How to Read Pedigrees
Pedigree charts are a visual representation of a person's ancestors, including parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and beyond. Genealogists use the charts to track their research. Animal breeders use similar pedigree charts to track the lineage of their animals. If you were reading your pedigree chart, you would be the first generation, and your parents would be the second generation. While there are various pedigree chart designs, the standard is a series of columns.
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Instructions
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Locate the first generation person in the far left column. The first generation's spouse might also be included in this column, directly below the first person.
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Find the first generation's parents in the second column from the left. In all columns (except the far left), the male of each couple is always listed directly above the female of the couple.
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Move over one column to the right for the next generation. Parents are located next to their children, in the column directly to the right of their children.
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Read included data about each person on the pedigree chart, located under the person's name. Information might be the full name of the person and the date and place of the person's birth, marriage and death. Possible abbreviations are B for birth, M for marriage and D for death.
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Note the numbers assigned to each person on the chart. Numbers typically begin with the starting person as No. 1, and run sequentially, starting at the top of each column and moving down, and then to the next column to the right and starting at the top and moving down, and so on. For example, the first person would be 1, the first person's father 2, the first person's mother 3, the first person's paternal grandfather 4, and so on.
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Tips & Warnings
In a pedigree diagram to illustrate genetic relationships, squares represent males and circles females. Horizontal lines connect mating couples, with vertical lines extending downward and connecting to the couple's children.
References
- Photo Credit family of three on meadow at sundown image by Pavel Losevsky from Fotolia.com
