Fraktur Basics

Any researcher with Germanic roots will eventually encounter records written in scripts that at first glance, may appear unintelligible to the modern eye. Fraktur is one such script. It emerged from the blackletter typefaces that were in common use in Europe in the 16th century and it is credited to Hieronymous Andreä. He created it for an Albrecht Dürer woodcut, the Triumphal Arch, which had been commissioned by Emperor Maximilian I. From its inception in the mid-1500s until 1941, Fraktur was the most common typeface used in Germany. It is easily recognizable to most non-German speakers for its thick black letters. The name Fraktur derives from the Latin word fractus meaning broken or fractured and describes the angular strokes that compose the letters. 

One of the first places a genealogist may come across Fraktur is in an obituary. In 19th century St. Louis, several German-language newspapers were being published to serve the burgeoning population. This obituary for Barbara Bollinger is taken from the November 9, 1895 issue of the Westliche Post.

Our beloved mother, mother-in-law and grandmother, died after a long difficult illness on November 8, 1895 at the age of 66 years old. The burial will take place on Sunday the 10th at 1 p.m. from the house of mourning at 1861 Menard St. Relatives and acquaintances are politely invited.

-The survivors in mourning

As the 19th century progressed, churches began routinely using preprinted forms for their baptisms, marriages, confirmations, and death records. Column headings and titles were typically printed in Fraktur. The clergyman then filled out the form in his own hand, usually in Kurrent script. The ability to recognize these headings greatly facilitates the deciphering of the individual record. Even with a limited knowledge of German, learning a few keywords will allow you to discern whether you’re looking at a date of birth and not a baptismal date or even a parent’s name. 

The following is a baptismal record taken from Immanuel Lutheran Church Records in St. Louis, (FHL # 7579766)

The column headings from right to left are No. (number or order #), Tag der Geburt (date of birth), Tag der Taufe (baptismal date), Kindesname (child’s name), Vatername (father’s name), Muttername (Mother’s name), Taufpathen (godparents) and Pastor (minister or pastor).

In this record, the child, Gustav Heinrich August, was the 81st to be baptized in 1872. He was born on the 26th of September and his baptism was performed on October 13th. His father’s name was Johann Prokate and his mother was Wilhelmina, née Schmidt. Godparents were Heinrich Alpers, August Baumhoefener, and Mina Schmidt. The minister of the congregation, Johann F. Buenger did not bother to write his name in the last column.

Another useful resource for German researchers is the Meyers Orts- und Verkehrs-lexikon des deutschen Reichs. It’s a gazetteer that compiled all of the place names in the German Empire (1871-1918). For each town, it lists a variety of facts including the population, government, and religious institutions, and is written in Fraktur.

This entry concerns the town of Hallendorf. 1) D. (indicates it is a Dorf or town) in Brauschweig in Kreis (District) Wolfenbüttel, AG, P (Amtsgericht, lower court and Post, post office) are in Salder. BKDO (Bezirkskommando, district military command) is in Braunschweig II. E (Eisenbahnstation, train station) is at Heerte which is 4.2 kilometers away. E (Einwohner, residents) The population is 268. T indicates there is a telegraph office. The Stda. (Standesamt, Civil Registration Office) is located in Hallendorf. Ev. K. (Evanglische Kirche) indicates that the town has its own evangelical church.

You may search the Meyers-Orts here. Meyers Gazetteer  Helpful translation aids are also provided.

Below is a Fraktur chart. It includes the 26 letters of the Latin alphabet, plus the ligatures ch, st, tz and ss.

The website, Lexilogos, allows you to type in a name, word or phrase and see it transliterated into Fraktur. This can serve as an aid to recognizing how an ancestor’s name will appear when searching a document or what a heading or title might be.

Lastly, you may ask why Fraktur fell out of use in Germany. Though it was quintessentially a German creation, Adolf Hitler felt, among other things, that it lacked modernity and referred to it as Judenschrift or Jewish letters. Henceforth, its use was banned from 1941 forward. Most modern Germans struggle to read Fraktur or the handwriting equivalent, Kurrent. In the United States, with the decline of cursive writing, it too may become a mysterious obsolete script  known only to the elders in society or trained researchers.

Backlog’s genealogists specialize in German St. Louis-area genealogy research. Click here to learn more about our genealogy services and to schedule a free consultation.