Luxembourg, Civil Registration - FamilySearch Historical Records

Luxembourg Civil Registration

Collection Time Period
Civil birth, marriage, and death records have been kept from 1796 to the present, although this collection only has records until 1924. This collection does have some parish records that date back to 1793. Some of the earlier records (until 1805) follow the French Republican Calendar.

Record Description
The events are recorded either in French or German totally by hand or in partially pre-printed books where the information is then entered by hand. The name of a child not registered when born will not be given in the death record, but the gender of that child will be. If the child was stillborn it will state that, although sometimes this term was applied to children who died shortly after birth.

Record Content
A birth record may provide the following information:


 * Day and hour of birth
 * Name of parents
 * Occupation and age of parents
 * Names of witnesses to the birth
 * Birthplace of the child

A marriage record may provide the following information:


 * Names of the couple
 * Their birthplace and place of currant residence
 * Birth dates and ages of the couple
 * Names and consent of parents
 * Occupations of the couple to be married
 * Place of residence and occupations of parents

A death record may provide the following information:


 * Day and hour of death
 * Age or birth date of the deceased
 * Birthplace of the deceased
 * Name of the deceased person
 * Marital status of the deceased and former occupation (when applicable)
 * Name of the spouse (when applicable) and may give the date and place of that spouse’s death
 * Indicates if parents are deceased or gives their residence if they are still living. When they are deceased, it may state where
 * Witnesses may be members of the family

How to Use the Records
Use civil records, depending on the record, to find the birth, marriage or death date of a person, and also where he was born, his age, name of spouse (if applicable) and name of parents. The records contain even more information than those found in church records. The details presented go far beyond the typical information about the event taking place.

Record History
Around 1796, after Luxembourg was annexed by Republican France, it became a requirement for the civil authorities of the communes of Luxemburg to record each birth, marriage, and death that took place in the community. This record was kept regardless of the individuals’ religious affiliation. This record keeping would continue until the present.

Why This Collection Was Created?
Civil registration was instituted to record births, marriages, deaths; this was done regardless of religious affiliation. This provided for a more complete registration of vital events for the whole population.

Record Reliability
Civil records are the primary source for research after 1796. They are recorded by either the mayor himself or a government clerk within 3 days of the event. They are generally correct as far as the information goes, as the event was registered by those who were eyewitnesses of the event. Barring spelling errors or faulty memory civil records are as accurate as possible.

Related Web Sites
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Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the Wiki Article: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections

Please add sample citations to this article following the format guidelines in the wiki article listed above. Examples of citations:


 * United States. Bureau of the Census. 12th census, 1900, digital images, From FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: September 29, 2006), Arizona Territory, Maricopa, Township 1, East Gila, Salt River Base and Meridian; sheet 9B, line 71
 * Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1886-1933, digital images, from FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: April 22, 2010), Baptism of Adolfo Fernandez Jimenez, 1 Feb. 1910, San Pedro Apóstol, Cuahimalpa, Distrito Federal, Mexico, film number 0227023

Style Guide
For guidelines to use in creating wiki articles that describe collections of images and indexes produced by FamilySearch, see: FamilySearch Wiki: Guidelines for FamilySearch Collections pages

Sources of Information for This Collection:
"Luxembourg Civil Registration, 1793-1923", database, FamilySearch (http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsearch), 2009.

The format for citing FamilySearch Historical Collections, including how to cite individual archives is found in the following link: How to Create Source Citations for FamilySearch Historical Records Collections

[[Category:Luxembourg|Civil Registration]