This is no surprise, given that this land has been part of multiple countries throughout its turbulent history. Here is just a brief chronology of the jurisdiction changes:
1526 – 1867 Habsburg monarchy or Austrian monarchy
1867 – 1918 Austro-Hungary
1772 – 1918 Hungarian Kingdom (Austro-Hungary)
1919 – 1939 Czechoslovakia
1939 – 1944 Hungary
1945 – 1991 Soviet Union, small areas in Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania
1991 – now Ukraine, small areas in Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania
 |
| A popular joke about the border changes within a single human life |
All this creates certain challenges for those with ancestors from this area.
Hopefully, this post will help you get started and succeed in your family research. I will keep updating this post with new links, so it is worth re-visiting later.
Primers
FamilySearch Wiki page on Carpathian Ruthenia
FEEFHS Carpatho-Rus' Resources
Researching the People from No Mans Land, The Carpatho Rusyns of Austria-Hungary, Thomas Peters, 1996
Tom Peters: Researching Carpatho-Rusyns
Genealogical Primer on Lemko.org
Online Maps
Hungarian Kingdom (1782–1785) - First Military Survey
Hungary (1819–1869) - Second military survey of the Habsburg Empire
Habsburg Empire (1869-1887) - Third Military Survey (1:25000)Habsburg Empire (1869-1887) - Third Military Survey (1:75000)
Military Survey of Hungary (1941)Habsburg Empire - Cadastral maps (XIX. century)
Gazetteers, Town Locators
Magyarország helységnévtára tekintettel a közigazgatási. Dvorzsák, János, 1877. Downloadable from FamilySearch here.
A Magyar Szent Korona Országainak Helységnévtára, 1913. Downloadable from FamilySearch here.
Carpatho-Rusyn Villages on The Carpathian Connection
Root Seekers Guide To The Homeland on Carpatho-Rusyn JewishGen Gazetteer
Databases Online
Databases on Carpathian Reflections (registration required)
Vital Records Surname Index (4818 Individuals with 844 Surnames)
Rusyn Genealogy Index (various resources for Rusyn and Lemko genealogy)
A Dictionary of Lemko Surnames (with references to the native towns)
Hungaricana (Hungarian electronic archives unified search)
Hungarian online databases (includes early censuses from 18th century)
Records Online
FamilySearch catalog for "Kárpátalja"
FamilySearch catalog for "Podkarpatska Rus"
FamilySearch catalog for "Zakarpattya"
Hungarian feudal tax lists: Urbéri tabellák, 1767-1773
Archival Catalogs
Catalog of metric records of Transcarpathian region (in Ukrainian)
Archival Guide of the Beregovo Branch of the State Archives of Transcarpathian Region, 1918-1945 (in Ukrainian)
A guide on Church and State Registries at Transcarpathian State Archives (In Hungarian)
Some records can also be found at State Archive in Prešov, Slovakia, Satu Mare Regional Archive, Romania, and National Archives of Hungary.
Dedicated Websites
Carpathian Reflections (record transcriptions for members only)
Lemko Genealogy (primers, indexes, links, focus on Poland)
Carpatho-Rusyn Knowledge Base (research tips, indexes)
The Carpathian Connection (focus on Slovakia)
Carpatho-Rusyn Genealogy Web Site (immigration, name patterns)
Various Resources
Causes of deaths in Transcarpathian records (based on Munkács Greek Catholic records)
Jewish Memoir Bibliography on Transcarpathia
Rusyn Language Resources for English SpeakersThe Carpatho-Rusyn Heritage
Lemkotran - Carpatho-Rusyn to English translation engine
DNA Project on FamilyTreeDNA
Blogs
Carpatho-Rusyn Research Center Blog
Carpatho-Rusyn Cultural Center
The Carpatho-Rusyns of Pennsylvania
Maybe you’re Rusyn? blog post on Kerry's Genealogy Research Blog
Societies, Facebook groups
Carpatho-Rusyn Society (members only), their Facebook page
MACSE, Hungarian Society for Family History Research
Carpatho-Rusyns Everywhere FB group
The Carpatho-Rusyns of Pennsylvania Facebook page
