If you are just starting out I suggest that you visit these pages or posts first.
Here is an update to my past from Feb 3. I found several links on the Family Search Wiki to assist with translations of Italian Records found on the Antenati.
Strategies for locating records by type and date.
From letters to request church records in Italian
Links to a multitude of Italian Church and Civil records by town. There are too many to list, but you can search for your town.
I have seen a lot of posts on Facebook recently where people have asked how to find Italian birth records, do I have to pay etc. The best place to start in my opinion is the Italian Record site Antenati. This site has been digitizing the Italian Civil records that date back to 1809. While not every record is there, they constantly update, so you have to check back. What many people do not know, is that while all the records are in Italian, the search instructions are in English and Italian. The link attached is the English version.
One thing to know when searching, is to use variations on a name. Many of the older records are difficult to read, and therefore the indices may be off. For example, my 2nd great grandmother’s last name was Mohr. I found family under Mohr, Moher and Moler. Also, people may not always some from the exact place your grandparents told you. The may have said Bari, when it may have been a town in Bari.
Updated 11/29/2021 for the new Antenati.
The first improvement I noticed right away was that the site returns results much faster, I assume that they improved and modernized their indexing and search keys.
One other thing that they did was split the search screen into two screens. In my opinion this is more streamlined.
And the search page in English.
When a search comes back, it’s in Italian, but don’t worry you catch on pretty quick. This is a search on my grandmother’s maiden name PIROMALLO. Saverio is my great great grandfather, and Alfonso is his brother. Saverio’s record is his birth, Francesco’s is his marriage. Using this, I was able to eventually find 4th cousins in Italy. So let’s look at Francesco, He was 42 when he got married ( his second marriage ) his father was Giacomo, mother was Beatrice. They were married in the Vicaria district of Naples. The bride was Maria Caracciolo age 37 her father was Luigi and her mother was Costanza. What’s interesting about this couple is that Francesco is my great grandfather Nicola Piromallo’s uncle. He married Maria Emilia Caracciolo, Maria Caracciolo is her aunt. Giacomo, Beatrice, Luigi and Costanza are all my 3rd great grandparents from 2 different families.
If you search by registry you now have drop down options.
If you search by name you now have drop down options for date.
Another nice improvement is the sidebar, were they give you a breakdown by Name, Location and Year. And now display up to 100 records at a time, previously you were limited to 20.
Once you make your selection, the return this for verification.
This is what you see once you open the record. To me the image appears more clear than on the old version. You’ll also notice the another new feature in the upper right hand corner that allows you to adjust the image without sending to an editor.
The only thing that is not good, is that if you save the URL’s of your records, they do not work in the new version, so you have to download your records again.
Here’s the English translation. My Italian is not good enough to translate. Luckily there are several groups on Facebook were people volunteer. This was done by submitting the link to Genealogy Translations.
( On the year 1855, the 27th day of April at 18 hours, before us knight Giovanni Todaro, elect and civil status officer for the circle of Vicaria, city of Naples, province of Naples, appeared [1] the Baron della Pietra don Francesco Piromallo from Messina, of 43 years of age not yet attained, widower of baroness donna Capece Minutolo of the princes of Collereale, landowner residing in the circle of San Lorenzo, Arcivescovado street, door number 40, elder son of the late count don Giacomo, landowner, and of the living lady donna Beatrice Capece Piscicelli duchess of Capracotta, residing outside porta Capuana number 24, and without paternal grandfather, and [2] lady donna Maria Caracciolo of the princes of Torchiarolo from Naples, of 37 years, unmarried residing in this circle in Carbonara street, door number 33, elder daughter of the late don Luigi Caracciolo prince of Torchiarolo, landowner, and of lady princess donna Costanza Saluzzi of the dukes of Corigliano, aged 73, residing in said place, and without paternal grandfather, represented by her special proxy mister knight don Giuseppe Caracciolo di Torchiarolo from Naples, aged 36, officer of the Guard residing in strada Carbonara, door number 33, whom at the presence of the below said witnesses by them provided requested to us that we receive their solemn pledge to marry before the Church according to the rites prescribed by the holy council of Trent. The banns of this pledge were posted on Sunday April 8th at the door of this municipal house and at the door of the municipal house of San Lorenzo. […]
The actual marriage took place on May 20th, same year, in the church of saint Sofia.
Calabria to Sicily – Swordfish in Scilla, the Ferry, and Catania Feast
Click here to join out Facebook group A Morning Departure and a Brilliant Detour After a quick breakfast and some last-minute packing, we loaded up the bus and prepared for the long trek south to Catania, Sicily. But this wasn’t just a simple travel day—we had a fantastic bonus built into the itinerary! Having visited the area several years ago, I had suggested to Phil from Phil~italy that we make a detour to Scilla on
Coastal Heights, Sweets, and the Cliffside Beauty of Tropea
Click here to join out Facebook group Winding Mountain Roads and Arriving on the Coast We set off from Lamezia Terme for a roughly two-hour drive down to the famous coastal town of Tropea. Most of the journey was smooth sailing along the autostrada, but as we neared the coast, the road gave way to a dramatic series of twists and turns, winding right down the mountainside toward the Tyrrhenian Sea. It was a hot,
Lamezia Terme – Norman King and Castle Heights
Click here to join out Facebook group A Relaxed Morning in Lamezia Terme We took full advantage of a free morning in Lamezia Terme by taking a leisurely stroll down the main high street. Wandering in and out of local shops is always one of the best ways to get a feel for everyday Italian life. Along the way, we stumbled upon Italy’s equivalent of a dollar store—and, naturally, we couldn’t resist going in! We
Deep in Calabria: Lanificio Leo, Platania, and Sunday Feast
Click here to join out Facebook group Artisanal Heritage at Lanificio Leo We knew Day 6 was going to be action-packed right from the start! We kicked off the morning with a 60-minute scenic bus ride through the mountain landscapes to Soveria Mannelli to visit Lanificio Leo. Lanificio Leo is a remarkable 150-year-old historic wool mill that has been lovingly revived by the original owner’s grandson. Before exploring the facility, we watched a fascinating RAI
On to Calabria: Scenic Drives, and Feasting in a Cave
Click here to join out Facebook group Best-Laid Plans and Italian Train Realities We started our fifth day in Italy with another wonderful breakfast at the hotel, full of excitement because we had a free morning planned. The highlight was supposed to be a long-awaited reunion with Antonia, an old friend from grammar school who moved to Italy seven years ago. We had been planning this meet-up for weeks, but just as we were finishing
Capri: Navigating Lines, Finding Budget Bites, and Farewell Naples
Click here to join out Facebook group From Chaos at the Dock to the Island of Capri Day 4 kicked off with another delicious, relaxing breakfast at our hotel before we boarded a short bus ride down to the port to catch the ferry to Capri. Arriving at the port was typical Italian chaos—where lines are treated more as a gentle suggestion than a strict requirement! Thankfully, Phil Micali from Phil~italy had everything completely under
I’m rather frustrated with Antenati, as I’ve been waiting for 2 years for them to scan and upload records from Ercolano and Torre del Greco. I know they’re doing a great job already, but I’m feeling quite impatient as my only way to get more information about my ancestors would be through them as I have no contact onsite.
It does get frustrating. I have found a lot of records, but there are still many missing from Naples plus a lot of times the names are indexed wrong as the original records are very hard to read.
They are constantly adding new records. family search.org is doing the filming and indexing, but they have years to go.
See my other comment. Did you know that you can help to index records on Family Search?