Ecuador, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Ecuador

What is in This Collection?
This is a collection of Catholic Church parish records from parishes in dioceses and archdioceses in Ecuador. It includes the years 1565 to 2011

All the records of sacramental ordinances were created, registered, and kept by the priest in authority of his parish jurisdiction. The parish jurisdiction may have included sub-parishes in nearby localities. One register was generally kept at the parish archive and another copy sent to the diocesan archive for preservation.

Catholic Church parish registers are the primary source for finding genealogical information of birth, death, and marriage in Ecuador prior to 1900, when the civil registration was implemented. For the most part, the records are handwritten in narrative form; only in later years are the records handwritten in formatted registers.

Reading These Records
These records are written in Spanish. For help reading these records see the following guides:
 * Spanish Genealogical Word List
 * BYU Spanish Script Tutorial
 * FamilySearch Learning Center videos:
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 1
 * Reading Spanish Handwritten Records, Lesson 2

If you speak Spanish, the following free online lesson may be helpful to learn how to use the information in these records:
 * Registros Civiles y Parroquiales – Spanish

What Can These Records Tell Me?
The information in these records usually include the following:

Baptismal records
 * Date and place of the baptism
 * Name of child
 * Date of birth
 * Gender of child
 * Parents’ names
 * Names of godparents

Confirmation records
 * Date and place of confirmation
 * Name
 * Parents’ names
 * Godparents

Marriage records
 * Date and place of marriage
 * Names and ages of bride and groom
 * Groom’s age
 * Bride’s age
 * Marital status of the groom and bride
 * Groom’s parents’ names
 * Bride’s parents’ names
 * Witnesses' names

Death records
 * Date and place of death
 * Name of deceased
 * Age and residence of deceased
 * Cause of death
 * Parents’ names of deceased

Coverage Table
As of 24 January 2018 this collection included records from the following provinces.

For a complete list all the parishes contained in this collection, see the Parishes of Ecuador coverage table.

How Do I Search This Collection?
Before searching this collection it is helpful to know:
 * Your ancestor's given name and surname
 * Identifying information such as residence
 * Estimated marriage or birth year

View the Images
View images in this collection by visiting the 


 * 1) Select Province
 * 2) Select City or Town
 * 3) Select Parish
 * 4) Select Record Type and Years 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, Now What?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Check the image the index was taken from to see if there is additional information
 * Use the information to find more. For instance, use the age listed in the record to estimate a year of birth, if that is yet undetermined
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each spouse to find a couple's birth records and parents' names
 * 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

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking For, Now What?
If you are unable to read a document or you’re not sure where to go next in your research, you can ask for help through these resources: Hispanic Genealogy Research community on Facebook is a page sponsored by FamilySearch and here you may also post a question or upload an image of a document for further assistance. The Hispanic Genealogy Research page is designed especially for those who have Hispanic ancestry but may not be fluent in Spanish. Be sure to click like on the page on your first visit so you can receive information and updates from the page in your news feed.
 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames
 * You ancestor may be using a nickname or alias
 * A boundary change could have occurred and the record of your ancestor is now in a neighboring area. Search the records and indexes of neighboring cities, provinces, and regions
 * Your ancestor may have immigrated to another country. Search the records of nearby countries or immigration/emigration records

New information is constantly being indexed, microfilmed or updated. Periodically check back to see if your ancestor’s records have been added. You can see if the area you’ve been looking in has been recently updated by going to Historical Records Collections. Watch for an asterisk for recently added or updated records.

Research Helps
The following articles will help you in your research for your family in Ecuador.
 * Ecuador 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.