Denmark Project Space Page

Profile managers: Missy Berryann [send private message] and Denmark Project WikiTree [send private message]

This is a Free-Space Profile associated with Denmark Project. For the Denmark Project Page, please visit Denmark Project page

Project History

The project were started by a group of people interested in collaborating on things of interest to people with Danish Roots.

Many thanks to leader emeritus Lena Svensson and leader emeritus Doug Straiton who co-lead this project in its early years.

The project was then without any active leader and was mainly run by the Project Coordinator Mary Ann Brandt Jensen.

During October 2020, Project Denmark became a subproject of the Nordic Project. The current position of Project Coordinator is open.

Country History

Although there were periods of time when much of Norway and Sweden were under common rule with Denmark, this project focuses primarily on the geographic areas within the Denmark portion of the Denmark-Norway union after the 1660 Treaty of Copenhagen. There are already separate formal projects for Sweden and Norway. There will naturally be overlap between the Sweden Project, the Norway Project and the Denmark Project. All three projects, along with the Finland Project, are actually subprojects of the Nordic Project which provides the structure and WikiTree Leadership support for all of us to work collaboratively with each other.

Between 1536 and 1537, Denmark's King created the Danish National Church and decreed that its version of Lutheranism was the official state religion. Other religions were repressed for several centuries.^[1] In 1645 and 1646, decrees were issued requiring all parishes to keep records of births, marriages and deaths or burials. Practically speaking, aside from royalty and the nobility, genealogical research is virtually impossible in Denmark prior to the existence of these church records. Also for reasons of privacy, records for the most recent years are not yet available. So at least initially, this project will focus on the period from about 1600 to 1970. There are a very few parishes with earlier records which we will go back a bit further on. But the earliest surviving church records are from the city of Naksov, beginning in 1572, so we should not need to get into the area of pre-1500 profiles and projects that focus on them. All the earlier Danish royalty and nobility for whom records exist will probably fit within the European Aristocrats project.

History of the Administrative Division of Geographic Areas in Denmark

Parishes (Sogne)

Parishes (Sogne) have been the most significant geographic unit for genealogical purposes throughout most of Denmark's recorded history. Through time, they also appear to be the most stable location designations. However, as parish (sogn) names are not unique, they cannot be used in isolation. Beginning in 1662, the parishes (sogne) were grouped into 49 counties (amter). In 1793, the counties (amter) were reorganized and reduced to 24. Within the counties (amter) and even before the counties (amter) were created in 1662, smaller groups of parishes were grouped together into districts called herreds. The herreds appear to go back to the period before the Reformation and before the start of this Project.

As research on a family goes back in time, it is essential to be able to determine the parish history of the areas where members of the family lived in order to find the older records. Sources which will be useful in our categorization task include:

• Family Search - Denmark Parish Lists from 1794-1970 Period - This page leads to several other pages grouped alphabetically purportedly listing the parishes as they existed in 1970. Be aware, however, that the list includes churches from other Christian denominations and is clearly missing some parishes known to have been active in 1970. So this list should not be used as a sole list of parishes in 1970. The parishes are listed in a chart with columns for what amt and herred it was in during the 1794-1970 organization. There is a column showing what amt the parish was in if it existed during the 1662-1793 organization which is difficult information to find elsewhere. That column is mislabeled len instead of amt. Len is the name for the administrative districts the parishes were in prior to the creation of the first amt in 1662. There are also columns for the post 1970 counties and regions but this information is not filled in. There are often remarks in the region column about when a particular parish experienced a fire or other loss of records.

• [KORT TIL KIRKEN - useful information on all Danish People Churches]. This site is in Danish, but translates well with Google translate. The information is arranged in several ways. Under the alphabetical list of churches, the information for each church includes what kommune, region, pastorat, deanery, and diocese the church is currently located in, when the current building was built, what parish the church belongs to and the history of the formation of the parish from other parishes, parishes which have split off, and dissolution or merger into other parishes, and the herred and county the church site was located in under the 1970 organization. It also contains links to aerial maps with GPS coordinates for the church, photographs of the church, a parish map, the parish web site, and other sites with information about the church or parish.

• Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark: From this web site, there are links out to the current dioceses and below that to the deaneries and on to the individual church websites. Most individual church websites have information on the history of the church/parish and interesting photos.

Herreder

• Hundreds of Denmark: English Wikipedia page for herreder in Denmark. It contains a list of 155 herreder and the counties (amter) they belonged to in 1970. However, the list is likely incomplete as the first paragraph says there were about 170 herreds in 1970. There are no links out from this page to individual parishes.

• Liste over herreder i Danmark: This Danish Wikipedia page is organized by the 24 counties (amter) used from 1793 to 1970. Each link leads to a section of the page listing the herreder for that county (amt). Each herred is then linked to a page with a list of parishes (sogne) for that herred.

• Herrider i Danmark: This Danish Wikipedia page contains an image of Johannes Steenstrups map of districts and pursuits in the Middle Ages. It shows the boundaries and names of the Herreder prior to 1662. Be aware that it includes the areas of Halland, Skane and Blekyng on the Sweden/Norway peninsula which were later lost to Sweden.

Sysler (Before 1537)

• "Syssel," Wikipedia, (https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syssel : accessed 19 May 2017) - Danish Wikipedia page listing the sysler which existed in Denmark in the late middle ages. They were abolished in 1536.

Len (Before 1662)

• "Danske len", Wikipedia, (https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danske_len : accessed 19 May 2017) - Danish Wikipedia page listing the len which existed in Denmark at the time the monarchy became an absolute monarchy between in 1660. There are links from a few of the len to separate pages for that particular len.

• Kristian Sofus August Erslev, Danmark-Norges len og lensmaend 1596-1660. (Samfundet fro dansk-norsk genealogi og personalhistorie: 1885) (https://archive.org/details/danmarknorgeslen00ersl : accessed 11 May 2017)

• Kristian Sofus August Erslev, Danmarks len og lensmænd i det sextende aarhundrede (1513-1596) (Hjelmstjerne Rosencroneske stiftelse: 1879) (https://archive.org/details/danmarkslenogle00stifgoog : accessed 11 May 2017)

Amter (Counties) (about 1662- about 1793)

• Danmarks amter (1662-1793): Danish Wikipedia page listing the 5 counties (amter) for the Southern Jutland region which comprised the Duchy of Schlesvig and the 44 counties (amter) for the main section of Denmark during the period from 1662-1793. Each of the main 44 counties (amter) and one Schlesvig county (amt) are linked to individual pages for each county. Those pages usually describe which len, former amter, or other regions were combined to form the county in 1662 and what county(ies) the area went into in the 1970 reform. Many pages include links to the herreder pages for the herreder which were included in the county (amt) which often link in turn to pages listing the parishes (sogne) which made up those herreder.

Amter (Counties) (about 1793-1970)

• Danmarks amter (1793-1970): Danish Wikipedia page listing the 25 counties (amter) in use in Denmark in various periods between 1793 and 1970. Includes information on dates and substance of changes to individual counties (amter) between 1793 and 1970. As you follow the links on from this page, they lead to pages on each county, then on each herred, and then on each parish. At various places along the way, information is included on where that area of the country was placed in previous organizations. These pages are all in Danish, but a rough translation can be obtained with Google translate.

1970 Local Government Reform

• Danmarks amter (1970-2006): Danish Wikipedia page providing a list of the 13 counties (amter) and 3 municipalities (kommuner) with county authority during the period from 1970-2006. Each county (amt) is linked to a page for that county (amt) listing the municipalities (kommuner) included in that county (amt) and other information concerning what happened to the territory in the 2007 local government reorganization.

• Liste over danske kommuner 1970-2006: Danish Wikipedia page provides a brief overview of the local government reform of 1970 followed by a list of the 277 municipalities (kommuner) resulting from that reform organized according to the 13 counties (amter) by which they were grouped and an extra category for those municipalities (kommuner) that did not come under a county (amt). Each municipality (kommune) is linked to a separate page for the municipality (kommune). Many, but not all, of the linked municipality (kommune) pages contain information about the former parishes (sogne), herreder and/or municipalities which were included in that kommune.

2007 Local Government Reform

• List of 98 Kommuner and Their Corresponding 5 Regioner: Danish Wikipedia page provides a brief overview of the local government reform of 2007 followed by a table of the 98 kommuner created through that reform and their corresponding regions. Each kommune is linked to a page which usually describes the municipalities from the 1970 reform which make up a part of that kommune and sometimes other information. Each region is also linked to a page for the region with a map and additional information on the region and its functions.

Place Name Variations and Spellings

Wikitree's standard is to use the name and spelling for a place name used by the people in that time. With the fluidity of spelling in many original source records and in different languages like København (Contemporary Danish), Kjøbenhavn (Pre-1906 Danish), Copenhagen (English), Kopenhagen (German), Hafnia (Latin) and many Wikitree users, including members of this project, not being fluent in Danish, guidance on place names and spellings is often needed. Known sources useful in determining the usual spelling of a Danish place name and finding other information needed to categorize the place name include:

• Danish Place-Name Commission, List of Authorized Place-names and Their Spellings: This gazetteer is available in two formats. It can be downloaded in pdf format from here or it can be used as an interactive database from the Commission's website. Searches can be limited to a particular parish (sogn), a particular municipality (kommune) or type of location. It is also possible to search for a list of approved place-names within a municipality (kommune) or parish(sogn). It allows for the use of an * character as a wildcard at the beginning or end of a string of at least three characters. This feature is very useful for finding similar place-names.

• Krabsens stednavnebase: This website is a searchable database of almost 60,000 Danish place names as they existed in 1970. The top level search page is in both Danish and English. Search results are only in Danish. A search on a specific place name will return a list of places that satisfy the search with the amt, herred, and parish for the places in 1970. Alternatively, a search on a parish name will return a list of all place names in the database for that parish.

• Danish Family Search Place Name Search: When using the place name search function, the results display the parish name and the current kommune, but not the herred and older county name. When working down through the map, which is based on the 1970 counties and herreds, it is possible to get a list of place names for a particular parish in a manner that also shows the herred and 1970 county.

• Family Search Schleswig-Holstein Place Names: This Family Search wiki addresses the special issues with the Schleswig-Holstein area of southern Denmark where many places changed names as control of the territory changed especially from 1867-1920 when areas were under Prussian control.

• Place Name Etymology: Common Elements in Danish Place Names: This site helps to explain common patterns and parts of Danish place names which can also be useful in figuring out the most commonly used spelling for a place.

Wars and Military

List of Danish Regiments and Military Units Since the 15th Century

Collecting Useful Resources

How Tos for Danish Genealogy

Original Record Sources

• Danish Family Search : Has images which can be browsed and which are slowly being transcribed into searchable digital forms for Danish Church Books, Censuses, School Protocols, Military Conscription Rolls and the Police Registration Archive.

• Danish National Archives: Also contains images of Danish Church Books and Censuses. The viewer is different from Danish Family Search and sometimes things can be picked out in one that are harder to read in the other. Also has basic information in both Danish and English on Danish naming conventions, reading old script, and how to get started with Danish genealogy research.

• Muncipal Archives
  • Aalborg Stadsarkiv (does not appear to have much online)
  • Aarhus Stadsarkiv (appears to be just getting started with putting material online)
  • Frederikshavn Stadsarkiv (appears to have scanned a considerable amount of material mostly in pdf format, but it is difficult to tell how much is searchable and how. Expect to have to browse through material by organization and year.)
  • Københavns Stadsarkiv (includes records of burials in København cemeteries (1805-1942); business licenses (1860-1932); welfare records (1799-1940); maps; police registers; Civil marriages 1851-1922; Lysninger (bride's register) 1922-1965; Separations and Divorces 1806-1857)
    • Burials in Copenhagen 1860-1940 Contain images of the burial protocols for the Copenhagen Municipality 1860 to 1940. They are not transcribed (yet) so it is necessary to look through the pages manually.
    • The Copenhagen Police Registers A searchable database with all people living in Copenhagen municipality from 1892 till 1923. Each adult man is supposed to have one card which was updated every 6 months with his address and other family members. Adult women living alone would have their own card, but are transferred to the husbonds card upon marrage. Children are listed from 10 years of age. The original cards are scanned and transcribed to make it searchable. It was common to move frequently, therefore this database is very useful to track a family and based on their address you can find the Parish they lived in at a given time which will allow you to look up the births of their children.
  • Vejle Stadsarkiv (Vejle appears to have scanned a great many documents but they are generally not searchable. There are some rudimentary groupings by subject and year, but there does not appear to be a way to search cases by name.)

• Salldata - Appears to have many of the same source records as Danish Family Search, but the viewer is definitely different. Also has some other interesting items like a collection of Danish laws important to genealogy, a collection of old postcards, and a good many scanned books including some genealogies and old editions of important works on Danish geography. (Please add more to this description as you explore this valuable source.)

• FamilySearch Historical Record Collections - Denmark All historical record collections for Denmark at FamilySearch.org (free).

• Register over døde i Danmark - A register of dead in Denmark from 1943-1969.

Other Danish Genealogy Sources

• Danish Demographic Database The database consist of transcribed and searchable censuses, more parishes are being added frequently. So far the database has the entire 1787, 1801, 1834, 1840, 1845, 1880 censuses transcribed. The 1860 census is near completion. Transcribed records

• The Danish Emigration Archive (Copenhagen Police Emigration Protocols) A database that consist of all people that emigrated from Denmark in the period 1869 to 1908 on a ticket bought in Denmark.

• FamilySearch Denmark Genealogy Wiki Guide to Denmark ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

• Wiki for Slægtsforskere: et projekt af Danskeaner.dk: The site describes itself as a lexicon of information about Denmark primarily before 1950 of interests of genealogists compiled from publicly available material of free copyright. Contains descriptions of each herred and parish from the 3rd edition of Trap Denmark which is now in the public domain. Also includes a list of the priest assigned to the parish over its history. (Note: This is a work in progress. It is not complete yet. All the counties and herreds that existed at the time the 3rd edition of Trap was published have been entered. But not all the parishes are complete at this time. Those that are complete, provide very useful information.)

• Netudgave af Wibergs præstehistorie: This is a digital version of an important historical work documenting the priests assigned to the various parishes in Denmark from the 1500's forward. It has been supplemented from additional works to fill in areas that were left out. As the introduction describes, it is not easy to use, but it contains important information.

• Library of the Danish Genealogical Society An online library of over 10.000 titles with focus on genealogy, history and memoires.

• Kalender for Kirkelige højtider i Danmark - A calendar of church days in Denmark through the times.

Maps and Location Aids

• Autoriserede stednavne i Danmark (Authorized place names in Denmark) database. This version includes several interactive maps which can be overlayed including maps of sogne and 2007 kommuner boundaries, current road maps, aerial maps, and historical maps from several periods including Prussian maps from the period when Slesvig was held by Prussia. The site is in Danish, but Google translate works well with most of the site. Just remember to return to the original Danish version to see the proper spellings of the place names.

• Old Maps of Denmark: This site has many old maps of Denmark which it allows you to overlay on current maps so you can figure out the current location of the place where your ancestors livedv.

• Johannes Steenstrups, Kort over Danmark's Ældeste Inddeling (1900) (https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fil:Administrative_division_of_denmark_in_medieval_times.jpg : accessed 11 May 2017): This map shows the boundaries and names of the Herreds prior to 1662. Be aware that it includes the areas of Halland, Skane and Blekyng on the Sweden/Norway peninsula which were later lost to Sweden.

• DigDag.dk A map of the administrative areas of Denmark through the ages.

Naming Resources

• Danish Naming Conventions and Related Wikitree Name Field Guidelines

Ideas for Things to Work On

Working the Profiles

Remember that wikitree is a collaborative environment. There may be others with an interest in the Profiles under consideration.

The best place to start is with your own ancestors. Run over the profiles of your own, and connected profiles and see if you can improve them. Look to add:

• Sogne Categories:
  • Adding sogne categories to all profiles related to Denmark is the probably the highest priority of Project Denmark
  • These categories are for the sogne (parishes) where a person was born, baptized, confirmed, married, were recorded in the census, had children baptized, or died. They are extremely important to genealogy in Denmark where the long use of a patronymic naming system and a limited number of given names means that surnames cannot be used to group family members together.
  • Use the category selection tool to add categories for appropriate sogne where the categories have already been created.
  • Where the appropriate sogne category is not on the list, please contact Nordic Project - Categories Team to get the needed category created so it can be added to the profile.
  • If the profile contains no evidence of the appropriate sogne, add [[Category: Denmark Project Needs Sogn]] . This will add a maintenance category so other members of the project will know more research is needed.

• Stickers: Add one of our two stickers to help us identify the profiles as being within our project's Sphere of Interest.
  • Copy the following into the biography of profiles of those born in Denmark: {{Danish Native}}.
  • Copy the following into the biography of profiles of those with Danish ancestors: {{Danish Roots}}.

• Dates:
  • Add sourced birth and death dates if they are not there.
  • Add estimated dates where there are no dates and no sources to support specific dates. Please add the {{Estimated Date}} template when estimating dates. See Research Note Box.

• Sources:
  • Add sources to profiles when you can. Use in-line citations to support specific facts in the biography, especially for facts that are essential for family research - birth, marriages and children are key.
  • Add {{Unsourced|Denmark}} to the following profiles.
    • Profiles with no sources
    • Profiles with only references to unsourced trees such as Ancestry Family Trees, Geni profiles, my Heritage trees and Geneanet
    • Profiles which rely on first hand knowledge or say something similar to "sources will be added later by"

• Maintenance Categories: If you find other elements missing from the profile, such as a biography, please add the appropriate one of the following categories
  • [[Category: Denmark Project Needs Biography]]
  • [[Category: Denmark Project Needs Footnotes]] (This one is used for profiles which have facts and sources, but inline references (sometimes called footnotes) are needed to show which sources support which specific facts.)

• Biographies: Build a biography that provides, at a minimum, enough information to ensure the profile does not get incorrectly merged.

• Last Name at Birth:
  • Please consult Danish Naming Conventions and Related Wikitree Name Field Guidelines as Danish naming laws and customs are complex and not a good match for Wikitree name fields.
  • Check the LNAB. If it is not there see if you can find it. If you know it then please send a message to the PM, with a source, and they can change it. If you get no response, please message one of the Project Leads.

• Important: If you find a profile that you believe to be of significance to the project and warrants more detailed examination or attention from a group in the project please message one of the Leaders. They will adopt the profile on behalf of the project, add the "Project Box" {{Denmark}} and raise a note on G2G, if needed, for further examination. For contentious profiles the project may also "Protect" the profile.

Or watch the feeds to see where best to add value. You can find these here:

• Danish Native feed
• Danish Ancestors feed
• Denmark Management feed for those under active management.
• Denmark Maintenance Categories