Portugal Notarial Records

Wills (Testamentos)
Research use: Helps establish family relationships and connect the more current to ancestral generations.

Record type: Notarial record of estate distribution at the death of the testator.

General: Notarial practice is rooted in the Roman heritage of Portuguese civilization. Notaries have validated legal documents for centuries on the Iberian peninsula.

Time period: 1700-present.

Contents: Name of testator, residence, names of family members and other relations and their relationship to the testator.

Location: District archives (legal repository for notarial records more than 30 years old), district and local notarial archives and offices.

Population coverage: 40% of the population.

Reliability: Excellent.