Reading Aid for Brazilian Marriage Certificates

Brazil Civil Registration: Marriage Certificate
Begin by studying the translations of the printed portions of a marriage certificate. Learn what information the different sections contain. Pay close attention to the location of the bride's and groom's names.

Key Words in a Marriage Certificate (Printed Form)
The highlighted words are clues to important information that follows. The color of the translation in the margin matches the color of the highlighted Portuguese term in the record. These tips should save you from the feeling you need to read every record completely word-for-word. Instead, you can look for key words that immediately precede key information.
 * Sometimes, the names of the bride and groom are listed in the margin, making it very efficient to scroll through the images until you find the desired marriage.
 * If the names are not in the margin, skim down the page until you find the terms "o senhora" and "e dona". These terms give you  the name of the bride and groom.
 * If you have found the ancestral couple you wanted, study the rest of the record. For translating dates, ages, resident addresses, occupations, color (race), relationships, or status terms, refer to the Portuguese Genealogical Word List.

- Brazil Marriage Certificate

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Key Words in a Marriage Certificate (Version Long-hand)
You can find the same key words, with some slight variations, in marriage certificates written out without the printed form.

Additional Help

 * Portuguese Genealogical Word List
 * Reading Aid for Brazilian Birth Certificates
 * Reading Aid for Brazilian Death Certificates