[#16597] 1865 Census Translation

[Gjest Debbie deHoog]

I do not read or write in Norweign so I hope that inputting this query in English is okay.I am searching for my family in Kongsberg, Buskerud, Norway. I was lead to the 1865 Census and see them listed but do not know what the Norweign words mean. Can anyone translate this for me? I have no idea what these words mean.My family is listed in (Listenrnr 510) Hans Martin Olsen.I am confused on the line of my gr grandfather Olaus Martins (USA known as Martinson) what does deres %hans%Son mean under the Familiestatus column.What would be the best way to obtain additional information on my family?Also I am very willing to do USA look ups for Census records if anyone would like to write me in English and give me their information.Thank you for your help, Debbie USA

[Gjest Adele Goa]

Deres søn would mean 'their son'. Hans søn would be 'his son'. The % signs around a word mean there is some uncertainty about the word. In Olaus' case I first thought the transcriber thought that he was the son of Hans Martin but perhaps not of Guri. However, I now think that perhaps the transcriber was questioning why Olaus and his sisters were Martin's son and daughters when their father was Hans Martin. They should have been shown as Olaus Hans. [Hansen] and sisters as Hansd. [Hansdatter]. Hans Martin Ols.[Olsen, son of Ole] occupation [Yrke] was as a carpenter in a Mill. Olaus was, literally, a smith's friend which is likely an apprentice to a smith [as in blacksmith]. Hans Martin, Olaus, Anne Serine and Martine Gurine were all born in Kongsberg parish. Guri was born in the Rollaug parish. You should be able to order the parish records for Kongsberg through your local FHC. Hopefully someone from Norway can provide you with more information. There was some great help on Rootsweb entitled 'How to Use the New Norwegian Databases at the Digitalarkivet Website' and 'Norwegian Census Records By John Føllesdal'. If those sites are still on line you can get some wonderful help with searching in Digitalarkivet.

[Gjest Kenneth Holter]

Just a small correction:You are right about Olaus occupation being an apprentice to a smith, but he was not smedsvenn like in 'smeds-venn', which would literally mean 'a smith's friend', but rather like in 'smed-svenn', which literally means 'apprentice to a smith' ...

[Gjest Elin Galtung Lihaug]

Debbie and Adele,Here are some very useful articles on Norwegian Genealogy by John Føllesdal: Lenke Adele and Kenneth,The Norwegian word for a blacksmith's apprentice is 'smedlærling'. A 'smed-svenn' is called a *journeyman blacksmith* in English.Elin

[Gjest Tor Andersen]

The answer is even simpler:% indicates stricken out text in the source. If a word or a sentence is stricken out it is marked with a % in front and behind the stricken out word (e.g. 'Peder%Hans%')This is taken from the 'Special signs ...' linked from the English frontpage of the census:Please read these pages: About the 1865 Census | Special signs used in the census | Abbreviations | Lacunas

[Gjest Debbie deHoog]

Thank you all for the help. You can't believe how much we appreciate the new information.I have tried to a translation engine for the word Mollebrugssnedker (the occupation for Hans Martin) but it just keeps saying no such word found. Do anyone know what that is?Debbie

[Gjest Elin Galtung Lihaug]

Adele (message 2) has already translated this for you: *a carpenter in a mill*Elin

[Gjest Kathy Bergan Schmidt]

Translation engines probably will not give much help for words found in older records because of spelling changes. If you think you need more help besides what you can find on the web, buying yourself a copy of the Norwegian-English dictionary by Einar Haugen (a green paperback the last time I saw it for sale) is the best thing to do. It provides more spellings and is the one usually suggested for translating older documents.Another book that may be helpful is Norwegian Research Guide by Linda M. Herrick and Wendy K. Uncapher. One of its best features is the Census and Church Records Headings translations -- handy when you rent those microfilms from Salt Lake.