What’s on a certificate?
Birth, marriage and death certificates contain varying amounts of information.
Find out what information is on these types of certificate:
Birth Certificates
- Child’s forenames
- Sex
- Date of birth
- Place of birth
- Mother’s full name and maiden name
- Father’s full name and occupation if married to the mother
- Name, address and relationship to child of the person who registered the birth.
In Scotland the following additional information would be given:
- Time of birth
- Date and place of parents’ marriage
Marriage Certificates
- Date of Marriage
- Place of Marriage
- Whether by banns, licence or certificate
- Name and age of bride and groom
- Occupations of bride and groom
- Marital status of bride and groom
- Current address of bride and groom
- Names and occupations of the fathers of the bride and groom
- Names of witnesses
In Scotland the following additional information would be given:
- Mother’s name and maiden name
- For regular marriage – name of officiating minister (or registrar from 1940)
- For irregular marriages - date of conviction (to 1939), decree of declarator or sherriff’s warrant
Death Certificates
- Full name of deceased
- Date of death
- Place of death
- Given age
- Cause of death
- Occupation (or name and occupation of husband if the deceased was a married or widowed woman)
- Name, address and family relationship (if any) of the person who reported the death.
In Scotland the following additional information would be given:
- Marital status
- Spouse’s name
- Sex
- Father’s name and rank or profession
- Mother’s name and maiden name
