Mexico, Chiapas, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records

What Is In The Collection?
This is a collection of civil registration records for the state of Chipas in southern Mexico. It includes the years 1861-1990. Records, such as birth, marriages, and deaths, are organized by state and then by municipality/city. Earlier records were handwritten in narrative style; later records were handwritten in formatted registers.

Civil records in Mexico cover about 90 to 95% of the population. Beginning in 1859, the Mexican government began requiring births, marriages, and deaths to be recorded by civil authorities on a municipality/district level. Although these records are a great source of genealogical information, they are not complete as civil registration wasn't strictly enforced in Mexico until 1867 and people did not always comply. For this reason, church registers should be used alongside the civil records. The civil records of Mexico have been preserved relatively well. Only some of the older registers may have some physical damage. However, in general they are in good condition to extract genealogical information.

Reading These Records
These records are written in Spanish; also see the section For Help Reading These Records for translation helps.

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

Birth Records
 * Date and place of the event
 * Name of the principal
 * Child’s gender
 * Child’s date of birth
 * Legitimacy
 * Parents' names, residence, and/or place of origin
 * Names of witnesses

Marriage Records
 * Date and place of the event
 * Names of the bride and groom
 * Their civil statuses (widowed, single, divorced) at the time of the event
 * Place of origin and residence of the bride and groom
 * Names of parents
 * Name of witnesses

Death Records
 * Place and date of the event
 * Place and date of death
 * Name of the principal (deceased)
 * Civil status of principal at time of death
 * Civil status and name of spouse, if married at time of death
 * Parents' names
 * Sometimes place of burial

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

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

For Help Reading These Records
For help reading these Spanish records, see the following resources:


 * Mexico Language and Languages
 * Spanish Genealogical Word List
 * 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

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.

What Do I Do Next?

 * When you have found your ancestors original record, it is a good idea to make a copy of it or cite where you found it for future reference.


 * It's always a good idea to keep your citation on a Research Log. This is an important tool to help keep track of what you have and have not found.  Family search wiki has a  Research Log that you can download and use.

To learn more about using the information available in these records, view these lessons for free:
 * Documentos esenciales para buscar a sus antepasados - Spanish
 * Registros Civiles y Parroquiales – Spanish

I Found Who I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in 1930, Mexico National Census.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate them in the Chiapas Catholic Church records.
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * Compile information for every person who has the same surname as your ancestor; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.

What if I Can't Find Who I'm Looking For?

 * New information is constantly being indexed, microfilmed or updated. Periodically check back and see if your ancestor’s records have been added.  You can see if the area you’ve been looking in has been recently updated by going to Historical Records Collections and notice the asterisk for recently added or updated records.
 * Check for variants of given names, surnames, and place names. Transcription errors could occur in any handwritten record; also, it was not uncommon for an individual be listed under a nickname or an abbreviation of their name. Click here for a list of Spanish name abbreviations
 * 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.
 * Try looking through records in the surrounding localities. Oaxaca is on the western boarder, Veracruz shares a small part of the western border, Tabasco is on the north and northeastern, and Guatemala is on the eastern.
 * If your ancestors immigrated to the United States between 1909-1957, the border crossing records may be useful.

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.

Collection Citation:

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