Nicaragua, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Records
Registros Parroquiales de la Iglesia Católica en Nicaragua

Record Description
This collection of baptisms, marriages, and burials was created by authorized parish priests in the years 1740 to 1960. Most of the inhabitants of Nicaragua were Roman Catholics, therefore these records may cover about 95 to 100 percent of the population from the 16th to the 20th century. The text of the records is in Spanish.

It is common to see the sacramental ordinances of baptism, marriage, and burial in separate registers; however, in smaller towns these records may all be recorded in one yearly book. The entries were normally made in chronological order. Some confirmations may be found within the baptisms. The earlier parish records were all handwritten in narrative form, and later records were handwritten in formatted entries. All records were handwritten in Spanish.

The parish registers may be the only records available for genealogical research before civil registration was implemented in 1879.

Record Content
Death records usually contain the following information:
 * Date and place of death
 * Name of deceased
 * Age and civil status of deceased
 * Parents’ names
 * Sometimes, name of the spouse, if married
 * Cause of death
 * Place of burial

Search the Collection
To browse the collection by image: ⇒ Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒ Select the "Department" category ⇒ Select the "City or Town" category ⇒ Select the "Parish" category ⇒ Select the "Record Type and Years" category which takes you to the images.

Look at the images one by one 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.

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.

For Help Reading These Records
These records are in Spanish. For help reading the records, see the following resources:


 * 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

Related Websites

 * [www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dmana.html Managua Archdiocese information by Catholic Hierarchy]
 * Arquidiócesis de Managua (in Spanish, Chrome will translate)
 * Una Visión Histórico-Pastoral de la Iglesia Católica en Nicaragua
 * Nicaragua Maps
 * Nicaragua History

Related Wiki Articles
Nicaragua

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Citation for This Collection
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