Valença, Viana do Castelo, Portugal Genealogy

This is a historical and genealogical guide to the municipality of Valença.

History

 * Valença also known as Valença do Minho, is a municipality and a town in Viana do Castelo District in Portugal.
 * On 12 June 2009 it officially became a city.
 * Valença is divided into 11 civil parishes.
 * A wall surrounds the town of Valença on the left bank of Minho River, and dates back to Roman times.
 * In the 12th century, King Sancho I ordered the area to be a stronghold, and it's name was Contrasta which means "Village opposed to another"
 * In the 13th century, King Afonso III changed its name to Valença, historically important due to military constraints.
 * The town is next to Spain and is peacefully invaded by the Spanish who visit it and the Portuguese still use the fortress.
 * The population of Valença is roughly 14,200 people.

Online Records
After 100 years, all civil registration records are sent to the municipality's district office.

To view online civil registration records, visit Viana do Castelo Civil Registration.

Contact a Civil Registration Office
The following is a list of civil registration offices within the municipality.

Conservatória do Registo Civil de Valença address phone number [mailto:email email address]

Conservatória do Registo Civil de Valença address phone number [mailto:email email address]

Communicate your request in Portuguese whenever possible. For writing a letter or email in Portuguese, use the translated questions and phrases in this Portuguese Letter-writing Guide.

Online Records
In 1910, the Portuguese government transferred all birth, marriage, and death records from all the country's parishes to the district offices. These records are now in either District or National archives. Many of these records have been digitized and can be viewed at the District Archive's website or on FamilySearch.

To view online records, visit Viana do Castelo Church Records.

Contact a Parish
The following is a list of parishes within the municipality of Valença. There may be additional parishes not listed on this page.

If you are seeking church records created more recently than 1910, it is possible to obtain them by writing to the parish where the record was created. Writing to a parish is not always a reliable way to obtain information, because officials may or may not respond.

Conferência Episcopal Portuguesa lists websites for the 20 Dioceses of Portugal. Once on the Diocesan website, use the listing of parishes (paróquias) to locate contact information for the parish in question.

Communicate your request in Portuguese whenever possible. For writing a letter or email in Portuguese, use the translated questions and phrases in this Portuguese Letter-writing Guide.

Cemeteries
Cemeteries did not become popular in Portugal until the late nineteenth century. Prior to this, individuals were buried their parish church, and their bones were later removed to an unmarked burial place. The following list may be helpful in twentieth-century research.

Name of Cemetery Website Address Phone number [mailto:email email address]

Name of Cemetery Website Address Phone number [mailto:email email address]

Family History Centers
Name of nearest center Website/page on FS wiki Address Phone number [mailto:email email address]