Birth and death certificates are original documents, and are therefore a valuable primary resource. They can provide useful, reliable information that will allow you to trace back your family history.

What do they tell us?

Birth and death certificates can provide information that will allow you to trace back your family tree, and also provide specific details about your ancestors.

A birth certificate shows:

  • Forenames of the child
  • Date of birth
  • Place of birth
  • Gender
  • Full name and maiden name of the mother
  • Full name and occupation of the father (if married to the mother)
  • Name, address and relationship to the child of the person who registered the birth
  • Time of birth (Scotland only)
  • Date and place of the parents marriage (Scotland only)

A death certificate shows:

  • Full name of the deceased
  • Cause of death
  • Place of death
  • Date of death
  • Age at death
  • Occupation of the deceased (if male)
  • Name and occupation of the husband (if female)
  • Name, address and relationship to the deceased of the person who reported the death
  • Marital status (Scotland only)
  • Name of spouse (Scotland only)
  • Gender (Scotland only)
  • Fathers name and occupation (Scotland only)
  • Mothers name and maiden name (Scotland only)

How long have they been around?

The records of births and deaths began at different dates in different areas of the UK. The dates when birth and death certificates began is shown below:

  • 1837 in England and Wales
  • 1855 in Scotland
  • 1864 in Ireland

If you need to find out birth and death events before this time, the best place to look would be religious records, kept by churches or chapels.

Where can I find them?

There are a number of ways of obtaining birth and death certificates depending on which area of the country the birth or death took place.

In England or Wales:

For both birth and death certificates, visit : http://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/#0

In Scotland:

The Scotland’s People website holds indexes on births and deaths that happened more than 100 years ago.
Visit www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk for further details

In Ireland:

  • The General Register Office of Northern Ireland holds certificates of birth and death.
  • You can apply for a certificate by filling out a form, you can download the appropriate form from their website, www.groni.gov.uk/index.htm
  • Contact the General Register Office of Northern Ireland:
    • The General Register Office
    • Oxford House
    • 49-55 Chichester Street
    • Belfast
    • BT1 4HL
    • Telephone: 0289 025 2000
    • Email: gro.nisra@dfpni.gov.uk

Other Resources

UKBMB - UK Births, Marriages, Deaths and Censuses site provides links to 419 web sites that offer on-line transcriptions of UK births, marriages, deaths and censuses.

BMB Index - Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates - BMD Index 1837-2004.