Genealogical Spanish Glossary
Common Spanish terms found in Puerto Rican genealogical records — vital record terms, relationship terms, occupations, locations, and archive vocabulary.
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Puerto Rican genealogical records span more than four centuries of Spanish colonial rule and continue into the U.S. territorial period. Most records created before 1900 — and many after — are written in Spanish. This glossary covers the terms you will encounter most often in civil registration records, church records, census enumerations, and notarial documents.
How to use this glossary: Use your browser’s Find function (Ctrl+F / Cmd+F) to search for a term. Terms are grouped by category. Spanish adjectives that change by gender are shown as masculine/feminine (e.g., viudo/viuda).
Vital Record Terms
Terms found in birth, baptism, marriage, and death records from both civil registration (post-1885) and Catholic parish registers.
| Spanish Term | English Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| acta de nacimiento | birth certificate | civil registration, 1885–present |
| partida de bautismo | baptismal record | church records |
| acta de matrimonio | marriage certificate | civil registration |
| partida de matrimonio | marriage record | church records |
| acta de defunción | death certificate | civil registration |
| partida de entierro / de sepultura | burial record | church records |
| bautizo / bautismo | baptism | |
| matrimonio | marriage | |
| entierro / sepultura | burial | |
| velorio | wake / vigil | |
| confirmación | confirmation | church records |
| folio | folio / page | record location within a volume |
| tomo / volumen | volume | |
| libro | book | |
| número de acta | record number | |
| fecha | date | |
| lugar | place | |
| domicilio / residencia | residence / address | |
| firma | signature | |
| rúbrica | rubric — the flourish on a signature | |
| sello / timbre | official seal / stamp | |
| declarante | declarant — the person reporting the event | often the informant |
| testigo | witness | |
| padrino | godfather | |
| madrina | godmother | |
| párroco / cura | parish priest | |
| juez del registro civil | civil registry judge | |
| legítimo/a | legitimate — born in wedlock | |
| ilegítimo/a / natural | illegitimate / born outside marriage | |
| expósito/a | foundling / abandoned child | |
| legitimado/a | legitimized |
Relationship Terms
Terms describing family relationships found throughout vital records, censuses, and wills.
| Spanish Term | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| esposo / marido | husband |
| esposa / mujer | wife |
| cónyuge | spouse |
| padre | father |
| madre | mother |
| hijo / hija | son / daughter |
| hijos | children (plural) |
| hermano / hermana | brother / sister |
| abuelo / abuela | grandfather / grandmother |
| bisabuelo / bisabuela | great-grandfather / great-grandmother |
| tatarabuelo / tatarabuela | great-great-grandfather / great-grandmother |
| tío / tía | uncle / aunt |
| sobrino / sobrina | nephew / niece |
| primo / prima | cousin |
| cuñado / cuñada | brother-in-law / sister-in-law |
| suegro / suegra | father-in-law / mother-in-law |
| yerno | son-in-law |
| nuera | daughter-in-law |
| padrino / madrina | godfather / godmother |
| ahijado / ahijada | godson / goddaughter |
| compadre | co-godparent (father’s term for the child’s godfather) |
| comadre | co-godparent (mother’s term for the child’s godmother) |
| viudo / viuda | widower / widow |
| difunto / difunta | deceased (adjective) |
| fallecido / fallecida | deceased / late |
| soltero / soltera | unmarried / single |
| casado / casada | married |
| natural de | native of / born in |
| vecino/a de | resident of |
| oriundo/a de | originally from |
Note on compadre/comadre: In Puerto Rican culture these terms extend beyond the godparent relationship to describe close family friends. In records, they indicate the formal co-godparent bond.
Occupations
Occupations listed in census enumerations and on vital records help identify social class, economic status, and potential record sources.
| Spanish Term | English Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| jornalero | day laborer | most common in census records |
| agricultor | farmer (general) | |
| labrador | agricultural laborer / farmer | |
| hacendado | plantation / estate owner | |
| propietario | property owner | |
| comerciante | merchant / trader | |
| tendero | shopkeeper | |
| artesano | craftsman | |
| carpintero | carpenter | |
| herrero | blacksmith | |
| sastre | tailor | |
| zapatero | shoemaker | |
| barbero | barber | |
| comadrona / partera | midwife | |
| médico / doctor | doctor / physician | |
| farmacéutico | pharmacist | |
| maestro / maestra | teacher | |
| sacerdote / cura / párroco | priest / parish priest | |
| juez | judge | |
| alcalde | mayor | |
| escribano / notario | notary | |
| militar / soldado | military / soldier | |
| marinero | sailor | |
| pescador | fisherman | |
| sirviente / criado/a | servant | |
| esclavo / esclava | enslaved person | appears in pre-1873 records |
| liberto / liberta | freed person (formerly enslaved) | post-1873 emancipation |
| peón | unskilled laborer |
Locations and Administrative Terms
Puerto Rico’s administrative geography shaped where records were created and where they are held today.
| Spanish Term | English Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| barrio | neighborhood / administrative ward | sub-division of a municipio |
| municipio | municipality | equivalent to a county |
| parroquia | parish | Catholic ecclesiastical unit |
| pueblo | town / village | |
| ciudad | city | |
| hacienda | estate / plantation | |
| finca | farm / rural property | |
| estancia | small farm / ranch | |
| calle | street | |
| casa | house | |
| provincia | province | Spanish colonial administrative level |
| distrito | district | |
| término municipal | municipal territory | |
| registro civil | civil registry | |
| juzgado municipal | municipal court | |
| ayuntamiento / alcaldía | town hall / municipal government | |
| iglesia | church | |
| capilla | chapel | |
| cementerio | cemetery | |
| campo | countryside / rural area | |
| costa | coast |
Archive and Record Terms
Terms for document types and archival concepts you will encounter when working with Puerto Rican sources.
| Spanish Term | English Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| archivo | archive | |
| padrón | household census register | Spanish-era enumeration |
| censo | census | |
| registro | registry / record | |
| protocolo notarial | notarial record | held in notarial archives |
| testamento | will / testament | |
| codicilo | codicil — amendment to a will | |
| inventario | inventory of an estate | |
| partición | estate division among heirs | |
| expediente | dossier / case file | |
| legajo | bundle of documents / file | |
| índice | index | |
| transcripción | transcription | |
| copia certificada | certified copy | |
| marginal | marginal note — annotation in the margin | |
| enmienda | amendment / correction |
Tips for Searching with Spanish Terms
Name spelling varies. The same person may appear as José, Joseph, or Joséf across different records. Search broadly.
Accents may be missing in indexes. A name like Martínez may be indexed as Martinez. Try both forms when searching databases.
Gendered adjectives change endings. Soltero (unmarried male) / soltera (unmarried female). Both forms appear in records depending on the subject.
Abbreviations are common in handwritten records:
| Abbreviation | Full Term | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| h.l. / h.n. | hijo legítimo / hijo natural | legitimate / natural child |
| v° / v° de | vecino/a de | resident of |
| nat. de | natural de | native of |
| d° / dho | dicho / dicha | said / aforementioned |
| q.e.p.d. | que en paz descanse | may he/she rest in peace |
| p.p. | por poder | by proxy |
Guide created by Sylvia Vargas for the Puerto Rican Genealogy Group. © 2026 Sylvia Vargas. Teaching Genealogists AI™. All rights reserved.
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