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  • Evangelical Church records in Germany
    • Main contributor: Craig Kanalley
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    Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral), a well-known Evangelical Church in the capital city of Germany.

    Evangelical Church records in Germany contain a wealth of information for genealogical research. They begin prior to German civil records, which begin in the 1870s for births, marriages, and deaths.

    It's important to understand that the Evangelical Church in Germany (Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland), also referred to as the Protestant Church in Germany, is made up of numerous denominations as a federation. That includes the Lutheran, Reformed, and United (Lutheran & Reformed) Protestant faiths and it is one of the world's largest Protestant entities. The German word evangelisch means "of the Gospel" and it was a term that Martin Luther encouraged to characterize those of the Christian faith who were not Catholic.

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    History of the Protestant Movement in GermanyHistory of the Protestant Movement in Germany

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    A portrait of Martin Luther (1483-1546)

    The Protestant Reformation began in Wittenberg, Germany in 1517 when Martin Luther published the 95 Theses.[1] By the 1540s, the Protestant territories in modern-day Germany included Brandenburg, the Palatinate, Saxony, and smaller bishoprics like Cologne, Münster, Osnabrück.[2] Additional territories were influenced by the Calvinism and later the "Reformed" movement which spread in Hesse-Kassel, Nassau, Anhalt, and elsewhere.[2]

    The Thirty Years War was a major conflict in Europe from 1618-1648, which included the territories of today's Germany, between Protestantism and Catholic factions. Following that war, there continued to be regions that remained heavily Protestant and others Catholic, which continued up to modern day. Today's population of Germany is roughly 30% Protestant, though that number has been declining.[3]

    Administrative structureAdministrative structure

    The Evangelical Church in Germany is broken down into regional churches (Landeskirchen). They refer to both modern states and historic territories. Nearly all of these are indexed online at Archion.de and the table below lists which ones are at least partially available online, as of this writing:

    Regions of the Evangelical Church in Germany
    Name Online Name Online
    Anhalt Yes Mitteldeutschland Yes
    Baden Yes Norddeutschland Yes
    Bavaria Yes Oldenburg Yes
    Berlin-Brandenburg Yes Palatinate (Pfalz) Yes
    Braunschweig Yes Rheinland Yes
    Bremen No Sachsens Yes
    Hannover Yes Schamburg-Lippe Yes
    Hessen and Nassau Yes Westfalen Yes
    Kurhessen-Waldeck Yes Württemberg Yes
    Lippe Yes

    Some of the regional churches listed above break up into smaller entities, such as Nordelbische, Mecklenburg, and Pomerania rolling up into Norddeutschland. Schlesische Oberlausitz is included with Berlin-Brandenburg.

    If you are not sure which region a certain village or town falls under, check Meyers Gazetteer for clues. The Ecclesiastical tab often provides the Protestant Parish name, which will help you find the relevant region. In addition, the entry itself for the town, village or city provides regional information.

    Contents of recordsContents of records

    Evangelical Church records in Germany are very comprehensive and date back as early as the 1540s for Lutheran parishes. This predated the 1563 mandate by the pope for Catholic parish records, so it includes some of the country's oldest records.

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    Marriages in Berlin in the 1840s, per an Evangelical church book. This page includes the grooms' names, their occupations and ages, their father's names, and the names of the brides.

    You can expect to find the following in Evangelical parish books:

    Baptism records (Taufe)Baptism records (Taufe)

    • Given name of the child
    • Date of baptism (sometimes date of birth)
    • Place of birth (sometimes in the margin)
    • Parents' names (father's name only for some older records)
      • Often father's occupation
    • Godparents' names (often more than two and sometimes several)

    Marriage records (Heiraten)Marriage records (Heiraten)

    • Groom's name
      • Sometimes age, place of origin and occupation
    • Bride's name
      • Sometimes age, place of origin and father's occupation
    • Date of marriage
    • Parents' names (not always and sometimes father only)
    • Indication of whether they had married previously
    • Witnesses

    Burial records (Tod)Burial records (Tod)

    • Name of the deceased
    • Date of burial (sometimes date of death)
    • Indication of whether they are single, married, or widowed
    • Age or estimated age (not always)
    • Occupation for males (not always)
    • Sometimes the father's name or parents' names

    IndexesIndexes

    Many Evangelical parishes had indexes for baptisms, marriages, and burials. These were typically sorted alphabetically by surname. They may appear at the end of a sacrament book or as a separate book altogether.

    Family Group registersFamily Group registers

    These invaluable records were not always kept, but when they were, they are a goldmine. They're listed under terms like Familienbuch (family book), Seelenregister (register of souls), or Hauserbuch (house book). They typically include:

    • Father of the family, his birth date, death date
    • Mother of the family, her birth date, death date
    • Date of marriage for the father and mother
    • Parents' names for the father and mother (not always)
    • List of children, when they were baptized, married, and died

    These registers can include notes in the margin, such as whether members of the family emigrated to North America.

    Sometimes these family registers contain errors, as the information was transcribed from other sources, so it is advisable to always double check their contents with the original records.

    See alsoSee also

    Explore more about Evangelical Church records in GermanyExplore more about Evangelical Church records in Germany

    References

    1. ↑ Protestant Reformation. National Geographic. https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/protestant-reformation/
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Reformation of Germany. Britannica Encyclopedia. https://www.britannica.com/place/Germany/The-Reformation
    3. ↑ Once a majority, Protestants now account for fewer than a third of Germans. Pew Research Center. 12 February 2019.https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2019/02/12/once-a-majority-protestants-now-account-for-fewer-than-a-third-of-germans/


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    APA citation (7th Ed.)

    Craig Kanalley. (2025, March 22). *Evangelical Church records in Germany*. MyHeritage Wiki. https://www.myheritage.com/wiki/Evangelical_Church_records_in_Germany