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Namibia Church Records


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

Online Resources and Websites

Historical Background

  • The largest Christian group in Namibia is the Lutheran church, which consists of three different Lutheran denominations.
  • The second-largest Christian denomination is Roman Catholicism, and accounts for more than 20% of the population. It consists of three jurisdictions - the two dioceses of Windhoek and Keetmanshoop, and the Apostolic Vicariate of Rundu which is in the process of becoming a third diocese. An apostolic prefecture was established as early as 1892, but the current metropolitan province and ecclesiastical structure was erected more recently, in 1994.
  • The Anglican Church consists of a single diocese (Anglican Diocese of Namibia), forming part of the Metropolitan province of Southern Africa. It is strongest in the north of the country. The Anglican church worships principally in the English and Kwanyama languages.
  • Smaller numbers are affiliated with the Baptist Church, the Methodist Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), the New Apostolic Church, the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Branhamism, a number of Zionist Churches (practicing a mixture of traditional African beliefs), and Pentecostal Christianity. The Dutch Reformed Church of Namibia is predominantly made up of members of the Afrikaner ethnic group.[1]

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 FamilySearch Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:

a. Click on the records of Namibia.
b. Click on Places within Namibia 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. FHL icons.png. 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 or German Letter Writing Guide for help with composing letters.

Anglican (Episcopal) Church Records

Online Records

Writing for Records

Historical Background

The Diocese of Namibia is part of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, which is itself part of the Anglican Communion. The diocese, which covers the whole country of Namibia, was originally known as the Diocese of Damaraland. Most of the Anglicans in Namibia live in Ovamboland in the north of the country and speak the Kwanyama language. In 1915, during the First World War, South African forces invaded and the following year an Anglican priest, Nelson Fogarty, established the first Anglican presence, initially to minister to the South African troops and civilians who had followed the military occupation. After the war South Africa administered the territory under a League of Nations mandate and Nelson Fogarty began to think of ways of making the Anglican presence more permanent by evangelizing the local people.

In 1924, the bishops of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa decided to create a missionary diocese in South West Africa, with Nelson Fogarty as bishop based in Windhoek. George Tobias, a missionary priest, went to Ovamboland and established St Mary's Mission at Odibo on the Angola border. Eventually Odibo, as the Anglican centre in Ovamboland, had a church, a school and a hospital.

Parishes were established to the east of Odibo and were about 15 km (9.3 mi) apart with most just south of the Namibia-Angola border. Since the Kwanyama people straddled the border, many church members lived in Angola but crossed the border to attend church services.[2]

Baptist Church Records

Writing for Records

Catholic Church Records

Writing to a Local Parish

Earlier records can be held at the diocese, with more recent records still kept in the local parish. To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a diocese or local parish, consult:

Historical Background

As of 2004, there were 246,000 Catholics in Namibia, about 13.7% of the total population. The country is divided into two dioceses, including one archdiocese together with an Apostolic Vicariate.[3]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Records

Online Records

Online information is available to current members, for deceased members and immediate family members who are still living. Sign in to FamilySearch and then select Family Tree in the drop-down menu.

Historical Background

In Namibia, the first formal Church organization came in 1973 when Otto Krauss was called as the presiding elder. The first Church meeting had been held in the Krauss home in April 1972. The first missionaries arrived in 1978, and the first branch (a small congregation) was organized in Windhoek in 1983, with Dieter Greiner as the first branch president. A few weeks before Namibia gained its independence on March 20, 1990, four elders and one couple began proselytizing in Windhoek. At the time there were fewer than 20 members in the entire country. Namibian president-elect Sam Nujoma had stated at the time of independence that missionaries were welcome in his country. The Church continued to grow. The first Church-built chapel in Namibia was dedicated in Windhoek on July 6, 1997. Total Church Membership: 903. Congregations: 4.[4]


Dutch Reformed Church Records

Online Records

Writing for Records

Historical Background

The Dutch Reformed Church in Namibia is a Christian denomination in Namibia. It is one of ten synods of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK), and the only one outside South Africa. It covers all of Namibia except for the Eastern Caprivi Strip. The Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa began mission work in Namaqualand in the 1880s, and the first congregation in German South West Africa was established in 1898. The DRCN became an autonomous entity in 1957. The DRCN has 44 congregations, 22500 members (including children) and 60 pastors.[5]

Eastern Orthodox Church Records

Dioceses and Archdiocese of the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria and of All Africa

Namibia is included in the Archdiocese of the Cape of Good Hope.

















Lutheran Church Records

Writing for Records

Historical Background

  • The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN) grew out of the work of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission (earlier known as the Finnish Missionary Society) which began in 1870 among the Ovambo and Kavango people.
  • The Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia (ELCRN) grew out of the work of the Rhenish Missionary Society from Germany which began working in the area in 1842.
  • The German-speaking Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia... (ELCIN-GELC) is the smallest of the three churches (approximately 4,500 members).[6]

Methodist Church Records

Writing for Records

New Apostolic Church Records

Writing for Records

Pentecostal Church Records

Writing for Records

Seventh-day Adventist Church Records

Writing for Records

References

  1. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Religion in Namibia", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Namibia, accessed 24 March 2020.
  2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Diocese of Namibia", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocese_of_Namibia, accessed 25 March 2020.
  3. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Catholic Church in Namibia", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_Church_in_Namibia, accessed 24 March 2020.
  4. ↑ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Facts and Statistics: Namibia, https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/facts-and-statistics/country/Namibia, accessed 24 March 2020.
  5. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Dutch Reformed Church in Namibia", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Reformed_Church_in_Namibia, accessed 25 March 2020.
  6. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Religion in Namibia", in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Namibia, accessed 24 March 2020.
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