Legend

Abbreviations and Symbols

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Affinity and Consanguinity

Both the church (e.g. Roman Catholic Canon Law) and the state (Civil Law) identify relationships between individuals which prevent their being able to marry each other.

Individuals having the same blood line are related by consanguinity and, hence, marriage is forbidden between, for example, father and daughter, mother and son, sister and brother.

Individuals who are part of the same family, but are not connected by a common blood line, are related by affinity, and so marriage is forbidden between, for example, a niece and an uncle who married her mother or father's sister.

Both the church and the state use a numbering system (each slightly different from the other) to calculate how close the individuals are in consanguinity or affinity. By recognizing varying degrees of consanguinity and affinity, the church and the state are able to define absolute prohibitions, and, also, to grant dispensations (from the church), or exceptions (from the state). Such dispensations, or exceptions, will permit the recipients to marry.

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Footnotes identifying Parish Registers

The primary source of evidence is the record (acte) in the parish register.

The acte de baptême usually records the date of birth, as well the details about the baptism, including the names of the godparents. If the baby was baptized before a priest was available, the acte will say not that the priest has baptized the child, but that he subsequently performed the ceremonies for a baptism ("suppliés les cérémonies du baptême"). To differentiate between an actual baptism and the separate ceremony, I have called the latter a "Christening".

The acte de marriage states whether the bride and groom have reached the age of majority (21 years) and records the names of their parents and the witnesses.

The acte de sépulture (burial) usually records the date of death, as well as the date of burial. If the body was buried before a priest was available, the acte will state that the priest performed a subsequent ceremony, either that for a burial ("supplié les cérémonies de sépulture"), or that of blessing the grave ("beni la fosse") and give the names of the witnesses. To differentiate between an actual burial and the separate ceremony, I have called the latter a "Funeral".

Before its own church was built, a town was served by missionary priests. That is why the early records for many communities are to be found in the registers of the parishes which provided the missionary priests.

Please note that the register of St. Michel de Percé is not continuous. Some records from 1806-1807 are found elsewhere and there are no records for 1808-1811 and 1814-1820 (Réhel, St. Michel de Percé, pp. 21, 22).

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• © Paul Maloney, Mississauga, Ontario, 2007.

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