State of Palestine Church Records

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

Historical Background
Palestinian Christians are Christian citizens of the State of Palestine. In the wider definition of Palestinian Christians, including the Palestinian refugees, diaspora and people with full or partial Palestinian Christian ancestry this can be applied to an estimated 500,000 people worldwide as of 2000.[1] Palestinian Christians belong to one of a number of Christian denominations, including Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, Catholicism (Eastern and Western rites), Anglicanism, Lutheranism, other branches of Protestantism and others. They number 20% of the 13 million Palestinians. 70% live outside Palestine and Israel.

In the 1922 census of Palestine there were approximately 73,000 Christian Palestinians: 46% Orthodox, 40% Catholic (20% Roman Catholic, and 20% Eastern Catholic (Uniate). The totals by denomination for all of Mandatory Palestine were: Greek Orthodox 33,369, Syriac Orthodox (Jacobite) 813, Roman Catholic 14,245, Greek Catholic (Melkite) 11,191, Syriac Catholic 323, Armenian Catholic 271, Maronite 2,382, Armenian Orthodox (Gregorian) 2,939, Coptic Church 297, Abyssinian Church 85, Church of England 4,553, Presbyterian Church 361, Protestants 826, Lutheran Church 437, Templars Community 724, others 208.

In 2009, there were an estimated 50,000 Christians in the Palestinian territories, mostly in the West Bank, with about 3,000 in the Gaza Strip. Around 50% of Palestinian Christians belong to the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem, one of the 15 churches of Eastern Orthodoxy. This community has also been known as the Arab Orthodox Christians. There are also Maronites, Melkite-Eastern Catholics, Jacobites, Chaldeans, Roman Catholics (locally known as Latins), Syriac Catholics, Orthodox Copts, Catholic Copts, Armenian Orthodox, Armenian Catholic, Quakers (Society of Friends), Methodists, Presbyterians, Anglicans (Episcopal), Lutherans, Evangelicals, Pentecostals, Nazarene, Assemblies of God, Baptists and other Protestants; in addition to small groups of Jehovah's Witnesses, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and others.

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:

Marriages
Marriage registers can give:

Burials
Burial registers may give:

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 Palestine.
 * b. Click on Places within Palestine 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. Use Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters. Then, use an Arabic translation service.


 * Google Maps search results for churches in Palestine

Writing to a Local Parish
To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a local parish, consult:
 * The Catholic Directory: Palestine

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Melkite Catholic churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Armenian Orthodox or Apostolic churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Armenian Catholic churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Assyrian Church of the East in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Syriac Catholic churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Syriac Orthodox churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Chaldean Catholic churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Coptic Orthodox churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Anglican churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Assembly of God churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Baptist churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Jehovah's Witnesses churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Lutheran churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Mennonite churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Methodist churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Moravian churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Nazarene churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Pentecostal churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Presbyterian churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Salvation Army churches in Palestine]

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 * [ Google Maps search results for Seventh-day Adventist churches in Palestine]

Writing for Records

 * Google Maps search results for United Church of Christ in Palestine