Genealogy Glossary
The Gene Poole Directory
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
Abstract - a summary of the main points in a document or website.
Abstract of title - the legal history of the ownership and possession of land.
ad litem - legal term meaning in this case only.
Administration - the handling of a decedent's estate without a will.
Administrator - a person appointed by the court to handle the estate of a deceased person or the affairs of an incompetent person. A female administrator is called an administratrix.
Affidavit - a written statement made under oath in the presence of a notary public or another authorised official.
Age of majority - the legal age for adulthood. This age can vary from area to area
Ahnentafel system - a century-old genealogical numbering system, named after the German for 'ancestor table'. A comprehensive ahnentafel gives more than the individual's name, date and place of birth, christening,marriage, death and burial. It should give biographical and historical commentary for each person listed, as well as footnotes citing the source documents used to prove what is stated. Also called the Sosa-Stradonitz System.
Ahnentafel Number - the unique number assigned to each position in an ancestor table is called an ahnentafel number. Number one designates the person in the first generation. Numbers two and three designate the parents of number one and the second generation. Numbers four through seven designate the grandparents of person number one and the third generation. As the ahnentafel extends by generation, the number of persons doubles.
a.k.a. - also known as; alias.
Ancestor - a person from whom another is descended; this term generally refers to those before your grandparents.
Ancestor chart - a chart starting with one individual and moving backwards (chronologically) through all the generations of his/her ancestors.
Ancestral file - A database created and maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons).
Ancestral numbering system - a method of assigning a number to members of your family tree.
Archive - a repository of official records of public or private agencies or historical documents.
B
b. (abbreviation) - born.
Banns - see marriage banns.
bapt. (abbreviation) - baptised. Also bp.; bpt.
Base-born - a base-born individual was an illegitimate child.
Bastard - a bastard is an illegitimate child.
bef. (abbreviation) - before.
bet. (abbreviation) - between.
Beneficiary - someone who benefits from a provision made by another, such as in a will.
Biographical sketch - a short history of a person's life.
Biography - a detailed history of a person's life.
Birth certificate - a government issued record and form of identification, recording the date, place and time of birth, in addition to other vital statistics - from 1837 in the UK.
bro. (abbreviation) - brother.
bu. (abbreviation) - buried.
bur. (abbreviation) - buried.
C
c., ca. (abbreviation) - about or around, from the Latin word circa.
cem. (abbreviation) - cemetery.
cemetery records - cemetery caretakers usually keep records of the names and death dates of those buried, as well as maps of the grave sites. They may also keep more detailed records, including the names of the deceased's relatives. In addition to these paper records, you will find tombstones. Tombstones can provide information such as birth and death dates and the names of other family members.
Census - the enumeration of inhabitants of a region or country, done by a census enumerator - normally held every ten years.
Chattel - see personal property.
chr. (abbreviation) - christened.
Christian names - the names given to a child at birth or baptism. Due to the multi-denominational nature of most countries this is now called 'first names'.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints - a religious denomination commonly called the Mormons who conduct genealogical research for their own religious purposes and that they also make available to the public at their Family History Centres, libraries and websites.
Church records - church records are the formal documents that churches have kept about their congregations through the years. Churches normally record information about christenings, baptisms, marriages, and burials. The type of information you will find in the records are the names of the individuals involved, the date of the event, the location of the event, and the clergyman's name. You may find additional information, such as parents' names (father's full name and mother's maiden name), the names of witnesses to an event, and the individual's (or family's) place of residence.
Citation - a formal notation documenting the source of information.
Codicil - an addition to a will that modifies or revokes the distribution of the estate.
Collateral relative - a person who shares a common ancestor with another, but not a direct line.
Compiled source - information collected from various original sources into one record (like building a family tree).
Conflicting information - information that comes from different sources and contains inconsistencies or directly conflicting accounts of events, usually requiring additional research to determine validity.
conf. (abbreviation) - confirmed.
Consanguinity - the degree of relationship between persons who descend from a common ancestor. A father and son are related by lineal consanguinity, uncle and nephew by collateral sanguinity.
Conservator - see guardian.
Cousin - child of an aunt or uncle; in earlier times a kinsman, close relative, or friend.
Coverature - an early probate term for a married woman.
D
d. (abbreviation) - died.
dau. (abbreviation) - daughter.
daughter-in-law - A daughter-in-law is the wife of an individual's
son. Daughter-in-law also used to mean "step-daughter."
d'Aboville system - a genealogical numbering system.
de Villiers/Pama System - a genealogical numbering system.
Death certificate - the official document issued by the government recording the date, time and place of death, in addition to other vital statistics. From 1837 in the UK.
Death notice - the mention of a person's death in a list of recent decedents, differentiated from an obituary by its short length and selective information.
dec'd (abbreviation) - deceased.
Decedent - a deceased person.
Deed - a legal document that transfers title to property.
Descendant - a person with a direct familial link to an ancestor - bloodline is often used.
Descendant chart - a chart that starts with a person of your choice in your lineage and comes down the generations, listing that person's descendants.
Descendant numbering system - a method of numbering the descendants of an ancestor for cross-referencing purposes.
div. (abbreviation) - divorced.
Double dating - a practice that shows two separate year dates because of calendar changes in the 1700's. The practice of writing double dates resulted from switching from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, and also from the fact that not all countries and people accepted the new calendar at the same time.
Dowager - widow holding property or a title received from her deceased husband; title given in England to widows of princes, dukes, earls, and other noblemen.
Dower - rights to a portion of an estate that's allotted to a widow.
dowry [also dowery] - land, money, goods, or personal property brought by a bride to her husband in marriage.
Drop chart - a depiction of a connection between two people, one from an earlier generation and the other from a later one, that shows their link generation by generation.
E
Emancipated - freed from slavery; freed from parents' control; of legal age.
Emigrant - a person who leaves a country to establish residence in another one, considered in terms of his/her relationship to his/her old country.
Emigration - the act of becoming an emigrant.
Enumeration district - an area assigned to a census taker.
Enumeration order - the order in which census entries were obtained and recorded (for example - by house down a given street).
Enumerator - someone who makes a list, usually for a census or for tax purposes.
Estate - the property held and the debts left by a person at the time of his/her death.
et al - "and others."
et ux - "and wife."
Evidence - facts that indicate whether something is true, offered as proof of a lineage.
exec. (abbreviation) - executor.
exor. (abbreviation) - executor.
exox. (abbreviation) - executrix.Executor - the person who is named in a will to handle the affairs of an estate after the death of the devisor. A female executor is referred to as an executrix.
Extract - to copy a portion or an entire record verbatim from a source.
F
fam. (abbreviation) - family.
Family - a group related by blood or marriage. See also - relations.
Family association - those descended from an ancestor or a group of ancestors.
Family group sheet - a page listing a family unit. The page includes the dates and places of birth, death and burial for each individual. also called a family group record.
Family history - a study of a family, including historical information on events and circumstances in the lives of ancestors, rather that only a compilation of dates, places and lineage.
Family History Centre - a local branch of the Family History Library.
Family History Library - the genealogical library operated in Salt Lake City, Utah by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, where visitors can research church records compiled on church members and their ancestors.
Family outline report - a list beginning with an ancestor and listing his/her descendants.
Family traditions - family stories or customs, handed down from one generation to the next.
Family Search - the website operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Feme - female, woman, or wife.
Feme sole - unmarried woman or a married woman with property independent of her husband.
Freedman - male released from slavery; emancipated person.
Freeman - male of legal age with the right to vote, own land and practice a trade.
Free man of colour - black man who was free from birth or later in life.
Full age - age of majority; legal age; adult (legal age varied according to place and current law).
G
Gazetteer - a geographical dictionary.
gdn. (abbreviation) - guardian. Also grdn.
GEDCOM (genealogical data communication) - a file format designed for transferring genealogical data between different programmes.
GenCount - an e-mail report generated by the GenServ system that indicates the number of times the selected surname appears.
Genealogy - study of one's ancestry; summary history or table of a person's ancestry.
Genealogical society - an organisation interested in the genealogical history of the families in a regional area or ethnic group and dedicated to the preservation of documents and history.
Genealogy - the record or history of a person's descent, or the study of a person's family.
GenSample - a list of people with a given surname who have posted records on the GenServ system.
GenServ - a database that is in GEDCOM format and stored on a central computer.
Given names - see christian names.
Good brother - brother-in-law.
Good sister - sister-in-law.
Good son - son-in-law.
Grandam - grandmother.
Grantee - a buyer.
Grantor - a seller.
Guardian - a person who oversees the affairs and interests of a minor or of an incompetent person, including a parent, a person designated by the parents, or a court-appointed trustee.
H
Head of household - the person whose name appears first in the census enumeration of a household. Before 1841 this was the only information recorded in the census.
Heir - the recipient of the property of a descendent, designated by a will or by the court.
Heir apparent - by law a person whose right of inheritance is established, provided he or she outlives the ancestor, see also primogeniture.
Heirloom - an object passed down from generation to generation, generally within the family, by gift or bequest.
Henry system - a genealogical numbering system assigning a particular sequence of numbers to the descendents of an ancestor.
hon. (abbreviation) - honourable.
husb. (abbreviation) - husband.
I
Illegitimate - child born to a woman who is not married to the father.
Immigrant - a person who moves to a new country, considered in terms of his/her old country.
Immigration - the act of moving into one country from another.
In-law - a person related through marriage.
Indentured servant - someone who entered into a contract binding that person to a specific term of service to another, often in exchange for passage.
inf. (abbreviation) - infantry.
infant - person under legal age.
inhab (abbreviation) - inhabitant; inhabited.
International Genealogical Index (IGI) - a list of births and marriages of deceased individuals reflected in records collected by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It is part of the FarmilySearch collection.
Intestate - dying without leaving a valid will.
Inventory - a list of a decedent's property, compiled near the time of death, often by court-appointed representatives.
J
jno (abbreviation) - John or Johannes.
Joiner - carpenter who does finish work.
JP (Justice of the Peace) - an elected official with powers enacted by statute, often able to perform marriages and witness legal documents.
jud. (abbreviation) - judicial.
Julian Calendar - calendar named for Julius Caesar and used from 45 B.C. to 1582, called the "Old Style" calendar; replaced by the Gregorian calendar.
junr. (abbreviation) - junior.
Jurisdiction - the legal boundary of a geographic area, controlled by a central authority, such as a county.
Juvenis - juvenile, minor, under legal age.
K
Kinship report - a list describing the relationship of a person to the other entries in a database.
Kith & Kin - friends and close family of an individual.
Knave - servant boy.
knt. (abbreviation) - knight.
L
Late - denoting someone who is deceased, i.e., the late John Smith.
LDS - see Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Legacy - property or money bequeathed to someone in a will.
Legal notice - a notice, meeting the requirements of the law, for a specific purpose.
Legatee - someone who inherits money or property from a person who left a will.
Lessee - person leasing property from an owner.
Lessor - owner leasing property to a tenant.
Letters Testamentary - court document allowing the executor named in a will to carry out his or her duties.
Liber - book of public records.
lic. (abbreviation) - license.
Lien - claim placed on property by a person who is owed money.
Lineage - direct line of descent from an ancestor; ancestry; progeny.
lis pendens - notices of suits pending litigation, usually
in matters concerning land.
Litigant - person involved in a lawsuit.
liv. (abbreviation) - living.
loco parentis - in place of the parent or parents.
M
m. (abbreviation) - married.
md. (abbreviation) - married.
Maiden name - the original surname of a woman before marriage.
Major - person who has reached legal age.
Majores - ancestors.
Majority - legal age.
Manumission papers - documents granting freedom to a slave.
Manuscript collection - an assortment of an individual's writings and letters, sometimes in the possession of a library or archive.
Marita - married woman, wife.
Maritus - bridegroom, married man.
Marriage banns - a proclamation indicting intent to marry, usually made in front of a church congregation. Also simply called banns.
Marriage bond - a marriage bond is document obtained by an engaged couple prior to their marriage. It affirmed that there was no moral or legal reason why the couple could not be married. In addition, the man affirmed that he would be able to support himself and his new bride.
Maternal - the mother's or female lineage
Matriculated - enrolled in a college or university.
Matron - older married woman with children.
mensis - month.
Metes - measurements of distance in feet, rods, poles,
chains, etc.; pertains to measuring direction and distance.
Metes & bounds - land measurements using geographic landmarks to define the boundaries of a parcel of land.
Microfiche - a system of storing document images on photographic cards or tape that are displayed on a microfiche reader, which enlarges and projects the image on a screen.
mil. (abbreviation) - military.
Militia - a group of local lay soldiers, organised for call of duty in cases of emergency. Can also be called a Home Guard.
Minor - a person under legal age; historically, the legal
age differed from place to place and over time. (Check prevailing law to
determine the legal age requirement at a specific time.)
mo. (abbreviation) - month.
Muster roll - a listing of all personnel in a military unit.
N
na. - naturalised; not applicable.
National Archives - Based at Kew and containing information relating to the history of the country and its citizens (and in many cases, the Empire).
Naturalisation - the legal process by which someone of foreign birth becomes a citizen of another country.
natus - born.
n.d. (abbreviation) - no date; not dated.
Necrology - a collection of obituaries or a list of those who died within a specific timeframe.
nee - born, used to denote a woman's maiden name, i.e., Anne Gibson nee West.
Nickname - a common name for a person, often different from the birth name and usually not legally recognised.
n.p. (abbreviation) - no place listed; no publisher listed.
neph. (abbreviation) - nephew.
O
ob. (abbreviation) - obit, deceased.
OB (abbreviation) - order book, as in court order book.
obiit. (abbreviation) - he or she died.
obit. (abbreviation) - obituary.
Obituary - a death announcement, usually published in a newspaper, often including family information and used as a primary or secondary research source.
One-name study - research devoted to the study of one particular surname.
Oral history - the unwritten stories told by family members, passed down from generation to generation.
Orphan - currently a child for whom both parents are deceased; earlier a child with one or both parents deceased.
P
PAF (Personal Ancestral File) - a computer programme for genealogy storage.
Passenger list - the list of passengers on a ship, often consulted when researching immigration.
Paternal - the father's or male lineage.
Patronymic - a name derived from a father's name. For example, Robert, John's son, would become Robert Johnson. Robert Johnson's son Neil would become Neil Robertson.
Pedigree chart - a chart that shows lines of direct ancestors.
Pedigree Resource File - a lineage-linked pedigree file that contains pedigrees and family group sheet data in electronic form.
Pension - money paid on a regular basis to a retired or disabled person, due to military service or a government programme.
Personal property - possessions owned by a person, often referred to as chattel, including everything but land.
Plat map - a map of a tract of land, showing the lots within it as well as the tract owner's names.
p.o.a. (abbreviation) - power of attorney.
Posthumous - a child born after the death of the father.
Primary source - a record that can be used as proof of an event's occurrence, often maintained by a church or government.
Primogeniture - insures the right of the eldest son to inherit the entire estate of his parents, to the exclusion of younger sons.
Probate - the legal process for carrying out instructions in a will.
Probate record - a record indicating the proceedings of the distribution of an estate.
Progenitor - the earliest identifiable ancestor in a family line.
Progeniture - a direct ancestor.
Pvt. (abbreviation) - military rank of private
R
R.C. (abbreviation) - Roman Catholic.
Reapportionment - the redistribution of electoral districts due to population changes.
Record system - a formal genealogical numbering system that assigns an Arabic numeral to each family member.
Reeve - churchwarden; early name for sheriff in England.
reg. (abbreviation) - register.
Regular soldier - a member of the military, serving duty and receiving pay. N.B. Army pensions were paid out after 20 years service.
Relicta - widow.
Relictus - widower.
Relict - widow.
repud. (abbreviation) - repudiate.
res. (abbreviation) - residence; research.
ret. (abbreviation) - retired.
Rev. (abbreviation) - reverend.
Rustica - country girl.
Rusticus - country boy.
S
s. (abbreviation) - son.
s. & h. (abbreviation) - son and heir.
Secondary evidence - evidence that is inferior to primary evidence or the best evidence.
Secondary source - a record that cannot be relied on as proof but provides background information.
Service record - a form of record that chronicles someone's military record.
serv. (abbreviation) - servant.
Sexton - the caretaker who maintains a cemetery and is responsible for burials.
Sibling - a brother or sister, persons who share the same parents in common.
sic - latin term signifying a copy reads exactly as the original; indicates a possible mistake in the original.
Slave - a person considered the property of another person, capable of being bought and sold.
Slave schedule - a part of the census that lists all slaves owned by a slave owner, without listing names.
s/o - son of.
soc. (abbreviation) - society
Sosa-Stradonitz system - see ahnentafel system.
Soundex - an indexing system developed for use with a census and based on the phonetic sound of the consonants in a surname - very useful for misspellings.
Source - any reference consulted for research, usually written, but including information obtained from individuals.
Source citation - an acknowledgement in a note, a footnote, or an endnote providing bibliographic information for the origin of information.
srnm. (abbreviation) - surname, last name.
St. (abbreviation) - saint; street.
Statute - a law.
Step - used in conjunction with a degree of kinship.
Stepchild - child of one of the spouses by a former marriage who has not been adopted by the step-parent.
Stepfather - husband of a child's mother by a later marriage.
Stepmother - wife of a child's father by a later marriage.
surg. (abbreviation) - surgeon
Surname - the last or family name of a person, given at birth or assumed after marriage - more recently by deedpoll.
Survey - a legal description and detailed illustration of the boundaries of a parcel of land.
T
T. (abbreviation) - township.
terr. (abbreviation) - territory.
test. (abbreviation) - testament.
Testate - died leaving a valid will.
Testis - witness.
Testator - the person making a will. A female testator is called a testatrix.
Tract book - a book listing the lots or parcels of land within a geographic area.
Transcribe - to accurately duplicate all aspects of an original document.
Transcript - a word-for-word copy of the text in a document.
U
Ultimo - the preceding month.
unk. (abbreviation) - unknown.
Unprobated will - will never submitted for probate.
Unsolemn will - will in which an executor is not named.
unm. (abbreviation) - unmarried.
uxor. - wife, spouse, consort.
V
Vidua - widow.
Viduus - widower.
Virgo - used to describe an unmarried woman in English and European marriage records.
Vital record - a record that relates to birth, marriage and death. As called a vital statistic.
W
Warrant - a certificate ordering an action or the payment of a sum of money.
Widow's pension - a pension paid to the wife of a deceased man.
Wheelwright -person who makes and repairs vehicle wheels, such as carts, wagons, etc.
Widow - a widow is a woman whose husband has died.
Widower - a widower is a man whose wife has died.
Will - a legal document indicating a testator's intentions in the division of property after death.
Witness - a person who attests to the validity of information, guaranteeing it in writing.
Y
Yeoman - farmer; freeholder who works a small estate; rank below gentleman.