Sri Lanka Church Records

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

Church Records
Research use: Excellent for family and relationship linkage.

Record type: Baptisms, marriages, burials, mostly for Europeans (Dutch Burghers) and Christianized Sri Lankans.

Time period: 1677 to 1930.

Contents: Name, date and place of baptism, marriage, and burial. Also provides parentage, residence, age, etc., largely for members of the Dutch Reformed Church.

Location: Wolvendaal Church for Colombo and Diocesan Headquarters for the remainder.

Population coverage: Estimated at 10% of the total population.

Reliability: Good.

Dutch Reformed Church

 * 1677-1990 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1708-1798 -

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

Online Resources and Websites
'''Ancestry.com, findmypast.com, and MyHeritage.com can be searched free of charge at your local family history center or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Historical Background
Christianity reached the country through Western colonists in the early 16th century. Around 7.4% of the Sri Lankan population are Christians, of whom 82% are Roman Catholics who trace their religious heritage directly to the Portuguese. Sri Lankan Tamil Catholics attribute their religious heritage to St.Francis Xavier as well as Portuguese missionaries. The remaining Christians are evenly split between the Anglican Church of Ceylon and other Protestant denominations. By the 1980s, the population of Christians was mostly concentrated in the northwest of Sri Lanka and in the capital where they are 10% of the population. Of these Christians, about 85% are Roman Catholics and the rest are Anglicans, Methodists and other Protestants.

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 Sri Lanka.
 * b. Click on Places within Sri Lanka 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 to a Local Parish
To locate the mailing address or e-mail address for a local parish, consult:
 * The Catholic Directory: Sri Lanka

Online Records
Information is available to current members only 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.

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Anglican churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Baptist churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Eastern Orthodox churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Jehovah's Witnesses churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Lutheran churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Mennonite churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Methodist churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Moravian churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Nazarene churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Pentecostal churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Presbyterian churches in Sri Lanka]

Writing for Records

 * [ Google Maps search results for Seventh-day Adventist churches in Sri Lanka]