Murça, Vila Real, Portugal Genealogy

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

History

 * Murça is a city which is the seat of the municipal government and a municipality in the district of Vila Real, in Portugal.
 * This community, as far as can be determined, extends to Celtic times, due to the Porca de Murça (English: Pig of Murça) presumably a Celtic divinity.
 * In the 13th century, King Sancho II issued a foral on 8 May 1224, and was later confirmed and elaborated by Afonso III on 10 Jan 1268. With other similar charters by other kings.
 * Murça is divided into 7 civil parishes.
 * The population of Murça is roughly 6,000 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 Vila Real Civil Registration.

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

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

Conservatória do Registo Civil de Murça 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 Murça. There may be additional parishes not listed on this page.

To view online records, visit Vila Real Church Records.

Contact a Parish
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]