Switzerland Civil Registration: Difference between revisions

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==Definition==

Civil registration (''Zivilstand / état civil / stato civile'') is the government record of births, marriages, and deaths. These civil registers are kept by the local civil registration office (''Zivilstandsamt / service de l'état civil / ufficio dello stato civile'') of each political community. Beginning on January 1, 1876, the civil registration office kept two separate sets of books: '''A-registers''' (records of births, marriages, and deaths occurring in the community regardless of citizenship) and '''B-registers''' (births, marriages, and deaths of citizens of the community that occurred outside the community). In 1928, the B-registers were discontinued and officially replaced by family registers (''Familienregister / registres des familles / registro delle famiglie'') kept by the civil registrar, though in most places these were already being kept.

 

 

 

 

 

When writing for records, access is generally restricted to direct-line relatives. Be prepared to provide proof of relationship (documentation connecting you to the ancestor), as well as proof of identity (a copy of passport or government-issued ID).

*To find the civil registration office for any current or former municipality (back to 1962), the address can be accessed from the Swiss federal government website by clicking [https://www.e-service.admin.ch/competency-app/wicket/bookmarkable/ch.glue.suis.competency.app.pages.HeimatortPage?1 '''here''']. The top box, ''Wohnort/Ereignisort'' (residence or event location) is for the municipality where the event took place. The second box, ''Heimatort'' (place of citizenship) is for the municipality where the person holds citizenship. As you type in the name of your municipality in either box, a list of options will appear. Click on the town of interest, and the office will appear under ''Suchresultat'' (search results), along with the address and email.

*To find current information about municipalities that may have been annexed or merged, see the Wikipedia article [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_former_municipalities_of_Switzerland List of former municipalities].  

Note that contact information for civil registration offices can also be found on the individual parish pages in the FamilySearch Wiki.

==Historical Background==

===Birth Registers===

Birth registers (''Geburtsregister / Registres des naissances / Registri delle nascite'') include the following information:

===Marriage Registers===

Marriage registers (''Eheregister / Registres des mariages / Registri del matrimonio'') include the following information:

===Death registers===

===Family Registers===

Family registers (''Familienregister / registres des familles / registri delle famiglie'') consist of a separate page for each male married citizen and includes information about his spouse(s) and children. Entries may include the couple’s parents’ names, the place of citizenship of the spouse(s), birth and marriage information about the children, and notes about occupation, emigration, or other unusual circumstances.

Family books (''Familienbücher, Familienrodel'') and citizens' books (''Bürgerbücher, Bürgerrodel'') were kept by some communities as early as the 1700s, and were widespread in German areas in the 1820s. They were kept by the local priest to keep track of all citizens (''Bürger'') of the parish regardless of residence. Some parish offices created non-citizen resident (''Beisass, Niedersass'') family books as well.

===Writing for Civil Registration Records===