The basic objectives of
genealogical research are to identify ancestors and their family relationships.
At a basic level you will identify and record the following for each individual
in your family tree:
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date and place of birth |
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names of parents |
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date and place of
marriage |
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names of children |
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date and place of death |
From here you will, through your genealogical research, learn more about
the lives and times of your ancestors and be able to flesh out those facts
into a family history.
Who are my ancestors?
| A maternal
ancestor is an ancestor on your mother's side of the family. A paternal ancestor is from your father's side. |
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Perhaps by now you are wondering which of your many relatives are your
"ancestors." An ancestor
is a person from whom you are descended - parents, grandparents,
great-grandparents, great-great-grandparents and so on. The term is most
commonly used to describe someone earlier than your grandparents in your
family tree.
If you think of a family tree as being in the shape of an upside-down
pyramid (triangle), you would be the the point at the bottom. Not counting
second marriages, an individual will usually have two parents, four
grandparents, eight great-grandparents, sixteen great-great-grandparents and
so on. From you (at the bottom of the triangle) working upward, these form the
ancestral pyramid. By the time you have gone back ten
generations you have an impressive 1,024 ancestors - more than enough to keep
you busy researching for a lifetime!
If you take this pyramid and turn it right-side-up then you are now at the
point at the top. Stretching down from you are your
descendants
- your children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and so on. If you trace
your family tree down from a single ancestor, then it is called a descendant
tree. If you trace your family tree back through the generations from a
single individual, then it is know as an ancestor tree. The
relationship between you and your ancestors and descendants are known as
lineal
relationships.
Collateral
relationships are relationships between individuals who descend from common
ancestors but are not related to each other in a direct (or lineal) line.
These relationships include your brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, nieces,
nephews and cousins. While it is not necessary to trace these collateral lines
when researching your family tree, they can often lead you to clues about your
ancestors when you have reached a brick wall.
Kissin' Cousins
If someone walked up to you and said "Hi, I'm your third cousin, once
removed," would you know what they meant? Most of us don't think about
our relationships in such exact terms ("cousin" seems good enough),
so most of us aren't familiar with what these words mean. When working on your
family history, however, it's more important to understand the various types
of cousin relationships.
- First cousins are the people in your family who have two of the
same grandparents as you.
- Second cousins have the same great-grandparents as you, but not
the same grandparents.
- Third cousins have in common two great-great-grandparents and their
ancestors.
When cousins descend from common ancestors by a different number of
generations they are called “removed.”
- Once removed means there is a difference of one generation. Your
mother's first cousin would be your first cousin, once removed. She is one
generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations
younger than your grandparents.
- Twice removed means that there is a two-generation difference.
Your grandmother's first cousin would be your first cousin, twice removed
because you are separated by two generations.
Half and Step Relationships
Half relationships exist between individuals who have a common
ancestor but descend from different spouses of that ancestor. For example, half-brothers
may have the same father but different mothers or the same mother but
different fathers. The children of these half-brothers would be
half-cousins, because they share only one of the grandparents.
Half-relationships are still considered consanguineous (blood)
relationships along the line which the two individuals share.
Step relationships (including "in-law" relationships)
are relationships which occur through marriage. Your relationships with
your step-relatives are not consanguineous as they are only related to you
through marriage, not blood. They are not considered a part of your direct
or lineal lines, but they can still be an important part of your family
tree.
Relationships Made Easy
There are several types of charts to help you determine family
relationships. You may want to check out this online Relationship
Chart. You should also be aware, especially when you are working with
older records, that the meaning of the word "cousin," along with the
meanings of other relationship terms, have changed over time. This article
from Genealogy.com called Word
meanings tells you what to look out for.
Next page > Charting Your Course
