genealogy

[jee-nee-ol-uh-jee, -al-, jen-ee-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR genealogy ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural ge·ne·al·o·gies.

a record or account of the ancestry and descent of a person, family, group, etc.

the study of family ancestries and histories.

descent from an original form or progenitor; lineage; ancestry.

Biology. a group of individuals or species having a common ancestry: The various species of Darwin's finches form a closely knit genealogy.

Origin of genealogy

1250–1300; Middle English genealogie < Middle French < Late Latin geneālogia < Greek geneālogía pedigree, equivalent to geneā́ race (see gene) + -logia -logy

Related formsge·ne·a·log·i·cal

[jee-nee-uh-loj-i-kuh l, jen-ee-] /ˌdʒi ni əˈlɒdʒ ɪ kəl, ˌdʒɛn i-/, ge·ne·a·log·ic, adjectivege·ne·a·log·i·cal·ly, adverbge·ne·al·o·gist, nounnon·ge·ne·a·log·ic, adjectivenon·ge·ne·a·log·i·cal, adjectivenon·ge·ne·a·log·i·cal·ly, adverb

Synonyms for genealogy

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR genealogy ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See pedigree.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for genealogical

genetic, national, tribal, familial, inborn, ancestral, folk, hereditary, lineal, phyletic, phylogenetic, affiliated, congenital, consanguine, consanguineous, inbred, inherited, innate, maternal, old

Examples from the Web for genealogical

Contemporary Examples of genealogical

Locating records of Russian Jews is among the most difficult challenges in genealogical research.
An Oscar Winner’s Secret History
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
October 14, 2010
And then there are the short chapters, genealogical vignettes set in 1857, 1869, and 1630.
The Squid and the Whale of a Book
Taylor Antrim
June 14, 2009

Historical Examples of genealogical

An arboreal animal which makes itself at home in genealogical trees.
The Devil's Dictionary
Ambrose Bierce
He showed her first the genealogical tree of the Rougon-Macquarts.
Doctor Pascal
Emile Zola
Yes; this is the genealogical tree that I had not even brought up to date.
Doctor Pascal
Emile Zola
Thus, the natural system is genealogical in its arrangement, like a pedigree.
On the Origin of Species
Charles Darwin
Amiand, his attempt at a genealogical arrangement of Old Bab.
The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria
Morris Jastrow

British Dictionary definitions for genealogical

genealogy

noun plural -gies

the direct descent of an individual or group from an ancestor

the study of the evolutionary development of animals and plants from earlier forms

a chart showing the relationships and descent of an individual, group, genes, etc

Derived Formsgenealogical (ˌdʒiːnɪəˈlɒdʒɪkəl) or genealogic, adjectivegenealogically, adverbgenealogist, noun

Word Origin for genealogy

C13: from Old French genealogie, from Late Latin geneālogia, from Greek, from genea race

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for genealogical

adj.

1570s, from French généalogique (see genealogy) + -al (1). Earlier in the same sense was genealogial (mid-15c.). Related: Genealogically.

genealogy

early 14c., "line of descent, pedigree, descent," from Old French genealogie (12c.), from Late Latin genealogia "tracing of a family," from Greek genealogia, from genea "generation, descent" (see genus) + -logia (see -logy). An Old English word for it was folctalu, literally "folk tale." Meaning "study of family trees" is from 1768.

genealogical in Medicine

genealogy

[jē′nē-ŏl′ə-jē, -ăl′-, jĕn′ē-]

n.

A record or table of the descent of a person, family, or group from an ancestor or ancestors; a family tree.

The study or investigation of ancestry and family histories.