Letters to Send to Italy for Genealogical Data

The Research Paper entitled "Major Genealogical Record Sources for Italy" (Series G. no 2), published by the Latter-Day Saints Genealogical Department and available on microfiche at any Mormon Family History Center, names several important Italian genealogical records and shows where in Italy they may be found. Of special help is the part showing the years when civil registration records began in various Italian regions.

If one's ancestors left Italy after about 1880, and their last place of residence is known, it is recommended that one write to the Ufficio Anagrafe (Registry Office) there and request a certificato di stato di famiglia (family certificate showing the date and place of birth of each family member).

The next step is to write to the Ufficio di Stato Civile (Civil Registration Office) in all the towns where members of your ancestral families lived and to request extracts of their birth, marriage and death records.

When the above mentioned records are not available, one writes to the priest of the parish where one's ancestors lived to request extracts of their baptism, marriage and burial records.

Normally $15.00 is enough to send for each extract desired and $25.00 for a family certificate. [webmaster changed the suggested price to reflect current price increases and strongly suggests *never* sending money to Italy without first asking them what they require]

 The address can be completed by giving the name of the town or parish, the province and then Italy.  An Italian gazetteer, such as the Nuovo Dizionario dei Comuni e Frazioni di Comune gives the province in which each town/municipality (comune) and hamlet (frazione) is found.  If your library does not have an Italian gazatteer simply use an online Italian Phone Book, such as the ones listed on the Italy Tools Page of this site, to find addresses & CAP codes for the Italian Archives.  This is an example of the way to address your envelope even if you cannot find the exact street address.

Name of Italian Municipality (Province Code)
Ufficio di Stato Civile
Cap Code - Comune (Province optional)
Italia  /  Italy 

In Italy the day is shown first followed by the month and then the year
07 giugno 2005  =  07 June 2005
(this is also typical in most of Europe and in traditional genealogy studies)

Months are not capitalized in Italian
January/gennaio,  February/febbraio,  March/marzo,  April/aprile,  May/maggio,  June/giugno,  July/luglio,  August/agosto,  September/settembre,  October/ottobre,  November/novembre,  December/dicembre

Attached are various sample letters (with English translations for your information only) which will assist you in corresponding in Italian to the records archives in Italy.