Ready to move on to genealogical sources? See Part 2 of this primer here. Part 1 – Historical Context What You Need to Know about Latvia Latvia is a country in northeastern Europe, bordered by Estonia, Russia, Belarus and Lithuania.
Forename Friday – ZiedÄ«te
Today’s name is ZiedÄ«te. This is a female name. According to KlÄvs Siliņš’ LatvieÅ¡u personvÄrdu vÄrdnica (Dictionary of Latvian Personal Names), ZiedÄ«te comes from the Latvian verb “ziedÄ“t”, which means “to blossom”, and was first seen in 1915 in Zemgale,
Forename Friday – Zinta
Welcome back to Forename Friday! This will be a biweekly series looking at Latvian first names, chosen based on one of the names found in the Latvian calendar of names for that day. Today’s name is Zinta. This is a
Limbaži News – August 9, 1908
I occasionally browse the variety of newspapers available through the Latvian National Library’s website here and here. Newspapers can be a very valuable source of information, but many pre-World War 2 Latvian newspapers were written in blackletter font and old
March 25: Day of Remembrance for Victims of Communist Terror
March 25 is one of several days in the Latvian calendar designated as a day of remembrance for victims of Communist terror. The others are June 14 and the first Sunday in December. As of today, I have now been
Surname Saturday – Different Kinds of Hills
As many of you probably know, the Latvian word for hill, “kalns”, is a fairly common Latvian surname, particularly in its diminutive form Kalniņš. But there are many different kind of “kalns” as well, as evidenced by my journeys through
Tuesday’s Tip: Look Randomly
Generally speaking, genealogy is a calm and focused pursuit. However, sometimes you need to be random – this is particularly true when trying to find something at the archives. There is a reason for this – the Central Fond Register
Tuesday’s Tip: House Books
A wonderful resource for researching Latvian genealogy is the house book collection at the Latvian State Historical Archives. They are available in fond 2942 for RÄ«ga and in fond 2110 for the rest of Latvia. During the Czarist era, as
Search for Anna Liepa: Update
So last month I posted a “Plan of Attack” for finding more about the origins of my great-grandmother Anna Liepa. So, how has it gone? Not all that well, I’m afraid. The house book for Romanova iela 62/64 did not
January 20: Day of the Barricades
January 20 is a day of remembrance in Latvia, for an event in more recent memory than others – in this case, the time of the barricades, and subsequently, the end of the Soviet Union. Latvia had already declared independence