Search Carmarthenshire Marriages and Banns

Banns

Transcript

Each record comprises a transcript and original image of the parish register. The amount of information listed varies, but the transcript usually contains a combination of the following information about your ancestor:

• Groom’s first name
• Groom’s last name
• Bride’s first name
• Bride’s last name
• Banns year
• Banns date
• Parish
• County
• Groom’s parish
• Bride’s parish
• Marriage year
• Marriage date

The images may contain additional information. Further details may include:

• Groom’s marital status
• Bride’s marital status
• Groom’s address
• Bride’s address
• Dates of three banns
• Officiating minister
• Witnesses

Marriages

Transcript

Each record comprises a transcript of the original register. The amount of information listed varies, but the records usually include a combination of the following information about your ancestor:

• First name(s)
• Last name
• Birth year
• Spouse’s first name(s)
• Spouse’s last name
• Bride’s father’s first name(s)
• Bride’s father’s last name
• Groom’s father’s first name(s)
• Groom’s father’s last name
• Bride’s age
• Groom’s age
• Marriage year
• Marriage date
• Bride’s parish
• Groom’s parish
• Parish
• County
• Country

Image

Many of the records contain images. The image may contain further details, including:

• Bride’s marital status
• Groom’s marital status
• Bride’s residence
• Groom’s residence
• Bride’s occupation
• Groom’s occupation
• Bride’s father’s occupation
• Groom’s father’s occupation
• Witness names
• Officiating minister
• Marriage by banns or licence

Note that an ‘X’ followed by the words ‘her mark’ or ‘his mark’ indicate that the person signing the register was unable to read or write.

Also note that some of the earlier images are in Latin.

Carmarthenshire

Carmarthenshire is a Welsh unitary authority which has the same boundaries as the original administrative county of Carmarthenshire. It is no longer an administrative county – that was abolished in 1974 - but it is one of 13 historic counties. Even though Llanelli is by far the largest town in Carmarthenshire, its county town is Carmarthen, because of its central location.

Banns

An ancient legal tradition, banns are an announcement in church of a couple’s intention to marry. The reading of the banns provides an opportunity for anybody to put forward a reason why the marriage may not lawfully take place. Banns must be read in the parish (or parishes) in which the couple lives and in the parish they will marry, on three Sundays in the three months before the wedding.

Marriage records

Marriage records are an essential part of researching your family history. There are records where the parents of the bride and groom are listed, and these are often the key to finding out the names of the generation before.

Occasionally, ages of the couple may be listed as "full" or “of age” rather than as a figure. This was a customary way of noting that they were over the required age of 21. If the bride or groom was under the age of 21, “with consent of parents” is noted in the record.