Nordic Census Records: Difference between revisions

=== Denmark, Iceland, and Norway ===

In Denmark, Iceland, and Norway, national or federal censuses were the major ones kept. Like U.S. censuses, these were taken at designated time periods. Though they were national in scope, the censuses were all created and taken at the parish level. Each county in these respective countries was jurisdictionally divided into a civil unit called a Herred (in Denmark and Norway) or Hreppa (in Iceland). The Herred contained two or more units known as the "clerical districts." A clerical district contained two or more parishes served by the same minister.  

You should find your ancestor in the census of the parish he or she was living in, listed under the address where he or she was living at the time the census was taken, whether it was a national census or a special census taken only in that county or parish area. Though most censuses were considered "civil" records, the minister, being one of the few men in the parish who was educated, was normally also the census taker.  

Because of the [[Scandinavia:Names|patronymic naming system]], it is generally not feasible to do an area search of Scandinavian census records, as might be done in U.S. research. You will find a whole lot of Lars Larsens who might fit the parameters to be your ancestor. However, it should also be said that if the ancestor had a very unusual patronymic or set surname, an area type of search could be successful if no other clues exist about where the person could be, but you just feel that they are in the area. Normally, though, you first have to know the parish people are living in at that census time period in order to find them.