Russia, Samara Church Books - FamilySearch Historical Records

What is in This Collection?
This collection will include records of births and baptisms, marriages, deaths, and burials from the Orthodox Church in the Samara Province from 1748 to 1934. Register transcripts usually contain multiple parishes for a year, with separate sections for the baptisms, marriages, and burials of a single parish. The volumes cover a district (uezd) and often are very large. Original registers may contain multiple years for a single parish.

For a list of records by localities currently published in this collection, select the Browse.

The Church acted as both a religious and civil agent in recording vital events and church sacraments such as baptism and burial. Peter the Great mandated the keeping of Russian Orthodox books in 1722. The format was standardized in 1724. Printed forms were introduced in 1806. In 1838 a format was introduced that prevailed until the 1930s. The priests made a transcript for the ecclesiastical court (dukhovnaia konsistoriia) having jurisdiction over the parish. This is usually the version that has been preserved. The register covers 70% of the population for early periods, 90% after 1800. The registers are in Russian.

Church registers were created and kept by priests to record the baptisms, marriages, and burials performed for their parishioners.

These were considered an official record and are normally very reliable. Earlier registers may not be equally reliable. In 1825 the Holy Synod,the governmental body over the Orthodox Church, ordered bishops to eradicate bribery of priests to falsify the books, suggesting that this problem existed.

Image Visibility
Whenever possible, FamilySearch makes images available for all users. However, rights to view images on our website are granted by the record custodians. These images can be viewed online by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, at a family history center near you, or the Family History Library.

For additional information about image restrictions, please see the Restrictions for Viewing Images in FamilySearch Historical Record Collections page.

Reading These Records
These records are in Russian. For help reading these records see the following guides:
 * Russia Language and Languages
 * Russian Genealogical Word List
 * Russia Handwriting
 * FamilySearch Learning Center videos:
 * Reading Russian Handwritten Records

Collection Content
The following information may be found in these records:

Baptism
 * Child's date and place of baptism
 * Child's name and gender (usually an infant)
 * Child's age or date of birth
 * Names of parents and their residence
 * Father's occupation
 * Parents' religion
 * Names of godparents
 * Sometimes names of grandparents
 * Witnesses

Marriage
 * Date and place of marriage
 * Names of bride and groom
 * Ages of bride and groom
 * Names of parents
 * Religion of all involved
 * Residence of all involved
 * Witnesses

Death or Burial
 * Date and place of burial
 * Name of deceased
 * Date and place of death
 * Age of deceased
 * Cause of death
 * Residence
 * Sometimes, parents may be listed

Coverage Table
A Coverage Table for this collection is available in the wiki article Russia, Samara Province Orthodox Church Records, Coverage Table (FamilySearch Historical Records)

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the :
 * 1) Select Province
 * 2) Select District
 * 3) Select Place/Parish
 * 4) Select Year/Vol/Event to view the images.

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?

 * Use the age of the citizen to find an approximate birth year to begin your search in church or civil records
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have moved, been recruited, or lived nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify. Compile the entries for every person who has the same surname; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual. This compiled list can help you identify possible relations that can be further verified by researching civil registration records in the country
 * When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Save a copy of the image or transcribe the information. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details such as a title, an occupation, or land ownership. Add this new information to your records of each family. You should also look for leads to other records about your ancestors
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, What Now?

 * Switch to a different record collection. Depending on the time period, either Civil Registration records or Church Records may be more useful
 * While searching, it is helpful to know such information as the ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as an ancestor and that the ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times
 * Keep in mind that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name
 * Standard spelling of names typically did not exist during the periods our ancestors lived in. Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images. Pay special attention to how the name should have been pronounced and try variations on the pronunciation
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names
 * Search the indexes and records of local genealogical societies
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another

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

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.