Here you will find typical words and terms associated with personal registration.
The words and terms are presented in Danish followed by an explanation in English.
CPR-nummer/personnummer - Central registration number
“CPR-nummer” or “personnummer” – in English “CPR-number” or “central registration number”, is a number that is given to all people living in Denmark or born in Denmark to register civil data, - and since 2004 to register the ecclesiastical events people might have had.
Anmelder - Notifier
The person who gives notice of a funeral. The person must be related to the deceased.
Begravelse/Bisættelse – Funeral
The common term for the ceremony after death.
Begravelsesmyndighed - Funeral authority
The parish responsible for registering the funeral or burial of the deceased (the parish of residence if the deceased lived in Denmark or the parish of event if the deceased did not live in Denmark).
Bopælssogn - Parish of residence
The parish of residence is the parish where you live. This parish is responsible for conducting civil registration, e.g., information related to birth, or name for people who are born outside North Schleswig.
Bopælskommune – Municipality of residence
The municipality of residence is the municipality who is responsible for conducting civil registration, e.g., information related to birth, name for people who are born in the Southern part of Jutland.
North Schleswig consists of the following municipalities: Tønder, Aabenraa, Haderslev, Vejen, Sønderborg and the southern part of Esbjerg and Kolding.
CPR - Central Register
The CPR, also called the Central Register contains information about citizens in Denmark.
> Read more about the CPR by visiting the website cpr.dk (in English)
Hændelsessogn - Parish of event
Some registrations must be made in the parish where the event takes place, e.g., a wedding or a death/funeral of a person without a Danish CPR-number.
Indrejse – Entry (registration when you move to Denmark
“Indrejse” means when you move to Denmark, gain a CPR-number by the municipality and your address is registered in the National Register of Personal data.
Jordpåkastelse - Graveside ceremony
“Jordpåkastelse” is part of the funeral. The priest throws 3 small shovelfuls of earth on the coffin and says '(the name of the deceased), “Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust” - in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life.
Kirkebogsførende præst - Priest responsible for registering personal data in the parish
Each parish has a priest, who has the overall responsibility for ensuring correct registration in the CPR. In many parishes, the priest, however, delegates the registration to a registrar.
Kordegn – Registrar
Usually, the parish has a registrar who works for the church responsible for numerous assignments among others taking care of the main registrations in the CPR.
Ligpas - Mortuary passport
The mortuary passport is a letter that must follow the coffin of the deceased in case of burial abroad. The mortuary passport is provided by the Danish Patient Safety Authority. To retrieve a Mortuary passport a certificate of the deceased is necessary, in Danish called a “Personattest” delivered by the funeral authority.
Nærmeste pårørende – Notifier of death and funeral
The notifier is a person who are familiar with the death wishes of a deceased and as such plays an important role of being a notifier of the death and funeral. The person is not necessarily a family member but can also be a friend or acquaintance of the deceased. If there are no such person, the municipality in which the deceased lived or died will be the notifier of the death and funeral.
Personregisterfører - Registrar
The person who conducts the registration of births, names, deaths, funerals etc. in the CPR.
Udrejse - Exit
When you leave Denmark to move to another country you must be deregistered from the National Register of Persons (“Folkeregistret”) by contacting the municipality where you used to live in Denmark.