The 1939 Register was taken on 29 September 1939 to issue identity cards and ration books at the start of the Second World War. It is not technically a census but functions as one — every civilian in England and Wales on that date was recorded. For Tamil family history it is uniquely valuable because it bridges the 1921 and 1951 census gap and captures the WWII-era Tamil presence in Britain.
Who from Tamil Nadu appears in the 1939 Register
- Medical staff — Tamil doctors and nurses recruited into UK hospitals as British staff enlisted for war service.
- Indian Army officers on leave or training — Tamil officers and cadets at Sandhurst, at Camberley Staff College, at the Royal Military Academy.
- Merchant seamen — the lascar community in Cardiff, London, Liverpool and Glasgow was still substantial.
- Refugee families of Ceylon and Burma — Tamil families evacuated from Burma in 1942 and from Colombo during the Japanese air raids appear in later 1939-Register updates through the 1940s.
- ARP volunteers, ambulance drivers, canteen staff — Tamil women who volunteered in London and provincial cities.
The 1939 Register is held by The National Archives (RG 101 series) and published online by Findmypast and Ancestry. Records for people still living may be closed until their death is certified.
Fields recorded
- Full name and address
- Date of birth (exact — a distinguishing feature vs the census’s rounded ages)
- Sex, marital status
- Occupation (with a note if it was a "national service" role)
- Later annotations — married names, National Health Service Number, wartime address changes
Cross-referencing to the Tamil side
- Tamil Nadu voter search — for modern relatives in the same district.
- Indenture registers — for wider diaspora branches.
- Village-level browse — for the specific Tamil Nadu village.
Where to go next
- 1921 UK Census for Tamil Families — the fuller pre-war record.
- English Last Names in Tamil Families.
- Tamil Ancestry: A Complete Guide.
