Have you reached a “brick wall” in your genealogy research? Onsite genealogy research in Norway may just be the key to extending your Norwegian ancestry. We have genealogists in Norway who can help!
Challenges in Norwegian Genealogy Research
Norwegian records are organized on the local level, so identifying the town of origin is essential, before conducting any research in Norway. While the Norwegian archives have digitized many records, including church records, more specialized records are held in local archives. These include court and tax records, land records after 1865, and other records that must be accessed onsite at the archives.
Because of variations in name spellings and the fact that many names are interchangeable with one or more other names, it can be difficult to distinguish which ancestor is yours in the record collections. In earlier time periods, children were given a surname based on their father’s given name (ie: a man named Olaf might have a son named Johan Olaffson and a daughter named Anna Olaffsdatter. Johan might then have son named after his father – but his name would be Olaf Johanson). Also, a second surname was often used, and this name designated the farm that the family lived on. If they moved to another farm their second surname would change. It is important to be aware of these naming traditions when trying to identify ancestral families. However, it is also important to know that not all families followed the naming traditions, so you can’t ever assume that yours did! There are several things you can do to be sure you have identified the correct ancestral family, including comparing occupations, building full families and mapping out where they lived.
Our Team of Professional Genealogists Can Help
Our team of experts have experience in Norwegian genealogy research, reading the Gothic script handwriting of pre-1900 records, and tracing ancestral lines as far back as possible. If you have Norwegian ancestry, our professionals can track down the city/town of origin of your ancestors and identify where the records for that place are currently kept. Our genealogists in Norway can then visit that location to obtain any documents that are needed.
Onsite Archive Access in Norway
Our onsite genealogy researchers have access to the following archives, repositories and libraries in Norway to help track down the records you need to extend your Norwegian family history:
- Riksarkivet (National Archive)
- For Østfold, Akershus, and Oslo counties (Fylker)
- IKA Østfold Interkommunale Arkivselskap, Sarpsborg
- Byarkivet i Frederikstad (City Archive in Frederikstad)
- For Buskerud, Vestfold, and Telemark Counties (Fylker)
- Statsarkivet i Kongsberg (State Archive in Kongsberg)
- Vestfoldarkivet (Vestfold Archives)
- For Oppland and Hedemark counties (Fylker)
- Fylkesarkivet i Oppland (County Archive in Oppland)
- For Aust-Agder and Vest-Agder counties (Fylker)
- Interkommunalt Arkiv i Vest-Agder i Kristiansand (Inter-municipal Archive in Vest-Agder in Kristiansand)
- Kuben, Aust-Agder Museum og Arkiv (Kuben, Aust-Agder Museum and Archive)
- For Rogaland County (Fylker)
- Stavanger Byarkiv (Stavanger City Archive)
- IKA Interkommunalt Arkiv i Rogaland (Inter-municipal Archive in Rogaland)
- For Hordaland, Bergen, and Sogn og Fjordane counties (Fylker)
- Fylkesarkivet i Sogn & Fjordane (County Archive in Sogn & Fjordane)
- Hordaland Fylkeskommune arkiv (County Municipal Archive in Hordaland)
- IKA Interkommunalt arkiv i Hordaland (Inter-municipal archive in Hordaland)
- Bergen Byarkiv (Bergen City Archive)
- For Møre og Romsdal, Sør-Trøndelag, Nord-Trøndelag, and Nordland counties (Fylker)
- IKA Trøndelag (Inter-municipal Archive in Trøndelag)
- Arkiv i Nordland (Archive in Nordland)
- IKA Møre & Romsdal Arkiv (Inter-municipal Archive Møre & Romsdal)
- For Troms and Finnmark counties (Fylker)
- Tromsø byarkiv (Tromsø City Archive)
- IKA Interkommunalt Arkiv Troms
- Samisk Arkiv /Sámi Arkiiva (The Sámi Archives)
- Nasjonalbiblioteket (National Library)
- Bergen Offentlige Bibliotek (Bergen Public Library)
- Deichmanske Bibliotek (Deichman Library)
- Det Norske Utvandrersenteret (The Norwegian Emigration Center)
- Hammerfest Library
- Norsk Lokalhistorisk Institutt (Norwegian Local History Institute)
- Sølvberget, Stavanger Library and Culture (Silver Mountain Library and Cultural Center)
- Stormen Library
- Tønsberg and Nøtterøy Public Library
- University of Bergen Library
- Vennesla Library and Culture House
- Voss Library