Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Why Did So Many Swedes Emigrate to America?
Why over a million Swedes emigrated: land hunger and poverty, the famine years of the 1860s, America fever, religious dissent, and the pull of cheap American land.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
The Port of Gothenburg and the Swedish Emigrant Journey
How most Swedish emigrants travelled: through the port of Gothenburg, indirectly via England to Liverpool and across the Atlantic—and the Gothenburg police records that name their parish.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Finding Your Swedish Emigrant Ancestor
A step-by-step method for finding your Swedish emigrant ancestor and the parish they came from: emigration databases, the Gothenburg police records, moving-out records and more.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Swedish Immigrants at Ellis Island (and the Name-Change Myth)
What really happened when Swedish immigrants arrived in America: Castle Garden and Ellis Island, the truth about the name-change myth, and how Swedish names were anglicised.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Where Swedish Immigrants Settled in America
Where Swedish immigrants settled: Minnesota, Illinois and Chicago, the Midwest farm belt and beyond. How chain migration clustered parishes together and helps your research.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Swedish-American Churches and Their Records
Swedish-American churches—the Augustana Lutheran Synod, the Mission Covenant and others—anchored immigrant communities and kept records that can name your ancestor’s Swedish parish.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Swedish-American Assimilation and Identity
How Swedish immigrants became Swedish-Americans: the shift from Swedish to English, the loss and survival of identity, and what assimilation means for tracing your family.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Swedish Surname Origins: What Your Family Name Means
A complete guide to Swedish surname origins: patronymics and the -son names, soldier names, nature names, and how the 1901 Names Adoption Act froze them into today’s surnames.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
The Most Common Swedish Surnames and What They Mean
The most common Swedish surnames—Andersson, Johansson, Karlsson and the other -son names—where they came from, why they dominate, and what they reveal about your ancestry.
Written by: Swedish Roots Editorial Team
Posted on: July 1, 2026
Swedish Patronymic Names: How -son and -dotter Worked
The history of Swedish patronymic names: how -son and -dotter surnames worked, why they changed every generation, and how the 1901 Names Adoption Act froze them forever.