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A baptismal record is a church document certifying a baptism, used as a substitute for a civil birth certificate when civil registration did not exist or was destroyed.
In depth
A baptismal record is a church document certifying a baptism — the name of the baptized person, date of baptism, parents' names, and godparents' names. It is used as a substitute for a civil birth certificate when civil registration did not exist or was destroyed.
For CBD cases, baptismal records are particularly important for: (1) ancestors born before civil registration was established (Italy before 1866, Poland before 1945, Latin America before late 1800s), (2) ancestors whose civil records were destroyed (war, fire, natural disaster), and (3) ancestors from regions where religious records are the primary source (Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Hindu).
Baptismal records are held by the parish (Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican) or congregation (Protestant) where the baptism occurred. Our network of genealogists work with parish archives and diocesan archives to retrieve these records.
Related terms
A vital record is a government-recorded document that certifies a vital event — birth, marriage, divorce, or death — and is the primary evidence in CBD cases.
A parish record is a church document (baptism, marriage, burial) maintained by a parish, used as a substitute for civil records in historic CBD cases.
A civil registry is the government system for recording vital events (births, marriages, deaths), maintained by local authorities and used as the primary source of vital records in CBD cases.
A long-form birth certificate is a detailed birth certificate that includes the child's and parents' full information, required for most CBD applications.
A short-form birth certificate is a simplified birth certificate showing only the child's basic information, typically not accepted for CBD applications.
A certified copy is a copy of a document that has been verified as a true and accurate copy by the issuing authority, typically required for CBD applications.