Building a Genealogical Tree in Lithuania

Genealogy is a science that studies family relationships, and descent through a series of generations, and helps to understand the history of family. The search of ancestry in Lithuania is becoming more and more popular, people seek to find out more about their family’s past and life paths of their parents, grandparents, and ancestors. One of methods to learn more about your descent and origins is to build a genealogical/ family tree.

Lithuania has an extremely rich history and culture; therefore, genealogical research may be particularly interesting and relevant, but at the same time complex. In order to create a family tree, one should know where to look for the sources.

The first step at the beginning of genealogical research is a conversation with relatives. By talking to parents, grandparents, uncles, and aunts, it is possible to learn more about your ancestors, their life, professions, and relevant events. This may reveal interesting facts and help to expand the image of family history.

The next important step is investigation of national archives. Lithuania may boast about the variety of valuable resources, including the Lithuanian Central State Archives in Vilnius, where a huge collection of censuses and landowner documents is stored, as well as domestic and foreign passports of the Republic of Lithuania, documents of military volunteers, conscripts, soldiers, and military officers, and various others. Moreover, regional archives across the country, such as Kaunas Regional State Archives and Šiauliai Regional State Archives, store valuable regional records.

The civil registry in Lithuania has commenced in 1940, thus, in the Civil Registry Archives you can acquaint with the birth, marriage, and death records after 1940. In the events before 1940, the key role was played by the church registers, and such documents now are kept at the Office of the Chief Archivist of Lithuania, whereas the religious diversity of Lithuania is reflected by availability of Catholic, Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, and other church records.

Furthermore, as it could be prompted from the name itself, the special archive of Lithuania stores a highly important heritage of the Lithuanian history. There you can find information about ancestors who were murdered, convicted, exiled, included in the lists of exiles, persecuted by the Soviet security services.

The digital era has revolutionised the genealogical research by granting access to the variety of internet sources. Such websites like Epaveldas, Geni, Ancestry, and FamilySearch offer extensive databases and tools designed for examining ancestors and finding genealogical information.

Therefore, building a family tree is not just collecting names and dates. It is a possibility to preserve family history and traditions. Creation of a family tree and disclosure of histories of your Lithuanian ancestors is a delightful work connecting the past with the present. By accessing huge Lithuanian archives, online resources, and getting involved in local historical societies, you can take a useful journey of self-discovery, preserve your family’s heritage, pass on knowledge, and take care that future generations would cherish the history and heritage of their Lithuanian roots.

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