Finnish Genealogy Resources

Though there is no Scandinavian blood in my own ancestry (yet), my daughter's father is half Finnish and so I have been gathering some family details on that part of our family, more for her sake than my own.

Though countries like Finland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway are often lumped together as "Scandinavian", they are quite different in their cultures, history and language. So I am keeping each one separate in my articles. And today it is Finland.

The Genealogical Society of Finland - One of the best resources you'll find for genealogy in this area. There are searchable databases of cemeteries, church records and more. You'll need to know specific parishes in order to make your searches. There are a lot of other helpful resources here too.

Finland Research Outline - A long list of sources, documents and records that you will need to use when researching a Finnish family.

Finnish National Archives - Though they don't have searchable databases, the Archives is still the place to contact when looking for historical resources.

Beginner’s Guide to Finnish Family History Research - A good introduction to how to start your Finnish genealogical search. Where to find basic information, and how to understand it.

Finland Genealogy Forum - Network with other people researching their Finnish family trees.

Finnish Naming System - Naming habits is different in Finland than in North America, at least it used to be. Understanding how names are structured and how they passed from one generation to the next can be very helpful when trying to organize family records.

Finnish to English Dictionary - Navigating foreign language sites can be difficult. This free tool can help you convert Finnish terms to English.