Portugal, Beja, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
These Catholic Church records were created by parishes primarily in the district of Beja but also in the districts of Évora, Faro, and Setúbal, all of which are housed in the Arquivo Distrital de Beja. This collection includes: baptisms, marriages, and deaths between the years 1550 - 1913. This District of Beja is divided into 13 municipalities (municípios): • 3 Parishes in the District of Beja are part of the Beja Diocese. Each parish priest kept the original register in the parish archive and a duplicate copy was later sent to the Diocesan Archive to keep the records centralized and kept at a higher state of preservation. However, this collection of records is housed at the Beja District Archive. Not all localities may be represented at once. Additional images will be published as they become available.

Reading These Records
The records were handwritten in Portuguese. For help reading them see:
 * Portuguese Genealogical Word List
 * Portuguese Letter-writing Guide

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The following information may be found in these records:

Baptism
 * Date and place of baptism
 * Child's name and gender
 * Child's date and place of birth
 * Parents' names, their occupation and origin
 * Names of paternal grandparents
 * Names of maternal grandparents
 * Names of godparents, their civil status and occupation

Marriage
 * Date and place of marriage
 * Names of the bride and groom
 * Groom's age, date and place of birth
 * Groom's baptismal date and place
 * Groom's occupation, civil status and origin
 * Names of groom's parents
 * Bride's age, date and place of birth
 * Bride's baptismal date and place
 * Bride's occupation, civil status and origin
 * Names of bride's parents
 * Names of witnesses, their civil status, occupation and residence

Death
 * Place and date of death
 * Name, age and gender of deceased
 * Occupation, civil status, origin and residence of deceased
 * Spouse's name, if married
 * Cause of death
 * Parents' names, occupation and origin
 * Burial information

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection, it is helpful to know:
 * Your ancestor's given name and surname
 * Identifying information such as residence
 * Estimated marriage or birth year

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?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct
 * Titles may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community
 * For records after 1911, it is suggested that you research both the civil registry and the church records to verify information

I Can’t Find The Person I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Check for variant spellings of the names
 * 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
 * Search the records of nearby localities (or military unties, counties, parishes, etc.)
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in Portugal.
 * Record Finder
 * Portugal Research Tips and Strategies

Other FamilySearch Collections
These collections may have additional materials to help you with your research.

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.

Portugal, Beja, Registros da Igreja Católica (Registros Históricos do FamilySearch) Portugal, Beja, registros parroquiales (Registros históricos de FamilySearch)