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In 1807 Napoleon created a new Polish state, the Duchy of Warsaw, as a protectorate of the French Empire. It was fashioned out of territories previously seized by Prussia. In 1809 Napoleon’s forces won additional Polish territory from Austria, and the enlarged Polish state was called the Duchy of Warsaw. | In 1807 Napoleon created a new Polish state, the Duchy of Warsaw, as a protectorate of the French Empire. It was fashioned out of territories previously seized by Prussia. In 1809 Napoleon’s forces won additional Polish territory from Austria, and the enlarged Polish state was called the Duchy of Warsaw. | ||
Napoleon was finally defeated in 1813, and with his defeat, most of the Duchy of Warsaw came under Imperial Russian administration in 1815. However, his short-lived Polish duchy left behind a legacy of progressive social and economic reforms, including the beginning of civil registration. Civil registration of births, marriages, deaths, and sometimes of marriage intentions was initiated according to the Code of | Napoleon was finally defeated in 1813, and with his defeat, most of the Duchy of Warsaw came under Imperial Russian administration in 1815. However, his short-lived Polish duchy left behind a legacy of progressive social and economic reforms, including the beginning of civil registration. Civil registration of births, marriages, deaths, and sometimes of marriage intentions was initiated according to the Code of Napoleon in the territory of the Duchy of Warsaw on May 1st, 1808. This French civil code established a specific format for vital records. This was an absolute revolution in metrical registration, inasmuch as since the mid-16th century, metrical registers had been purely ecclesiastical in nature, written in Latin, kept by parish priests, controlled by bishops. Metrical entries before that time had been limited only to basic data, usually in two or three small lines of text; but civil records from the time of the Napoleonic Code were half a page long for birth and death texts, and a full page long in the case of marriages. | ||
Therefore, the wording of a birth record in France, in the Netherlands, or in French-controlled Germany would be essentially the same as the wording of a birth record in the Duchy of Warsaw. After the Russian government assumed control, the practice of maintaining civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths continued according to the format prescribed by Napoleonic law; and it continued even after Poland became an independent republic in 1918. | |||
Civil registers in the Napoleonic format are found in all of Russian Poland, in Kraków and in parts of the Prussian province of Posen, which are all formerly part of the old Grand Duchy of Warsaw. | Civil registers in the Napoleonic format are found in all of Russian Poland, in Kraków and in parts of the Prussian province of Posen, which are all formerly part of the old Grand Duchy of Warsaw. | ||
In accordance with the law, the clergy were appointed as civil registers. Catholic clergy were responsible for all civil registration from | In accordance with the law, the clergy were appointed as civil registers. Catholic clergy were responsible for all civil registration from 1808 until the mid-1820s. Beginning in 1826, Jews, Evangelical Lutherans, and other non-Catholics were allowed to maintain separate civil registers. | ||
Civil registration started when the clergy were required to make civil copies of birth, marriage, and death records. These are known as civil transcripts of church records (see [[Poland Church Records]]). Because the church was involved in early civil registration, it is difficult to clearly distinguish between civil registration and church records. | Civil registration started when the clergy were required to make civil copies of birth, marriage, and death records. These are known as civil transcripts of church records (see [[Poland Church Records]]). Because the church was involved in early civil registration, it is difficult to clearly distinguish between civil registration and church records. | ||
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From the beginning in 1808, the civil registers were kept in the Polish language. However, an unsuccessful Polish uprising in 1865 led to reprisals by the Russian government. Among these was a requirement to keep public records, including civil registration books, in the Russian language as of April 1868. Nevertheless, the format of the records did not change. The standardized format of the records remained unchanged until at least into the 1930s, with only minor changes in wording in 1826 and again in 1919. | From the beginning in 1808, the civil registers were kept in the Polish language. However, an unsuccessful Polish uprising in 1865 led to reprisals by the Russian government. Among these was a requirement to keep public records, including civil registration books, in the Russian language as of April 1868. Nevertheless, the format of the records did not change. The standardized format of the records remained unchanged until at least into the 1930s, with only minor changes in wording in 1826 and again in 1919. | ||
Most of the records available through the Family History Library cover the time period prior to 1880. Only a few of the accessible records are in post-1868 Russian. Therefore, most of the records available through the Family History Library are in Polish. The Polish and Russian languages have complex grammar, which makes them difficult to learn. Russian is further complicated by an alphabet quite unfamiliar to most English speaking people. Fortunately, the standard format of these civil records makes it possible, in most cases, to read the Polish language records with the help of the reading aid included in this paper. This reading aid includes an explanation and literal translation of typical register entries for birth, marriage, and death. It should be used together with the [[Poland Genealogical Word List]] or a Polish dictionary. | Most of the records available through the Family History Library cover the time period prior to 1880. Only a few of the accessible records are in post-1868 Russian. Therefore, most of the records available through the Family History Library are in Polish. The Polish and Russian languages have complex grammar, which makes them difficult to learn. Russian is further complicated by an alphabet quite unfamiliar to most English speaking people. Fortunately, the standard format of these civil records makes it possible, in most cases, to read the Polish language records with the help of the reading aid included in this paper. This reading aid includes an explanation and literal translation of typical register entries for birth, marriage, and death. It should be used together with the [[Poland Genealogical Word List]] or a Polish dictionary. | ||
=== Indexes === | === Indexes === | ||
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=== Format of a Napoleonic Birth Record === | === Format of a Napoleonic Birth Record === | ||
A. Place and date of registration of birth. (Place is given with grammatical ending and the date and time of day are written out in Polish.) USE WORD LIST TO READ DATE. Following are translations of the Polish entries:<br><br>''Dzialo się w wsi Oporowie dnia trzeciego''<br>It came to pass in village (of) Oporów (on) day third (of)<br><br>''lutego tyziąc ośmset pięćdziesiątego drugiego roku''<br>February thousand eight-hundred fiftieth – second year (1852),<br><br>''o godzinie dziewiątego z rana''. . . .<br>at hour ninth in the morning. . . .<br><br> | A. Place and date of registration of birth. (Place is given with grammatical ending and the date and time of day are written out in Polish.) USE WORD LIST TO READ DATE. Following are translations of the Polish entries:<br><br>''Dzialo się w wsi Oporowie dnia trzeciego''<br>It came to pass in village (of) Oporów (on) day third (of)<br><br>''lutego tyziąc ośmset pięćdziesiątego drugiego roku''<br>February thousand eight-hundred fiftieth – second year (1852),<br><br>''o godzinie dziewiątego z rana''. . . .<br>at hour ninth in the morning. . . .<br><br> | ||
►(Prior to the mid-1810s records will start with ''Roku''. This earlier format gives year first, date, time of day, and then the title and often the name of the registrar.)<br><br> ''Roku tysiąc osemsetnego czternastego dnia trzeciego<br>''(of) Year thousand eight-hundred fourteen (1814) (on) day third (of)<br><br>''lutego o godzinie dziewiątego z rana przed Nami Augustynem<br>''February at hour ninth in the morning before us Augustyn<br><br>''Walęckiem proboszcz parafii Oporowskiej sprawuającym obowiązki<br>''Walęcki priest (of) parish (of) Oporów discharging duties (of)<br><br>''urzędnika stanu cywilnego gminy Oporowskiej powiatu<br>''civil registrar (of) township (of) Oporów district (of)<br><br>''Orlowskiej w Departmencie Warszawskim''.<br>Orlów in Department (of) Warsaw | ►(Prior to the mid-1810s records will start with ''Roku''. This earlier format gives year first, date, time of day, and then the title and often the name of the registrar.)<br><br> ''Roku tysiąc osemsetnego czternastego dnia trzeciego<br>''(of) Year thousand eight-hundred fourteen (1814) (on) day third (of)<br><br>''lutego o godzinie dziewiątego z rana przed Nami Augustynem<br>''February at hour ninth in the morning before us Augustyn<br><br>''Walęckiem proboszcz parafii Oporowskiej sprawuającym obowiązki<br>''Walęcki priest (of) parish (of) Oporów discharging duties (of)<br><br>''urzędnika stanu cywilnego gminy Oporowskiej powiatu<br>''civil registrar (of) township (of) Oporów district (of)<br><br>''Orlowskiej w Departmencie Warszawskim''.<br>Orlów in Department (of) Warsaw | ||
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►(Prior to the mid-1820s, records will start with ''Roku''. This earlier format gives year first, date, time of day, and then the title and often name of the registrar. See birth format for an example.) | ►(Prior to the mid-1820s, records will start with ''Roku''. This earlier format gives year first, date, time of day, and then the title and often name of the registrar. See birth format for an example.) | ||
B. In most records after the mid-1820s two witnesses are named, usually with genitive grammatical inflection. Their occupations, ages, and residences are given. (Caution: In some cases the groom and bride present themselves at this point in the entry. In such cases the witnesses will be noted in the Summation.)<br><br>''Wiadomo czyniemy źe w przytomności świadków Tomasza<br>''Knowingly (we) affirm that in presence (of) witnesses Tomasz<br><br>''Kolczaka mularz lat trzydzieści i Piotra Studzińskiego''<br>Kolczak bricklayer years thirty and Piotr Studzińki<br><br>''szewca lat trzydzieści sześć mających, obydwóch w Olbierzowicach<br>''shoemaker years thirty- six having, both in Olbierzowice<br><br>''zamięskałych.'' . . .<br>residing. . . .<br><br> | B. In most records after the mid-1820s two witnesses are named, usually with genitive grammatical inflection. Their occupations, ages, and residences are given. (Caution: In some cases the groom and bride present themselves at this point in the entry. In such cases the witnesses will be noted in the Summation.)<br><br>''Wiadomo czyniemy źe w przytomności świadków Tomasza<br>''Knowingly (we) affirm that in presence (of) witnesses Tomasz<br><br>''Kolczaka mularz lat trzydzieści i Piotra Studzińskiego''<br>Kolczak bricklayer years thirty and Piotr Studzińki<br><br>''szewca lat trzydzieści sześć mających, obydwóch w Olbierzowicach<br>''shoemaker years thirty- six having, both in Olbierzowice<br><br>''zamięskałych.'' . . .<br>residing. . . .<br><br> | ||
►Sometimes:<br><br>''Stawiłi się. . .''(Names of witnesses as above, without grammatical endings.)<br>They appeared. . . | ►Sometimes:<br><br>''Stawiłi się. . .''(Names of witnesses as above, without grammatical endings.)<br>They appeared. . . | ||
C. In most records prior to the mid-1820s and sometimes later, the groom and bride will present themselves. Information will be given as in D below, usually without the instrumental grammatical inflection. If the couple appear together with a witness or official, then the instrument inflection may be required because of the preposition ''z.<br>''<br> ''Stawiłi się Ludwik Jan Kowalski, lat. . . . etc., a<br>''(They) presented themselves Ludwik Jan Kowalski, age. . . .etc., and<br><br>''Panna Tekla Tokarska, lat. . . . etc.''<br>Maiden Tekla Tokarska, age. . . . etc.<br><br> | C. In most records prior to the mid-1820s and sometimes later, the groom and bride will present themselves. Information will be given as in D below, usually without the instrumental grammatical inflection. If the couple appear together with a witness or official, then the instrument inflection may be required because of the preposition ''z.<br>''<br> ''Stawiłi się Ludwik Jan Kowalski, lat. . . . etc., a<br>''(They) presented themselves Ludwik Jan Kowalski, age. . . .etc., and<br><br>''Panna Tekla Tokarska, lat. . . . etc.''<br>Maiden Tekla Tokarska, age. . . . etc.<br><br> | ||
►Sometimes:<br><br> ''Stawil się Rabin Hersz Sztajn wraz z Starozakonami<br>''(He) presented himself Rabbi Hersz Sztajn together with Jews<br><br>''Szmulem Litmanem, lat. . . . , a Panna Ruchlą Dawidowiczowną, lat. . . .<br>''Szmul Litman, age. . . . , and maiden Ruchla Dawidowiczowna, age. . . . | ►Sometimes:<br><br> ''Stawil się Rabin Hersz Sztajn wraz z Starozakonami<br>''(He) presented himself Rabbi Hersz Sztajn together with Jews<br><br>''Szmulem Litmanem, lat. . . . , a Panna Ruchlą Dawidowiczowną, lat. . . .<br>''Szmul Litman, age. . . . , and maiden Ruchla Dawidowiczowna, age. . . . | ||
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D. Statement of marriage. If marriage took place on a day different than the day of registration, it will be stated here.<br><br>''Na dniu dzisiejszym / wczorajszym zawarte zostało Religijne''<br>On day today / yesterday accomplished was Religious<br><br>''Małźenstwo między. . . .<br>''Marriage between. . . . | D. Statement of marriage. If marriage took place on a day different than the day of registration, it will be stated here.<br><br>''Na dniu dzisiejszym / wczorajszym zawarte zostało Religijne''<br>On day today / yesterday accomplished was Religious<br><br>''Małźenstwo między. . . .<br>''Marriage between. . . . | ||
E. Names of bridegroom and bride are given. Because the preposition ''między''requires instrumental grammatical inflection, their names and all words describing them will have grammatical endings. For the groom, everything will end with –''m''. For the bride, everything will end with –''ą.''Information given will vary. Age, previous marital status and residence are almost always given. Very often the entry will also give place of birth. (In early records prior to the mid-1820s this is often accompanied by a statement that the age and birthplace are confirmed by an extract from the parish register of the birthplace.) Most records give the names and residence of parents of the bride and groom. Other information that may be given would be exact birth date, names of previous marriage partners, etc. The order in which information is given can vary, but the groom is always first with information pertaining to him, followed by the bride and all information pertaining to her.<br><br>''między Ludwikiem Janem Orlikiem / Kowalskim młodzianem / kawalerem /<br>''between Ludwik Jan Orlik / Kowalski bachelor / bachelor /<br><br>''wdowcem kowalem / profeszyi kowalskiej w Kaczkowiznie zamieszkałym. . . <br>''widower smith / profession smith in Kaczkowizna residing. . .<br><br>''urodzonym w Gostynie z / synem niegdyś / zmarłego Tomasza i<br>''born in Gostyn of / son (of) the late / deceased Tomasz and (of)<br><br>''Justyny z Pinkowskich małźonków Orlików podług<br>''Justyna Pinkowska a married couple (named) the Orliks according to<br><br>''złoźonej przed Nami metryko wyjęty z Ksiąg kościoła<br>''submitted before us certificate extracted from book (of) church at<br><br>''Gostyńskiego lat. . . . etc. a Panna Tekla Tokarska / wdowa po Józefie<br>''Gostyn age . . . etc. and maiden Tekla Tokarska / widow of Józef<br><br>''Gadzińskim zmarłym dnia. . / przy matce zostającą, Córka. . .''<br>Gadziński deceased (on) day. . ./ with mother staying, Daughter (of). . .<br><br> | E. Names of bridegroom and bride are given. Because the preposition ''między''requires instrumental grammatical inflection, their names and all words describing them will have grammatical endings. For the groom, everything will end with –''m''. For the bride, everything will end with –''ą.''Information given will vary. Age, previous marital status and residence are almost always given. Very often the entry will also give place of birth. (In early records prior to the mid-1820s this is often accompanied by a statement that the age and birthplace are confirmed by an extract from the parish register of the birthplace.) Most records give the names and residence of parents of the bride and groom. Other information that may be given would be exact birth date, names of previous marriage partners, etc. The order in which information is given can vary, but the groom is always first with information pertaining to him, followed by the bride and all information pertaining to her.<br><br>''między Ludwikiem Janem Orlikiem / Kowalskim młodzianem / kawalerem /<br>''between Ludwik Jan Orlik / Kowalski bachelor / bachelor /<br><br>''wdowcem kowalem / profeszyi kowalskiej w Kaczkowiznie zamieszkałym. . . <br>''widower smith / profession smith in Kaczkowizna residing. . .<br><br>''urodzonym w Gostynie z / synem niegdyś / zmarłego Tomasza i<br>''born in Gostyn of / son (of) the late / deceased Tomasz and (of)<br><br>''Justyny z Pinkowskich małźonków Orlików podług<br>''Justyna Pinkowska a married couple (named) the Orliks according to<br><br>''złoźonej przed Nami metryko wyjęty z Ksiąg kościoła<br>''submitted before us certificate extracted from book (of) church at<br><br>''Gostyńskiego lat. . . . etc. a Panna Tekla Tokarska / wdowa po Józefie<br>''Gostyn age . . . etc. and maiden Tekla Tokarska / widow of Józef<br><br>''Gadzińskim zmarłym dnia. . / przy matce zostającą, Córka. . .''<br>Gadziński deceased (on) day. . ./ with mother staying, Daughter (of). . .<br><br> | ||
►(Information is given for the bride similar to that given for the groom.) | ►(Information is given for the bride similar to that given for the groom.) | ||
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=== Format of Napoleonic Death Records === | === Format of Napoleonic Death Records === | ||
A. Place and date of registration of death. (Place is given with grammatical ending and the date and time of day are written out in Polish.) USE WORD LIST TO READ DATE.<br><br>''Działo się w parafii ''''Źychlińskiej w roku tysiąc osemset''''''''<br>It came to pass in parish Źychlin in year thousand eight-hundred<br><br>''czterdziestiego dnia trzeciego marca o godzinie. . . . etc.''<br>forty (1840) (on) day third (of) March at hour. . . . etc.<br> | A. Place and date of registration of death. (Place is given with grammatical ending and the date and time of day are written out in Polish.) USE WORD LIST TO READ DATE.<br><br>''Działo się w parafii ''''Źychlińskiej w roku tysiąc osemset''''''''<br>It came to pass in parish Źychlin in year thousand eight-hundred<br><br>''czterdziestiego dnia trzeciego marca o godzinie. . . . etc.''<br>forty (1840) (on) day third (of) March at hour. . . . etc.<br> | ||
►(Prior to the mid-1820s records will start with ''Roku''. This earlier format gives year first, date, time of day, and then the title and often name of the registrar. See birth format for an example.) | ►(Prior to the mid-1820s records will start with ''Roku''. This earlier format gives year first, date, time of day, and then the title and often name of the registrar. See birth format for an example.) | ||
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[[Image:Austrian Latin Transcript.jpg|thumb]] | [[Image:Austrian Latin Transcript.jpg|thumb]] | ||
<br> | <br> | ||
=== Locating Civil Registration Records === | === Locating Civil Registration Records === | ||