For the period prior to 1866 and even thereafter, parish priests were in charge of the records of baptisms, marriages, deaths and states of souls and were responsible for keeping the relevant parish registers or canon books.

They have done so systematically and uninterruptedly since the second half of the sixteenth century, following the provisions of the Council of Trent, but even earlier some parishes were compiling these registers.

The parish registers of Italy’s approximately 25,000 parishes and the states of souls, compiled by parish priests by visiting their administered people house to house during the Easter season, are among the most important documents for reconstructing past households.

Therefore, for the period prior to 1866, it is necessary to contact the parish of birth and the parish of residence of one’s ancestor-if different from the former-to obtain information and possible certifications.

It should be kept in mind that, in some dioceses, the oldest parish archives have been concentrated at the diocesan historical archives or at the major parishes.

Contact details and other information about Italian parishes can be found on the Italian Bishops’ Conference website and the search engine “Parishes.”

Information and descriptions of historical parish archives can be found at BeWeB – Ecclesiastical Assets on the Web, developed by the National Office for Ecclesiastical Cultural Assets and Houses of Worship of the Italian Bishops’ Conference.

In a few cases it is possible to consult parish records at the relevant State Archives. Detailed information on genealogical sources at each State Archive can be found in the section ‘Explore the Archives‘.