Switzerland Church Records

For information about records for non-Christian religions in Switzerland, go to the Religious Records page.

Overview
Church records (parish registers, church books) are an important source for genealogical research in Germany before civil registration began. They recorded details of baptisms, marriages, deaths and burials. The vast majority of the population was mentioned. In addition, church records can contain financial account books, (the record charges for toll bells, fees for masses for the dead, and so on), lists of confirmation, penance register communion lists, lists of members and family books.

You will need to know the religion of your ancestors, as different religions kept separate records. The main religious division in Switzerland was between Catholics (Katholische or Catholique) and Reformed Protestants (Reformierte or Réformée). Catholic records are usually written in Latin or the local language, while other records will be written in the local language.

In Switzerland, the local church records also functioned as registries of the citizens of the parish. For more information about citizenship in Switzerland, click here.

History
The area now known as Switzerland was introduced to Christianity in the 300s. The Catholic Bishopric of Basel was established in 346. The area fully converted to Christianity by the 600s. The Old Swiss Confederacy was Catholic until the Reformation of the 1520s, which split the confederation into Protestant and Catholic cantons. The Protestant Reformation led to the need for recording who was baptized in a particular religion. In Switzerland, the Reformation was begun in Zürich in the 1520s by Huldrych Zwingli, and quickly spread throughout the confederacy. The Counter-Reformation began in the 1540s and led to forcible conversion of some areas back to Catholicism. Eventually, each Canton was allowed to establish which religion it would follow, and all residents were required to belong to the established religion.

Major Denominations

 * Reformed (Evangelisch-reformierte Kirche / église réformée): The earliest Reformed churches began recording baptisms around 1520. Because it took decades for the Reformation spread across Switzerland in the 1500s, commencement dates may vary. By 1650 most Reformed parishes began keeping records. See the Wikipedia article for more information.
 * Roman Catholic (Römisch-katholische kirche / église catholique / chiesa cattolica) : Catholic parish records were mandated by the Council of Trent in 1563, though commencement dates may vary. See the Wikipedia article for more information.

Other Denominations

 * Swiss Baptist/Mennonite (Wiedertäufer, Mennoniten / église baptiste, église mennonite): The Swiss Mennonites was a strong movement through German-speaking Switzerland begun in the 1520s at the time of the Reformation. The movement was particularly strong in Canton Bern. The religious group was persecuted, and many immigrated to the Palatine in Germany in the 1670s. Many adherents appear in records of the Reformed church. See the Wikipedia article for more information.
 * Brethren (Brüder/Herrnhuter): often grouped with the Swiss Mennonites, the movement also began in the 1520s. Most Amish descend from the Swiss Brethren. See the Wikipedia article for more information.
 * Free Churches (Freie Kirchen): this church was a successionist church of the Swiss Reformed Church. Most of these churches have merged back with the Reformed Church; only the Evangelical Free Church of Geneva remains.
 * Russian Orthodox Church (Russisch-Orthodoxe Kirche): The center of the Russian Orthodox Church in Switzerland is the Exaltation Cathedral in Geneva, but the church was founded in Bern at the residence of the Russian ambassador in 1817. The congregation was closed in 1848, while a new congregation was established in 1854. See the Wikipedia article (in German) for more information.
 * Methodists (Methodisten) The first Methodist congregation was founded in Lausanne in 1840, and the branch was officially established in 1856. Additional branches were established in 1860 (Basel) and 1866 (Bern).
 * Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Kirche Jesu Christi der Heiligen der Letzten Tage / église de Jésus-Christ des Saints des Derniers Jours): This church was established in 1850 when the Swiss Mission was created. Most of the early membership of this church immigrated to Utah. See the Wikipedia article for more information.
 * Christian Catholic (Christkatholische Kirche) was established after the First Vatican Council (1869-1870) and is centered in Bern. See the Wikipedia article for more information.

Other churches in Switzerland prior to 1900: Seventh-day Adventists (Adventisten vom 7. Tag), Swedenborgian (Schwedenborgianer), Anglicans (Anglikaner), Society for Propagation of the Gospel (Gesellschaft zur Ausbreitung des Evangeliums), Scottish Presbyterian Church (Schottische Presbyterianer Kirche)

Types of church records:

 * Baptisms, marriages, burials, confirmations
 * Lists of communicants
 * Family registers (soul registers)
 * Lists of ministers in the parish
 * Church council minutes
 * Notations about those who have fallen away, i.e. Anabaptists
 * Church censuses, membership lists
 * Church consistory minutes
 * Annual masses for the dead

Content of Baptism Records

 * Name of child
 * Baptism date
 * Parents names, possibly residence and occupation of father
 * Witnesses names, possibly relationship, residence, and occupation

Content of Confirmation Records

 * Date of confirmation
 * Name of pastor
 * Name of confirmed person
 * Residence
 * Birth date

Content of Marriage Records

 * Date of marriage
 * Names of bride and groom, occupation and locality
 * Residence and notations
 * Emigration notation

Content of Death Records

 * Dates of death and burial
 * Name of deceased
 * Home place
 * Age in years, months, and days
 * Name of person performing funeral service
 * Cause of death

Content of Family Register

 * Parents' names, birth dates, and birth places
 * Parents' marriage date
 * Children's names and birth dates
 * Children's marriage dates and spouse names

Online Collections
This map shows which records for Switzerland are available outside of the Swiss archives:
 * dark green: records are available online, either at FamilySearch or at the canton archive website
 * light green: some records are available online at FamilySearch
 * brown: records are available on microfilm at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah

Church Records by Canton

 * Aargau (AG)
 * Appenzell Ausserrhoden (AR)
 * Appenzell Innerrhoden (AI)
 * Basel-Landschaft (BL)
 * Basel-Stadt (BS)
 * Bern (BE)
 * Fribourg (FR)
 * Genève (GE)
 * Glarus (GL)
 * Graubünden (GR)
 * Jura (JU)
 * Luzern (LU)
 * Neuchâtel (NE)
 * Nidwalden (NW)
 * Obwalden (OW)
 * Sankt Gallen (SG)
 * Schaffhausen (SH)
 * Schwyz (SZ)
 * Solothurn (SO)
 * Thurgau (TG)
 * Ticino (TI)
 * Uri (UR)
 * Valais (VS)
 * Vaud (VD)
 * Zürich (ZH)
 * Zug (ZG)

Microfilmed/Digitized Records
Several parish records have been microfilmed and are currently being digitized. Eventually, all of them will be digitized, so check back frequently. Instructions:


 * 1) Click on this link for the Switzerland FamilySearch Catalog.
 * 2) A list "Places within Switzerland" will open. Click on the appropriate canton.
 * 3) Open the list of places within the canton. Select your town.
 * 4) A list of record categories will open up. Click on "Church records".
 * 5) A list of available records will appear. Click on the record title you are interested in searching.
 * 6) Scroll down to the list of microfilm numbers. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm is indexed. Clicking on the magnifying glass will take you to the index. Clicking on the camera will take you to an online digital copy of the microfilm.

Writing for Records
{|
 * These letter writing guides will help you write to local parishes in the appropriate language:
 * These letter writing guides will help you write to local parishes in the appropriate language:


 * Germany Letter Writing Guide
 * Italy Letter Writing Guide
 * French Letter Writing Guide

Language Map of Switzerland

 * }

Reading the Records

 * Reading German Handwritten Records
 * Lesson 1: Kurrent Letters
 * Lesson 2: Making Words in Kurrent
 * Lesson 3: Reading Kurrent Documents
 * Old German Script
 * Part 1
 * Part 2
 * Part 3 (German Church and Civil Records)
 * Reading French Handwritten Records
 * Lesson 1: The French Alphabet
 * Lesson 2: Key Words and Phrases
 * Lesson 3: Reading French Records
 * Reading Italian Handwritten Records:
 * Lesson 1: The Italian Alphabet
 * Lesson 2: Words and Phrases
 * Lesson 3: Reading Italian Records

Search Strategy
This search strategy will help you determine what to write for. Limit tour requests to just one of these steps at a time. Once you have established that the parish is cooperative and perhaps more willing to do more extensive research (for a fee), you might be able to ask them for more at a time.


 * Search for the relative or ancestor you selected.
 * When you find his birth record, search for the births of his brothers and sisters.
 * Next, search for the marriage of his parents. The marriage record will have information that will often help you find the birth records of the parents.
 * You can estimate the ages of the parents and determine a birth year to search for their birth records.
 * Search the death registers for all known family members.
 * Repeat this process for both the father and the mother, starting with their birth records, then their siblings' births, then their parents' marriages, and so on.
 * If earlier generations (parents, grandparents, etc.) do not appear in the records, search neighboring parishes.