Genealogy records help Estonians trace their ancestors

Historical land surveys, surname records and population registers give Estonians important tools for tracing their ancestors, genealogist Fred Puss told ERR programme Ringvaade.

About 300 years ago, authorities began recording data on Estonia’s inhabitants in land survey books known as adramaarevisjonid. The surveys assessed the amount of cultivated land and recorded peasants living on it.

“The new owner wanted to know how much land had come under his control and how much tax he could collect,” said Puss, head of the Estonian Personal History Centre.

The survey books have since been published and are valuable sources for researching places and individuals in Estonia. Many people can find the names of their first farms or ancestors in them, Puss said.

In 1826, the process of assigning surnames in Estonia was completed. Puss said it was compulsory, although some people may not have attended or known about it. Their names were nevertheless recorded.

On July 1, 1926, the state took over the nationwide registration of births, deaths and marriages from churches. Clergy could continue to serve as civil-status officials, while officials at city and municipal governments also recorded these events.

The historical registers have since been transferred to the National Archives and digitised. Each large register contained about 1,000 pages, with one page opened for each person. The pages listed a person’s parents, spouses and children, covering three generations on a single page. The records were created only for Estonian citizens.

Information on everyone born up to 1949 is publicly available through the National Archives’ family register database. The system continued until 1949, when it was discontinued because the June deportation had taken place and the information no longer reflected reality, Puss said.

Editor: Annika Remmel