Genealogical Terms

Do you want to know the difference between extended and distant family members? In this, post, learn which of your relatives are in each group, and in which circumstances the definition can be flexible.

Do you want to know what a descendant is, what it means to be a descendant, and who your descendants are? In this post, learn the answers and more.

Do you want to learn how many years are in a generation? In this post, find out the answer, and whether the number of years in a generation ever changes.

Have you ever heard of a GEDCOM? In this post, find out exactly what this is, how they work, how to get one, and more. The first time I heard about a GEDCOM, it sounded pretty high-tech. However, GEDCOMs have been around for a long time - since the early 1980s, in fact. However, not …

Do you want to learn about ahnentafel in genealogy? In this post, learn what this term means and how you can use this system for your genealogy research. If you have been building a family tree for any length of time, you have already noticed that your family tree can quickly become confusing. We have …

Do you want to know what types of cousins there are? In this post, learn everything that you need to know about all kinds of cousins.

Do you want to know what a ninth cousin is? In this post, learn all about 9th cousins, including how many you have, how they are related, and more.

Want to know what a half-sibling is? Here, you will learn the definition of half-siblings, whether they are considered immediate family, and if they share DNA.

What is a distant cousin? In this post, learn all about distant cousins, including whether they are considered to be family, and more.

Have you heard of endogamy or seen signs of it in your family tree? In this post, learn the definition of endogamy and why most people have it in their family tree.

What is a Great-Uncle or a Great-Aunt? In this post, learn who these relatives are to you, whether it's better to say granduncle, and much more.

Do you want to know what an eighth cousin is? Here, learn the definition of an eighth cousin, as well as lots of other interesting eighth cousin facts.

What is a collateral line in genealogy? It's a line made of the descendants of your collateral ancestors. Learn all about these branches of our family tree

Do you want to know what a seventh cousin is? In this post, find the definition of a seventh cousin, how you are related, how many you have, and much more!

Have you heard or read the acronym "NPE"? Do you want to know what is an NPE? Are you curious about how common it is to see NPEs in a family tree?

Do you want to learn about sixth cousins? In this article, find out what a sixth cousin is, how they are related, how many you have, and much more!

A double first cousin is a person who is your first cousin - twice. In this article, find out exactly how double first cousins are related, as well as see a family tree example. Most of us - if we look hard enough - can find double cousins in our family tree. In fact, we …

Do you want to know the definition of consanguinity? In this article, you will find an easy-to-understand explanation of the concept of consanguinity, along with a few examples.

In this post, you will learn the meaning of a cousin once-removed in genealogy, whether it's a first, second, third cousin once-removed. You will be able to use the information that you learn in this article to figure out your degree of cousin-ness to even more distant cousins, too. Cousin relationships are complicated! First cousins, …

Have you heard the phrase "genealogical time frame" mentioned? In this post, find out exactly what this means as well as why it is important in family tree and genetic genealogy research. This is a key term that will help build your foundational knowledge of genealogy. I did a quick search on one of the …

 In this post, we will discuss the meaning of "first cousin once-removed". Plus, learn how to figure out how many degrees removed you are from your cousins, and see examples of cousins-removed. In some families, cousins are just cousins.  In genealogy, however, we like to get specific since the exact nature of a cousin relationship …

Want to know the definition of a fifth cousin? Learn all about how fifth cousins are related, the common ancestors they share, and how many you might have.

Do you want to know what a first cousin is? In this post, find the definition of first cousin and exactly how a first cousin is related to you.

Want to know how to understand pedigree collapse? Here, find the definition, see examples, and learn how to find it in our family trees.

What is a second cousin? Our second cousins are actually closely related to us, even if we don't know all of them. Here, learn all about second cousins!

What is a third cousin? Want to see an example of third cousins? How many third cousins do you have? Find these answers and more in this post!

If you are doing family tree research, you might stumble upon some unfamiliar terms.  Cousins removed - what in the world?  In this post, you will learn what a third cousin once-removed is, how many third cousins once-removed you might have, along with the best way to locate your third cousins. What is the definition …

What is a half-cousin? A half-first cousin? You've come to the right place to find all types of half-cousins explained, as well as a half-cousin chart.

What is a double-fourth cousin, and how are they related? Do double-fourth cousins share more DNA with each other than they would otherwise? In this post, I'll explain the meaning of a double-fourth cousin, show you an example of my own double-fourth cousin, and talk about how this "double" relationship affects the amount of DNA …

In this post, you will learn what is a 3/4 sibling, how much DNA 3/4 siblings typically share, and how to know if you have a three quarter sibling.

MRCA is of the most common notations used in genealogy. In this post, learn what these letters stand for in the definition of MRCA. If you've been doing this whole family tree research thing for a while, you might have seen the letters "MRCA".  It's especially common to see this in the genetic genealogy sphere …

Have you ever wondered what you call the "link" between you and your relatives?  There is a special term that people in the family tree research or genealogy field use to describe this relationship:  common ancestor.  What is a common ancestor? This comes up a lot during genetic genealogy, since when I look at the …