Daily Ancestordefunctus
Defunctus is Latin for "deceased" or "dead": a parent marked defunctus had died before the record was made.
Defunctus (feminine defuncta) means deceased. In baptism and marriage entries it often follows a parent's name, as in filius defuncti Petri, son of the late Peter, telling you the father had died before that date.
Registers of burials may use defunctus as the heading word or call the dead person the defunctus.
As seen in a recordMarriage entry in a Catholic parish register
Joannes, filius defuncti Petri Miller et Annae
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "defunctus." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/latin/defunctus. Last checked 2026-10-01.