation of headings for the records in different time periods.  When a record is written with labeled columns it is much easier to search. Much of the material you read in each column will just be names and dates, since the meaning of those names (child, parents, godparents, minister) only has to be read once, in the column heading.

Dates in the Records
Dates, in a great number of parish registers, will be recorded according to the church calendar, with Latin names on Sunday and Feast days. Often the Latin name for a Sunday would indicate to the priest what scripture was to be the topic of his sermon of the day. It will be helpful to learn how to look up the feast days in the calendar that translates these dates to modern dates.
 * Norway Feast Day Calendar

Quality of Records
The quality of the records depends on the person who kept them, and the conditions where the records were kept. Some are very good, even early on, some are more difficult to use because of the handwriting, the recording habits of the recorder, or because they were damaged by moisture or heat.