Genealogy FAQ
Ukraine Genealogy Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to common questions about tracing your roots in present-day Ukraine with our Genealogy Services. Discover how Ukraine Roots assists clients by conducting document research in archives and providing support through photographing family homes, townscapes, and cemetery tombstones. Learn where to find records related to Galicia and eastern provinces of Poland. Understand settlement changes after World War 2 and how to visit ancestral towns in Ukraine. Get insights into our pricing structure for genealogical services.
Question: Do you conduct genealogical research for all of Ukraine?
Answer: While we can assist with research throughout Ukraine, our specialty lies in the region historically served by the religious authorities in Lviv (formerly Lwow). This expertise allows us to effectively search for ancestral records likely archived in Lviv.
Question: Can you help with on-location genealogical research and organize heritage tours throughout Ukraine?
Answer: Absolutely! We specialize in on-location research and tours for a large region that encompassed parts of present-day Ukraine and other countries that once belonged to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This includes areas that are now western Ukraine, eastern Poland, and potentially other regions like Slovakia, Romania, or Hungary, depending on your ancestry. While uncovering family history and heritage in these areas is our expertise, if your search leads you to other parts of Ukraine, we're happy to discuss research and heritage tour options there.
Question: According to old documents, my ancestors were born in Austria-Hungary before WWI. Their birth town, which at that time was in Austria, is now shown on the map in Ukraine. How is this possible?
Answer: After the collapse of Austria-Hungary following WWI, its eastern province of Galicia eventually became part of Poland. Two decades later, as a result of the division of Poland by the USSR and Nazi Germany, Eastern Poland was annexed by the Soviet Union. After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, many of its former territories gained independence. Thus, Ukraine became an independent country, including its western part, Galicia. Hence, your ancestors' birth town ended up within the borders of present-day Ukraine.
Question: I am looking for my family's old records of those who were born in eastern Poland before WW2. This area is now part of Ukraine. Will I find their vital records in a church where their family belonged?
Answer: Typically, churches in Ukraine do not keep old records. Those vital records that survived wars and Soviet rule in Ukraine have been transferred to the archives in Ukraine's administrative centers. For example, a birth record of someone born in a village outside of Lviv before WW2 is most likely at the archives of Lviv.
Question: I am of Jewish descent, and my ancestors come from the former Austrian province of Galicia, which later became Poland and is now in Ukraine. I am planning to visit the land of my ancestors and was wondering if there are synagogues left there for me to visit on the trip to Ukraine?
Answer: Many Jewish temples that existed in Poland before World War II were destroyed or repurposed during the war and in the following years. Almost the entire population of Galician Jews was obliterated due to the Holocaust, which resulted in these synagogues never being rebuilt. However, some synagogue buildings are still standing today in various states of disrepair. Some have been renovated and resumed their religious purpose for small Jewish communities in the area, such as the Choral Synagogue of Drohobych, for example.
Question: My ancestors were Ukrainian and hail from a small town near Lviv. My grandparents emigrated in the early 20th century. In which church records, Orthodox, Roman Catholic, or Greek Catholic, should I be searching for their information?
Answer: Since your grandparents were Ukrainian and emigrated in the early 20th century, Greek Catholic church records are the most likely place to find their information. However, checking Roman Catholic records wouldn't be amiss, particularly if you have any indication they might have practiced that faith.
Does Lviv Ecotour provide a full set of genealogical services to clients, including document research in archives?
Lviv Ecotour can help with your genealogical research by taking pictures of your ancestors’ family homes, general pictures of the town, cemetery tombstones, etc. We can assist with your genealogical research by researching documents within the archives of Lviv, or by helping with your family history research when you visit Ukraine.
My ancestors came from Galicia when it was part of Austria-Hungary. Where can I find records related to my family?
For individuals with roots in Austrian eastern Galicia prior to 1918, and south-eastern Poland before 1939, vital records may be at the historical archives of Lviv, Ternopil, or Ivano-Frankivsk. More recent vital records are typically kept at state civil registry offices. Many online resources for genealogical research are available on the Internet. Websites such as JewishGen.org and Ancestry.com may have useful information to help in your research.
Before World War 2, members of my family lived in the eastern provinces of Poland (Kresy Wschodnie), in what is now Western Ukraine and Western Belarus. They were settlers (osadnicy) and had a farmstead in a Polish settlement (kolonia). What can I expect to find of their settlement there now?
After the partition of Poland and the forced expulsion of Polish farmers, most of their settlements were transformed into state farms. Polish buildings were taken apart for construction materials to build state farms. Sometimes, the Soviet authorities assigned residential farm buildings to house other people from the area, often Ukrainians expelled from the Polish territory. A few of such houses have survived and can be recognized among other buildings by their distinct style. Some of the original tin roofs have also survived. Polish churches and chapels in the Kresy area have mostly survived, although some were badly damaged after decades of being closed or used for storage. Some of these churches have been restored in the last two decades and are used either by Ukrainian congregations or few remaining members of the Roman Catholic community. In most cases, however, you will now see open fields where the Polish settlements used to be.
I am interested in visiting Ukraine to see my ancestral house, which my family had to abandon during the war. Will this make the present owners of the property worried, thinking that I may want to reclaim this property?
Often we have been let into buildings and apartments without their present owners’ concern for legal action in order to return property to its original owners. Local people have been most welcoming and unaware of the ownership issue. In reality, there does not seem to be a legal mechanism in Ukraine to reclaim property lost during the war. Ukrainian laws on reclaiming lost property are complicated, making it extremely difficult to return property to its original owners. For comparison, in Poland, where the legal system is part of the European Law, legal issues surrounding old property claims have never been completely resolved.
I plan to visit Ukraine to see the town of my ancestors. How likely is it that there may be my family relatives still living there?
It is possible that you will find your family in Ukraine who were separated through emigration decades ago. The chances of meeting the family are rather high if your ancestors are of Ukrainian descent and came from a village or small town in Ukraine. For people of Polish or Jewish background, or for a person of Ukrainian ethnicity from a larger town, such as Lviv, the likelihood of finding a family in Ukraine is quite small. It can be a remarkable experience to visit the town where one’s ancestors come from and from where they left decades earlier.
How does Lviv Ecotour charge for the genealogical services it provides?
The rate for most of the services that Lviv Ecotour provides varies depending on each individual case. It depends on the number of hours needed for the research, and a distance to an ancestral town, if a visit is required. Payment can be sent by PayPal or by other means once an agreement has been reached about the services to be delivered and the payment schedule.