Hungarian Church Records
by Natalie Cottrill, 2004
Births, marriages and deaths were recorded in church and civil
records (after 1895) of Hungary. The earliest records are church records.
Some descriptions of the basic types of church records and
descriptions of their content are noted below. Most of church records represent
the Roman Catholic faith. This religions was the predominant one for most
Hungarians, though there were some others that were fairly significant,
especially in Hungary's later history including:
Jewish, Reformed (Calvinist), Evangelical Lutheran, and Greek-Catholic.
Before 1781, the Roman Catholic Church was charged with keeping records for all
the different religions, including Jewish.
Birth (or Christening) Records
Church christening or birth records include the date of the
event, the name of the child, names of his or her parents, the town of
residence, witnesses and other information. Some Greek-Catholic records will
even include the names of the maternal and paternal grandparents. Earlier
records hold less information than more contemporary records. Most church
christening records for Hungary have been microfilmed up to 1895. These records
are organized by church, then chronologically by the date of the christening. If
an exact birth date is not known, these can be time intensive to study, because
for the most part, the christening records are not indexed.
Marriage Records
Church marriage records include the date of the event, the
name of the groom and bride, their residence of origin, marital status prior to
marriage (widow, single, etc.) and the names of witnesses. Some of the records
will include the age of the bride and groom, and the more contemporary marriage
records will list their parents' names, too. As with the christening records,
the marriage records are organized by church and then chronologically by the
date of the marriage. Most of the church marriage records have been microfilmed
and are available up to the year 1895. If an exact marriage date is not known,
these can be time intensive to study, because for the most part, the marriage
records are not indexed.
Death (or Burial) Records
Church death records generally have far less genealogically
helpful information in them. However, they are helpful to establish birth years
for the decedent, because the decedent's age is sometimes given. The church
death records usually only include the decedent's name, age, and residence at
the time of death. Less often the death record will include information on the
decedent's marital status (widow, married, etc.). If the decedent is a child,
the father's name is usually given. Most of the church burial records have been
microfilmed and are available up to the year 1895. As with the birth and
marriage records, these records are not indexed.
Jewish Records
Note: Jewish records are
generally fragmented in Hungary. Some of the earliest records for Jewish
synagogues in Hungary begin about 1825 to 1855. There are no Jewish christening
records, of course, but other events related to the birth of a child were often
recorded. For more information about Jewish research in Europe, please
visit the JewishGen
Hungary site.
