Genealogy has become an extremely popular hobby. It’s easy to see why this is so. Most people enjoy learning more about themselves, and what better way to do that than by discovering more about the family members you came from? Every subject is more interesting when you can find a way to relate to it, and genealogy allows you to combine history, with fun stories about distant family members.
What isn’t so easy to understand is where to begin when you want to put together your own genealogy. This is definitely a subject that can get overwhelming very quickly, if you try to do too much at once. Start with the basics. Genealogy is a record of the ancestors of a particular person, family, or group of related people. It might start with the earliest known ancestor, and work forward, but most start with living people who are related to each other, and work backwards to their parents, and so on.
You can make this as simple or as complex as you want to. Some people will choose to include absolutely every person they are related to, no matter how distantly, and connect them all together. Other people prefer to create a pedigree, which is much simpler. Often, when we hear the word pedigree, we think of dogs, or horses, but a pedigree can be created for humans as well. For example, your pedigree would start with you. Next, it would include your parents, (but not your siblings, or your aunts and uncles). Then, it would list each of your parent’s mothers and fathers, (but not their own siblings, or aunts and uncles). A pedigree shows a more direct relation from one person to another, than what can be found in a larger form of family tree.
To start, you need to gather information about your relatives and ancestors. However, not all types of information is going to be particularly useful to you. There are certain questions you should ask your living relatives. Where were you born? Where did you live? If the person got married, ask when and where that happened. You should always ask each relative for the full names of his or her parents. Do they know where their parents got married? It is also helpful to learn what cemetery people were buried in, and where it is located. In general, you are looking for information that can help you learn about births, marriages, and deaths. Much more information can be gleaned from these facts.
It can be fun to make a record of some of the stories about different family members that have been passed down. You might have had a relative that did something exciting, adventurous, or extremely humorous. If photos of your relatives are available, see if you can make a copy of them. It is nice to put a face with a name. This is how you can get started with your own genealogy.