Vanuatu Civil Registration

Research use: Uniquely identifies individuals and connects them to their parents.

Record type: Civil records of birth, marriage, and death.

General: Civil registration begins late in Melanesia as compared to other areas of the world but it is the most complete source for genealogical purposes.

Time period: 1900-present.

Contents: Birth, marriage, and death records have the exact date of the event, including time of day for births; name of principal and parents; occupation and religious preference of parents; name of informant for births and names of witnesses for marriages; place of residence for parents of new born, of the groom and bride for marriages, and of the deceased for deaths; age at death, cause of death, and place of burial in death records.

Location: Local and national civil registry offices (some copies in France for New Caledonia and Vanuatu).

Population coverage: 90% coverage of the population.

Reliability: High.