Source Information

Ancestry.com. Rostock, Germany, Deaths, 1876-1981 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

Original data: Personenstandsregister, Sterberegister, 1876-1981. Archiv der Hansestadt Rostock.

About Rostock, Germany, Deaths, 1876-1981

About the Rostock, Germany, Deaths, 1876-1981

General Collection Information

This collection contains civil registries of deaths between 1876 and 1981 from Rostock, Germany. Records in the collection consist of sterberegisters (death registers) and namensverzeichnis (name lists). All records are in German. Registries were handwritten onto pre-printed forms. Newer records may be typed. Per German law, death records are accessible to the public 30 years after the death occurred.

Using this collection

Death registrations may contain the following:

Name, including maiden name if applicable

Birth date

Birthplace

Death date

Place of death

Time of death

Residence

Religious denomination

Name of spouse

Names of parents

Certificate number

Name of registration office

Date of issue

Occupation

Signatures of informants

After 1938, records may also include reference numbers for your family member's birth and marriage records, and cause of death.

If your family member served during either World War, their death record will also list military rank.

If you don't speak German, knowing a few common words can aid in your search:

Tod is German for "death."

Gestorben is German for "died."

Verstorbene is German for "deceased."

Geburt is German for "birth."

Geborene is German for "born" and is often used to denote maiden names.

Tochter von is German for "daughter of."

Sohn von is German for "son of."

Mutter is German for "mother."

Vater is German for "father."

Ehefrau is German for "wife."

Ehemann is German for "husband."

Bemerfungen is German for "comments."

These records often include notes about the deceased's life written in the margins. Margin notes are particularly common in the case of stillborn children and those who died before they could be baptized.

Though German civil registration records are an excellent starting point, it may be beneficial to try searching Ancestry's catalog of German records for additional information.

Collection in context

Civil registration was first introduced to Germany via the French Civil Code. While France occupied parts of modern Germany in the 1790s, citizens were required to register with the state. Previously, churches were often the ones to keep records of birth, marriage, and death. Civil registration on a national level would not exist in Germany until 1876, five years after the unification of Germany ended. Due to the disparate governments of the various nations that became Germany, there was no standardized form of civil registration before unification.

Bibliography

Beidler, James M. "Finding Digitized German Records Online." Familytree Magazine. Last Modified 2022. https://familytreemagazine.com/heritage/german/online-german-civil-records/.

Germany Service. "Birth Records." Last Modified August 7, 2020. https://www.germany-service.com/birth-records.html.

Powell, Kimberly. "Records of Births, Marriages and Deaths in Germany." ThoughtCo. Last Modified March 3, 2019. https://www.thoughtco.com/germany-vital-records-1422812.