genealogy
[jee-nee-ol-uh-jee, -al-, jen-ee-]
- 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.
Show More
Origin of genealogy
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com1. See pedigree.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
lineage, ancestry, genetics, parentage, pedigree, extraction, generation, descent, strain, heredity, derivation, line, history, stock, stemma, stirpsExamples from the Web for genealogy
Contemporary Examples
Because the doctors do know who the person is; the doctors are conducting the genealogy.
Well, according to the genealogy experts at, uh, myvouchercodes.co.uk who commissioned the pictures, it is.
It was a rupture in our genealogy that came to serve as a metaphor for larger losses in black history.
But the narrative has more to do with geology than genealogy.
Likely, it has to do with history of genealogy or mythology or all of the above.
Historical Examples
Now this Salmon, according to the genealogy, was David's great-grandfather.
A Theological-Political Treatise [Part II]Benedict of Spinoza
Lauzanne knew what had come to him of genealogy, not in his mind so much as in his muscles.
ThoroughbredsW. A. Fraser
In this genealogy, males are denoted by capitals, and females by small letters.
A Tangled TaleLewis Carroll
In this manner, then, according to them, the genealogy of these gods is to be received and set forth.
TimaeusPlato
And the genealogy of this hypothesis is as high as that of the other is low.
Essays: Scientific, Political, & Speculative, Vol. IHerbert Spencer
genealogy
- 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
Show More
Word Origin
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 genealogy
n.
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.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
genealogy
(jē′nē-ŏl′ə-jē, -ăl′-, jĕn′ē-)- 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.
Show More
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.