Source Information
About Lithuania, Jewish Marriage and Divorce Records from Various Towns, 1855-1940
This database contains over 4,000 marriages and divorces from the following Lithuanian towns:
| Town | Record Type | Year(s) | FHL Microfilm Number | Number of Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biržai Birzh | Marriages | 1862-64 | 2187652/2; 2187654/3 | 23 |
| 1865-75 | 2205126/3-4 | 132 | ||
| 1875-80 | 2205137/2 | 73 | ||
| 1881-93 | 2290696/5 | 194 | ||
| 1894-95 | 2290697/1 | 35 | ||
| Divorces | 1890-92 | Not microfilmed | 8 | |
| Joniškelis Yanishkel | Marriages | 1887-93 | 2331378/6 | 12 |
| 1899 | 2331186/3 | 2 | ||
| Kupiškis Kupishok | Marriages | 1870-71, 1874-75 | 2288941/9 | 40 |
| 1877-99 | 2288942/1-2 | 451 | ||
| 1900-14 | 2331378/9 & 9 | 243 | ||
| 1922-40 | Not microfilmed | 247 | ||
| Divorces | 1898-1901 | 2331378/6 | 4 | |
| Linkuva Linkeve | Marriages | 1865-66, 1869-80 | 2205127/4-5; 2205137/4 | 160 |
| 1922-26 | Not microfilmed | 34 | ||
| Divorces | 1890 | Not microfilmed | 2 | |
| Naujamiestis | Marriages | 1872, 1874 | 2205129/2-3 | 8 |
| Panevežys Ponevezh | Marriages | 1872-75 | 2205129/2-3 | 170 |
| 1878 | 2270245/5 | 52 | ||
| 1880 | 2270245/5 | 54 | ||
| 1886-87 | 2287921/1 | 121 | ||
| 1888-97 | 2288942/3 | 599 | ||
| 1925-40 | Not microfilmed | 826 | ||
| Pumpenai Pompian | Marriages | 1855 | 2157999/4 | 7 |
| 1860 | 2192860/2 | 3 | ||
| 1861 | 2187651/2 | 8 | ||
| 1863 | 2187653/3 | 9 | ||
| 1865-79 | 2205128/3-4 | 184 | ||
| 1880 | 2270245/2 | 6 | ||
| Pušalotas Pushelot | Marriages | 1883-1912 | 2328521/1 | 127 |
| 1904-39 | Not microfilmed | 27 | ||
| Rokiškis Rakishok | Marriages | 1874-96 | Not microfilmed | 193 |
| Šilale Shilel | Marriages | 1922-39 | Not microfilmed | 138 |
| Simnas Simna | Marriages | 1922-25 | Not microfilmed | |
| Vabalninkas Vabolnik | Marriages | 1872-75 | 2205127/1 | 23 |
| 1876-80 | 2205137/3 | 42 | ||
| Divorces | 1876-80 | 2205137/3 | 6 | |
| Žeimelis Zhemel | Marriages | 1858, 1860, 1862-80 | 2205127/2-3, 2270470/1 | 109 |
| 1882-1914 | 2292686/4 | 180 |
About the Records:
According to the Regulations of 1835 in the Russian Empire, one of the duties of an official state rabbi (a "crown rabbi") was to carry out, solely by his offices, all the rites of circumcision and naming of infants, weddings, dissolution of marriages, and burials "(in populous cities a rabbi could have assistants to carry out those rites)"; to keep metrical books in all its sections and to submit copies of them annually to gubernia authorities, in Hebrew and Russian language.
The records during the Czarist period (i.e. those before 1918) were written in both Russian (Cyrillic alphabet) and Hebrew script, although some records are in Russian language only. The records during the period of Lithuanian independence (i.e. those created between 1919 and 1940) were written in the Lithuanian language, with some Hebrew and Yiddish.
Information listed in this database typically includes:
- Marriage Place: Town / Uyezd / Gubernia: The place where the marriage occurred: The name of the town, the uyezd (district), and gubernia (province).
- Marriage Date: The date that the marriage or divorce took place. Two dates were recorded: The Secular date (day, month and year, in dd/mm/ccyy format — see Notes on Dates below), and the Hebrew date (day and month, according to the Jewish calendar).
- Groom Name / Bride Name: Surname and Given Name(s) of the groom and bride. Where there are two names separated by a slash ("/"), one is transliterated from the Russian, one from the Hebrew (in the pre-WWI Czarist records); or the second name in square brackets is the Lithuanian nominative form (in the post-WWI records).
- Groom's Father, Mother & Place / Bride's Father, Mother & Place: The given name(s) of each of the party's father and mother, and their place of residence
- Groom Age / Bride Age: Age (or occasionally, the year of birth) of the groom and bride
- Comments: Any miscellaneous information about this marriage, divorce, or the parties
- Rabbi / Witness 1 / Witness 2: The name of the rabbi, and two witnesses
- Place Recorded: the town where the marriage or divorce was recorded
- Year Recorded: the year that the marriage or divorce was recorded
- Record Type: either "Marriage" or "Divorce"
- Record #: the registration number of the marriage or divorce
- Microfilm / Item: the FHL microfilm number and microfilm item number, if a microfilmed record; or "Not Microfilmed" if not
- Image #: The Image number on microfilm, if available (this will enable you to locate the record on the microfilm)
- Archive / Fond: The Archive and Fond citation — the source of the record. "LVIA" = Lietuvos Valstybės Istorijos Archyvas (Lithuanian State Historical Archives), in Vilnius; "KRA" = Kaunas Regional Archives
