genealogy

IPA/ˌdʒiːniˈælədʒi/
KK[dʒˌiniˈɑlədʒi]IPA/ˌdʒiːniˈælədʒi/

genealogy — noun

  • genealogysingular
  • genealogiesplural

1. The practice of investigating and recording each person in a family line across

1.nounB2
Definition

The practice of investigating and recording each person in a family line across earlier generations — their names, life events, and how they connect to people alive today.

Example

Sofia has spent years studying the genealogy of her mother's side of the family.

the genealogy of + [family/group]

Public records helped Defne trace her genealogy back to the nineteenth century.

trace one's genealogy back to [time]

Common collocations
  • study genealogy
  • trace one's genealogy
  • genealogy research
  • genealogy database
  • genealogy records
  • genealogy course
Synonyms
  • family history

    More personal and narrative; often used by hobbyists rather than academics

  • ancestry

    Focuses on ethnic or national origins rather than the systematic tracing of individual relatives

  • lineage

    More formal and narrow; refers specifically to the direct line of descent, often in legal or hereditary contexts

Grammar Patterns

the genealogy of + family/group

genealogy + noun (research, database, course)

Usage Note

Uncountable when talking about the discipline ('Genealogy is becoming more popular'). Countable when referring to the specific lines of descent ('They traced three different genealogies from the same village'). Often used with 'of' to specify whose family history is under study.

Common Mistakes

She studied her family's genetics to find out who her great-grandparents were.
She studied her family's genealogy to find out who her great-grandparents were.
Genetics is the biological study of inherited traits; genealogy is the historical study of family relationships and records.
I am doing a genealogy tree for my school project.
I am doing a genealogy for my school project.' or 'I am doing a family tree for my school project.
A genealogy already contains the idea of a tree-like chart; 'genealogy tree' is redundant.

2. A drawing or diagram that uses lines and branches to show how the members of a f

2.nounB2
Definition

A drawing or diagram that uses lines and branches to show how the members of a family across several generations are related to one another, usually with names and sometimes dates.

Example

Wren drew a simple genealogy showing four generations of his family for a school project.

draw a genealogy showing [number] generations

The museum displayed a genealogy of the royal family tracing back to the seventeenth century.

a genealogy of + [family/group] tracing back to [time]

Common collocations
  • draw a genealogy
  • create a genealogy
  • family genealogy
  • genealogy chart
  • show a genealogy
Synonyms
  • family tree

    More common in everyday language; usually drawn in a tree-like shape with fewer details than a formal genealogy

  • pedigree

    Used for animals or formal hereditary lines; sounds unnatural for a typical human family

Grammar Patterns

draw/create a genealogy

a genealogy of + family/group

show/display + genealogy

Usage Note

Countable noun — you can have one genealogy or several genealogies. A genealogy chart is similar to a family tree, but genealogy charts often include more detailed information (dates, places, notes) arranged in a structured diagram rather than a tree shape.

Common Mistakes

The dog's genealogy shows champion bloodlines going back five generations.
The dog's pedigree shows champion bloodlines going back five generations.
Pedigree is the standard term for animal breeding lines; genealogy is typically used for human families.

Word family

  • genealogist
    nounB2
  • genealogical
    adjectiveB2
  • genealogically
    adverbC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Genealogy is the broadest and most academic of the four: it refers to the systematic study or charting of family connections across generations. Ancestry is more personal and points to one's ethnic or national origins — someone might say 'I have Irish ancestry' without knowing any names. Lineage is narrower and more formal: it describes the direct line of descent from a particular ancestor, often used in royal or hereditary contexts ('the lineage of the Ming emperors'). Pedigree overlaps with lineage but is the preferred term for animal breeding; applied to humans it can sound pretentious or ironic. In everyday conversation, 'family history' is the most natural alternative to 'genealogy' for most speakers.

genealogy ↗ancestry ↗lineage ↗pedigree

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • trace one's genealogy
  • the genealogy of

Prepositions

Etymology

GreekLatinFrenchEnglish

Genealogy comes from Greek genealogia, a combination of genea (meaning 'race, family, generation') and -logia ('study of, account of'). The word passed into Latin as genealogia, then into French as généalogie, and finally entered English in the 1300s. The 'family tree' meaning — a drawn chart — appeared about two hundred years later, as people began to create visual diagrams alongside written accounts of their ancestors.