Equatorial Guinea Church Records

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

Historical Background
The principal religion in Equatorial Guinea is Christianity, the faith of 93% of the population. Roman Catholics make up the majority (88%), while a minority are Protestants (5%).

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 Equatorial Guinea.
 * b. Click on Places within Equatorial Guinea 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 French Letter Writing Guide for help with composing letters.
 * Google Maps search results for churches in Equatorial Guinea

Writing to a Local Parish
Earlier records can be held at the diocese, with more recent records still kept in the local parish. To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a diocese or local parish, consult:
 * The Catholic Directory: Equatorial Guinea

Historical Background
The Catholic Church in Equatorial Guinea is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. Equatorial Guinea has one of the highest proportions of Catholics in Africa, a legacy of its status as a former Spanish colony. There are five dioceses, including one archdiocese.

In 2005, about 422,000 (87%) of the 485,000 inhabitants of Equatorial Guinea were member of the Catholic Church.[1] Equatorial Guinea consists of a single ecclesiastical province, Malabo, with four suffragan dioceses in Bata, Ebebiyin, Evinayong and Mongomo.