How to Find Birth, Marriage, and Death Records for Saarland, Germany Genealogy

Guide to Saarland, Germany  ancestry, family history, and genealogy after 1945: birth records, marriage records, death records.

Historical Background
"Saarland is a historically very young political entity, it was formed in 1920 from formerly Prussian and Bavarian regions. In the 19th century, the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg (the exclave of the Principality of Birkenfeld ) and the Duchy of Saxony-Coburg and Gotha ( Principality of Lichtenberg ) also had small shares in areas that today belong to the Saarland. In the time before the French Revolution the political map of the region resembled a patchwork carpet, the four most important masters in the territory of today's Saarland were the county of Saarbriicken, the duchy of the Palatinate -Zweibrücken, The Electorate of Trier and the Duchy of Lorraine." Wikipedia, Saarland

The Prussian / Bavarian period (1815-1871) Source: GenWiki
 * Kingdom of Prussia (Rhine province)
 * Kingdom of Bavaria (Rheinpfalz)
 * Great Duchy of Oldenburg (Kreis Birkenfeld)
 * Temporarily Principality of Lichtenberg (parts of the district of St. Wendel, until 1832, then Prussian)
 * Duchy of Saxony-Coburg (parts of the circle St. Wendel, also to Prussen)

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Civil registration records were kept at the local civil registration office (Standesamt). To find the records, you need to first determine the town where your ancestor lived, then determine the location of the civil registration office for that town. The civil registration office may have been located in the same town or, for smaller towns and villages, the civil records may have been kept in a larger nearby town. Use gazetteers to help identify the place where your ancestor lived and the civil registration office that served it (see Germany Gazetteers). Large cities often have many civil registration districts. City directories can sometimes help identify which civil registration district a person lived in.

Most civil registers are still located at the local civil registration offices, but some are collected in city or state archives. Civil registration records from many towns and states are available on microfilm or online.

1. Online Record Collections

 * 1500-1971 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1876-1903 - Saarland, Deutschland, Geburtsregister (Birth registers), 1876-1903, index and images, ($).
 * 1876-1923 - Saarland, Deutschland, Heiratsregister (Marriage registers), 1876-1923, index and images, ($).
 * 1876-1933 - Saarland, Deutschland, Sterberegister (Death registers), 1876-1933, index and images, ($).
 * 1775-1875 - Saarland, Deutschland, Zivilstandsregister, 1776-1875, index and images, ($).

2. Microfilm Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog
Try to find records in the collection of the FamilySearch Library. Many microfilms have been digitized for online viewing. Gradually, everything will be digitized, so check back occasionally. Some have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at the Family History Centers near you. To find records:


 * a. For Rhineland, including all of Saarland except Saar-Pfalz: Click here. Open the link Places within Germany, Preussen, Rheinland.
 * For Saar-Pfalz: Click here. Open the link Places within Germany, Bayern (Bavaria).
 * b. Click on your town or parish.
 * c. Click on the "Civil Registration" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * d. Choose the correct record type and time period for your ancestor. "Geburten" are births. Heiraten are marriages.  "Verstorbene" are deaths.
 * e. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the microfilm.

3. Writing for Civil Registration Certificates
Many civil registration records, especially those created in 1876 or later, are still only available in the local civil registration office or archive in Germany that has the originals.

Determining the Current Standesamt

 * If the records are not online or on microfilm, civil registration records for Germany can be obtained by writing to the local civil registry (Standesamt). Research your town name in MeyersGaz.org to find the location of the Standesamt. It is indicated by the abbreviation "StdA". However, some of the offices were merged in 1970's, so the record location might be different than that listed in MeyersGaz.


 * For a municipality:
 * To find the current Standesamt, go to the German Wikipedia, and enter the name of the town in the search box. An article about the town will start with a first line such as: "Besse with about 3200 inhabitants is the largest district of the municipality Edermünde in Hessian Schwalm-Eder-Kreis ." It is probable that the Standesamt is now located in the municipality (in this example Edermünde).
 * Email the municipality to verify that the civil registry for your town is there. From the town article, click on the name of the municipality that links to that article. There will usually be an infobox on the page that lists the address and the website of the municipality. From the website, look for Kontakt (Contact) information with an email address.


 * For a town:
 * Follow the same instructions as for a municipality. However, in this case, the first line will read, for example: "Borken is a town in the Schwalm-Eder-Kreis with about 13,000 residents.'''
 * The infobox with the website will appear directly on a town page.

Local Standesamt Addresses

 * Standesamt Addresses for Saarland

Write a brief request in German to the proper office using this address as guide, replacing the information in parentheses:


 * An das Standesamt
 * (Insert street address, if known.)
 * (Postal Code) (Name of Locality)
 * GERMANY


 * Click herefor postal code help for Germany.

How to write a letter: Detailed instruction for what to include in the letter, plus German translations of the questions and sentences most frequently used are in the German Letter Writing Guide.'''

Accessing the Records
Some records may be found online. There is excellent microfilm coverage for this region, and microfilms may be used at Family History Centers around the world. Some research will need to be conducted by correspondence with local parish churches or with centralized archives. In the following list, select the geographical region you need. Then read Writing Letters, Reading the Records, and Search Strategies. -

Rhineland (Use for All of Saarland Except Saar-Pfalz)
Online Records: Microfilms: Parish Addresses:
 * 1600-1925 - at FamilySearch Historical Records, free, browsable images, incomplete.
 * Click here. Open the link. Click on your town or parish. Click on the "Church records" topic.
 * Parish finder search engine for Rhineland District(Lutheran)
 * Clickable map for Trier parishes (Catholic)

The Palatinate (Use These Links for Saar-Pfalz)
Online Records: Microfilms: Parish Addresses: -
 * Central Archives of the Evangelical Church of the Palatinate
 * 1600-1925 - at FamilySearch Historical Records, free, browsable images, incomplete.
 * Click here. Click on "Places within Bayern, Germany." Click on your town or parish. Click on the "Church records" topic.
 * Parish finder search engine for Rhineland District(Lutheran)
 * Parish address list for Diocese of Speyer (Catholic, historical area of ​​the Palatinate). Click on deaneries in the left sidebar to find parishes.

Saarland (Use These Additional Archives for All of Saarland)
Landesarchiv Saarbrücken Dudweilerstraße 1 66133 Saarbrücken-Scheidt Saarland, Germany Post office: Postfach 102431 D-66024 Saarbrücken, Germany Phone: (0681) 980 39-0
 * Website
 * Holdings

Archive of the Evangelical Church in the Rhineland, St. Martin / Boppard  Mainzerstrasse 8 D-56154 Boppard Germany Tel. (06742) 8 61 94
 * List of holdings in the Boppard archives

Northern Edge of Sankt Wendel, Around Nohfelden
This area was part of Birkfelden, Oldenburg. See How to Find Birth, Marriage, and Death Records for Oldenburg (now in Lower Saxony), Germany

Writing Letters
Most church registers are still maintained by the parish. You might obtain information by writing to the parish. Parish employees will usually answer correspondence written in German. Your request may be forwarded if the records have been sent to a central repository. Some archives provide research services for a fee. Others will refer you to local professional researchers.

Writing the Letter
Write a brief request in German to the proper church using this address as a guide, replacing the information in parentheses: For a Protestant Parish:


 * An das evangelische Pfarramt
 * (Insert street address, if known.)
 * (Postal Code) (Name of Locality)
 * GERMANY

For a Catholic Parish:


 * An das katholische Pfarramt
 * (Insert street address, if known.)
 * (Postal Code) (Name of Locality)
 * GERMANY

For Archives: Use the detailed address listed above.


 * Click herefor postal code help for Germany.

How to write a letter: Detailed instruction for what to include in the letter, plus German translations of the questions and sentences most frequently used are in the German Letter Writing Guide.'''

Other Religious Groups

 * To learn how to determine the location of other religious records, namely Jewish, French Reformed, German Reformed, etc., watch Hansen’s Map Guides: Finding Records with Parish Maps beginning at 48:00 minutes, to learn how to locate these congregations. Then go back and watch from the beginning to understand how to use the reference book. This course teaches you how to use a set of reference books found at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. If you are not in Salt Lake City, use the Contact Us feature to request information from the books.

Jewish Records

 * See the Wiki article, Germany Jewish Records

Huguenots (French Protestants)
*German Huguenot Society eV, index.
 * See the Wiki article, ’’’Huguenots in Germany’’’

German Records

 * It's easier than you think! You do not have to be fluent in French and German to use these records, as there is only a limited vocabulary used in them. By learning a few key phrases, you will be able to read them adequately.  Here are some resources for learning to read German records.
 * German Genealogical Word List
 * German Handwriting


 * These video webinars will teach you to read German handwriting:
 * Old German Script Part 1
 * Old German Script Part 2
 * Old German Script (German Church and Civil Records) Part 3


 * Also online interactive slideshow lessons are available to help you learn to read these records:
 * . In this lesson, you will explore several types of German genealogical records, including birth, baptismal, marriage, and death records.
 * German Script Tutorial
 * . In this lesson, you will explore several types of German genealogical records, including birth, baptismal, marriage, and death records.
 * German Script Tutorial

This converter will show you how any phrase or name might look in German script:
 * Kurrentschrift Converter (enter German genealogical word, click on "convert", view your word in Kurrentschrift (Gothic handwriting)

Latin Records
Records of the Catholic church will usually be written in Latin:
 * Latin Genealogical Word List

Search Strategy

 * Search for the relative or ancestor you selected. When you find his birth record, search for the births of his brothers and sisters.
 * Next, search for the marriage of his parents. The marriage record will have information that will often help you find the birth records of the parents.
 * You can estimate the ages of the parents and determine a birth year to search for their birth records.
 * Search the death registers for all known family members.
 * Repeat this process for both the father and the mother, starting with their birth records, then their siblings' births, then their parents' marriages, and so on.
 * If earlier generations (parents, grandparents, etc.) do not appear in the records, search neighboring parishes.


 * '''German Research Troubleshooting Strategies""