I am traveling to Germany this fall and one of the things I plan to do is visit the little town of Teunz in Bavaria, where my grandparents lived before they came to the United States. Finding the name of the town was easy because I have copies of their marriage certificate, but I am still looking for relatives in the town.

The Worldwide Web has made it much easier to find your family roots in Europe, but it takes time and determination. I have come up with some resources to help you get a start on your own family tree.

If you have any documents from your ancestors, here is a translation of some of the words you may encounter:

Geburtsurkunde:    birth certificate
Taufschein: christening certificate
Totenschein:    death certificate
Heiratsurkunde:    marriage certificate
Zeugnis: certification
Geboren:    born
Protokoll:    minutes

German Roots
A good place to begin your search. The site has some great links and good advice.

Geneology links
Offers links to ships logs, cemeteries, marriage licenses, etc.

German Originality
Web site for German American heritage brought to you by the German National Tourist Office and the German Information Center USA. If you are just beginning your search, this site will get you started.

US Government
This website has some great links for researching you German roots.

Immigrant Ships lists
This is not an exhaustive list, but if you know what year your relatives emigrated, it could be helpful.