DIY ROADMAP
1.1 - Select the ancestor you want to research.
1.2 - Gather as many facts as you can about this ancestor. These could include: birth, marriage, and death dates & locations; parent's names; immigration year; etc.
1.3 - Identify the town and province in where your ancestor was born or lived, or emigrated from. 1.4 - Decide the year, or best-guess of years, for your search. 1.5 - Decide whether you are looking for a birth, marriage, or death record. Continue to #2 Find the Record Tip - If you do not know the town in Italy, you could: (1) contact family members or (2) find records such as an Immigration Passenger List or a WWI Draft Registration to see if a town of origin or birthplace is listed.
Tip - Use these genealogy templates for your research:
> Pedigree Chart [PDF] > Family Group Sheet [PDF] |
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To find your record, you will need to search both FamilySearch's Historical Record Collections and the Italian National Archives' Antenati.
On both of these sources, you will see Indexed and Image-Only records. You should become familiar with these records and how to access them. Open and print the instructions below (in PDF format), and use them as a guide when following the information and screens presented. 2.1 - How to Use FamilySearch's Historical Record Collections 2.2 - How to Use the Italian National Archives' Antenati Continue to #3 Translate the Record Tip - Civil registration began in Italy in the early 1800's. You may see records grouped in three time periods:
1. Napoleonic (1806 - 1815). 2. Restoration (1816 - 1865). 3. Italian (1866 - most recent). Tip - If you do not find any records, then check back often to see if new records have been added or indexed. FamilySearch and the Italian National Archives are frequently adding Indexed and Image-Only records to their databases, and your town and province may be next
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Once you find your record, you need to translate it.
Italian Civil Records are mostly written in Italian and Church Records in Latin. And not many of us know how to read Italian or Latin. Thankfully, Italian records have a "similar" structure that allows us to "pretty easily" pinpoint names and facts. With practice, you can begin to identify key words and common locations within the Italian records, and extract significant genealogical facts and information. 3.1 - Take a look at EXAMPLES to see several examples of birth, marriage, and death records. For each example, you will see: (1) key locations within the record underlined and (2) a general translation provided.
3.2 - See RESOURCES for suggested links for the translation of Italian and Latin genealogical words. Tip - Gather all relevant resources, record examples, and translation guides.
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Last revised: 25 July 2018.
Last revised: 25 July 2018.