TEL AVIV, Israel & LEHI, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MyHeritage, the leading global service for family history and DNA testing, announced today the publication of three census collections from Norway, from 1891, 1900, and 1910. MyHeritage has worked on digitizing these collections in partnership with the National Archives of Norway (Arkivverket).
The collections provide robust coverage for Norway’s entire population during a span of two decades and include valuable family history information. While some former Norway censuses were conducted only in select trading centers, these records are more comprehensive. The 6.5 million new records document names, households, dates of birth, marital status, relationships, and residential conditions, making them vital for anyone wishing to explore their Norwegian origins. Their publication marks the first time that Norwegian record collections of such high quality and granularity are available online.
The 1891 and 1900 collections include digital images of the original census documents, while the 1910 collection is an index consisting of transcribed records provided by the National Archives of Norway. The 1900 census was conducted by means that were, at the time, innovative: punch cards, which were then sorted and counted using electric tabulating machines. Of the 2.3 million records in the 1900 collection, 1.9 million records now have digital images of the original documents associated with the census index. Images of the remaining records will likewise be connected to the index in the near future.
Norwegian privacy laws restrict public access to census data for 100 years. Consequently, the 1910 census is the most recent one available to the public. This collection stands out as the first census conducted following the dissolution of Norway’s union with Sweden in 1905. It is also the first Norway census to record full birth dates, rather than only birth years.
Users with family trees on MyHeritage will benefit from Record Matching technology that automatically reveals new information about their ancestors who appear in these records.
With the release of these new collections, MyHeritage now offers approximately 34 million historical records from Norway, including census, baptism, marriage, and burial records. As the Scandinavian market leader for family history research and DNA testing, MyHeritage also offers 136 million records from neighboring Sweden and 105 million records from Denmark. MyHeritage is the only major genealogy company to provide its services and full customer support in all three Scandinavian languages, as well as in Finnish, and offers the greatest potential for new family history discoveries for anyone with Scandinavian origins. It also has the largest user base in Scandinavia and the largest collection of Scandinavian family trees.
“The addition of these censuses from Norway is a testament to MyHeritage’s commitment to digitize and index historical records from all over the world and to make them easily accessible,” said Russ Wilding, Chief Content Officer at MyHeritage. “These records offer a bounty of new information, and they reflect important historical events that made a tremendous impact on life in Norway during these years. They are significant for anyone researching their Norwegian heritage.”
The three new collections are now available on SuperSearch™, MyHeritage’s search engine for its 9.6 billion historical records. Searching the Norway census collections is free. A subscription is required to view the full records and to access Record Matches.
Search the new census collections: www.myheritage.com/norway-census
About MyHeritage
MyHeritage is the leading global service for family history and DNA testing. As technology thought leaders, MyHeritage has transformed family history into an activity that is accessible and instantly rewarding. Its global user community enjoys access to a massive library of historical records, the most internationally diverse collection of family trees, and groundbreaking search and matching technologies. Launched in 2016, MyHeritage DNA is a technologically advanced, affordable DNA test that reveals ethnic origins and previously unknown relatives. Trusted by millions of families, MyHeritage provides an easy way to find new family members, discover ethnic origins, and to treasure family stories, past and present, for generations to come. MyHeritage is available in 42 languages. www.myheritage.com