genealogy
n. C / Un. the study of your family history. You use it to find out who your ancestors were and how you are related to them.
n. the study of family lineages and history through the tracking of ancestors and descendants. Often involves the construction of pedigrees or family trees based on historical records.
She spent years researching her family genealogy.
Interest in genealogy has surged recently due to the availability of online census records and DNA testing kits.
While some pursue genealogy to claim noble ancestry, most researchers are simply looking to ground their personal identity in the documented reality of their forebears' lives.
From Middle English genealogie, genologie, genelogie, from Old French genealogie (Modern French généalogie), from Late Latin genealogia, from Ancient Greek γενεαλογία (genealogía), from γενεά (geneá, “generation, descent”) and -λογία (-logía, “study of”).
Uncountable when referring to the field of study; countable when referring to a specific family's history or a written record of it.