Guatemala, Izabal, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records

Guatemala

What is in This Collection?
This collection will include birth, marriage, death, indexes and other records from 1877-1994. These were created by the civil registration offices in the department of Izabal, Guatemala.

The civil registration records for Guatemala cover the vital events of birth, marriages, and deaths. They are organized by municipality/city. Earlier records were handwritten in narrative style; later records were handwritten in formatted registers.

As you search this collection, you will notice that some information in the records has been blacked out. Specific privacy laws in Guatemala prohibit some information classified as sensitive from being shared with the public. The information that is blacked out may be different from record type to record type, and does not negatively affect your family history research.

These records are written in Spanish. Here is a link to a Spanish Genealogical Word List which may be helpful. Also, see the section For Help Reading These Records for translation helps.

Additional images will be published as they become available. Images courtesy of Registro Nacional de las Personas (RENAP).

What Can These Records Tell Me?
Birth records may contain the following information:


 * Birth date and place
 * Name at birth
 * Gender
 * Parents’ names
 * Parents’ residence
 * Witnesses’ names
 * Informant’s names, age, occupation, marital status, birth place, and residence
 * Document date

Marriage records may contain the following:


 * Marriage date and place
 * Groom’s name, age, occupation, birth place, resident city, and address
 * Groom’s legitimacy and parents’ names
 * Groom’s maternal and paternal grandparents’ names
 * Bride’s name, age, occupation, birth place, resident city, and address
 * Bride’s legitimacy and parents’ names
 * Bride’s maternal and paternal grandparents’ names
 * Groom’s marital status
 * Bride’s marital status
 * Document date

Death records may contain:


 * Death date and place
 * Deceased’s name, gender, and age
 * Deceased’s marital status, occupation, and parents’ names
 * Cause of death
 * Informant’s name, age, marital status, occupation, birth place, resident city and address
 * Document date

How Do I Search This Collection?
This section provides information on how to search the collection, what to do with information once found, some tips on how to find records, and what to do if no record is found.

When searching: As you are searching, it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor's given name and surname, some identifying information such as resident city, age, estimated event year, and one or both of the parents’ names.

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the :
 * 1) Select Municipality
 * 2) Select Record Type and Yearsto view the images.

For Help Reading These Records
These records are in Spanish. For help with reading the records, see the following resources:


 * BYU Spanish Script Tutorial
 * FamilySearch Learning Center videos:
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 1
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 2
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 3


 * If the images have an index to the record set, use the index to find your ancestor, then use the reference information in the index to find the actual record


 * 1) Search for the relative or ancestor you have selected. When you find the person’s birth record, search for the births of his or her brothers and sisters.
 * 2) Search for the marriage of his or her parents. The marriage record will often give you information that leads to the parents’ birth record.
 * 3) The phrase “dío a luz” means the same as “was born” or “gave birth to”.
 * 4) Estimate the parents’ age and search for their birth records.
 * 5) Repeat the process for both the father and mother.
 * 6) If earlier generations are not in the record, search neighboring municipios.
 * 7) Search the death records for all family members.

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * The phrase “dío a luz” means the same as “was born” or “gave birth to”
 * When you have located your ancestor’s birth, marriage, or death record, carefully evaluate each piece of information about them. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors
 * Use the date along with the place to find the family in Guatemala Census records
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate Parishes in Guatemala and land records
 * It is often helpful to extract the information on all children with the same parents. If the surname is unusual, you may want to compile entries for every person of the same surname and sort them into families based on the names of the parents. Continue to search the records to identify siblings, parents, and other relatives in the same or other generations who were born in the same town or nearby location

I Can't Find Who I'm Looking For, Now What?

 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct. Also, check for variant spellings of the names
 * Remember that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times
 * Titles may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community
 * Look for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume. In addition local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records Continue to search the index and records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have served in the same unit or a nearby unit
 * Search the records of nearby departments

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.

"Guatemala, Izabal, Civil Registration, 1877-1994." Images. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : accessed 2017. El Registro Nacional de las Personas, Ciudad de Guatemala [National Register of the People of Guatemala, Guatemala City].
 * Collection Citation:

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