Family History Resources
Introducing research into family history and genealogy
Last updated on 11 October 2026
Introduction
Ever wondered where your ancestors originated, when and how they arrived at Singapore, who they married, the number of children they had, where they stayed and what did they do for a living? Or how you always wanted to trace your family tree to find out how far your ancestry stretches but have no idea where to begin?
Starting to research one's ancestors can be a daunting, difficult and confusing task. Besides digging into the memories of family members to extract basic information such as names, dates and places, the families also look through their treasure troves to uncover many physical items or artefacts. The collections at the National Library of Singapore and the National Archives have materials such as newspapers and records that can help uncover the information on family history.
The resource guide highlights key resources in the collections of the National Library and the National Archives of Singapore that are useful for family history research.
Resources
In general, family history resources can be obtained from the following:
Births, deaths and marriages records
Religious organisation membership records
School records
Clubs and association records
Government records
Immigration and shipping records
Land records and maps
Newspapers
Secondary resources such as books,
Biographies and articles
The amount of family history information that are searchable is largely dependent on one's ethnic and religious background. For instance, to trace vital statistics such as birth, death and marriage dates of family members, a Eurasian family, which is of European descent and often of Christian denomination, may start off with church records. A Chinese family, on the other hand, would consult clans and temple records to locate such information. For post-independence family members, they may need to consult the Immigration and Customs Authority.
In addition, as one of the primary goals of family history research is to trace their ancestors back to the country of origins, it is often that such research would span beyond the borders of Singapore.
Research Approach
Start by talking to family and extended family members. These provide valuable leads from which one can identify or begin planning out what sorts of records might exist that may help in uncovering family information.
Then, start with the online resources. There are resources online which will help save time. Newspapers are a good place to start, and you can search them from online in most cases. http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/default.aspx (opens in new tab). If the ancestors are prominent members of society, it is likely there will be some mention of them. From there, we can possibly glean other information like the associations they were active in, or the churches they had attended, which are then leads which one could pursue further at the National Archives.
The National Library published two guides to help people get started on their family history projects:
Roots: tracing family histories: a resource guide (opens in new tab)
Lim Tin Seng, Makeswary Periasamy, Lee Meiyu, Kartini Binte Saparudin (authors) ; Sharon Koh & Janice Loo, (Eds).
Call No. RSING 929.107205957 LIM
Sources on family history: a select bibliography (opens in new tab)
Compiler, Kartini Saparudin ; contributors, Ang Seow Leng, Wee Tong Bao, Makeswary Periasamy ; editor, Noryati A. Samad.
Call No. RSING 016.9292095957 LEE -[LIB]
They contain oral history checklists with useful questions to guide people along in locating genealogical records. Some of these records are handwritten registers, and it takes time to go through them especially when one does not have a specific date in mind. Be patient as information may not be readily available. There may not be any records that document one's ancestors’ movement.
Be curious and cast the net wider by researching to check if the family had even the slightest connection to any organisation. Look up the organisation’s published resources such as magazines, newsletters, annual reports and collaterals which may include information such as marriages, birth and donation by its members and associates.
Records from the National Archives of Singapore
The National Archives of Singapore has some church records, which require permission from the churches before viewing is allowed due to privacy concerns. These have been a rich vein of information to draw up family trees. These could include handwritten baptism, marriage and death registers, which are useful in charting out extended family trees!
The National Archives and National Library have also some clan association records, some of which also hold death and membership registers which may be useful if you are aware of the dialect group or the hometown your ancestors came from.
You can search for the available records from our private records database at http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/private_records/advanced-search (opens in new tab), and select the dropdown menu to get a sense of the range of these churches and other associations we have records of.
In addition to these private records, government records such as burial registers of municipal also contain information on the individual’s date of death or where they are buried. The Bukit Brown burial register is available from the National Archives.
Other sources such as the Blue Books, which are the colonial statistical returns, are useful if your ancestor was working for the colonial government. If your ancestor had worked for the colonial government, their names will be listed there and you can even find out their annual salary!