Population registration in Sweden
Encyclopedia
Population registration in Sweden is the civil registration of vital events (e.g. birth
s, death
s, and marriage
s) of the inhabitants of Sweden
. The data is kept in the population registry and is administered by the Swedish Tax Agency
. The registry spans back several centuries and is thus often used by genealogists
.
One can order a registry extract about oneself, and one is entitled to obtain all records of oneself in the registry according to Section 26 of the Personal Data Act.
, on the orders of the crown, and it remained the duty of the church until 1991. The oldest preserved records date from the early 17th century - though rolls of farmsteads, estates and local taxation with the names of peasants and nobles dwelling in the places in question have sometimes survived from the later middle ages on; these do not belong with the later program of population record keeping though, but are land/tax records. Complete archives are usually found from the mid 18th century onwards, unless records have been lost or destroyed by fire or the like.
The first decree
s regarding person registration by local parishes came in 1608. A royal decree in 1631 required the names and dates of those born and passing away to be noted in the parish registry books.
The scope of the record keeping was expanded through the 18th and 19th century and the archival corpus today constitutes one of the most in-depth records of an entire national population over centuries to be found anywhere in the world, not least through the records of local hearings of people's knowledge of the catechism
(husförhör, the record books are called husförhörslängder); these were held annually in every parish and often provide valuable information on families, on the state of education, living conditions, individual capacity to read or write and even individual personal traits of the locals whom the parish priest would question on the faith. When other churches and congregations than the Church of Sweden
were legally recognized (notably through the Dissenter Act of 1873 and the Liberty of Religion Act of 1951) these other congregations and confessions were required to keep records of births, deaths, marriages and so on and to share these with public authorities if it were required.
The administration of the population registry was transferred from the church to the tax agency on July 1, 1991, due to the upcoming separation of church and state.
As Finland
was part of the Swedish kingdom from the high middle ages to 1809, and its laws and administration were recognized by the Tsar after the country had been ceded to Russia, the country shared the Swedish system of population records and these have developed on lines broadly similar to Sweden into the present age.
Birth
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
s, death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
s, and marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
s) of the inhabitants of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The data is kept in the population registry and is administered by the Swedish Tax Agency
Swedish Tax Agency
The Swedish Tax Agency is a government agency in Sweden responsible for national tax collection and administering the population registration....
. The registry spans back several centuries and is thus often used by genealogists
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
.
One can order a registry extract about oneself, and one is entitled to obtain all records of oneself in the registry according to Section 26 of the Personal Data Act.
History
The population registration in Sweden was originally maintained by the Church of SwedenChurch of Sweden
The Church of Sweden is the largest Christian church in Sweden. The church professes the Lutheran faith and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With 6,589,769 baptized members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world, although combined, there are more Lutherans in the member churches of...
, on the orders of the crown, and it remained the duty of the church until 1991. The oldest preserved records date from the early 17th century - though rolls of farmsteads, estates and local taxation with the names of peasants and nobles dwelling in the places in question have sometimes survived from the later middle ages on; these do not belong with the later program of population record keeping though, but are land/tax records. Complete archives are usually found from the mid 18th century onwards, unless records have been lost or destroyed by fire or the like.
The first decree
Decree
A decree is a rule of law issued by a head of state , according to certain procedures . It has the force of law...
s regarding person registration by local parishes came in 1608. A royal decree in 1631 required the names and dates of those born and passing away to be noted in the parish registry books.
The scope of the record keeping was expanded through the 18th and 19th century and the archival corpus today constitutes one of the most in-depth records of an entire national population over centuries to be found anywhere in the world, not least through the records of local hearings of people's knowledge of the catechism
Catechism
A catechism , i.e. to indoctrinate) is a summary or exposition of doctrine, traditionally used in Christian religious teaching from New Testament times to the present...
(husförhör, the record books are called husförhörslängder); these were held annually in every parish and often provide valuable information on families, on the state of education, living conditions, individual capacity to read or write and even individual personal traits of the locals whom the parish priest would question on the faith. When other churches and congregations than the Church of Sweden
Church of Sweden
The Church of Sweden is the largest Christian church in Sweden. The church professes the Lutheran faith and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With 6,589,769 baptized members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world, although combined, there are more Lutherans in the member churches of...
were legally recognized (notably through the Dissenter Act of 1873 and the Liberty of Religion Act of 1951) these other congregations and confessions were required to keep records of births, deaths, marriages and so on and to share these with public authorities if it were required.
The administration of the population registry was transferred from the church to the tax agency on July 1, 1991, due to the upcoming separation of church and state.
As Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
was part of the Swedish kingdom from the high middle ages to 1809, and its laws and administration were recognized by the Tsar after the country had been ceded to Russia, the country shared the Swedish system of population records and these have developed on lines broadly similar to Sweden into the present age.
Information registered
The following information of every person in the population registry is the following, if dates are applicable then they are stored as well. If a change is made, the old value is preserved also in the records.- NameNameA name is a word or term used for identification. Names can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. A personal name identifies a specific unique and identifiable individual person, and may or may not include a middle name...
- Personal identity number and co-ordination numberPersonal identity number (Sweden)The personal identity number is the Swedish national identification number. When it was introduced in 1947 it was probably the first of its kind covering the total resident population of a country...
- Place of birthPlace of birthThe place of birth is the place where a person was born. This place is often used in legal documents, together with name and date of birth, to uniquely identify a person. The place of birth is not necessarily the place where the parents of the new baby live. If the baby is born in a hospital in...
- CitizenshipCitizenshipCitizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...
- Civil status
- SpouseMarriageMarriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
, children, parents, guardiansLegal guardianA legal guardian is a person who has the legal authority to care for the personal and property interests of another person, called a ward. Usually, a person has the status of guardian because the ward is incapable of caring for his or her own interests due to infancy, incapacity, or disability...
, and adoptionAdoptionAdoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
data - AddressAddress (geography)An address is a collection of information, presented in a mostly fixed format, used for describing the location of a building, apartment, or other structure or a plot of land, generally using political boundaries and street names as references, along with other identifiers such as house or...
- PropertyPropertyProperty is any physical or intangible entity that is owned by a person or jointly by a group of people or a legal entity like a corporation...
, parishParishes of SwedenThe Parishes of Sweden are subdivisions within the Church of Sweden that historically were called socken but nowadays are called församling...
, and municipalityMunicipalities of SwedenThe municipalities of Sweden are the local government entities of Sweden. The current 290 municipalities are organized into 21 counties...
in which one is registered - ImmigrationImmigrationImmigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
to Sweden - Deregistration
- EmigrationEmigrationEmigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
from Sweden and address abroad - DeathDeathDeath is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
and place of burial
- Emigration