Dutch Genealogy Research Tips

In 1581 The Netherlands became a republic with a confederation of autonomous provinces with their own government and a confederal government. It didn't become a united Kingdom until 1815. Through the ages baptisms, marriages and burials used to be registered in special books by pastors and priests until 1811-12, when the "Burgelijke Stand" was introduced in The Netherlands. From then on births, marriages, divorces and deaths were officially registered by a municipal officer.

Dutch Genealogical Sources

You can search for sources of Dutch birth, baptism, marriage, death and/or burial at these websites: 

• digital resources is a site with all known links to Dutch and Belgian genealogy sources
• wiewaswie.nl has mainly birth, marriage and death records from 1811 onwards, but elder records are being added
• archieven.nl features searching for records of 85 participating Dutch archives
• hogenda genealogical sources for the Holland area of The Netherlands (parts are password-protected) - more in Holland:
• erfgoedcentrumdiep.nl with genealogical sources of the area around Dordrecht
• dorte-na-zoeker with genealogical sources of the area around Dordrecht and IJsselmonde
• archief rotterdam with genealogical sources of Rotterdam
• genealogie hoeksche waard with old genealogical sources of the Hoeksche Waard area
• amsterdam archive with genealogical sources of Amsterdam
• archief brabant with genealogical sources of the Noord-Brabant area, including criminals - more in Noord-Brabant:
• regionaal archief tilburg with genealogical sources of middle part of Noord-Brabant
• salha.nl with genealogical sources of the northern part of Noord-Brabant
• archief west-brabant with genealogical sources of the western part of Noord-Brabant
• alle drenten with records of people in the Drenthe area, including people in a colony for the poor and homeless
• zeeuwen gezocht with records of people in the Zeeland area, including crew members of ships of the Zeeland admirality
• ga-het-na Dutch national archive with a.o. marriage, baptisms, deaths, burials, and people working for the Dutch East India Company (V.O.C.)
• huygens knaw Dutch-Asiatic Shipping in the 17th and 18th centuries
• militieregisters.nl with Dutch military service records in the period 1811-1940
• delpher old Dutch newspapers

Dutch Genealogy Words

When searching for ancestors in The Netherlands, a major obstacle can be the Dutch language. Here you'll find a Dutch genealogy words list: FamilySearch's Dutch Word List.

Dutch Genealogy Research Articles

These are some English-language websites explaining aspects of genealogy research in The Netherlands:

• Researching Your Dutch Ancestors (webinair)
• Searching your roots in The Netherlands (MyHeritage) 

In Holland and Brabant in the southwestern part of The Netherlands surnames were used from approximately 1700 onwards. Through the ages patronymics (surnames based on the given name of one's father) have often been used in place of family names, or as middle names. This article explains how patronymics were used in the 1600s in The Netherlands:   

• http://www.olivetreegenealogy.com/nn/pat.shtml

Baptisms in South Holland

Alas, the links to the websites selling the Genealogy of South Holland DVD with baptisms in South Holland have become obsolete. However, their contents are now available on the Internet, and an explanation and index is available, too: Zuid-Holland Index.