Daily AncestorFirst communion
First communion is the first time a child receives Holy Communion; Catholic parishes recorded it, after 1910 usually at about age seven.
In 1910 Pope Pius X's decree Quam singulari set the age of first communion at about seven, the age of reason. Before then Catholic children commonly received it at an older age.
American Catholic parishes often recorded first communions along with baptisms, marriages and confirmations. A first communion list can place a child in a parish when the baptism took place somewhere else.
As seen in a recordCatholic parish first communion list, 1880s to 1950
First Communion, May 21, 1916: Anna Kowalski, Jos. Nowak, Helen Duda
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Daily Ancestor. "First communion." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/church/first-communion. Last checked 2026-10-03.