Friday Finds: 6 Norwegian Genealogy Blogs to Explore
Of course, I want as many people as possible to visit my blog, Norwegian Genealogy and then some. I put time and effort into what I write, and I hope my articles help those researching their Norwegian roots.
But for me, genealogy blogging is not a competition. We all have different experiences, knowledge, and stories to share. If another blogger has written something that can help someone with their research, why should I keep it to myself? There is room for all of us, and sharing good resources benefits everyone.
That is the idea behind this week’s Friday Finds. I have gathered a selection of English-language blogs about Norwegian genealogy and family history. Some focus on research methods and Norwegian records, while others tell the stories of families who left Norway and those who stayed behind.
I hope you discover something useful among them. If you know of a blog I missed, please let me know. I am always happy to discover more people writing about Norwegian genealogy.
Please note that not all of these blogs appear to be actively updated any longer. However, their content is still available, and plenty of gems are waiting to be discovered. An older post can be just as useful as one published yesterday!
1. Genealogical Research in Norway
Visit Genealogical Research in Norway
Liv Birgit Christensen is a Norwegian genealogist who helps people trace their roots in Norway. Her blog combines research advice with historical articles and examples drawn from Norwegian sources.
One useful feature is its attention to the records themselves. Norwegian genealogy involves more than finding a name in a database. Understanding the historical setting, local geography, and the way records were kept can make a real difference.
The blog also covers useful websites and research methods for English-speaking family historians. Christensen co-authored Exploring Norwegian Genealogy, a guide to finding Norwegian ancestors through online records.
This is an excellent place to start if you want to understand how to approach research in Norway.
2. Kitty Cooper’s Blog
Visit Kitty Cooper’s Norwegian genealogy section
Kitty Cooper writes about genealogy, genetic genealogy, and family history. Her Norwegian articles cover several familiar challenges, including Norwegian naming practices, church books, and finding the place in Norway from which an immigrant ancestor came.
Her article on finding your immigrant ancestor in Norway is particularly useful. It explains why identifying the correct Norwegian locality matters and how records in the country of immigration can help you get there.
Cooper also discusses DNA matches and Norwegian family connections. This is worth exploring if you are trying to combine documentary research with genetic genealogy.
3. Ranae’s Norwegian Family Heritage
Visit Ranae’s Norwegian Family Heritage
Ranae’s blog follows her Norwegian family history and her Scandinavian-American upbringing in Chicago. She shares photographs, documents, memories, and discoveries about her ancestors.
Her writing shows how research becomes more interesting when records are connected to the people behind them. A census entry gives us a name, an age, and a place. A family photograph or a story passed down through generations can add another dimension.
The blog also explores Norwegian naming practices and the challenges of tracing ancestors whose names changed after emigration.
There is plenty here for readers who want to see how genealogical evidence can become a family story.
4. Victoria Jo’s Family Stories
Visit Victoria Jo’s Family Stories
This blog follows family history through photographs, documents, research discoveries, and visits to ancestral places. Norwegian ancestry is an important part of the story.
Recent posts describe visits to places connected with the author’s Norwegian ancestors, including Hønefoss in Buskerud. These accounts show the value of seeing a place for yourself after spending years studying the people who lived there.
A visit cannot replace documentary evidence, of course. But standing in the landscape where an ancestor was born or married can help you understand the setting in which that person’s life unfolded.
The blog is also a good example of how a family history project can continue to develop long after the basic family tree has been assembled.
5. Hovick Lohman History
David Hovick Lohman’s blog explores the histories of the Hovick and Lohman families. He has a particular interest in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Norwegian parish records.
His research includes detailed accounts of individual ancestors and the Norwegian farms and communities connected with their lives. One example is his study of Inger Nilsdatter Hovick and Torbjørn Andorsen, which follows the family through Norwegian records and into its later history.
This is the kind of work that reminds us why careful documentation matters. A family history becomes much more convincing when the conclusions can be followed back to the original records.
Although the blog covers more than Norway, its Norwegian research is well worth exploring.
6. Of Trolls and Lemons
Astrid Haugen’s blog covers her Norwegian, Swedish, and Italian ancestry. Its older Norwegian posts include accounts of research trips, family documents, photographs, and discoveries made while visiting places associated with her ancestors.
The Norwegian material is particularly interesting for its mixture of travel and research. A trip to an ancestral area can lead to new questions, unexpected documents, and a better understanding of the landscape.
The blog’s main Norwegian travel and research posts date back several years, so this is more of an archive to browse than a source of regular new articles. Even so, the older posts contain ideas worth borrowing for your own research.
A few things these blogs have in common
These six blogs approach Norwegian genealogy from different angles. Some concentrate on research methods, while others focus on particular families and the stories that emerge from their records.
They also illustrate three useful ways to develop your own family history:
- Learn the records. Understanding Norwegian church books, census records, naming practices, and local history makes research more reliable.
- Follow the evidence. An ancestor’s name in an American record is a starting point, not the end of the investigation. Work backwards until you can identify the correct person and locality in Norway.
- Tell the story. Photographs, letters, family memories, and visits to ancestral places can help explain what the records reveal.
If you are just beginning to research Norwegian ancestors, you may also find useful material in my own guides to Norwegian genealogy and bygdebøker available online.
Have you discovered a good Norwegian genealogy blog?
Finding useful genealogy blogs can save time and introduce you to research methods you might not have considered. It can also be reassuring to discover that other researchers have faced the same problems you are trying to solve.
Do you follow a blog about Norwegian genealogy that deserves more attention? Perhaps you write one yourself, or you have found a particularly useful article about Norwegian records, emigration, or family history.
Leave a comment and share the link. There are always more family stories to discover.
That is this week’s Friday Finds. Happy researching!
(Illustrations are not related to the actual blogs)
