Follow your family tree back to its roots in Bavaria, Prussia, Württemberg and beyond! Beidler walks you through the exciting journey of researching your Germany heritage, whether your ancestors came from lands now in modern-day Germany or other German-speaking areas of Europe

Introduction -- Linking your family tree to German-speaking nations. Your German-speaking heritage ; Identifying the German-speaking immigrant ; Pinpointing the place of origin ; History of germanic lands -- Getting to know the old country. Understanding Germany's geography ; Language, surnames, given names -- Tracing your family in German-speaking nations. Civil registration in Germany ; German church records ; German census and court records ; German military records ; Printed records ; German-speaking peoples outside of Germany -- Advanced sources and strategies. Putting it all together ; What to do when you get stuck