Spain, Diocese of Albacete, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Records
Registros Parroquiales de la Diócesis Católica de Albacete, España.

Record Description
This collection of Catholic Church records of baptisms, marriages, and burials for the province of Albacete, Spain, covers the years 1504–1979.

Digital copies of baptisms, marriages, and burials of the parishes in the Diocese of Albacete, Spain. This collection includes an index of records of several parishes in the diocese. Additional indexed data will be added as they become available. Usually separate registers were maintained for baptisms, marriages, and deaths. However, in localities with a small population, the entries for these events may have been recorded in the same register. Confirmations were usually recorded with the baptisms. The earlier records may have some words or entries written in Latin. In general, the records were created in chronological order. Includes some separate indexes. The text of the records is in Spanish.

Priests performed the baptisms, marriages, deaths, burials, and other holy sacraments in their assigned parish or parishes. All the original parish records were kept in the parish archive; however, the older records were sent to the diocesan archive, as it is done today. Some earlier records may have been recreated, because the originals may have been destroyed during the Spanish wars. Catholic parish records cover 95 to 100 percent of a city’s population. This collection includes only the parish records that were centralized into the diocesan archive.

Catholic parish registers in Spain were created to record the church sacraments of baptism, marriage, death, burial, and other ordinances.

Catholic Church parish records are a reliable source for doing Spanish genealogical research.

For a list of records by localities and dates currently published in this collection, select the Browse.

Citation for This Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Record collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher and archive for the original records.

Original records are housed in local parishes throughout the Province of Albacete, Spain.

Suggested citation format for a record in this collection.

Record Content
Baptismal records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of baptism, including name of parish and priest
 * Name and gender of person being baptized
 * Date, time and place of birth or age at time of baptism
 * Legitimacy stated
 * Names of parents including maiden name of mother
 * Names of paternal grandparents
 * Names of maternal grandparents
 * Names of godparents
 * Names of witnesses

Marriage records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of marriage, including name of parish and priest
 * Name and age of groom
 * Legitimacy of groom
 * Civil status and occupation of groom
 * Names of groom's parents
 * Name and age of bride
 * Bride's birthplace
 * Names of bride's parents
 * Names of witnesses

Death records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of burial, including name of parish
 * Name and age of deceased
 * Place of birth of deceased
 * Date and place of death
 * Cause of death
 * Spouse's name, if married
 * Parents' names if a minor
 * Witnesses' names
 * Burial information
 * Sometimes, if deceased left a testament, the record will list the children’s names, civil status of deceased (single, divorced, widowed), the name and birthplace of the spouse, and sometimes the parents’ names and where they are from.

How to Use the Records
Begin your search by finding your ancestors in the index. Name indexes to baptisms, marriages, and death or burials make it possible to access a specific record quickly. Remember that these indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

When searching the index it is helpful to know the following:


 * The place where the event occurred
 * The name and surname of the person
 * The approximate date of the event
 * The name of the parents or spouse

Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

For example:


 * Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each partner to find a couple's birth records and parents' names.
 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records.
 * Occupations listed can lead you to other types of records such as employment or military records.
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * The name of the officiator is a clue to their religion or area of residence in the county. However, ministers may have reported marriages performed in other counties.
 * 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.
 * Continue to search the marriage records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives of the bride and groom who may have married in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.
 * Use the marriage number to identify previous marriages.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

Keep in mind:


 * The information in church records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another.

If you are unable to find the ancestors you are looking for, try the following:


 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for a different index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

To search the collection using the browse you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒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 which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.

Known Issues with This Collection
For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to [mailto:support@familysearch.org support@familysearch.org]. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Related Websites

 * Hispanic Genealogy - Spanish Catholic Church Marriage Records
 * Guía de los Archivos de la Iglesia en España

Related Wiki Articles

 * Spain
 * Spain Catholic Church Records

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the wiki article Help:How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Citation Example for a Record Found in This Collection
"Spain, Diocese of Albacete, Catholic Church Records, 1504-1979" index and images, FamilySearch(https://ds.familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VTFV-H1X : accessed 29 May 2012), Hernando Nunez Cortez and Catalina De Villena, dated 4 June 1606; cinting Church Records, FHL microfilm 1,79,85; The original records are housed in local parished throughout the Province of Albacete, Spain.