Iceland Genealogy

Europe

Iceland

Guide to Iceland ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Iceland Research Topics
Beginning Research
Research Strategies Record Finder Finding Town of Origin
Record Types
Cemeteries Census Church Records Civil Registration Court Records Dwellings Emigration & Immigration Genealogies	Jewish Records Heraldry Land & Property Newspapers Online Records Periodicals Population Probate Records Religious Records Sagas
Iceland Background
Biography Gazetteers Geography Handwriting Historical Geography History	Icelandic Genealogical Word List Languages Maps Names, Given Personal Names For Further Reading
Local Research Resources
Archives & Libraries Societies Family History Centers
Moderator
The FamilySearch moderator for Iceland is Baird

Country Information

Iceland is an island between the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans settled by Vikings in 874. It was governed by Denmark from 1381 to 1944, when it gained full independence as a Republic. The official language is Icelandic.

Getting Started

Getting Started with Iceland Research Links to articles on getting started with Iceland research. Tips for Beginning Icelandic Research Scandinavian Handwriting Scandinavian Handwriting, part 3 - No part 2 available See More Research Strategies

Iceland Research Tools Links to articles and websites that assist in Iceland research. Parish List Iceland Handwriting Websites Word List Latin date converter See More Research Tools

Iceland Online Genealogy Records

Ask the Community

Finding Your Ancestors' Town in Iceland

• Genealogical records are organized by geographical locality. Civil registration (government birth, marriage, and death records) and church records (christenings/baptisms, marriages, and burials) were kept at the local level. To search these records, you must know the town where your ancestors lived.
• If you do not know your ancestors' town, follow the advice in the Wiki article, Iceland Finding Town of Origin, to search a variety of records that might provide that information.

Iceland Map

Genealogy records are kept on the local level in Iceland.

Counties

• Austur-Barðastrandar
• Austur-Húnavatns
• Austur-Skaftafells
• Borgarfjarðar
• Dala
• Eyjafjarðar
• Eyjfjr
• Gullbringu
• Gllbrn
• Hnappadals
• Kjósar
• Mýra
• Norður-Ísafjarðar
• Norður-Múla
• Norður-Þingeyjar
• Rangárvalla
• Skagafjarðar
• Snæfellsnes
• Stranda
• Suður-Múla
• Suður-Þingeyjar
• Vestmannaeyjar
• Vstmnn
• Vestur-Barðastranda
• Vestur-Húnavatns
• Vestur-Skaftafells
• Vestur-Ísafjarðar
• Árnes

More Iceland Research Tools

Research tools can include resources that assist in locating correct records to search and determining the correct locality to search in. Below are links and Wiki articles to research tools in Iceland.

• FamilySearch Research Wiki Census Headings
• Íslenski Ættfræðivefurinn - Iceland GenWeb
• The National Archives Census Database
• Iceland GenWeb
• Icelandic Association of Utah
• Icelandic-Spanish Fork-Vigdis Johnson
• Libweb - Directory of Libraries in Iceland
• The Emigration from Iceland to North America (Internet Archive)
• Íslendingabók
• Þjóðskjalasafn Íslands - Iceland Archives
• Icelandic Roots

FamilySearch Resources

Below are FamilySearch resources that can assist you in researching your family.

• FamilySearch Genealogy Research Groups
• Learning Center - Online genealogy courses
• Iceland Historical Records
• Family History Center locator map
• FamilySearch Catalog Keyword search Iceland