Portugal, Viana do Castelo, Catholic Church Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Image Visibility
Whenever possible, FamilySearch makes images available for all users. However, ultimate rights to view images on our website are granted by the record custodians. The Portugal, Viana do Castelo, Catholic Church Records collection is available online only to members of the supporting organization, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Microfilms of these records are available for viewing at a Family History Center. Please see Using the FamilySearch Catalog to find a microfilm and see Ordering Microfilm or Microfiche.

Title in the Language of the Records
Registros Paroquiais da Igreja Católica da Diocese de Viana do Castelo, Portugal

Record Description
This is a collection of church records from parishes in the Diocese of Viana do Castelo for the years 1537 to 1911. It includes baptisms, marriages, and deaths or burials. These parish records are housed at the Braga District Archives at the University of Minho in Braga, Portugal. Some of the older registers may have some physical damage due to natural causes; therefore, some data may be difficult to read or some even may be lost. However, in general, they are in good condition for extracting genealogical information.

The original parish records were kept in the parish archive under the custody of the priest and a duplicate register was regularly sent to the diocesan archive where the records were centralized and kept at a higher state of preservation. These records are written in Portuguese. Earlier records were handwritten in narrative style, but newer records were handwritten in formatted registers.

Record Content
Baptism records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of baptism
 * Child's name and gender
 * Child's date, time, and place of birth
 * Parents' names
 * Names of paternal and maternal grandparents
 * Godparents' names, their civil status, occupation, and residence

Marriage records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of marriage
 * Groom's name
 * Groom's civil status, occupation, residence, and origin
 * Names of groom's parents
 * Bride's name
 * Bride's civil status, occupation, residence, and origin
 * Names of bride's parents
 * Names of witnesses, their civil status, occupation, and residence

Death or burial records usually contain the following information:


 * Date and place of death or burial
 * Name, age, and gender of deceased
 * Legitimacy of deceased
 * Civil status of deceased
 * Name of spouse, if married
 * Sometimes, parent’s name if deceased is a minor
 * Sometimes, a note regarding a testament (will)
 * Burial information

How to Use the Records
This section provides information on how to search the collection, what to do with information once found, some tips on how to find records, and what to do if no record is found.

Search the Collection
To browse the collection by image: ⇒Select the "Browse" link in the initial search page ⇒Select the "District" category ⇒Select the "Municipality" category ⇒Select the "Civil Parish" 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 which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

When searching: 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.

For Help Reading These Records
These records are in Portuguese. For help reading the records, see the following resources:


 * Portuguese Genealogical Word List
 * Portuguese Letter-writing Guide
 * Learning Center Resources:
 * Portuguese Handwriting Lesson 1
 * Portuguese Handwriting Lesson 2
 * Portuguese Handwriting Lesson 3

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Titles may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community.
 * Use the estimated age to calculate a birth date.

Unable to Find your Ancestor?

 * Check for variant spellings of the names.
 * Look for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume. In addition local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the records of nearby localities (or military unties, counties, parishes, etc.).

Related Websites
Maps of Viana do Castelo

Related Wiki Articles

 * Portugal
 * Viana do Castelo
 * Portugal Catholic Church Records

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. 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. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection citation:

Image citation: