Colombia, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Record
Registros Parroquiales de la Iglesia Católica en Colombia

Record Description
The earlier records from this collection are all handwritten in a narrative format. Some later records are handwritten on printed forms, which may vary slightly from one priest to another. Generally, these records were written in chronological order. In smaller parishes, one book was used for all the ordinances (such as baptism, marriage, and death). In larger cities, records of the different types of sacred ordinances were kept in separate books. Confirmations were generally written in the baptismal registers. Some of the older records are damaged, but most of the genealogical information can be extracted.

For a list of records by date or locality currently published in this collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.

This collection of church records covers several parishes in dioceses and archdioceses of Colombia.

Some of the records in this collection may have been created in a different ecclesiastical jurisdiction than the one where these are currently housed. All the sacramental ordinances were created, registered, and kept by the priest in authority of his parish jurisdiction. The parish jurisdiction may include sub-parishes in other nearby localities. One copy of the records is kept at the parish archive and another copy is sent to the diocesan archive for preservation. Most of the parish records in this collection were acquired at the diocesan archives.

This collection of parish records such as baptism, marriage, and burial may cover the years 1598 to the present.

Catholic Church parish registers were created by priests authorized to record the church sacraments of baptism, marriage, death, burial, and other ordinances in their parish jurisdiction.

Catholic Church parish registers are the primary source for finding genealogical information of birth, death, and marriage in Colombia prior to 1935, when the civil registration was implemented.

Citation for This Collection:
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Records collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.

Suggested citation format for a record in this collection.

Record Content
The key genealogical facts found in most baptism records are:


 * Place of baptism
 * Date of baptism
 * Gender of the child
 * Date of birth
 * Name of the child baptized
 * Legitimacy
 * Parents’ names
 * Residence of the parents
 * Paternal grandparents’ names
 * Maternal grandparents’ names
 * Godparents’ names

The key genealogical facts found in most marriage records are:


 * Place of marriage
 * Date of marriage
 * Names of the groom and bride
 * Witnesses’ names
 * Groom’s age
 * Bride’s age
 * Marital status of the groom and bride
 * Groom’s parents
 * Bride’s parents

The key genealogical facts found in most death or burial records are:


 * Deceased’s place of burial
 * Date of burial
 * Age at time of death
 * Deceased’s name
 * Deceased’s marital status and spouse’s name, if married
 * Legitimacy
 * Parents’ names
 * Residence of the deceased
 * Age at time of death
 * Place of death
 * Cause of death

The key genealogical facts found in most child recognition records:


 * Date of legal recognition
 * Name of the father
 * Father’s parents
 * Father’s place of baptism
 * Father’s marital status and spouse’s name
 * Father’s age
 * Father’s identification number and place of issue
 * Name of the child being recognized
 * Child’s place and date of baptism
 * Mother’s name
 * Mother’s parents
 * Mother’s place of baptism
 * Mother’s marital status and spouse’s name, if married
 * Mother’s age

How to Use the Records
Catholic Church parish records are an excellent source for genealogical research in Colombia. The records of baptism, marriage, and death may contain important information about other generations of ancestors. These may also be the only records available before the implementation of civil registration in 1935. To find the record of an ancestor, a person needs to know at least the name of the ancestor and a place and approximate year of an event in the ancestor’s life. If indexes are available, it is suggested to check for the name there first.

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Related Wiki Articles

 * Colombia

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

Citation Example for a Record Found in This Collection
"Colombia, Catholic Church Records, 1600-2010," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XT71-R57 : accessed 15 May 2012), Antonio Pineda and Juana Bautista Orozco, married 5 July 1820; citing Marriage Records, Estudios monograficos: Marinilla, 1967.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the wiki article Help:How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.