Finding your Swedish Roots - Where to start

Sweden has kept excellent records of its citizens since the 17th century. This means that people of Swedish descent can trace their family's history in Sweden and discover distant relatives, if they just know some of the basic facts about their families. However, the first step is to find out about as much information as you can about your Swedish ancestor that you wish to research. You will need your ancestor’s name, birth parish, where your ancestor lived and a date such as birth, marriage and death or emigration date.



Personal Documents - Are there any personal documents? Look in your drawers. You might find legal papers such as Flyttningsbetyg - the official exit permit issued by the pastor of the parish in Sweden from which the immigrant came


Flyttningsbetyg - the official exit permit issued by the pastor of the parish in Sweden from which the immigrant came


The Family Bible - the most important book and often a treasured possession. Since it was usually handed down from father to son, it was used to record important dates in the history of the family - births, baptisms, marriages, deaths and burials.


Letters to and from Sweden - may yield an old address in Sweden, which can be a valuable clue in determining the origin of your ancestor’s family.

Certificates of Naturalization - A useful document to find out when your ancestor emigrated from Sweden.

The next step is to obtain an understanding about

Swedish Patronymics

Swedish system of administration

Some vocabularies taken from the Swedish church records

Contact information
Stockholm office: Post Sveriges Släktforskarförbund,
Anderstorpsvägen 16, SE-171 54 Solna, Sweden
Visits: Anderstorpsvägen 16, Solna (Subway: Huvudsta - line 10)
Phone +46 8 440 75 50 Fax + 46 8695 08 24

Swedish Roots
is published by Sveriges Släktforskarförbund.
The Federation of Swedish Genealogical Societies