Panama Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Title in the Language of the Records
Registros parroquiales de la Iglesia Católica de Panamá.

Record Description
This collection of the Catholic Church records for Panama covers the years 1707-1973.

Entries were normally made in chronological order. In larger parishes, these records may be registered separately. In smaller parishes, the confirmations may have been included with the baptisms or even with marriages. In larger parishes, a separate book of confirmations was usually maintained. The records are in relatively fair condition, with the exception of some older records that may be damaged and therefore hard to read or missing some information. Most of the older records are handwritten in narrative style and follow a common text with some variations depending on the style used by the priest. Newer records are handwritten in formatted registers; some are even written in ledger style registers.

Catholic Church records begun to be recorded with the arrival of the Spaniards in the 16th century; towns were colonized and evangelized at the same time, beginning in 1513. When the records in this collection were created, Panama already had created the first cathedral named Santa Maria Cathedral, now Santa Maria la Antigua. The first diocese of Panama was a suffrage of the Archdiocese of Seville, Spain, until 1548, then became suffrage of the Archdiocese of Lima, Peru, until 1835, when it became suffrage of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe of Bogota, Colombia, and in 1901 suffrage of the Archdiocese of Cartagena de Indias, Colombia. Finally, in 1925 the Diocese of Panama was elevated to Archdiocese. All records created in church parishes were kept by priest and a copy sent to the diocese and later to the archdiocese.

By order of the Queen of Spain, authorized priests began keeping a record of all the sacramental ordinances performed at the parish level, such as baptisms, confirmations, marriages, and burials in order to record important events in the life of their parishioners.

Catholic Church parish registers are a reliable source of information for family history research, and the primary source for baptism, marriage, and death records in Panama prior to 1914, when the civil registration was created. Catholic Church parish records after 1914 can be used to complement information found in civil registers.

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

Record Content
Baptismal records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of death or burial
 * Name of the deceased person
 * Age and civil status of deceased
 * Sometimes, the name of spouse, if deceased was married
 * Sometimes, the names of parents
 * Place of residence or origin of the deceased person
 * Sometimes, the race of the deceased

How to Use Church Records
To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒ Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒ Select the "Province" category ⇒ Select the "City or Town" category ⇒ Select the "Parish" category ⇒ Select the "Record Type and Years" category which takes you to the images

Search the collection by image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination.

As you are searching it is helpful to know such information as your ancestor’s given name and surname, some identifying information such as residence and age, and family relationships. Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name as your ancestor and that your ancestor may have used nicknames or different names at different times.

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

 * Arquidiócesis de Panamá
 * SurySur - El ejemplo panameño : la iglesia católica y la evangelización en América

Related Wiki Articles

 * Panama
 * Panama Church History

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
Citations for individual image records are available for this collection. Browse through images in this collection and click on the "Show Citation" box: Panama, Catholic Church Records, 1707-1973

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.

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. Copies of originals are housed in different Catholic diocesan and parish archives throughout Panama.

This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections. Index based on data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah.