Mauritius Research Tips and Strategies

1. Civil Registration
Civil Registration in Mauritius is a government recording of births, marriages and deaths. The Central Civil Status Office in Port Louis holds records as far back as 1812 and the older ones that are of interest to genealogists are kept at the National Archives in the DBM Complex, Industrial Zone, Coromandel.

Recent Certificates

 * Districts of Mauritius: Port-Louis, Pamplemousses, Riviere du Rempart, FlacQ, Moka, PlaineWilhems, Black River, Grand Port, Savanne, Dependencies addresses

Certificates for Entire Country
Older Certificates are kept at the office in Port Louis.

Civil Status Division 7th Floor Emmanual Anquetil Bldg Port Louis, Mauritius Tel : 2012279 Fax : 00230 2112420 Email :civstat@govmu.org
 * Civil Registration Mauritius Website

How to Write the Letter
For help with writing for certificates, see Letter Writing Guide for Genealogy.

2. Mauritius Archives Coromandel Mauritius
There is a rich collection of historical and genealogical records at the Mauritius Archives. To become familiar with the types of records that are available read this article, watching carefully for time periods that match your research needs:
 * Record Series Details and Guidelines for Genealogical Research

A visit to the archives would be best, however services are available to help you with correspondence searches. You will need to register and login Mauritius Archives Contact Information
 * Services provided to researchers:
 * Guideline for On-Line Registration to Archives of Mauritius
 * Online Mauritius Archives Login

3. Records at the Family History Library
Some records are available here but check back from time to time as more will be added.
 * a. Click on the Places within Mauritius drop-down menu] and select your town.
 * b. Click on the "Church records" topic. Click on the blue links to specific record titles.
 * c. Choose the correct record type and time period for your ancestor.
 * d. Some combination of these icons will appear at the far right of the microfilm listed for the record. FHL icons.png. The magnifying glass indicates that the microfilm 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 microfilm. The microfilm icon indicates it is only available on microfilm and can be viewed at the Family History Library or some family history centers.

4. National Library Republic of Mauritius
National Library of Maritius address: 1st & 2nd Floors, Fon Sing Building 12, Edith Cavell Street, Port-Louis, Mauritius Contact Person : Mrs T.K. Ramnauth, Director Tel. No. 211 9891/96 Fax No. 2107173 / 2107117 E-mail : natlib@intnet.mu
 * National Library Republic of Mauritius The library houses one of the richest and most comprehensive collection of Mauritiana materials. The collection of newspapers dates back to 1777.

5. London Missionary Society
Contact Information: SOAS University of London 10 Thornhaugh Street Russell Square London WC1H 0XG General Contact Numbers Telephone: +44 (0)20 7637 2388 Fax: +44 (0)20 7898 4009
 * London Missionary Society Collections SOAS University of London, holds the largest collection of Christian missionary archives in the UK; as well as personal papers of many individual missionaries. These collections span the 18th to 20th centuries and include a wealth of primary source material, such as correspondence, reports, minutes, journals, photographs and films.
 * SOAS Campus Maps School of Asian and African Studies

Learning to Read Enough French to Do Genealogy - Many Records in Mauritius are in French

 * It's easier than you think! You do not have to be fluent in French to use these records, as there is only a limited vocabulary used in them. By learning a few key phrases, you will be able to read them adequately.  Here are some resources for learning to read French records.
 * French Genealogical Word List
 * French Handwriting.


 * There is a three-lesson course in reading French Records:
 * Reading French Handwritten Records Lesson 1: The French Alphabet,
 * Reading French Handwritten Records Lesson 2: Key Words and Phrases
 * Reading French Handwritten Records Lesson 3: Reading French Records