myireland.ie
Do chuid daoine — your people

Trace your Irish ancestors

Ireland's records were burned, pulped and scattered — and yet an astonishing amount survives, free and online, from the institutions that hold it. This is where to start, in the order that works.

The step-by-step guide: how to use them, and the traps →

How to begin — six steps
  1. Start with what the family knowsA name, a county, a parish or townland, and a rough year of birth or emigration. The townland, the smallest unit of Irish land, is the key that unlocks every record below.
  2. Civil records (after 1864)Births, marriages and deaths were registered from 1864 (Protestant marriages from 1845). Free images on irishgenealogy.ie give parents' names and addresses.
  3. The 1901 and 1911 censusesFree and complete: age, religion, literacy, Irish language, and, in 1911, how many children a woman had borne and how many survived.
  4. Church registers (before 1864)Catholic baptisms and marriages back to the 1700s in many parishes (NLI); Church of Ireland and Presbyterian registers via PRONI, RCB Library and local archives.
  5. Griffith's Valuation & the Tithe BooksLand and house occupiers in the 1820s–60s: the bridge across the Famine when no census survives.
  6. Go back to the townlandWith Griffith's map reference, GeoHive's 6-inch maps show the house; the Down Survey shows who owned the land in 1650; Dúchas tells you what the neighbours said about it in 1937.

The sources

Census of Ireland 1901 & 1911 National Archives of Ireland Every household in Ireland, name by name, free to search. The two complete surviving censuses — the 19th-century ones were destroyed in 1922 or pulped for paper. Civil records of births, marriages & deaths irishgenealogy.ie (Dept of Tourism, Culture, Arts) Free images of civil registers: births 1864–1924, marriages 1845/1864–1949, deaths 1871–1974. Start here for anyone born after 1864. Catholic parish registers National Library of Ireland Digitised images of baptism and marriage registers from over 1,000 parishes, mostly 1740s–1880 — the main source before civil registration. Griffith's Valuation (1847–1864) Ask About Ireland / libraries The first full property survey of Ireland: every occupier of land or house, with maps. The census substitute for the Famine generation. Tithe Applotment Books (1823–1837) National Archives of Ireland Landholders assessed for tithes to the Church of Ireland — the earliest near-complete list of Irish farmers, pre-Famine. The Down Survey of Ireland (1656–1658) Trinity College Dublin Cromwell's confiscation maps, the first detailed land survey of any country, showing who owned every townland before and after the conquest. The 1641 Depositions Trinity College Dublin Eight thousand witness statements from the 1641 rising, transcribed — the voices of ordinary people in Ireland's most contested year. Bureau of Military History (1913–1921) Military Archives 1,773 witness statements by participants in the revolution, plus the Military Service Pensions Collection — did your family fight? Dúchas — the Schools' Folklore Collection (1937–39) National Folklore Collection, UCD Half a million pages of stories, cures, customs and local history written down by schoolchildren from their grandparents. Search your townland. Logainm — Placenames Database of Ireland Government of Ireland / DCU The authoritative Irish form and meaning of every townland, parish and town. Landed Estates Database University of Galway The landlords, estates and big houses of Connacht and Munster, 1700–1914 — who owned the land your people rented. PRONI — Public Record Office of Northern Ireland nidirect Wills, freeholders' records, street directories and the Ulster Covenant signatures, for the six counties. Ireland Reaching Out Ireland XO (volunteer) Parish-by-parish volunteer network that helps the diaspora connect with the place their ancestors left. Historic maps — GeoHive Tailte Éireann (Ordnance Survey) The 6-inch Ordnance Survey maps of the 1830s–40s and 25-inch maps of c. 1900, overlaid on today's map: find the exact house.

By county

Antrim Aontroim county page →

How to trace ancestors in Antrim →

Armagh Ard Mhacha county page →

How to trace ancestors in Armagh →

Carlow Ceatharlach county page →

How to trace ancestors in Carlow →

Cavan An Cabhán county page →

How to trace ancestors in Cavan →

Clare An Clár county page →

How to trace ancestors in Clare →

Cork Corcaigh county page →

How to trace ancestors in Cork →

Donegal Dún na nGall county page →

How to trace ancestors in Donegal →

Down An Dún county page →

How to trace ancestors in Down →

Dublin Baile Átha Cliath county page →

How to trace ancestors in Dublin →

Fermanagh Fear Manach county page →

How to trace ancestors in Fermanagh →

Galway Gaillimh county page →

How to trace ancestors in Galway →

Kerry Ciarraí county page →

How to trace ancestors in Kerry →

Kildare Cill Dara county page →

How to trace ancestors in Kildare →

Kilkenny Cill Chainnigh county page →

How to trace ancestors in Kilkenny →

Laois Laois county page →

How to trace ancestors in Laois →

Leitrim Liatroim county page →

How to trace ancestors in Leitrim →

Limerick Luimneach county page →

How to trace ancestors in Limerick →

Derry / Londonderry Doire county page →

How to trace ancestors in Derry / Londonderry →

Longford An Longfort county page →

How to trace ancestors in Longford →

Louth Lú county page →

How to trace ancestors in Louth →

Mayo Maigh Eo county page →

How to trace ancestors in Mayo →

Meath An Mhí county page →

How to trace ancestors in Meath →

Monaghan Muineachán county page →

How to trace ancestors in Monaghan →

Offaly Uíbh Fhailí county page →

How to trace ancestors in Offaly →

Roscommon Ros Comáin county page →

How to trace ancestors in Roscommon →

Sligo Sligeach county page →

How to trace ancestors in Sligo →

Tipperary Tiobraid Árann county page →

How to trace ancestors in Tipperary →

Tyrone Tír Eoghain county page →

How to trace ancestors in Tyrone →

Waterford Port Láirge county page →

How to trace ancestors in Waterford →

Westmeath An Iarmhí county page →

How to trace ancestors in Westmeath →

Wexford Loch Garman county page →

How to trace ancestors in Wexford →

Wicklow Cill Mhantáin county page →

How to trace ancestors in Wicklow →

All links go to the holding institutions. MyIreland.ie has no affiliation with any of them and takes no payment for links.