Kenya Church Records

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

Online Resources and Websites

 * 1838-1991 - index and images. Includes Kenya.
 * 1906-1963 Parish registers, Gereformeerde Kerk, Eldoret (Kenya) - 1906-1963 - images
 * 1908-1965 Parish registers, 1908-1965 Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk. Gemeente Rensburgrus (Eldoret, Kenya)
 * 1949-1975 Kenya, Vergenoeg, church records - images
 * UK, Foreign and Overseas Registers of British Subjects, 1628-1969, index ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, index and images, ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, Kenya, index and images, ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, Africa, index and images, ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages, Kenya, index and images, ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Banns and Marriages, Africa, index and images, ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials, index and images, ($), 1908-1965] - images

Historical Background
The predominant religion of Kenya is Christianity; roughly 80% of the total population are Christians. The Christian denominations found in Kenya include: Roman Catholic, Anglican, Presbyterian, Reformed, Methodist, Baptist, Lutheran, and Pentecostal

Information Recorded in the Records
Different denominations, different time periods, and practices of different record keepers will effect how much information can be found in the records. This outline will show the types of details which might be found (best case scenario):

Baptisms
In Catholic and Anglican records, children were usually baptized a few days after birth, and therefore, the baptism record proves date of birth. Other religions, such as Baptists, baptized at other points in the member's life. Baptism registers might give:

Marriages
Marriage registers can give:

Burials
Burial registers may give:

Digital Copies of Church Records in the FamilySearch Catalog
Watch for digitized copies of church records to be added to the collection of the FamilySearch Library. Some records might have viewing restrictions, and can only be viewed at a Family History Center near you, and/or by members of supporting organizations. To find records:
 * a. Click on the records of Kenya.
 * b. Click on Places within Kenya and a list of towns will appear.
 * c. Click on your town if it appears, or the location which you believe was the parish which served your town or village.
 * d. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * e. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the listing for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the record 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 records.

Writing for Records
You will probably need to write to or email the national archives, the diocese, or local parish priests to find records. See Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy for help with composing letters.

Writing for Records

 * Church Directory
 * Google Maps search results for Anglican churches in Kenya

Historical Background
The Anglican Church of Kenya is a province of the Anglican Communion, and it is composed by 37 dioceses. The church was founded as the diocese of Eastern Equatorial Africa (Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania) in 1884. However, Protestant missionary activity had been present in the area since 1844, when Johann Ludwig Krapf, a Lutheran missionary, landed in Mombasa. Mass conversions of Africans began as early as 1910.

Writing for Records

 * Google Maps search results for Baptist churches in Kenya

Historical Background
The Baptist Convention of Kenya is a Baptist Christian denomination in Kenya. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance. The headquarters is in Nairobi. The Convention has its origins in a mission of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1956 in Nairobi. In 1971, the Baptist Convention of Kenya was formally founded. In 2015, it has 3,252 churches with 600,000 members. Website

Writing to a Local Parish
Earlier records can be held at the diocese, with more recent records still kept in the local parish. To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a diocese or local parish, consult:
 * The Catholic Directory: Kenya

Historical Background
The earliest traces of the Catholic Church in Kenya begin with the missionaries that penetrated the state in 1498, led by Vasco da Gama. Due to regional conflict, poor transportation, and a largely nomadic presence, it became more established in northern Kenya during the twentieth century.

Online Records
Online information is available to current members, for deceased members and immediate family members who are still living. Sign in to FamilySearch and then select Family Tree in the drop-down menu.

Historical Background
American USAID employees and families serving in Kenya in the 1970s held Church services in their own homes. The first African converts in Kenya were baptized in 1979. In 1981 two branches (small congregations) were created in Nairobi and Kiboko. The Church received official recognition in 1991, and that same year missionary headquarters were established in Nairobi. By 1994 four districts, with several branches each, had been created and large congregations attended many of the meetings. The first meetinghouse was completed in July 1994 for the Longata Branch in Nairobi. The Nairobi Kenya Stake was organized on 9 September 2001, the first stake in Kenya. Total Church Membership: 14,143. Congregations: 48.

Writing for Records

 * Google Maps search results for Dutch Reformed churches in Kenya

Historical Background
The Reformed Church of East Africa was founded in 1944 when the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa started mission work in Eldoret Kenya. This work was overtaken by the missionaries came from the Netherlands Reformed Church. The church accepted the Three Forms of Unity. When the Dutch missionaries left, they left behind a Kenyan Reformed church. At the time it has more than 600 congregations and 110,000 members. The denomination has a theological seminary in Eldoret, The Reformed Institute For Theological Training (RITT). RITT offers courses in Theology. The church become autonomous in 1963. There are more than 110,000 adherents.

Writing for Records

 * The Orthodox Archdiocese of Kenya Website
 * Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Kenya

Historical Background
The Holy Archdiocese of Kenya is a diocese in eastern Africa under the jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa. Prior to its formation in 2001, the archdiocese was part of the Archdiocese of Irinoupolis.

Today, the Orthodox community of Kenya is the most numerous on the African continent, and consists of about a million parishioners out of an overall population of 35 million in the country. The Kenyan Archdiocese of the Alexandrian Patriarchate has about 200 churches, dozens of church parochial schools and a seminary in Riruta. Orthodoxy entered Kenya in the 1940s. The first archdiocese was established in 1959.

Writing for Records

 * Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya Website
 * Google Maps search results for Lutheran churches in Kenya

Historical Background
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya (ELCK) was born out of the missionary work of the Swedish Lutheran Mission in 1948 under the name Swedish Lutheran Mission (SLM). In 1963, the name of the church was changed and registered as the Lutheran Church of Kenya (LCK). In 1973, the name was changed again to ELCK with three districts, namely North District, Kisii District, and Nyanza District.

Writing for Records

 * Contact information for headquarters
 * Google Maps search results for Methodist churches in Kenya

Historical Background
According to the Deed of Foundation, Methodist Church in Kenya grew out of the United Methodist Free Churches, whose Missionary Committee in 1860 agreed to send a mission to East Africa and whose missionaries first reached Mombasa in 1862. In 1907 the United Methodist Free Churches became part of the United Methodist Church, which in 1932 became part of the Methodist Church. In 1967 Methodist Church in Kenya became autonomous from the British Methodist Church.

Writing for Records

 * Google Maps search results for Pentecostal churches in Kenya

Writing for Records

 * Google Maps search results for Presbyterian churches in Kenya

Historical Background

 * 1910s-1920s: In 1912, the first pentecostal missionary arrives from Finland. In 1918, North Americans establish a mission that later affiliates with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. The churches resulting from this mission become independent in 1965 and are renamed the Pentecostal Assemblies of God. By 2002, East Africa is home to some 5,000 of these churches.
 * 1930s: The East African Revival, which began in Rwanda, reaches Kenya by 1937, drawing many Protestants toward evangelical and charismatic Christianity.
 * 1940s-1950s: In 1942, a pentecostal evangelist founds the African Israel Church Nineveh after breaking with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. Two significant pentecostal denominations emerge, the Pentecostal Evangelical Fellowship of Africa, started by U.S. missionaries in 1944, and the Full Gospel Churches of Kenya, started by Finnish missionaries in 1949.
 * 1960s-1970s: After independence in 1963, indigenous churches grow rapidly and many foreign missionaries arrive. In 1967, American pentecostal Dale Brown founds the Kenya Assemblies of God, which joins with the Assemblies of God U.S in 1972. A survey in the early *1990s finds that the Assemblies of God is Nairobi’s fastest growing denomination, with an annual growth rate of 38%. In 1970, Joe Kayo establishes the pentecostal Deliverance Church of Kenya, an indigenous ministry that attracts urban youth. The Deliverance Church becomes an important member of the Evangelical Fellowship of Kenya, an umbrella body formed in 1976 of mostly pentecostal and charismatic churches.
 * 1980s-present: Between 1972 and 1986, the number of pentecostal churches in Nairobi doubles.

Writing for Records

 * Google Maps search results for Quaker churches in Kenya

Historical Background
Quakerism entered Kenya in 1902. From there, it spread throughout Kenya. For more information, see Religion in Kenya and Quakers in Africa.