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ancestry

ancestry

57 4.1
The family you come from over many generations
  • noun
  • /ˈæn.sɛ.stri/
translation icon : ascendencia
  • Many people today are researching their family history to learn more about their ancestry.
  • common ancestry
  • trace ancestry
  • share a common ancestry

Kamala Harris's father is of African ancestry in part.

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Examples

  • Looking for traces of our ancestry in our DNA gets complicated very quickly.

  • Forty percent of South Dakotans are of German ancestry, 16% of Scandinavian, and 10% of Irish.

    Academic text (2011)
  • We go back to respect and ancestry, and we go back to purpose.

  • There was also talk about ancestry, and we were asked to draw our family trees.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • But in Korea, the family name came first and told the entire history of your ancestry.

  • But even more importantly, the people must share the same ancestry or believe that they share the same ancestry.

    Academic text (1999)
  • All that appeals to my Irish ancestry.

  • In Africa, traditional society is based on the importance of ancestry under conditions of high infant mortality.

    Academic text (1994)
  • Given her Irish ancestry, it might be worth asking local Catholic churches whether they know her.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Here we are, men of all races, with different backgrounds and ancestries, working together for a common purpose.

Synonyms

blood
vsancestry
639 4.1

Family history passed down from your ancestors

is the general family or genetic line without figurative emphasis
line
vsancestry
198 5.6

A series of related people or events over time

is limited to family origin and not general successions of events
origin
vsancestry
163 2.3

The family background and country where someone’s family comes from

is the core genetic or family line idea rather than broader background
bloodline
vsancestry
57 4.8

A family line of people or animals related by birth

covers that biological chain but also general family background
descent
vsancestry
51 4.6

The family a person comes from, for example parents or grandparents

is the core term for family genetic connection more generally
lineage
vsancestry
46 5.5

A list of family members who came before you

is the family or genetic line of people one comes from
genealogy
vsancestry
  • Specialized
32 7.4

A record of a family's ancestors and history

is the basic family or genetic line rather than its recorded history
stock
vsancestry
20 5.8

The family or ancestors that someone comes from

means the same family origin but in more neutral everyday terms
pedigree
vsancestry
14 5.3

A record of a person or family's ancestors that shows an important background

is the common family or genetic line without emphasis on record or quality
parentage
vsancestry
7 5.3

Who a person's mother and father are and their family background

is broader, covering whole family lines beyond just parental origin
extraction
vsancestry
  • Formal
7 6.3

A person's family origin or social background

is the simple biological family line rather than social origin focus
family line
vsancestry
5 3.2

A group of people who are related by birth over many generations

is the broad idea of family origin rather than the group label
line of descent
vsancestry
1 3.8

The people in a family who are related by blood across generations

focuses on the same family connection in general life
progeniture
vsancestry
  • Archaic
9.9

A family line that shows where a person comes from

is the everyday family or genetic line rather than the formal state
stemma
vsancestry
  • Specialized
9.9

A record showing a person's ancestors across generations

is the general family or genetic line without scholarly emphasis
nasab
vsancestry
  • Indian
9.9

A person's family history and ancestors

is the simple family or genetic line without the tracing practice

How Distant

ancestor
419 2.4
lineage
46 5.5
ancestry
57 4.1
family
1.0
parent
1.0

Surface Forms

ancestry singular
ancestries plural

Morphology

ancestry = ancestor (semi-transparent) = ancestor + ry + y

The suffix '-y' turns 'ancestor' into a noun indicating a collective or related concept, but the specific meaning of 'ancestry' as a genetic line is not entirely transparent.

Etymology

The word ancestry comes from the idea of an ancestor, which meant someone who 'went before' you in the family. So ancestry means your family line, the people who came before you.