Genealogy is 'the making of a pedigree’. So, it is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of lineages. See Online Etymology Dictionary: www.etymonline.com
Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members.
Results are often displayed in charts or written as narratives.
The field of family history is broader than genealogy and covers not just lineage but also family and community history and biography.
Genealogy vs Ancestry: https://genealogypals.com/genealogy-vs-ancestry-differences-and-why-they-matter/
UK’s Society of Genealogists. http://www.sog.org.uk/learn/education-sub-page-for-testing-navigation/guide-ten/
Start by looking at your own family in the US and gather vital records (birth, marriage, death) plus baptism, burial, and census records. Typical questions to answer are:
Where did they live and for how long?
What jobs did your parents have?
Siblings? and/or other close family members?
Become comfortable with the process of looking & working backwards in time. See the North American Genealogical Center & Næseth Library (NAGCNL) for help: https://www.nagcnl.org/getting-started/
Seek information on, and vital records for, another generation back in the US. There are templates available to help organize your information. For example: Sons of Norway Cultural Skills for Genealogy, National Genealogical Society, and even Ancestry.com.
If you are an intermediate or advanced genealogical sleuth, then you are likely already seeking Norwegian records and information.
An oft-used website: https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Norway_Genealogy presents data types, educational resources, plus has Norwegian county maps linked to their records.
Some degree of familiarity with Norwegian language is very beneficial – as you progress it will become more of a necessity. Below are two starter word and abbreviation lists:
The Foundation for East European Family History Studies - https://feefhs.org/sites/default/files/guide/Norwegian-wordlist.pdf
Abbreviations from University of North Dakota Library – https://apps.library.und.edu/bygdebok/research-guide
Become more familiar with genealogical data, information, and analysis. Consider joining a local genealogical society and attend some of their meetings and/or conferences. For example---
VA - Virginia Genealogical Society (VGS): https://www.vgs.org/ ; Fairfax County: https://fxgs.org/; and Mt. Vernon https://mvgenealogy.org
MD - Maryland Genealogical Society: https://www.mdgensoc.org; Montgomery County: https://mocogensoc.org ; and Anne Arundel County: https://aagensoc.org
The National Genealogical Society offers 3 levels of classes: 1) Foundation; 2) Advanced; and 3) Focused topics under ‘Continuing Studies’. See - https://www.ngsgenealogy.org/genealogy-courses/
The Family History Library schedules periodic Nordic Day webinars
Expressly on Denmark, Norway and Sweden. However, there are sometimes independent webinars. Plus, there are classes on Iceland and Finland. Topics include history, organization of national and ecclesiastical records, locating and interpreting those records, etc.
Sign-up for notices: fhlclasses@familysearch.org . Advance registration is required.
Can view past webinars. Scroll down to find Norway in the right-hand column. https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Classes_in_the_Learning_Center
The NAGCNL organization holds periodic webinars on Norwegian language and genealogy. You can find their schedules at https://www.nagcnl.org/events/
Direct: answers/addresses a question
Indirect: not an explicit answer, but contributes to an answer or a pattern
Negative: absence of, or contrary to, an expected result.
Reasonably exhaustive research
Statements of fact have a citation/reference as to their source
Evidence is reliable and “skillfully correlated and interpreted”
Contradictory evidence has been resolved
Conclusion has been soundly reasoned and coherently written
1 Mills, E. S. 2017. “Evidence Explained.” Genealogical Publishing Company, Inc. 3rd Edition. 892pgs. “Evidence Explained is the definitive guide...“ See website: https://www.evidenceexplained.com/
2 National Genealogical Society. 2013. Mastering Genealogical Proof. By Thomas W. Jones. In Genealogical Standards, 50th Anniversary Ed. Turner Publishing, Nashville & New York. See: https://www.ngsgenealogy.org/mastering-genealogical-proof/
3 Board of Certification of Genealogists. 2021. Genealogy Standards. Second Ed., Revised. By members of Board of Certification of Genealogists. Turner Publishing, Nashville & New York. 116pp. See: https://bcgcertification.org/product/genealogy-standards-2d-edition/
The Sons of Norway’s main website has general information on genealogy and pertinent materials: e.g., terminology, language, and history. See: https://www.sofn.com/member_resources/genealogy/ GIG member participation is encouraged!
The Program for Genealogy awards Cultural Skills Pins for 3 levels of achievement. Document your: 1) participation in the Lodge’s GIG; 2) having presented at or having organized a GIG event; and/or 3) having helped someone else with their genealogical research. Then,
Pin 1 – document the birth, baptism, marriage, death, and burial records yourself, your parents, plus 1 set of grandparents.
Pin 2 – document the birth, baptism, marriage, death, and burial records for your 2nd set of grandparents and extend 1 generation back on your 1st grandparents.
Pin 3 – document the birth, baptism, marriage, death, and burial records for the next sets of grandparents such that you have progressed back to your 1st great grandparents and addressed a total of 15 people (including yourself).
For each Pin, complete two forms: a family group sheet and a pedigree sheet. Then provide two synopses on a specific family event and on one genealogical learning activity. Submit the forms and synopses for review and approval.
Participation does not teach genealogy, but your work products reveal level of competence and progress with your own ancestry and are a good opportunity for data/info quality checks. Here is a pamphlet with introductory genealogy and Norwegian information: https://www.sofn.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/CS5_finalR.pdf
They greatly aid organization of genealogical data, related information, documents and images. Programs can provide useful ways to visualize progress, show relationships, display pedigree, etc. Plus, they can facilitate report generation.
Dominant online programs include:
Ancestry.com in the US.
Family Search (based out of UT) .
Family Tree Maker (FTM) in the US (can synchronize data with Ancestry), facilitates charts, can calculate relationships, and ability to review names/places.
Geni – separate from, yet now owned by MyHeritage.
MyHeritage – heard it’s dominant in Norway.
The type of computer operating system you use could impact your selection (i.e., Windows vs MAC vs Chrome vs Linux). Check for compatibility. There are also special computer programs available which enable family tree content to be transferred to other websites; i.e., GEDCOMs. See: https://www.gedcom.org/
There are others family tree programs. Find one which suits you and your budget.
Best Genealogy Software https://www.genealogyexplained.com/best-genealogy-software/ [July 2023]
Best genealogy tool for 2024 https://www.techradar.com/best/genealogy-tools [2023]
The Best Genealogy Software and Services https://www.pcmag.com/picks/the-best-genealogy-software-and-services [2015]
Buyer beware --- no program can prevent the use or propagation of erroneous / ridiculous data. Stay alert!
Here is a long list of “best” websites for a wide variety of genealogical purposes: https://familytreemagazine.com/best-genealogy-websites/
Need help calculating the degree of cousin-to-cousin relationships? Try this: https://www.familysearch.org/en/blog/what-is-a-second-cousin
If you need help to insert Norwegian letters and don’t like using Word’s insert symbol option, try this: https://sites.google.com/view/norwegian-genealogy/norwegian-special-characters