Philippines, Lingayen-Dagupan Catholic Archdiocese Parish Registers - FamilySearch Historical Records

Philippines

What is in the Collection?
These records include indexes to baptisms, confirmations, marriages, and burials from the Catholic Church parish registers of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan covering the years 1615-1982. Baptism records are only available for the years 1900-1914.

Entries for baptisms, marriages, and deaths (burials) usually consist of a narrative paragraph. Dates are usually spelled out and the name of the principal person is usually written in the margin next to the entry. After about 1920, preprinted forms with columns were sometimes used.

Catholic Church parish registers in the Philippines were created to record the church sacraments of baptism, confirmation, marriage, and burial.

See the Philippines Church Records article for more details.

These records are written in Spanish.

Sample Images
Baptism records may include the following information:


 * Name
 * Gender
 * Age
 * Approximate year of birth
 * Place and date of baptism
 * Names of parents

Confirmation registers/lists may include the following information:


 * Name
 * Date and place of confirmation
 * Names of parents
 * Names of godparents

Marriage records may include the following:


 * Name of bride and groom
 * Gender and ages of bride and groom
 * Approximate years of birth
 * Names of bride and groom's parents
 * Place and date of marriage
 * Names of the godparents

Death/burial records usually include:


 * Name of deceased
 * Gender of deceased
 * Age at time of death
 * Approximate year of birth
 * Place and date of death
 * Name of the spouse
 * Names of parents
 * Cause of death

How Do I Search the Collection?
This section includes tips and information about how to search the collection.

When searching: As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor's given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence, age, and family relationships.

Some record sets have indexes. These indexes were created at the end of the year. Copy errors could have been made in the index, so you want to find the actual record to verify the information is correct. Using the index is a helpful way to find the actual record.

To search this collection by name: Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

To search the collection image by image select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page: ⇒Select the appropriate "Province" ⇒Select the appropriate "Barangay" ⇒Select the appropriate "Parish" ⇒Select the appropriate "Record Type Year Range (Volume Number)" which will take you to the images.

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

For Help Reading These Records
For help reading the Spanish records see the following guides:
 * Spanish Genealogical Word List
 * Reading Spanish handwritten records
 * Script tutorial for Spanish

What Do I Do Next?

 * Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each partner to find a couple's birth records and parents' names.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records Philippines Census.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate civil (see “Related Wiki Articles” section below) and land records Philippines Land and Property.
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * The name of a marriage officiator is a clue to their religion or area of residence in the province. However, ministers may have reported marriages performed in other provinces.
 * Compile the marriage entries for every person who has the same surname as the bride or groom; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Use the marital status to identify previous marriages (whether a divorce or death dissolved a previous marriage).
 * Witnesses often were relatives of the parents.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * Usually, marriages occurred about one year before the first child was born.
 * When looking for your ancestor’s baptismal record, remember that the entries are arranged chronologically.
 * The parish registers may list the godparents while the civil records may list the grandparents.
 * Be sure to search both the parish and civil records after 1860 since some families did not consistently register their children with either the church or the government.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * For death records, the information in records is usually reliable, but depends upon the knowledge of the informant.
 * For marriage and death records, your ancestors may have used shortened names or nicknames, so pay attention to other relationships (parents, spouse, siblings, children, etc.) that can confirm whether you have the right person/record.
 * Continue to search the marriage records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives of the bride and groom who may have married 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.
 * Continue to search the indexes and records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have lived in the same area or a nearby area.

What if I Can't Find Who I'm Looking For?
Note the founding date of the parish you are searching. If the date is after your ancestor would be recorded, search records of the parent parish. See the Catholic Directory of the Philippines. If your ancestor lived before the beginning date of the church records, the older parish may be far from the new one.

Or your ancestor may have immigrated to another country. Search the records of nearby areas or immigration/emigration records. Philippines Emigration and Immigration

Civil registration records are also a good substitute when church records are insufficient. Philippines, Civil Registration, Local (FamilySearch Historical Records)

General Information About These Records
Since about 1600, up to 85 percent of people living in the Philippines have been members of the Roman Catholic Church.

There was no separation of church and state in the Philippines until the end of the Spanish administration in 1898. Generally, parish priests recorded civil and ecclesiastical documents.

Parish registers are the best records in the Philippines to identify individuals, parents, and spouses before the nineteenth century. After this date, civil authorities began registering vital statistics, which became equally important. The information in civil sources confirms and supplements the information in church records.

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:

Record citation (or citation for the index entry):