Russian Genealogy Resources

Some countries have a huge wealth of genealogical and historical resources online, making your research quick and somewhat easy. Russia is not one of them.

Years of social, political and economic upheaval have left the historical records of Russia in shambles. There are many major archives still available and accessible, but it can be a challenge to do any research in them from abroad.

Internet usage in Russia is still no where near as common or widespread as here in North America, meaning that few of the existing archives have been compiled and organized into online databases. The majority of records will need to be accessed directly.

One other consideration is the language. Russian is written in Cyrillic, and can be a huge stumbling block even if you are able to find information via a website. Most North Americans are familiar enough with some German, French, or Spanish to muddle through foreign databases. But Russian is very different from these other languages and will not be easy to translate for someone unfamiliar.

It's highly recommended that you contact a researcher who is located near the area you are interested in, and let them be your contact. Language, location and currency will be much easier to deal with for a local.

At quick glance, I was unable to find any Russian genealogists to refer you to, but the Association of Professional Genealogists has a search function for professionals with geographic specialties. You can select "Russia" from the international drop-down box and find several pros who may be able to assist you with your research in this region.

With all of these warnings and problems aside, here are a few databases and archive sites that may be of use to you when researching Russian ancestors.

• Researching Russian Roots - This is a wonderful place to begin your Russian family search. Mikhail Kroutikhin has collected a full list of archive offices in Russia, along with addresses. There are also a collection of Russian online family trees that may offer you some connections in your own tree. You may also find that local historian that can help you, in his list of Russian genealogists and researchers.

• Genealogia – A site dedicated to Russian genealogy that is still in the early stages. The pages are pretty slow to load, but the site offers message boards, and the ability to add your own research and search the trees of others. Though the site itself is in English, much of the added family tree information is in Russian. The data is pretty sparse. Still a good site to bookmark for future use.

• Russian Genealogy Forum - And as always, there is a place at Genforums for people researching Russian genealogy. Post your needs and see if you can connect with others looking for the same families you are.

• Translate Cyrillic - Use this handy tool at Dictionary.com to translate from Russian Cyrillic to English. You can use your cut/paste function to enter the Cyrillic text into the translation box. Works pretty well for deciphering words and such, but I wouldn't recommend trying to read entire documents. You'll get the general feel for it, but automated translations are usually a little "off".

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