Kazakhstan Church Records

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

Historical Background
Christianity in Kazakhstan is the second most practiced religion after Islam. There are 4,214,232 Christians in Kazakhstan (according to the 2009 census). The majority of Christian citizens are Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians, who belong to the Orthodox Church in Kazakhstan under the Moscow Patriarchate. About 1.5 percent of the population is ethnically German, most of whom follow the Catholic Church or Lutheranism. There are also many Presbyterians, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists and Pentecostals. '''Methodists, Mennonites, and Mormons (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) have also registered churches with the government.

There are more Protestant congregations - 93 "nontraditional" Protestant Christian churches registered with the Kazakh government from 2006 to 2007. There are 83 Catholic church buildings in Kazakhstan. According to a 2009 national census, 26% of Kazakhstan's population is Christian. There are two Baptist organizations in Kazakhstan: the Council of Churches of Evangelical Christians and Baptists, with 1,000 members, and the Baptist Union of Kazakhstan, with 10,000 members. 198 churches affiliated with the Baptist Union are registered with the government.

According to the 2009 Census, there were 4,214,232 Christians in Kazakhstan. Their ethnic affiliation is as follows:
 * Russians - 3,476,748 (91.6% of the ethnic Russians)
 * Ukrainians - 302,199 (90.7% of Ukrainians)
 * Germans - 145,556 (81.6%)
 * Belarusians - 59,936 (90.2%)
 * Polish - 30,675 (90.1%)

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 Kazakhstan.
 * b. Click on Places within Kazakhstan 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. See Russian Letter Writing Guide for help with composing letters.

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Russian Orthodox churches in Kazakhstan]

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

Writing for Records

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

Online Records
Online church information is available to current members, deceased members, and immediate family members who are still living. Sign in to FamilySearch and then select Family Tree in the drop-down menu.

Other Minor Churches

 * [ Google Maps search results for Anglican churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Baptist churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Jehovah's Witnesses churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Mennonite churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Methodist churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Moravian churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Pentecostal churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Presbyterian churches in Kazakhstan]
 * [ Google Maps search results for Seventh-day Adventist churches in Kazakhstan]