Spain Church Records

Spain Wiki Topics

Spain Beginning Research

Getting Started Online Learning Record Finder Research Strategies

Record Types

Cemeteries Census Church Directories Church Records Civil Registration Compiled Genealogies Court Records Directories Emigration & Immigration Heraldry Jewish Records Military Records Newspapers Nobility Notarial Records Online Genealogy Records Religious Records

Spain Background

Church History For Further Reading Gazetteers Handwriting Historical Geography History Languages Maps Naming Customs Periodicals Social Life & Customs

Spain Genealogical Word Lists

Catalan Latin Spanish

Cultural Groups

Cultural Groups

Local Research Resources

Archives & Libraries Societies Local FamilySearch Center

Spain

Church Records

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

Catholic Church Records

Map of the Dioceses of Spain

Catholicism's roots extend deep into Spain's history. Parish and diocesan records created by the Catholic Church in Spain have long been considered some of the richest genealogical records in the world. The Catholic Church has created several different records. The most used in genealogical research include: baptisms (bautizos, bautismos), marriages (matrimonios), and burials (entierros, defunciones, fallecimientos). Other records include: confirmations (confimaciones), pre-marriage investigations (expedientes matrimoniales, información matrimonial). The vast majority of Spaniards are Catholic and so almost every Spaniard can be found in the records of the Catholic Church.

Time Coverage

• Ever since the Council of Trent, 1545 and 1563, Catholic parish records have been consistently recorded, usually providing three generations in a single baptismal entry.
• The Catholic Church was the primary record keeper of births, marriages, and deaths, until civil registration started in 1869.
• Some church records have been lost or have deteriorated due natural disasters such as fire, flood, and earthquakes. Civil and political strife has also caused record loss, including during time of the Spanish Civil War.

Tip: If you are researching after 1869 when Civil Registration started in Spain both church and civil records should be searched since there may be information in one record that does not appear in the other.

Information Content

Parish records are the most common Church record used in family history and genealogical research. Spanish Catholic parish records were recorded by local parish priests, however, most of the records (older than 100 years) have been centralized into the diocesan archive to which the parish belongs. Parish records include the following:

To learn more about each type of record, click on the name of the record type to be led to another article about that record type.

Baptisms

Baptism records usually contain the following information:

• Infant’s place and date of baptism
• Age at time of baptism, usually given in days, which helps determine the birth date.
• Child’s names
• Status of legitimacy
• Parents’ names and possibly their birth places and places of residence
• Godparents’ names and possibly their places of residence
• You might also find the names of grandparents

Confirmations

Confirmations are sometimes recorded in the parish baptism book, but sometimes they are recorded in their own book(s). Information found regularly in confirmation records includes the following:

• Name of the parish
• Name of individual being confirmed along with the godparents
• Sometimes parents are named, but not always.

Marriages

Marriage records usually contain the following information:

• Names, ages, occupations, and residences of the bride and groom
• Date and place of marriage
• Marital status, including if one or both were previously widowed and the name of the deceased spouse.
• Parental permission, if they were minors
• Names of witnesses
• May include birth place or residence of parents and grandparents, the dates the marriage banns were announced and whether or not there was an impediment to the marriage.

Marriage blessings (velaciones) are sometimes are found separately.

Deaths or Burials

Death or burial records usually contain the following information

• Deceased person’s name
• Date and place of burial and/or death
• Age
• Place of residence
• Marital status
• Cause of death
• In most death records the women are recorded by their maiden names
• Name of surviving spouse
• Occasionally, it is noted if the person had a will
• If a minor, the date and place of birth and parents’ names are given.

Diocesan Records

Spain is divided into 70 dioceses. Each dioceses is divided into many parishes. Dioceses created several different types of records. These records can be searched in diocesan archives throughout Spain. Some diocesan records have been microfilmed and are available through the FamilySearch Library (FS Library). Perform a Place Search in the FamilySearch Catalog for the dioceses where your ancestor lived. Diocesan records include:

• Administrative and Financial
• Disciplinary and Judicial
• Marriage Dispensations and Pre-marriage Investigations
• Pastoral Visits and Confirmations

Locating Diocesan and Parish Records

Spain Archives Online

The following archives have placed either indexes or images online.

• Archivo Histórico Diocesano de San Sebastián (Guipúzcoa)
• Archivo Histórico Diocesano de Álava (Vitoria)
• Archivo Histórico Diocesano de Granada
• Archivo Histórico Diocesano de Segorbe-Castellón
• Archivo Histórico Eclesiástico de Vizcaya (Bilbao) To search all three provinces at once visit the website Dokuklik and click on the words Registros sacramentales to use the search engine. (Note: only available in Spain)
• Archivo Histórico Archidiocesano de Tarragona To learn more about how to navigate the site see Archdiocese of Tarragona Online Parish Records.
• Archivo Diocesano de Valencia Requires a free subscription. These are only indexed records. You can then order them from the Archive for a fee. This page is found only in Spanish and Valencian.
• Archivo Diocesano de Pamplona(Email Only) Contact information for the dioceses archive in the region of Navarra. You will need to send an email to them in Spanish and give them as much detail as possible. You will have to pay a small fee for each record plus shipping.
• Archivo Histórico Diocesano de Madrid Click on the parish or area you are interested in under Fondos del Archivo Histórico Diocesano de Madrid. The list will expand. Then continue to click on what you need until you get to the images. Not all records are available yet. Using a book with indexes, locate your ancestor and order a copy of the record. Actual records are not fully viewable on the site.
• Archivo Histórico de Girona Requires a free registration. Digital images of parish record books and marriage dispensations are being digitized and made available through the site.
• Archivo del Catedral de Mallorca To access the searchable indexes of baptisms, marriages and deaths, visit their blog Índexs de baptismes, matrimonis i defuncions. Not all records are available yet. Using a book with indexes, locate your ancestor and order a copy of the record. Actual records are not fully viewable on the site. It only includes sacraments done at the Cathedral and not at other parish churches in Mallorca.

FamilySearch Historical Records

FamilySearch Historical Records has the following collections (current as of 30 April 2018):

• 1307-1985 Spain, Catholic Church Records, 1307-1985 at FamilySearch - index and images
• 1500-1930 Spain, Catholic Church Records, 1500-1930 at FamilySearch - images only.
  • Barcelona
  • Ciudad Real
  • Gerona
  • Murcia
  • Salamanca (diocese of Ciudad Rodrigo)

• 1502-1940 Spain, Baptisms 1502-1940 at FamilySearch — index
• 1503-1969 Spain, Diocese of Cartagena, Catholic Church Records, 1503-1969 at FamilySearch - index and images
• 1504-1979 Spain, Diocese of Albacete, Catholic Church Records, 1504-1979 at FamilySearch - index and images
• 1600-1920 Spain Deaths, 1600-1920 at FamilySearch - index
• 1565-1950 Spain Marriages, 1565-1950 at FamilySearch - index
• 1504-1979 Spain, Diocese of Albacete, Catholic Church Records, 1504-1979 - index and images
• 1502-1975 Spain, Diocese of Ávila, Catholic Church Records, 1502-1975 - index and images
• 1503-1969 Spain, Diocese of Cartagena, Catholic Church Records, 1503-1969 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1550-1966 Spain, Diocese of Lugo Catholic Parish Records 1550-1966 at FamilySearch — index
• 1538-1985 Spain, Diocese of Santander, Catholic Church Records, 1538-1985 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1533-1987 Spain, Diocese of Segovia, Catholic Church Records, 1533-1987 at FamilySearch — images only.
• 1565-2013 Spain, Province of Teruel, Catholic Church Records, 1565-2013 at FamilySearch — images only.
• 1556-1899 Spain, Granada Catholic Pre-Marriage Investigation Files, Index, 1556-1899 at FamilySearch - index; Also at MyHeritage ($)
  • Pre-Marriage Investigation Files: The Catholic church records for the diocese of Granada, Spain located on FamilySearch.org include a large collection of expedientes matrimoniales, or pre-marriage investigation files. These records were created in preparation for the marriage of a couple and are treasure troves of genealogical information. Pre-marriage investigation files may contain transcripts of other documents (such as baptism records of the bride and groom), written permission from parents for the couple to marry, descriptions of how the couple were related, if applicable (sometimes including hand-drawn pedigrees), and more. The pre-marriage information files of Granada, Spain are organized uniquely on FamilySearch.org and may require some guidance to navigate. Visit the page Granada, Spain Pre-Marriage Investigation Files in the FamilySearch Research Wiki to learn more about utilizing these valuable records.

Other Online Records

• 1501-1900 Spain, Bilbao Diocese, Catholic Parish Records, 1501-1900 at MyHeritage - index ($)
  
  
• 1502-1940 Spain, Baptisms 1502-1940 at Findmypast — index; Also at MyHeritage ($)
• 1600-1920 Spain Deaths, 1600-1920 at Findmypast - index
• 1565-1950 Spain Marriages, 1565-1950 at Findmypast - index; Also at MyHeritage ($)

Microfilmed/Digitized Records

Parish records have been microfilmed and digitized. To access them from the FamilySearch Catalog:

1. Go to the Locality section of the FamilySearch Catalog.
2. A list "Places within Spain" will open. Click on the appropriate province.
3. Open the list of places within the province. Select your town.
4. A list of record categories will open up. Click on "Church records".
5. A list of available records will appear. Click on the record title you are interested in searching.
6. Scroll down to the list of microfilm numbers. Some combination of the icons below will be seen at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm 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 microfilm.
   

Writing for Records

• This can be done either through letter correspondence or sometimes email (or researching in person).
• Please see the Spain Catholic Church Directories article for more contact information for dioceses and parishes.
• You can find diocesan websites at: Conferencia Episcopal Diocesis please visit the site to determine if you can make an email request.
• Another site with good information on the archives of Spain (both ecclesiastical and government) is the Censo-Guía de Archivos de España e Iberoamérica. While it is only available in Spanish, it can provide detailed information on the collections and documents within an archive and allows you to narrow your search down to specific archives.
• Use the Spanish Letter Writing Guide for help writing your letter in Spanish.