Reading Dutch Civil Registration

This page shall help English speakers read, translate and understand Dutch Birth, Marriage and Death records after 1811.Examples of each are used and translated line by line.

Births

Op Heden Den Tweeentwingtsten Maart Achtienhonderd Een-en-veertig: The first line is the date the birth was registered, not that date of birth. You will need to know Dutch numbers and months to read ths line. This example reads Today the twenty-second March Eighteen Hundred and Forty-One.

Is Voor ons ondergeteekende Ambtenaar van den Burgerlijken Stand er Stad Amsterdam, verschenen. This section introduces the gemeente(municipality) (here the city of Amsterdam) and the civil servant who recorded the birth. This example translates to Appeared before the undersigned  Civil Officier of the Civil Registration office of the city Amsterdam...

Henricus Amen van beroep Wagonmaker oud negen dertig jaren, wonende Guldenhandsteeg Kanton No. 124. This is the informant of the birth. It is usually the father. It he is the father the words "zijn echtegenoote" or "zijn vrouw" will appear later on after the mother is introduced. The occupation (beroep), age (ouderdom) and residence of the informant is given. Use google translator for occupations. Some common occupations are arbeider(labourer/worker), landbouwer(landowner or farmer), boer(farmer) and zonder beroep(no occupation)