Ireland, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Contents
The registration of births, marriages, and deaths by the government began in Ireland in 1864, although protestant marriage registration began in 1845.

Why Should I Look at These Records?
Irish civil registration records are indexed and cover most of the population. They are an important source of genealogical data, particularly of names, dates,relationships,and places.

What is in the Collection?
Births, marriages and deaths were registered with district registrars.

Ireland kept two sets of registrations, one local and the other national. This document describes the national indexes, not the local ones. Prior to the separation of Northern Ireland from the Republic of Ireland in 1922, all national civil registration records and indexes for the island were kept by the General Register Office in Dublin. Beginning in 1922 there were two General Register Offices, one in Dublin for the Republic of Ireland and one in Belfast for Northern Ireland. Irish civil registration indexes begin in 1845 for non-Catholic marriages. Civil registration indexes to births, deaths, and all marriages (including Catholic) begin in 1864. Indexes for all of Ireland continue from these beginning dates through 1921, when Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland became separate countries. Separate civil registration indexes continue for births, marriages, and deaths for the two countries from 1922 to 1958.

The indexes are made from the national set of civil registration records, which in turn are copies of the local registration records. Accidental omissions and mistakes have been made in the copying and indexing processes. Otherwise, the data is quite reliable.

Record Content
Birth records may contain the following information:


 * Date and place of birth
 * Name of Child (if any)
 * Full name and dwelling place of father
 * Full name (including maiden name) of mother
 * Rank or profession of father
 * Signature
 * Qualification and residence of informant
 * Date of registration
 * Signature of the registrar
 * Registration district
 * Superintendent registrar's district
 * County

Marriage records may contain the following information:


 * Registrar's district
 * Place of marriage
 * When married
 * Full names of bride and groom
 * Age
 * Marital status
 * Rank or profession of bride and groom
 * Residence at the time of marriage
 * Father's full name
 * Father's rank or profession
 * Signatures of the bride and groom
 * Witnesses to the marriage

Death records may contain the following information:


 * Registration district
 * Superintendent registrar's district and county
 * Date and place of death
 * Name and surname of deceased
 * Sex
 * Marital status
 * Age at last birthday
 * Rank, profession, or occupation
 * Certified cause of death
 * Signature, qualification, and residence of informant
 * When registered
 * Signature of registrar

How to Use the Records
Civil registration indexes provide the easiest access to civil registration records. Rather than searching district by district where names are not in alphabetical order, you can look in one name index for the period through 1921 and in either of two indexes after 1921.

Those using Record Search indexes should note that the microfilm which are of the General Register Office for the Republic of Ireland Indexes of Birth, Marriage and Death contain only index entries and do not contain further genealogical information. In order to obtain further information it is necessary to apply for either photocopy or certificate to the General Register Office.

Search the Collection
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.

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 and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

Using the Information
Each indexed entry in the online Ireland, Civil Registration Indexes collection includes the Civil Registration volume number and page number where the event was registered, as well as the registration year/quarter. Some original volumes were microfilmed and can be viewed at FamilySearch Centers, affiliate libraries, or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Others must be ordered from the Ireland General Register Office (GRO).

The Ireland Civil Registration microfilm collections listed in the FamilySearch Catalog include the following.


 * Marriage records, 1845-1870, with indexes to marriages, 1845-1921, in the General Registry Office of Ireland
 * Death records of Ireland, 1864-1870, with index of deaths, 1864-1921
 * Quarterly returns of births in Ireland, 1864-1955, with index to births, 1864-1921

If the registration date that was found in the online Indexes is not within the applicable year range noted above, order the record by following the instructions on the GRO website.

If the registration date is within the applicable year range: 1. Follow the link above for the appropriate microfilm collection. 2. Scroll down past the indexes to the matching event, year/quarter, and volume that were found in the online Indexes. 3. To order the film, click on the corresponding hyperlinked film number and follow the instructions that appear. 4. When viewing the film, use the page number that was found on the online Indexes record to scroll quickly through the microfilm and locate the original record.

Note: When any collection is sorted by quarters, the records for January, February and March will be found in the March quarter. The same pattern is used for the June, September and December quarters.

Tips to Keep in Mind
All of Ireland to 1922:


 * Listed next to each name is the district where the event was registered (also known as the registration district, poor law union, county district), the volume, and the page number.
 * Death indexes also give the age at death.
 * The yearly birth indexes for 1903–1921 at the General Register Office include a birth date and the mother’s maiden name. Family History Library microfilm copies for this time period are of the quarterly indexes, which do not include a birth date or the mother's maiden name.

The Republic of Ireland after 1922:


 * The General Register Office for the Republic of Ireland (GRO) has registered and indexed events for the Republic of Ireland only. For 1922–1927, GRO copies of the birth index include a birth date and the mother’s maiden name. Family History Library microfilm copies for this time period are of the quarterly indexes, which do not include a birth date or the mother’s maiden name.
 * For 1928–1965, all birth indexes are quarterly and give the mother’s maiden name but not the birth date of the newborn.

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Related Websites

 * FreeBMD
 * Irish Civil Registration: How to Find
 * Certificate Exchange
 * Irish Genealogy Toolkit: Irish Civil Registration

Related Wiki Articles

 * Ireland
 * Ireland Civil Registration
 * Quick Research Links - Ireland
 * Ireland, Civil Registration Guide, County/Volume Arrangement
 * Ireland Maps
 * Ireland History

Citations for This Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation:

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):