Guatemala—Registro Civil, Defunciones

The Guatemala—Registro Civil, Defunciones project features death records from Guatemala, a country located in Central America. These records must be indexed according to guidelines that are specific to the record type. This guide is a quick start to indexing these death records; you should also read the instructions for this project in the indexing program.

=Age=Death Data=Record Number=Page Number =Given Names =First Surname

*Fields with an asterisk are required fields. For these fields, if the required information was not included in the document, press Ctrl+B to mark the field blank.

There are 19 basic elements to index. The above record would be indexed as follows:

1

6

6

11 1413 16

8

8

1512

7

7

1 Page Number: 12 Certificate or Record Number: 5133 Death Day*: 164 Death Month*: Jul5 Death Year*: 19896 Given Names*: Amanda7 First Surname*: Bail8 Second Surname: Pérez9 Sex*: M10 Age at Death: 0

11 Father’s Given Names: Humberto12 Father’s First Surname: Bail13 Father’s Second Surname: Ochoa14 Mother’s Given Names: Telvina15 Mother’s First Surname: Pérez16 Mother’s Second Surname: Alvarado17 Spouse’s Given Names: Press Tab18 Spouse’s First Surname: Press Tab19 Spouse’s Second Surname: Press Tab

2

9

10

3 4

5

5

=Second Surname =Sex

What You Need to Know about This Project• These documents were written in Spanish. • Most records were written on preprinted forms, making them easier to read. • You may see variations in the document type, but the wording will be similar or the same in most batches. Once you learn to

recognize the key words in these death records, you should be able to index each document type easily. • You may find records that were completely handwritten. Please index them only if you are experienced with handwritten records.

If you are not able to work effectively with handwritten records, index what you can, and then return the batch for someone else to complete.

• There are three record types in this project. For deaths (defunciones), click in the Record Type field, then click the down arrow and choose Defunción.

Nineteen Basic ElementsFor training purposes, this guide shows how to index the sample document above.

1 Page Number (Número de folio or Número de página) 1 • Do not confuse the page number with the record number.• The page number is typically located at the top of the record, but the location may vary. The page number may also appear after the

words “Folio” (page) or “№” (abbreviation for “Número,” meaning number). Do not include the words “Folio” and “№” with the page number.

• The page number may be written out as a word; please type it as a number.• Do not include zeros written at the beginning of a number. For example, “00032” should be typed as 32.• Do not include hyphens or spaces with the page number. • Records spanning two pages may show a page number only on the first page.• If the page number was not indicated, press the Tab key to skip the field.

2 Certificate or Record Number (Número de acta o partida) 513 • The record number is generally located at the top of the record, and it often appears after the words “Partida” (certificate), “Partida

Número” (certificate number), or “Partida №” (certificate number). It may also follow the words “Acta” (record), “Acta Número” (record number), “Acta №” (record number), or “Acta Matrimonial” (marriage certificate).

• Do not include hyphens or spaces with the record number. For example, “27 91” should be typed as 2791.• Sometimes a number in parenthesis may be written after the record number; do not include the number in parenthesis.• If the record number was not indicated, press Tab to skip the field.

3 Death Day* (Día de defunción) 16 (dieciseis = sixteen)

and 4 Death Month* (Mes de defunción) Jul (Julio = July)

and 5 Death Year* (Año de defunción) 1989 (Mil novecientos ochenta y nueve = One thousand nine hundred eighty-nine)

• Do not confuse the death date with the date of registration (which is usually located at the top of the record).• Typically, the death day was listed first, followed by the month, and then the year. • Type the day as a one or two-digit number, even if it was written as a word.• The day was usually written after the words “falleció” (died) or “falleció el” (died on), as in the sample image.• In other documents, the death day may follow the words “el día” (the day) or “fecha” (date), as in these examples:

and , meaning on the twenty-fifth.• The month was usually indicated after the day, following the word “de” (of). Type the first three letters of the month (in Spanish),

such as Ene, Feb, Mar, and so on, without typing a period after the abbreviation. • The year was typically indicated after the month, following the words “del” (of), “de” (of), “del año” (of the year). In the sample

document the year was indicated by the words “el año en curso,” meaning the current year, which is the year of registration.

• To locate the current year, look at the top of the record for the date of registration, which in this case was written as follows: “a los dieciocho días de julio, de mil novecientos ochenta y nueve” (on June eighteen, nineteen eighty-nine). In this case, the year of death was 1989.

• The documents in this project are from the period 1885–2009, so the year of death could begin with the words “mil ochocientos” (eighteen hundred), “mil novecientos” (nineteen hundred), or “dos mil” (two thousand).

• If the death day, month, or year were not indicated, press Ctrl+B to mark the corresponding field blank.

6 Given Names* (Nombres de pila) Amanda • The given names of the deceased may be written before or after the surnames.• If you cannot determine whether a name is a given name or a surname, type it in the Given Names field.• A person may have multiple given names. Type them in the appropriate field.• Please note: due to limited space in the documents, at times a name may have been written on two lines.• The name of the deceased was typically located at the top of the record after the word “nombre.”• The name also was written at the center of the record, after the words “y dijo que” (and said that).• Type names as they were written, without correcting misspellings or typing a period after abbreviations.• Do not include titles or terms with the name. • If a diacritic or accent mark was used in writing a name on the document (such as in the characters “ñ”, “á,” “é,” “í,” “ó,” “ú,” “ü,” “Ñ,”

“Á,” “É,” “Í,” “Ó,” “Ú”), be sure to include the mark when you type the name.• Include hyphens (-) or apostrophes (’) when they were written as part of the name.• If given names were not recorded or were written as a variation of the word “unknown,” press Ctrl+B to mark the field blank.

7 First Surname* (Primer apellido) Bail

and 8 Second Surname (Segundo apellido) Pérez • The surnames of the deceased may be written before or after the given names.• If you cannot determine whether a name is a given name or a surname, type it in the Given Names field.• Please note: The first surname typically came from the father’s first surname, and the second surname came from the mother’s first

surname. • Look at the parents’ surnames to distinguish the first surname from the second. This is especially helpful when parents had more

than one surname, as in the sample record shown above.• Type surnames as they were written. If only one surname was written, type it in the First Surname field.• Type surnames as they were written, without correcting misspellings or including a period after abbreviations.• Do not include titles or terms, such as “Sr,” “Señor,” “Dn,” or “Don,” with the name.• If a diacritic or accent mark was used in writing a surname on the document (such as in the characters “ñ”, “á,” “é,” “í,” “ó,” “ú,” “ü,”

“Ñ,” “Á,” “É,” “Í,” “Ó,” “Ú”), be sure to include the mark when you type the surname.• Include hyphens (-) and apostrophes (’) when they were written as part of the surname.• If the first surname was not indicated, press Ctrl+B to mark the First Surname field blank.• If a second surname was not indicated, press Tab to skip the Second Surname field.

9 Sex* (Sexo) M• Indicate the deceased’s sex with a H (hombre) for male or with a M (mujer) for female.• Indicate the sex only if it is specifically stated or if you can determine it from relationships terms, such as “hijo” (son) or “hija” (daughter).• An indication of sex is found in the sample image at the center of the record. Look for the name of the deceased, and then a few

lines below find the words, “hija de” (daughter of) in reference to the deceased’s father.

10 Age at Death (Edad) 0• The age of the deceased was usually written after his or her name and surname and was introduced by the words “de años” (of

years), “de edad” (aged), or “de . . . años de edad” (of . . . years of age).

• In the sample record, the age was written as “de 6 meses, años de edad” (6 months, years of age). Notice that the registrar put a circle around the word “años” to indicate a correction. The deceased was only six months old, not six years old.

• Type the age in full years. When fractions of a year were included, round down to the nearest full year. For example, an age written as 38 years and 8 months would be typed as 38. In the case of the sample record, the six months of age should be rounded down to 0 (zero).

• Do not calculate the age from other information. If the age was not indicated, press Tab to skip the field.

11 Father’s Given Names (Nombres de pila del padre) Humberto

and 14 Mother’s Given Names (Nombres de pila de la madre) Telvina

and 17 Spouse’s Given Names (Nombres de pila del cónyuge) Press Tab• Given names may be written before or after surnames.• If you cannot determine whether a name is a given name or a surname, type it in the Given Names field.• A person may have multiple given names. Type them in the appropriate field.• Please note: due to limited space in the document, at times a name may have been written on two lines.• The names of the father and mother were usually written in the top half of the record, following the words “hijo de” (son of), or “hija

de” (daughter of).• At times, the father or the mother also reported the death. In this case, after the words “hijo de” or “hija de,” you may see the

words “el declarante” (the declarant). You can find the name of the declarant by looking at the top of the record after the word “compareció” (appeared) or “comparece” (appears). In the sample record, the father did not register the death. The name of the declarant was Humberto Reginaldo Bail, and the name of the father was Humberto Bail Ochoa.

• To index the deceased’s spouse’s given names, follow the guidelines given for the father’s and mother’s given names and surnames.

• The spouse’s given names were usually given after the words “estado civil” . In this sample record, the deceased was a child and there was no spouse, so the registrar wrote a line to fill the empty field. In records for a deceased person who was married, the spouse’s name would be written after the words “estado civil.” Here is an example:

.

• The deceased’s spouse’s given names may follow the words “unido (or unida) con” (united with) or the words “casado (or casada) con” (married to). The given names in this sample image are Francisco Arturo, and the first surname is Aguilar. No second surname was mentioned.

• Type names as they were written, without correcting misspellings or a period after the abbreviation. • Do not include titles or terms, such as “Sr,” “Señor,” “Dn,” or “Don” (all meaning Mr.), with the name of the father or of a male spouse.• Do not include titles or terms, such as “Sra” or “Da” (both meaning Mrs.), with the name of the mother or of a female spouse.• If a diacritic or accent mark was used in writing a name on the document (such as in the characters “ñ”, “á,” “é,” “í,” “ó,” “ú,” “ü,” “Ñ,”

“Á,” “É,” “Í,” “Ó,” “Ú”), be sure to include the mark when you type the name.• Include hyphens (-) and apostrophes (’) when they were written as part of the name.• If given names were not indicated, press Tab to skip the field.

12 Father’s First Surname (Primer apellido del padre) Bail

and 13 Father’s Second Surname (Segundo apellido del padre) Ochoa

15 Mother’s First Surname (Primer apellido de la madre) Pérez

and 16 Mother’s Second Surname (Segundo apellido de la madre) Alvarado

18 Spouse’s First Surname (Primer apellido del cónyuge) Press Tab to skip the field.

and 19 Spouse’s Second Surname (Segundo apellido del cónyuge) Press Tab to skip the field.• Surnames may be written before or after the given names.• If you cannot determine whether a name is a given name or a surname, type it in the Given Names field.• Type surnames as they were written. If only one surname was written, type it in the First Surname field.• Type surnames as they were written, without correcting misspellings or a period after the abbreviation.• To index the deceased’s spouse’s first and second surname, follow the guidelines given for the father’s and mother’s first and

second surnames.• Do not include titles or terms, such as “Sr,” “Señor,” “Dn,” or “Don” (all meaning Mr.), with the name of the father or of a male spouse.• Do not include titles or terms, such as “Sra” or “Da” (both meaning Mrs.), with the name of the mother or of a female spouse.• If a diacritic or accent mark was used in writing a surname on the document (such as in the characters “ñ”, “á,” “é,” “í,” “ó,” “ú,” “ü,”

“Ñ,” “Á,” “É,” “Í,” “Ó,” “Ú”), be sure to include the mark when you type the surname.• Include hyphens (-) and apostrophes (’) when they were written as part of the surname.• If the first or second surnames were not indicated, press Tab to skip the fields.

Help and TrainingFor a list of marriage terms, numbers, months, and abbreviations in Spanish, please refer to the following resources:

• The Quickstart: Guatemala Indexing Guide—Births: FamilySearch.org/system/files/team/ait/indexing/GuatemalaBirthIndexingGuide-EN.pdf

• The FamilySearch Wiki: FamilySearch.org/wiki/en/Spanish_Genealogical_Word_List

• For a list of Spanish surnames: script.byu.edu/Pages/Spanish/en/surnames.aspx

• For a list of Spanish given names: script.byu.edu/Pages/Spanish/en/given.aspx

© 2017 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA. English approval: 08/17. PD60004751

Key Words and ExpressionsSpanish English

acta, partida, or registro recorddefunción deathfalleció or el fallecido died or the deceased estado civil marital statuscasado or casada con married tounido or unda con united with

(in common law marriage)hijo de or hija de son of or daughter ofnombre nameedad agefecha datepadre fathermadre mother

Monthsenero (Ene) Januaryfebrero (Feb) Februarymarzo (Mar) Marchabril (Abr) Aprilmayo (May) Mayjunio (Jun) Junejulio (Jul) Julyagosto (Ago) Augustseptiembre (Sep) Septemberoctubre (Oct) Octobernoviembre (Nov) Novemberdiciembre (Dec) December

Cardinal Ordinal1 un, uno, una 1st primero, primera2 dos 2nd segundo3 tres 3rd tercero4 cuatro 4th cuarto5 cinco 5th quinto6 seis 6th sexto7 siete 7th séptimo8 ocho 8th octavo9 nueve 9th nono, noveno10 diez 10th décimo11 once 11th undécimo12 doce 12th duodécimo13 trece 13th décimotercero14 catorce 14th décimocuarto15 quince 15th décimoquinto16 diez y séis 16th décimosexto17 diez y siete 17th décimoséptimo18 diez y ocho 18th décimooctavo19 diez y nueve 19th décimonono20 veinte 20th vigésimo21 veinte y uno 21st vigésimo primero22 veinte y dos 22nd vigésimo segundo23 veinte y tres 23rd vigésimo tercero24 veinte y cuatro 24th vigésimo cuarto25 veinte y cinco 25th vigésimo quinto26 veinte y seis 26th vigésimo sexto27 veinte y siete 27th vigésimo séptimo28 veinte y ocho 28th vigésimo octavo29 veinte y nueve 29th vigésimo nono30 treinta 30th trigésimo31 treinta y uno 31st trigésimo primero40 cuarenta 40th cuadragésimo50 cincuenta 50th quincugésimo60 sesenta 60th sexagésimo70 setenta 70th septuagésimo80 ochenta 80th octogésimo90 noventa 90th nonagésimo100 ciento 100th centésimo101 ciento uno 101th centésimo primo200 doscientos 200th ducentésimo300 trescientos 300th tricentésimo400 cuatrocientos 400th cuadringéntésimo500 quinientos 500th quingentésimo600 seiscientos 600th sexcentésimo700 setecientos 700th septingentésimo800 ochocientos 800th octingentésimo900 novecientos 900th noningentésimo1000 mil 1000th milésimo