Kenya Emigration and Immigration: Difference between revisions

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|Name=Kenya
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|Records=Emigration and Immigration
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==Online Sources==  
==Online Sources==  
*'''1878-1960''' [https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/1518/?event=_kenya_5123 UK and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960], at Ancestry.com, index and images. ($)
*'''1878-1960''' [https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/1518/?event=_kenya_5123 UK and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960] at Ancestry - index & images ($)
*'''1890-1960''' [https://www.findmypast.com/search/results?sourcecategory=travel%20%26%20migration&keywordsplace=kenya&keywordsplace_proximity=5&sid=999 Passenger Lists Leaving UK 1890-1960] at FindMyPast; index & images ($)
*'''1890-1960''' [https://www.findmypast.com/search/results?sourcecategory=travel%20%26%20migration&keywordsplace=kenya&keywordsplace_proximity=5&sid=999 Passenger Lists Leaving UK 1890-1960] at Findmypast - index & images ($)
*'''1946-1971''' [https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61704/ Free Access: Africa, Asia and Europe, Passenger Lists of Displaced Persons, 1946-1971] Ancestry, free. Index and images. Passenger lists of immigrants leaving Germany and other European ports and airports between 1946-1971. The majority of the immigrants listed in this collection are displaced persons - Holocaust survivors, former concentration camp inmates and Nazi forced laborers, as well as refugees from Central and Eastern European countries and some non-European countries.  
*'''1946-1971''' [https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61704/ Free Access: Africa, Asia and Europe, Passenger Lists of Displaced Persons, 1946-1971] Ancestry, free. Index and images. Passenger lists of immigrants leaving Germany and other European ports and airports between 1946-1971. The majority of the immigrants listed in this collection are displaced persons - Holocaust survivors, former concentration camp inmates and Nazi forced laborers, as well as refugees from Central and Eastern European countries and some non-European countries.  


===British Overseas Subjects===
===British Overseas Subjects===
*'''1628-1969''' [http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=1993&cj=1&sid=l&netid=cj&o_xid=0005719356&o_lid=0005719356&o_sch=Affiliate+External  UK, Foreign and Overseas Registers of British Subjects, 1628-1969], index ($)
*'''1628-1969''' [http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=1993&cj=1&sid=l&netid=cj&o_xid=0005719356&o_lid=0005719356&o_sch=Affiliate+External  UK, Foreign and Overseas Registers of British Subjects, 1628-1969], index ($)
*[http://search.findmypast.com/results/world-records/british-armed-forces-and-overseas-births-and-baptisms?country=kenya British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, Kenya], index and images, ($)
*[http://search.findmypast.com/results/world-records/british-armed-forces-and-overseas-births-and-baptisms?country=kenya British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, Kenya], index & images ($)
*[http://search.findmypast.com/results/world-records/british-armed-forces-and-overseas-banns-and-marriages?country=kenya British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages, Kenya ], index and images, ($)
*[http://search.findmypast.com/results/world-records/british-armed-forces-and-overseas-banns-and-marriages?country=kenya British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages, Kenya ], index & images ($)
*[https://www.findmypast.com/search/results?datasetname=british+armed+forces+and+overseas+deaths+and+burials&sid=103&country=kenya British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials, Kenya], index and images, ($)
*[https://www.findmypast.com/search/results?datasetname=british+armed+forces+and+overseas+deaths+and+burials&sid=103&country=kenya British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials, Kenya], index & images ($)


==Finding the Town of Origin in Kenya==
==Finding the Town of Origin in Kenya==
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==Immigration into Kenya==
==Immigration into Kenya==
*European contact began in 1500 with the '''Portuguese Empire''', though effective colonization of Kenya began in the 19th century during the European exploration of the interior.
*In the 17th century, the Swahili coast was conquered and came under the direct rule of the '''Omani Arabs''', who expanded the '''slave trade''' to meet the demands of plantations in '''Oman and Zanzibar.'''
*The colonial history of Kenya dates from the establishment of a '''German protectorate''' over the Sultan of Zanzibar's coastal possessions in 1885, followed by the arrival of the '''Imperial British East Africa Company''' in 1888. Imperial rivalry was prevented when '''Germany handed its coastal holdings to Britain in 1890.'''
*This was followed by the building of the Uganda Railway passing through the country. During the railway construction era, there was a significant influx of '''Indian workers''', who provided the bulk of the skilled manpower required for construction. They and most of their descendants later remained in Kenya and formed the core of several distinct Indian communities such as the '''Ismaili Muslim and Sikh communities'''.
*In 1920, the East Africa Protectorate was turned into a colony and renamed Kenya after its highest mountain.[52]
*During the early part of the 20th century, the '''interior central highlands were settled by British and other European farmers''', who became wealthy farming coffee and tea. By the 1930s, approximately 30,000 '''white settlers''' lived in the area and gained a political voice because of their contribution to the market economy. By the 1950s, there were 80,000 white settlers living in Kenya.
*On 12 December 1964, Kenya became a republic under the name '''"Republic of Kenya"'''.<ref>"Kenya", in Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenya#Demographics, accessed 1 August 2021.</ref>
*'''Europeans in Kenya''' are primarily the '''descendants of British migrants during the colonial period'''.
*There is also a '''significant expat population of Europeans''' living in Kenya. Only a small minority of them are landowners (livestock and game ranchers, horticulturists and farmers), with the '''majority working in the tertiary sector: in air transport, finance, import, and hospitality.'''<ref>"Demographics of Kenya", in Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Kenya, accessed 1 August 2021.</ref>
==Emigration From Kenya==
==Emigration From Kenya==
<ref> at KNOMAD, the Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development
'''KNOMAD Statistics:'''  Emigrants: 475,500. Top destination countries: '''the United Kingdom, the United States, Tanzania, Uganda, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Germany, South Sudan, Switzerland.'''<ref>"Kenya",  at KNOMAD, the Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development, https://www.knomad.org/data/migration/emigration?page=12, accessed 1 August 2021.</ref>


==Records of       Emigrants in Their Destination Nations==
==Records of Kenyan Emigrants in Their Destination Nations==
{|
{|
|-
|-
|[[File:Dark thin font green pin Version 4.png|150px]]
|
|<span style="color:DarkViolet">One option is to look for records about the ancestor in the '''country of destination, the country they immigrated into'''. See links to immigration records for major destination countries below.</span>
|<span style="color:DarkViolet">One option is to look for records about the ancestor in the '''country of destination, the country they immigrated into'''. See links to Wiki articles about immigration records for '''major''' destination countries below. Additional Wiki articles for other destinations can be found at [https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Category:Emigration_and_Immigration_Records '''Category:Emigration and Immigration Records'''.]  </span>
|}
|}
{|
{|
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*[[United States Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[United States Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[Canada Emigration and Immigration]]  
*[[Canada Emigration and Immigration]]  
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[England Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[Uganda Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[South Africa Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
|
|
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]  
*[[Australia Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[Germany Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[South Sudan Emigration and Immigration]]  
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[Switzerland Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[Tanzania Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
*[[ Emigration and Immigration]]
|}
|}


==For Further Reading==
There are additional sources listed in the FamilySearch Catalog:
*{{FHL||subject_id|disp=


==References==
==References==
<references/>
<references/>
[[Category: Emigration and Immigration Records]]
[[Category: Emigration and Immigration Records]]
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{{Italy-sidebar}}{{breadcrumb
| link1=[[ fix]]
| link2=[[Italy_Genealogy|Italy]]
| link3=
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| link5=Italy Finding Town of Origin
}}
==Finding the Town of Origin==
In order to research your family in their "old" country, it is essential that you have identified the place where they came from.  You must know the city, town, or parish that they came from.
== Important Tips  ==
You must also know enough about the ancestor to positively identify him in the records. Dates (even if they are approximate), places, and familial connections are key to helping you decide if a person you find, who has the same name as your ancestor, really is your ancestor.
*Do you know the name of his/her parents?
*Do you know his/her birth, marriage, or death date or can you calculate an approximate range of years to search for his/her birth, marriage, or death?
*Do you know the name of the spouse? Did they marry before or after coming to the United States?
*Do you know the names of any of his/her siblings?
*Do you know the names of any children born in before the family emigrated?
== Search Home Sources  ==
Thoroughly go over all home sources available to you, including family history papers, copies of records, pictures, old letters (i.e. with an old address), family bibles, journals/diaries, copies of vital record certificates and church records, memorabilia etc. Interview extended family and close relatives as well as former neighbors--all of which may prove very helpful in gathering as much knowledge about an ancestor as possible.<br>
*[[Collecting Previous Research by Others Part One: Home and Relative Sources]]
*[[Gather Family Information]]
==Emigration Questions to Ask Relatives==
Find the oldest living relatives that you can and ask them:
<br>
#  What do you know about our first ancestor to immigrate? (open-ended)
#  Have you ever heard mention of towns in Italy where the family lived?
#  Do you have contact with any relatives in Italy?
#  Do you have contact with other branches of the family in other countries?
#  When _____________ came from Italy, did he travel with other family members?
#  Do you know when _________________ arrived and which port city?
#  Did _______________ever become a citizen?
#  Did_________________fight in World War I or II?
#  When they first came, were there already family members here who they joined?
#  Did_______________ever mention their parents in Italy?
#  Were they Catholic?
#  Do you have any old letters or postcards from Italy family?
#  Do you have any pictures of family members in Italy?
==Search Genealogies Compiled by Others==
*[[Collecting Previous Research by Others Part Two: Online Family Tree Collections]]
*[[Collecting Previous Research by Others Part Three: Digitized Books]]
*[[Collecting Previous Research by Others Part Four: FamilySearch Wiki Tools]]
==Indexed Records Created in Italy==
===Make Sure You Found the Correct Entry for Your Ancestor===
{|
|-
|[[File:Icon-warning.png|100px]]
|
There are many types of indexed records that cover parts, even large parts of Italy. Searching those indexes by name only can turn up several entries of the same name. '''Never jump to an immediate conclusion that you have found an entry that matches your ancestor'''. Study the information for other clues that verify the match.
|}
*Make sure the person you found in Italian records '''left Italy'''. Look for them in marriage and death records of the same vicinity. See whether they have children a generation later in the vicinity. These things prove they remained in Italy and would rule them out as your ancestor.
*Match '''any other relationships'''.  If you already know the parents' names, spouse's name, and/or siblings' names, make sure they match the parents' names, spouse's name, and/or siblings' names of the person you are considering in the Italian records. The parents and grandparents will usually be listed in birth records found in [[Italy Church Records|'''church records''']] or [[Italy Civil Registration|'''civil records''']]. Search for siblings' birth records and any marriage before leaving Italy in the same index.
*Study '''all available entries for that name born at the same approximate time''', not just the first possible match you see.
*Consider the '''coverage of the database''' you are using. Does it cover all of Italy? Or could there be many other records not covered that could hold your ancestor's record. For example, if the database is for just one province, there are 110 other provinces which could have your ancestor's record.
*Make sure the details you have learned about the person after they immigrate have '''no discrepancies''' with the person you found in Italian records.
===Italy Records Databases to Try===
*[https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/GuidedResearch:Italy '''Italy Guided Research''']
*[[Italy Civil Registration|'''Italy Civil Registration''']], government birth, marriage, and death records are available online for many provinces from the early 1800s to the early or mid-1900s. These records can name grandparents in addition to parents, and towns for residence and/or birth for both.
*There may be some [[Italy Church Records|'''Italy Church Records''']] online.
*See [[Italy Emigration and Immigration|'''Italy Emigration and Immigration''']] for records of Italians immigrating, including some online digitized records and indexes.
*See [[Italy Online Genealogy Records|'''Italy Online Genealogy Records''']] for other databases that might hold clues.
==Records of the Country of Destination==
* '''Church Records:''' If your ancestor immigrated to a European or a South American/Hispanic country, church records can be detailed enough to identify a former residence or birthplace in the home country. These countries, unlike the United States, had state churches. In many countries, these state churches were used by the country to keep birth, marriage, and death records. Even though your ancestor was born in his former country, he may have married, and certainly died in his new country. Marriage and death records can state birthplace.
*'''Civil Registration:''' Eventually, most governments began keeping birth, marriage, and death records. These tend to be quite detailed. Again, if your ancestor was possibly married and certainly died in their new country, those records can state birthplace.
*'''Citizenship Records:''' If your ancestor became a full citizen, those records probably name birthplace and former residence.
*'''Online Genealogy Records:''' See [[Online Genealogy Records by Location|'''Online Genealogy Records by Location''']] and find the online genealogy record page for your country to see other indexed collections that can be consulted.
==Records to Search Created in the United States==
*[[U. S. Immigration Records: Finding the Town of Origin|'''U. S. Immigration Records: Finding the Town of Origin''']]
[[Category:Finding Town of Origin]]
[[Category:Italy]]

Latest revision as of 20:14, 11 August 2025

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Online Sources

British Overseas Subjects

Finding the Town of Origin in Kenya

If you are using emigration/immigration records to find the name of your ancestors' town in Kenya, see Kenya Finding Town of Origin for additional research strategies.

Kenya Emigration and Immigration

"Emigration" means moving out of a country. "Immigration" means moving into a country.
Emigration and immigration sources list the names of people leaving (emigrating) or arriving (immigrating) in the country. These sources may be passenger lists, permissions to emigrate, or records of passports issued. The information in these records may include the emigrants’ names, ages, occupations, destinations, and places of origin or birthplaces. Sometimes they also show family groups.

Immigration into Kenya

  • European contact began in 1500 with the Portuguese Empire, though effective colonization of Kenya began in the 19th century during the European exploration of the interior.
  • In the 17th century, the Swahili coast was conquered and came under the direct rule of the Omani Arabs, who expanded the slave trade to meet the demands of plantations in Oman and Zanzibar.
  • The colonial history of Kenya dates from the establishment of a German protectorate over the Sultan of Zanzibar's coastal possessions in 1885, followed by the arrival of the Imperial British East Africa Company in 1888. Imperial rivalry was prevented when Germany handed its coastal holdings to Britain in 1890.
  • This was followed by the building of the Uganda Railway passing through the country. During the railway construction era, there was a significant influx of Indian workers, who provided the bulk of the skilled manpower required for construction. They and most of their descendants later remained in Kenya and formed the core of several distinct Indian communities such as the Ismaili Muslim and Sikh communities.
  • In 1920, the East Africa Protectorate was turned into a colony and renamed Kenya after its highest mountain.[52]
  • During the early part of the 20th century, the interior central highlands were settled by British and other European farmers, who became wealthy farming coffee and tea. By the 1930s, approximately 30,000 white settlers lived in the area and gained a political voice because of their contribution to the market economy. By the 1950s, there were 80,000 white settlers living in Kenya.
  • On 12 December 1964, Kenya became a republic under the name "Republic of Kenya".[1]
  • Europeans in Kenya are primarily the descendants of British migrants during the colonial period.
  • There is also a significant expat population of Europeans living in Kenya. Only a small minority of them are landowners (livestock and game ranchers, horticulturists and farmers), with the majority working in the tertiary sector: in air transport, finance, import, and hospitality.[2]

Emigration From Kenya

KNOMAD Statistics: Emigrants: 475,500. Top destination countries: the United Kingdom, the United States, Tanzania, Uganda, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Germany, South Sudan, Switzerland.[3]

Records of Kenyan Emigrants in Their Destination Nations

One option is to look for records about the ancestor in the country of destination, the country they immigrated into. See links to Wiki articles about immigration records for major destination countries below. Additional Wiki articles for other destinations can be found at Category:Emigration and Immigration Records.


References

  1. "Kenya", in Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenya#Demographics, accessed 1 August 2021.
  2. "Demographics of Kenya", in Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Kenya, accessed 1 August 2021.
  3. "Kenya", at KNOMAD, the Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development, https://www.knomad.org/data/migration/emigration?page=12, accessed 1 August 2021.