This genealogical helper is intended for North American English-speaking beginners, who want to find their German ancestors. In order to do successful family research in Germany, it is necessary to have a basic understanding of the configurations of the various parts of Germany at the period of time of the lives of the ancestors. A brief examination of sources and repositories including the FamilySearch website will point the researcher in the right direction. It will be helpful to have some knowledge of the German or Latin languages since many of the documents have been complied in these languages, and with a flared script so resources for translation are discussed. A sample letter written in German, along with an English translation will assist you in case you need to correspond with an institution in Germany.
Course Content
Module 1
Introduction to German Research
Identifying Your Immigrant Ancestor
Who were they?
What was their name?
What was their foreign name?
Identifying Immigrant Dates
Where was your ancestor born?
Additional Identification
Immigration Information
Other Family Members
Religion
Friends & Neighbors
Geographic Clues
Key Elements of German Research
Geography & Place Names
Civil Registration
Church Records
Language & Handwriting
Accessing Records
Published Sources
Advanced Sources & Techniques
Recommended Reading & Resources
Module 2
German History
Sources for German History
Political Divisions Before 1871
Political Divisions 1871-1939
Political Divisions 1945-1992
Political Divisions After 1992
Historical Timelines
Places, Maps & Migrations
Finding the Place
Gazetteers
German Genealogy Covers Much More Than Germany
Migrations
The German Core
Germany/Prussia
Austria
Switzerland
Luxembourg
Liechtenstein
Neighboring Countries
Baltic States
Belgium
Czech Republic
Denmark
France
Hungary
Italy
The Netherlands
Poland
Russia
German Enclaves More Distant Countries
African Colonies
Australia
New Zealand
Canada
Latin America
South Africa
United States
Recommended Reading
Module 3
Reading the Records
Learn to Read the Lettering
Letter Sequence in Typed German Alphabetical Listings
German Gothic Script
Spelling
German Genealogy Word Lists
Headings Used In Church Records In General
Headings Found in Parish Registers
Online Translation Tools
Introduction to Google Translate & Google Chrome
The Google Translate Website
Other Language Helps
Recommended Reading & Resources
Module 4
FamilySearch for German Research
Using FamilySearch
FamilySearch Catalog
Searching the Catalog
German Church Records at FamilySearch
Parish Registers / Kirchenbuch/Kirchenbόcher
Using the Parish Registers
Inventories of Parish Registers for Areas in Germany
FamilySearch Research Wiki
Searching the Wiki
Recommended Reading
Module 5
German Genealogy on the Internet and Beyond
Civil Registrations / Standesamt/Standesδmter
Basic Letter Writing in German Made Easy
Genealogical Records
Land Offices / Amtsgericht
Police Registers
Directories / Adressbόcher
Census / Volkszδhlung
Emigration & Immigration
Military Service Information
When No Location in Germany is Known
Further Research
Parish Registers
Sόd-Schleswig
Holstein
Other Church Denominations
Land Division - Lόbeck in the Freestate
Online Resources
Finding Aids
Genealogy Websites
Genealogy Societies
Finding Archives and Libraries
Recommended Reading & Resources
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