Vanuatu Church Records

For information about records for non-Christian religions in Vanuatu, go to the Religious Records page.

Research use: Uniquely identifies individuals and connects those in one generation to the next.

Record type: Church records kept by religious authorities of births/baptisms, marriages, and deaths/burials.

General: The compilation and preservation of church records is random.

Time period: 1854-present for Melanesia.

Contents: Names of the person and other family members, residence, relationships, dates and place of birth and baptism, marriage, death and burial. Baptisms include names of godparents; marriages includes the ages of the bride and groom; burials include the age of the deceased and cause of death.

Location: Churches and ecclesiastical archives.

Population coverage: 10% coverage for early periods; 50% coverage for the 20th century.

Reliability: High.

Resources Available
The FamilySearch Catalog lists under Vanuatu—Church Records, the minute books, 1857 - 1938 of the New Hebrides Presbyterian Mission Synod (Vanuatu) as VAULT INTL Film 1368977. Also, South Sea Evangelical Mission, formerly Queensland Kanaka Mission, archives microfilm numbers FHL BRITISH Library Attendant’s Window 2203013, 2203014, 2203015, 2203016, and 2203017. Also, Birth Records for Tongariki Island, Vanuatu, 1927 - 1987. VAULT INTL Film 2224140 item 5.

Online Resources

 * French Overseas New Hebrides Civil Registration and Parish Registers, 1898-1911, index and images.
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Births and Baptisms, Vanuatu, index and images, ($)
 * British Armed Forces and Overseas Deaths and Burials, index and images, ($)
 * PAMBU Vanuatu Church Records Contains brief biographical notes on ministers and missionaries. Lists records available at Pacific Manuscripts Bureau.