Kuwait Church Records

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Kuwait

Church Records

For information about records for non-Christian religions in Kuwait, go to the Religious Records page.

Online Resources and Websites

Ancestry.com, findmypast.com, and MyHeritage.com can be searched free of charge at your local family history center or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

• British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, Kuwait , index and images, ($)
• British India Office Births & Baptisms, index
• British India Office Marriages, index ($)
• British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages, Kuwait , index and images, ($)
• British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials, index and images, ($)
• British India Office Deaths & Burials, index ($)

Historical Background

Christianity is a minority religion in Kuwait. Kuwait has a native Christian community, with a total population of between 200 and 400. In 2014, there were an estimated 259 Christian Kuwaitis residing in Kuwait. Kuwait is the only GCC country besides Bahrain to have a local Christian population who hold citizenship. Of the non-citizen population, there are an estimated 832,475 Christians (June 2018), or 18.24% of the population.

The government-recognized Christian churches include the Roman Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church, the National Evangelical Church Kuwait (Protestant), the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, the Greek Catholic (Melkite) Church, the Anglican Church, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. There are also many Christian religious groups not officially recognized by the government with smaller populations, including the Indian Orthodox, Mar Thoma, and Seventh-day Adventist Church. Unrecognized groups are generally free to worship in private. There are also a number of believers in Christ from a Muslim background in the country, though many are not citizens. A 2015 study estimates that around 350 people in the country follow these beliefs.

Information Recorded in the Records

Different denominations, different time periods, and practices of different record keepers will effect how much information can be found in the records. This outline will show the types of details which might be found (best case scenario):

Baptisms

In Catholic and Anglican records, children were usually baptized a few days after birth, and therefore, the baptism record proves date of birth. Other religions, such as Baptists, baptized at other points in the member's life. Baptism registers might give:

baptism date the infant's name parents' names father's occupation

status of legitimacy occasionally, names of grandparents names of witnesses or godparents, who may be relatives

birth date and place the family's place of residence death information, as an added note or signified by a cross

Marriages

Marriage registers can give:

the marriage date the names of the bride and groom indicate whether the bride and groom were single or widowed their ages

birth dates and places for the bride and groom their residences their occupations

birthplaces of the bride and groom parents' names (after 1800) the names of previous spouses and their death dates names of witnesses, who might be relatives.

Burials

Burial registers may give:

the name of the deceased the date and place of death or burial the deceased's age place of residence

cause of death the names of survivors, especially a widow or widower deceased's birth date and place parents' names, or at least the father's name

How to Find Records

Digital Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog

Watch for digitized copies of church records to be added to the collection of the FamilySearch Library. Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:

a. Click on the records of Kuwait.

b. Click on Places within Kuwait and a list of towns will appear.

c. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.

d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.

e. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. . The magnifying glass indicates that the record is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the records.

Writing for Records

You will probably need to write to or email the national archives, the diocese, or local parish priests to find records. See Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters.

Catholic Church Records

Writing to a Local Parish

To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a local parish, consult:

• The Catholic Directory: Kuwait

Greek Orthodox Church Records

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Kuwait]

Melkite Catholic Church Records

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for Melkite Catholic churches in Kuwait]

Armenian Orthodox or Apostolic

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for Armenian Orthodox or Apostolic churches in Kuwait]

National Evangelical Church Kuwait (Protestant)t

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for National Evangelical Church Kuwait (Protestant) in Kuwait]

Seventh-day Adventist Church Records

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for Seventh-day Adventist churches in Kuwait]

Indian Orthodox Church

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for Indian Orthodox churches in Kuwait]

Coptic Orthodox Church

Writing for Records

• [ Google Maps search results for Coptic Orthodox churches in Kuwait]

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