Tunisia Census

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Tunisia

Census Records

Resources

Online Resources

• 1884-1978 Recensement (Census) Records at the National Archives of Tunisia

Offices to Contact

National Archives of Tunisia
122 Boulevard 9 Avril 1938
Tunis 1030
Tunisia
Telephone: 71 560 556
Email: archives.nationales@archives.nat.tn
Website

• Visiting the archives (video, French)

Background

Tunisia was ruled by the Ottoman Empire (1574-1881) and was under the French protectorate (1881-1956) until gaining its independence in 1956. Censuses were undertaken during both the Ottoman and French periods and can be found in the catalog of the National Archives of Tunisia. Records pertaining to native Tunisian populations were repatriated to Tunisia by the French after Tunisia gained independence.

Types of Censuses

Population Registers (Nüfus)
Population (Nüfus) registers were recorded by the Ottoman Empire and can be used to establish family groups and individual identity. These registers were compiled in an initial census survey; thereafter vital information was added as births, marriages, and deaths occurred from approximately 1876 to 1915. Supplemental registration of births, marriages, divorces, and deaths were sometimes added to the register itself or sometimes compiled in separate registers.

Census Registers
Census registers from 1921-present are excellent for family and relationship linkage. Approximately 60% of the population is included with generally good reliability, but some gaps may exist.

Information Recorded in the Records

National Archives of Tunisia

• Ottoman period - The National Archives contains censuses conducted by the Ottomans to ascertain the number of adult males who could be conscripted to serve in the military or be taxed. There are lists of Arabs, Berbers, and Turks during the Ottoman occupation. These records reportedly have information on household members, sex, birth date, residence, craft or occupation, marital status, marriages, deaths, lists of poor families, Europeans living in Tunisia before the time of the French protectorate, etc. Coverage of the population is estimated to be around 80%, with less representation in remote areas.

• French period - These censuses identify names of parents, prove other relationships, and are very useful for linking generations. Census information may include individual names, relationships, number of households for each city, town or village, unmarried mature males, widows who were heads of households, French colonial land and property owners, and Tunisian land and property owners.The National Archives has a census of the Tunisian population conducted by the French in 1936 (ref #FPC-SG2-0054-0017 bis).

• Modern period - These censuses identify names of parents, prove other relationships, and are very useful for linking generations. Census information my include individual names, relationships, number of households for each city, town or village, unmarried mature males, widows who were heads of households, French colonial land and property owners, and Tunisian land and property owners.