Israeli Genealogy Databases



The available databases online for the many ethnic, religious and cultural groups is growing everyday. They are all trying to make family history more accessible to people around the globe. The Israel Genealogy Research Association (IGRA) is one such organization who wish to share the documents and records of their archives with as many people as possible. Numerous records are in different languages (most Hebrew and English) so there is a good deal of transcribing into English.

The databases are divided into time periods, starting with Ottoman which was pre-1917. Next is during the British occupation from 1917 to 1948. Last covers under Israeli rule from 1949 to present, yet for privacy, the limit of 70 years is observed unless permission was granted. To create this archive for an online database sources came from several libraries, archives, newspapers and other collections, especially in Israel.

To use the databases, on the main page is a ‘start a search’ button. Before any search, the site does have you register – which is free. Just select a user name and a password. The site does offer the opportunity to be a paid member and have access to even greater resources.

To give you a sampling of some of the types of records available in the three time frames, the following is outlined:

Pre-1917 – Ottoman – Burials in Safed and 1912 list of families of Safed.


British 1917-1948 – Passport requests for UK citizens in Safed from 1921 -51; Nursing Certificates 1923-48; Hebrew soldiers from Yishuv who died in WW II; and Rehavia address book 1935.

Israeli 1949 to present – Registered doctors 1948-1957; accountants 1955-57; Nurses 1951-52 and 1949 candidates for the first constitutional assembly.

While at the IGRA site review the top tabs (resources, videos, etc) for anything that may assist you in some family research.

Photo: 1938 in Israel, a family run store front posing with a British officer.

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