genealogy

American  

[jee-nee-ol-uh-jee, -al-, jen-ee-] / ˌdʒi niˈɒl ə dʒi, -ˈæl-, ˌdʒɛn i- /

noun

• genealogies
  plural

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

2. the study of family ancestries and histories.

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

4. Biology. a group of individuals or species having a common ancestry.

   The various species of Darwin's finches form a closely knit genealogy.

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genealogy British  

/ ˌdʒiːnɪˈælədʒɪ /

noun

1. the direct descent of an individual or group from an ancestor

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

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

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Usage

What is genealogy? Genealogy is the study of ancestry and descent of a person or a family. Genealogy can also refer to the actual chart detailing this information. This is often called a family tree. Genealogy is the process of studying someone’s ancestors and descendants and trying to record their family history and relatives. For example, if you decide to learn more about your parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and so on (that is, your ancestors), you are practicing genealogy. If you decide to learn more about President Theodore Roosevelt’s children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and so on (that is, his descendants), you are also practicing genealogy. In biology, the word genealogy is used to describe a group of individuals or species that have a common ancestry. For example, a biologist might be interested in the genealogy of dogs and wolves when researching how they became separated from each other.

Synonym Usage

See pedigree.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• genealogist
  noun
• genealogic
  adjective
• genealogical
  adjective
• nongenealogic
  adjective
• nongenealogical
  adjective
• genealogically
  adverb
• nongenealogically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• genealogies
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of genealogy

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English genealogie, from Middle French, from Late Latin geneālogia, from Greek geneālogía “pedigree,” equivalent to geneā́ “race” + -logia noun suffix; see gene -logy

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Explanation

Your genealogy is the story of your ancestry, sometimes referred to as your family tree. Most Americans can trace their genealogy back to Europe, Africa, and Asia, but that's not a hard and fast rule. The first clue to the meaning of the word genealogy is in the root "gene," as in "passed on through the genes." Add to that the suffix -logy, which means "study," and you get genealogy, the study of one's origins. While some folks are eager to understand their genealogy, others prefer to forget their family history. But these days, knowing one's genealogy can have real advantages, especially medical: knowing your genetic history can help you maintain your health.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

genealogy genealogies

"It requires a careful interweaving of data from modern organisms, of which our understanding is necessarily far deeper, and knowledge of these living organisms' genealogy relative to fossil forms," he said.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 25, 2026

While investigative genetic genealogy has been adopted in countries such as Sweden, Denmark and Australia, it is not yet used in the UK.

From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026

“Over the years, we have received valuable assistance from people with an interest in genealogy and family history who have taken the time to research family trees and share information with our investigators,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

I first met the Westerinen family in 1999 as a graduate student in New York City, writing my thesis on the rise of genetic genealogy.

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

He was an encyclopedia when it came to Xhosa genealogy and told me facts about my father that I had never known.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Ms. Mazzeo alternates between the macro and micro, now giving us detailed genealogies, now discussing the shipbuilding industry and the place of women in 19th-century society.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 8, 2025

And finally, as I worked out by tracing genealogies, when nobody was left alive to remember them, the dead person turned into a butterfly, a memory without a rememberer.

From Scientific American ● Jan. 5, 2023

Michel Foucault argued that tracing genealogies can help us expose shameful origins of practices and ideologies that foster oppression.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 15, 2022

The whole movie was a visual feast, with bright costumes and playful dance numbers, and it never explained the puzzling genealogies of its characters.

From New York Times ● Jul. 8, 2020

To these four volumes there was added in Westmarch a fifth containing commentaries, genealogies, and various other matter concerning the hobbit members of the Fellowship.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

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Related Words

• ancestry
• genetics
• lineage

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