JEWISH ROOTS ONLINE
Online resources to help trace your Jewish roots.
Avotaynu
Avotaynu: The International Review of
Jewish Genealogy started in 1985 as a quarterly newsletter about Jewish
genealogical issues.
Also subscribe to the free e-newsletter "Nu? What's New?" here and find other
books and resources.
Beth Hatefutsoth: Museum of the Jewish People
This Israeli museum keeps track of Jewish roots from cultures around the globe.
The Douglas E. Goldman Genealogy Center has an extensive computerized database
of more than 850,000 names. For $5, the staff will search the database for you
and send you the results. You can uploa
Commercial Directory of Jews in the United Kingdom-
Published 1894
A great research tool. (Warning: Directory pp 2-4 are
blank)
Consolidated Jewish Surname Index
Avotaynu's gateway to information about 699,084 surnames, mostly Jewish, that
appear in 42 online databases.
Cyndi's
List—Jewish
Links to more than 240 sites, books, audiotapes, Web rings and much more.
FamilySearch Jewish Family History Resources
This guide offers help researching Jewish roots and finding records in the
Family History Library.
Genealogy Resources on the Internet: Jewish Mailing Lists
Connect with other researchers via e-mail.
GenealogyIndexer
Adds full-text and soundex search capabilities to important online genealogical
resources.
Given Names Databases
Search given name databases for 17 Eastern European countries. What would the
given name have been changed to in another country including the U.S.?
Guide to Jewish Genealogy in Chicagoland
Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society
HIAS has provided protection and assistance to Jews around the world. Its
historical records record information about those who've been helped.
Holocaust Names
Survivors searching for relatives and vice versa come together on this site.
The International Association of Jewish Geneaogical Societies
An umbrella organization for historical and genealogical organizations around
the world.
JewishGen
The all-encompassing site for Jewish genealogy. Features include a
directory of Jewish Genealogical Societies, Yizkor (memory) books project,
Burial-Cemetary Database, Shtetl Seeker and the Family Finder, with surnames and
town names.
Jewish Web Index
A compendium of links for Jewish genealogical research.
JRI-Poland
Jewish Records Indexing - Poland.
Launched in early 1995, JRI - Poland
is the largest fully searchable database of Jewish vital records accessible
online. 4 million records from more than 500 Polish towns are now indexed.
More are being added every few months.
Judaism 101:
Jewish Names
Dispelling surname myths and explaining given-name practices.
Museum
of Family History
“The Museum of Family History is a virtual
(Internet-only), multimedia, and interactive creation that was designed for
those who are interested in learning more about modern Jewish history, as well
as those who were a part of this history, who now grace the many branches of our
family tree. The Museum humbly attempts to honor the Jewish people and the
Jewish family unit in particular.
"Through various exhibitions of sight and sound, the Museum strives to keep the
memories of our ancestors fresh in our minds, while at the same time allowing us
to learn more about the historical events that might have touched and shaped
their lives, and subsequently our own. Through first-hand accounts, we learn of
both their struggles and their triumphs, and through this awareness we perhaps
gain some understanding of the world in which they lived.”
Museum of Jewish Heritage
Billed as a "living memorial to the Holocaust," the New York City museum
celebrates and preserves 20th-century Jewish life and culture. An online Family
History Center is currently under construction. Great for those who want an
overview of modern Jewry, and you may even find an artifact connected to your
family.
One-Step Web Pages by Stephen P. Morse
Tools on this site help you search a variety of Holocaust- and Eastern
European-related Web sites, convert Jewish calendar dates, translate Hebrew
writing and more.
Routes to Roots Foundation
Eastern European Archival Database
Sephardic
Genealogy Resources
Discovering your Sephardic ancestors and their world
UNITED KINGDOM
Federation of Synagogues
The
Federation of Synagogues comprises a network of thirteen Constituent and ten Affiliated Synagogues. Also has a
Burial Society and manages Edmonton and Rainham cemeteries.
JCR-UK
Jewish Communities and Records
(Marriages, Burials and 1861 Spitafields Census)
Greater
London only
All of U.K.
The
Poor Jews Temporary Shelter Database
Where new immigrants would stay while
finding homes and jobs.
Synagogue Scribes
Your one-stop gateway to Anglo-Jewish
community records: Synagogue Scribes offers a unique and fully searchable database
of London Ashkenazi Synagogue records, with the emphasis on pre UK civil
registration, which began on 1st July 1837.
United Synagogue
(Conservative and Orthodox)
Burial Records - Locate cemetery and plot number
Marriage Authorisation Certificates
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
This Washington, DC, institution and its extensive archive and artifact
collection have grown to staggering proportions, and its holdings can be
searched and viewed online. There are also Web exhibits, academic journals,
visitor information and more.
Yad Vashem: The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority
This museum dedicated to remembering the Holocaust has in-depth historical
information, news on the International Tracing Service (located in Bad Arolsen,
Germany, the ITS holds concentration camp-related records the Allies gathered
after World War II), a Shoah list of Holocaust victims, historical photo
database and more.
Yivo Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe
Jews from Russia
It is estimated that over 3.5 million people emigrated from Russian between 1820 and 1992 (about 2.5 of this number around the turn of the last century from 1897 to World War I) and that approximately half of these were Jews. If you have ancestors who are Russian Jews, the following books and sites should prove extremely useful.
Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from the Russian Empire. Teaneck, NJ: Avotaynu, 1993.
Cohen, Chester G. Shtetl Finder: Jewish Communities in the 19th and Early 20th Centuries in the Pale of Settlement of Russia and Poland, and in Lithuania, Latvia, Galicia, and Bukovina, with the Names of Residents. Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 1989. 929.1 COHEN
Feldblyum, Boris. Russian-Jewish Given Names. Bergenfield, NJ: Avotaynu, 1998.