As mentioned, the demographic data from Scandinavia are of very high quality and the few discrepancies that may be found are often unimportant for researcher. In general, the census returns are an invaluable guide to birthplaces, occupations etc. This article contains some notes on some of the individual enumeration fields (or categories) which the family historian should be aware of when researching the Danish censuses:
Example: census details for Christen Jensen Buch (1792-1844) from the census of 1834. The farms name are 'Skivdal', however the name was not recorded in the census. |
- Place of residence
- Name
- Gender
- Age
- Position in the household
- Marital status
- Profession, occupation or trade
- 1. or 2. marriage?
- Place of birth / Last residence
- Religious community
- Infirmities, mentally or physically handicapped
- Age at first marriage
- Other fields / categories
Place of Residence - Addresses
Before the 1900s Danish farms and houses rarely had a specific address as we know it today. In the rural areas, small farms, smallholdings and houses were often identified in the censuses by a place name or a land registration number (title number). Only the larger farms were in some cases identified by their name. Even in Copenhagen and the provincial Market Towns, a formal system of numbering was not introduced until the end of the 1800s. It is therefore often difficult to compare the information obtained from one census with that of another based on place of residence alone.Name - Accuracy
Names found in the censuses should be treated with little caution, as there may be minor discrepancies compared to the names found in parish registers; sometimes other name variations have been recorded and people with multipel first names may be listed only with the name they used daily. Abbreviations may also cause difficulties. Furthermore, children living with their parents are sometimes recorded without surname.Most women changed their name according to the new name laws in the period 1829-56. A woman, e.g. with the name Maren Louise Jensdatter in the 1840-census may therefore be recorded as Maren Louise Jensen in the 1860-census. Women were in general recorded with their maidenname, but towards the end of the 1800's, it is more common for women to a on the be recorded with their married name. The same woman as in the previous example may therefore be with her husbands surname as Maren Louise Lorentsen in the 1890-census.
Most of these discrepancies are minor ones, and should in general not be a problem for the researcher.
Age
The prominent part of the ages that are recorded seem to be accurate, however it is best to treat these information with little caution. The recorded age does not always lead to a precise year in the birth register. A person aged 25 in 1845, for example, will without further research seem to have been born in 1820. As the 1845-census where held February 1, the researcher who is looking for the birth record should therefore consult the birth registers from February 2, 1819 to Febrary 1, 1820. A secondary search should include the years 1818-21.Position in the household (stilling i husstanden)
Also the relationship of each member to the head of the household or position in the household were recorded, and this enumeration field/category may often give valuable information. You may identify the husband's parents or the wife's sister giving you good leads for your further research into the family.Marital Status (civilstand)
The marital status of all induviduals in the household are recorded: married ["gift"], unmarried ["ugift"], widow ["enke"], or widower ["enkemand"]; in the cases that no marital status is recorded (ussually records of children) the individual is assumed to be unmarried. In rare occations you may also encounter divorcé/divorcee ["fraskilt"] or divorsed ["skilt"].Profession, occupation or trade (Erhverv)
The occupations that are recorded are fairly accurate, but rarely take account of dual occupations or casual employment. A man who appears in the censuses under the description 'labourer' may have performed a variety of tasks, some of them skilled. Furthermore many craftsmen in the rural areas, for example, often combined their craft with a smallholding.1. or 2. marriage?
The census of 1787 records which marriage the parents are in and from which marriage the children relates. This is valuable information in order to identify a wife that died in child labor, brought together children etc. Unfortunately this is the only census with this enumeration field/category.Place of birth / last residence
From 1845 onwards the Danish censuses include information of the persons place of birth. These information usually refer to the same parish ["her i sognet"], a nabouring parish or town. On most occasions, the enumerator have recorded the parish where the birth occurred rather than the specific location within the parish. People who was born outside the county, are usually recorded with information on the specific county or area from which the came.In 1906 and 1916 only the censuses for Copenhagen and Frederiksberg include information about last residence and place of birth, whereas the 1911-census has information about both last residence and place of birth for all of Denmark.
