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Andrea Bentschneider 's Beyond History - German Genealogy Services

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Andrea Bentschneider 's Beyond History - German Genealogy Services

Your contact for genealogy and family research in Germany. This is our English speaking facebook pag This is our English speaking page.

For inquiries please use our contact form: https://www.beyond-history.com/kontakt. We can then get back to you with all the necessary documents.

09/06/2026

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘆. 🗄️
On behalf of our whole team at the German Genealogy Collective and Beyond History, we want to say a heartfelt thank you.

To the German archivists, parish secretaries, civil registrars, and the many others who help us every single day: thank you. You answer our questions, track down records that seem impossible to find, and open the door to historic documents that would otherwise stay out of reach.

Your work is the reason so many families finally learn where they come from. Behind every breakthrough we celebrate, there is usually someone in an archive or registry office who made it possible.

We see you, we appreciate you, and we could not do this work without you. 🙏

To everyone who safeguards our shared history: 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂.

02/06/2026

𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴? Here are five things that actually help:

1. Start with an alphabet chart. Kurrent and Sütterlin charts are free online. Print one
and keep it next to your screen.
2. Find an anchor word first. A place name, a month, a relationship term. Use it to orient
yourself in the rest of the entry.
3. Compare entries by the same scribe. The same letters will reappear. Patterns emerge
faster than you think.
4. Do not commit to a reading too early. If you are only eighty percent sure, write it down
as tentative and keep checking.
5. Ask for help. The genealogy community is generous, and a second pair of eyes can
crack something in seconds that has stumped you for an hour.

Save this post for the next time you hit a wall! 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝘁𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁, 𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀. 👇

01/06/2026

In 1941, the N**i regime abolished old German script overnight.

The reason? The peoples of occupied territories could not read it.

𝗠𝘆 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗳𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝘂𝘁𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝗲𝘄𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘀𝘁 and had been writing in Latin letters for years to communicate with colleagues abroad. When the decree came into force, my mother's cousin was furious - she had to unlearn everything and start completely over. My grandfather explained quietly why it had really happened, and why he had seen it coming long before most people did.

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀. And they matter just as much.

Have you ever uncovered a story like this in your own family? I would love to hear it. 👇

https://go.germangenealogycollective.com/post/the-art-of-reading-scribbles

01/06/2026

Quick question: 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦ü𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗶𝗻?

Most people use the terms interchangeably. They are actually two different scripts, and mixing them up is one of the most common mistakes in German genealogy research.

Kurrent was the standard German handwriting style for centuries. Sütterlin came later, developed in the early 1900s as a simplified version that schoolchildren could learn more easily. Rounder, more uniform, a little more forgiving on the eyes.

If you have ever come across a child's school exercise book from the 1920s or 1930s, you are looking at Sütterlin. Those careful, deliberate letters were the result of hours of practice and a great deal of patience.

Learn one, and the other becomes much less scary.

𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵? Tell me in the comments! 👇

https://go.germangenealogycollective.com/post/the-art-of-reading-scribbles

31/05/2026

Did you know that 𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗜-𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹 that can transcribe old German Kurrent script directly from the record images?

If you have ever spent an hour squinting at a baptism entry and gotten nowhere, this is going to change your day.

𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲, now in its third edition, has a full chapter on how to use it effectively. Link below if you want to grab a copy.

And if you use ARCHION regularly - what is the one feature you could not research without? Tell me in the comments! 👇

https://germangenealogycollective.com/product-details/product/archion-research-guide

30/05/2026

Most German genealogical records were not typed. They were written by hand in 𝗮 𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗞𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁, and it looks almost nothing like the alphabet most of us grew up with.

Angular letters. Tight spacing. An "n" that looks like a "u." An "e" that practically vanishes. And every pastor, registrar, and village schoolteacher had their own personal version of it.

If you have ever opened a German church book and thought "I have absolutely no idea what I am looking at" - that is Kurrent. And you are not alone.

The good news? 𝗜𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱. And once your eye adjusts, those pages start to open up.

Do you know someone who is struggling with old German records? Tag them here - this one is for them! 👇

https://go.germangenealogycollective.com/post/the-art-of-reading-scribbles

29/05/2026

Some days in the office sound a bit like this:

"Is that an H or an S?"
"Could this say baker?"
"No... wait... maybe butcher?"

This is a normal Tuesday when you work with 𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀. Even after decades of experience, some scribes from 1823 can still stop us completely dead in our tracks.

Have you ever tried reading old German handwriting? Drop your experience in the comments — 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲! 👇

https://go.germangenealogycollective.com/post/the-art-of-reading-scribbles

29/05/2026

I am presenting a free live webinar on June 3 and I would love to see you there!

It is part of a full 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘀, and my session is called: 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗱: 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀, 𝗢𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀.

If you have ever wondered why your German ancestor's surname changed spelling when they emigrated, or what the name actually means and where it comes from, this one is for you.

📅 Wednesday, June 3, 9:45 PDT | 12:45 pm EDT
💻 Free to attend live
👉 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: https://familytreewebinars.com/webinar/german-surnames-unlocked-meanings-origins-and-clues

𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀? Share this with them - the more the merrier! 👇

27/05/2026

Some good news worth passing on if you use 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘀.

They have just completely rebuilt their website from the ground up, and it is noticeably faster. On top of that, Legacy Family Tree software is now completely free for everyone. And their library has grown to 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟮,𝟳𝟬𝟬 𝘄𝗲𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝟱𝟬𝟬 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝘀, covering genealogy topics from all over the world.

The catch: their annual subscription price is going up from $49.95 to $59.95 on June 1. But they have extended their 𝗦𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟯𝟭, which means you can lock in a subscription at 50% off before the increase hits.

If you have been thinking about subscribing, or want to restart an expired membership, this is the moment to do it.

👉 https://familytreewebinars.com/checkout?coupon=spring2026extended

Sale ends May 31. Worth sharing with anyone in your genealogy circle who might not have seen this yet! 👇

08/05/2026

Tomorrow. 🗓️

The German Roots & Records Summit Spring 2026 starts at 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET on Zoom, and registration is still open.

Last chance to grab a seat (or a recording).

🎓 Dr. Wolfgang Grams · Ancestral travel
🗝️ Timo Kracke · Hidden archive gems
🗺️ Dr. Klaus-D. Kohrt · Schleswig-Holstein
🏰 Dr. Gerd-Christian Treutler · Brandenburg
📜 Prof. Kenneth Heger · U.S. State Dept correspondence

👉 Link in bio to register before we start.

See you in the morning ☕

Adresse

Stresemannallee 90
Hamburg
22529

Öffnungszeiten

Montag	08:00 - 16:00
Dienstag	08:00 - 16:00
Mittwoch	08:00 - 16:00
Donnerstag	08:00 - 16:00
Freitag	09:00 - 14:00

Telefon

+494046777735

Webseite

https://www.beyond-history.com/

Benachrichtigungen

Lassen Sie sich von uns eine E-Mail senden und seien Sie der erste der Neuigkeiten und Aktionen von Andrea Bentschneider 's Beyond History - German Genealogy Services erfährt. Ihre E-Mail-Adresse wird nicht für andere Zwecke verwendet und Sie können sich jederzeit abmelden.