How to build your family tree. Family tree software

Often questions about relatives and ancestors arise in the family circle when grandparents begin to remember their childhood, parents and other relatives. How to build a family tree quickly and easily without knowledge of genealogy?

Why you need to make a family tree

This is one of the most important steps - motivation. He simply will not allow you to abandon the preparation of the tree in a couple of weeks, but bring it to the end. There are several reasons that encourage people to think about compiling a family tree:

• the desire to satisfy the inexplicable sentimentality that appears with age;
• to make their children feel respect for their roots, relatives, family history and its customs;
• visually show your children how large the number of relatives you can rely on in difficult times;
• to realize how big your family tree is, to feel like a part of a large community that has its own destiny and purpose;
• satisfy your curiosity about the presence of distant kinship with celebrities, find something interesting and mysterious in their roots and branches.

Chances are, you have other motives as well. Those who are professionally involved in building a family tree recommend not starting an investigation of their tree for belonging to noble families or classifying themselves as the descendants of famous historical figures. Usually, this does not lead to anything good, since this search will cost a lot of money, the evidence will be inconclusive, and the case itself will quickly get bored and unlikely to end successfully.

How to create a family tree

Paper constructions, grouping of relatives, folders with papers are already a thing of the past. Although there is sometimes a need to make some kind of notes, it is best to use specialized programs that help you conveniently organize the found data about relatives and display them in a convenient and pleasant way. There are also various online services that can help in collecting data about their relatives.

There are sites where the tree is possible. With their help, the solution to the question of how to create a family tree becomes as simple as possible. Usually, free registration is required, entering information for each relative, his family ties and photographs, and the service itself produces a graphical construction of the family tree. There are professional services like myheritage, with a large number of settings that will not only show you how to compose a family tree correctly, but also analyze the surname, search through archives, etc. Online services are convenient for those who do not take the issue very seriously , or to build a simple tree and design it. According to statistics, sites on average "live" up to 5 years and for various reasons can disappear from the information space along with your data.

For a more in-depth work on your pedigree, it is best to use special programs, information from which can be saved, archived, duplicated and processed on any device and at the same time be independent from the Web. Freeware programs, for the most part, are very simple, have little functionality and are convenient for simple tree building. More professional programs are usually paid, but with them the question of how to compose a family tree of a family, even a very large family, is solved efficiently and conveniently. For example, the free version of the program has slight limitations, but allows you to get acquainted with its work. The full version costs about 400 rubles. The amount is not very large, but it allows you to think about how serious you are at work.

We start forming the tree from ourselves

After the tree building tool has been chosen, the following questions arise: how to create a family tree and where to start creating it? The easiest way is to start with yourself. In the program or service, enter information about yourself, then about your immediate environment - about everyone you know personally and about whom you have information. You insert photos of these people from your hard drive or, if they are not there, scan or re-photograph paper portraits from albums. Attach photos, make connections, enter comments (such as a short life story) until your personal knowledge runs out.

We continue to form the tree

The next step is meeting with relatives. We agree to meet with relatives from the necessary "branches" of the tree, take a cake and a laptop (or better a dictaphone). During a conversation, you can get a lot of information to fill in the gaps in the family tree. At the same time, you can make a big mistake by not going to relatives, but collecting a large number of them in one place to interview. This usually leads to the fact that old people correct each other, cannot find agreement on different dates, argue about events and generally introduce significant chaos into the coherent scheme of your work. Therefore, thinking about how to compile a family tree quickly, it is better not to risk it, but to talk with each relative separately.

Visit the oldest relatives first. They can tell the most about distant relatives, time intervals, and with a good location, they will be allowed to use their rare photographs in albums.

It will be more convenient to conduct a conversation if, before starting it, make up a mini-questionnaire of questions for 10-15: first and last names, important dates of life (birth, wedding, life events, death), children and parents.

We continue to collect information

After we have collected data from everyone who was nearby, the next step will be to communicate with those who live far away, in other cities and countries. The easiest way to communicate with them is by phone, skype or via social networks. After talking with them, you can ask them and briefly tell them how to create a family tree. They can build their own branch and send it to you to add to your big tree. This is very convenient, since it is quite difficult to do such work alone. Therefore, having interested your relatives in this process, you can significantly facilitate your work. You can promise them a free copy of the tree when it is completed or the maximum possible is collected

Working with archives and databases

The last step in collecting information is working with archives. After collecting all possible information from "living" sources and their memories, the next step is to work with paper and electronic archives. This work is especially useful in cases where the twig broke off at some stage and it is not known, for example, who the great-great-grandfather married or on what front and when the great-grandfather died in the Finnish War, what awards the grandfather received during the war. Such information can be obtained from various archives or databases. Be sure to double-check the information, as there are often namesakes, even complete namesakes of people, otherwise your searches may go into other people's "trees".

Family tree construction schemes

When the information is collected, the question arises of how to compose a family tree. The layout and placement scheme can be different. The difference in the schemas is the person set as the base. Can be built from a famous member of the genus to the modern generation. This variant more clearly shows the presence of children in this ancestor and their division into different family branches.

There are still options for how to create a family tree. An example of a standard scheme, the most common, is shown in the figure. The tree is usually built like this: you are located below, your parents are above, then grandparents, etc. The branches expand from bottom to top. Below are the children. Designate yourself as the basis.

Want to do your research and learn about your family's origins? Asked to build a family tree as part of a portfolio for a school? Or are you thinking of creating a family tree with your own hands to please your loved ones?

In our article you will find not only tips for finding information about ancestors, but also various options for designing a tree. We've also prepared two templates for you to fill out your family tree: one for children and one for adults.

How to make a family tree with your own hands

Where to begin

Before starting work, you must determine for yourself why all this is needed. The progress of the project depends on your answer - will it be an in-depth study, or will you simply share with the children the stories of your parents and grandparents that are still alive in their memory.

Having a clear goal will help you reach the end result faster.

Think over a plan, break it down into small stages - so you can easily track your progress, which, in turn, will add even more motivation and positive emotions.

Finding information about relatives

Once you have decided how far into history you want to delve into, the most mysterious stage begins - the collection of information about modern relatives and distant ancestors. You will surely learn many funny and touching stories, find distant relatives scattered all over the world, and maybe even reveal some family secret. To find as much information as possible on how to build a family tree, use the following methods:

• Interviewing loved ones

• Parsing the family archive

Carefully study all documents, letters and diaries that have been preserved in your family. In birth, marriage and death certificates, passports, work books and diplomas, you will find answers to key points important for the pedigree. These records will help restore information that loved ones could not remember. Look at the old photographs: Granny may have forgotten to tell about her second cousin. And already at this stage you can select photographs for your family tree.

• Internet searches

Browse the various genealogy sites and related resources for historical information. Thus, the site "Heroic deeds of the people" provides open access to archival documents about the exploits and awards of all soldiers of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.

Register on several thematic forums. For example, on the forum "All-Russian Genealogical Tree" it is possible to search for a specific person by last name, region and country.

Try to find distant relatives of your generation on Odnoklassniki or VKontakte. But do not forget that in the correct genealogical research, any information must be confirmed by archival references.

• Collection of information in registry offices and archives

If you are looking for information about marriage, dates of birth or death, contact the registry office. If a relative has something to do with the army, for example, is a veteran of the Second World War, make a request to the military enlistment office at the place of residence, service or conscription. But keep in mind: in order to obtain testimonies of deceased relatives, you must prove your relationship with them, providing, among other things, your birth certificate.

When doing genealogical searches in archives, you shouldn't expect a quick result. The process can take months or even years. But the information you find can significantly advance your research.

• Contacting specialists

If you do not want to waste time building a family tree, contact the professionals. Archives, designers and specialist companies will help you find the information you need and build a family tree. In addition, with their help you can create a pedigree book, a presentation film and even a family coat of arms.

What are the types of family tree

There are several methods for constructing a tree.

• Descending tree

The family pattern is formed from ancestor to descendants. This design method allows you to visually trace the history of the genus from remote times to the present day.

• Ascendant tree

Compiled from a person to his ancestors. This structure will be especially convenient for those who have not yet completed their search for information and are consistently moving from the known to the unknown.

• Circular table

It is built in a circle with one of the descendants in the center. The second, outer circle is divided in half and the mother and father are recorded in it. In the third circle, cut into four parts, indicate grandparents. Then a fourth circle is added, which is divided into eight parts, and so on. This type of tree is quite rare, but such an arrangement of data is the most compact of the existing ones.

How can you arrange a family tree

• Family tree on a computer

Family tree software will help you save time and get guaranteed results. Use the online MyHeritage service or GenoPro, Family Tree Builder, or Agelong tree. Choose a template, enter your pedigree details and enjoy the result.

You can also find or draw an empty tree for filling in .doc (for Word) or .psd (for Photoshop) format.

• Family tree with your own hands

Get creative with your pedigree tree results. We have selected a few examples for inspiration for you:

Family box

For each ancestor, a box is wound up or one cell is allocated in which documents, photos, objects are placed. Having opened such a box, you can touch the past and find out what kind of person your ancestor was.

Family tree from scrap materials

This design option is perfect for a project in a kindergarten or school.

Family tree in the album

Decorative stand with photo frames

How to work with a family tree template

We have prepared two templates that will appeal to both children and adults.

You can work with templates both electronically and in print:

• Print out a blank template and add drawings or photographs of yourself and your ancestors there.

• Use any graphic editor and insert the scanned images into the template. Print your result.

Filling out a template in Movavi Photo Editor

With Movavi Photo Editor, you can not only edit pictures and insert them into templates, but also restore old photos.

Check out our sample filling template to learn how to build a family tree correctly.

If a child in school or kindergarten was asked to draw the genealogical tree of his family, with the help of this article you will easily cope with the task.

Many people are drawn to their roots. They wonder who their ancestors were, what their fate was. Therefore, the fashion for pedigrees and family trees returned. The path of least resistance is to use an online program on the Internet or download an application that allows you to quickly draw up a colorful family scheme with a photo. But much more soul will be in a family tree, created by hand. To do it is often asked to the child.

How to draw a genealogical family tree correctly: template, diagram

A family tree is a diagram of family ties within a family, sometimes for convenience and beauty it is depicted as a tree with a trunk and crown.

IMPORTANT: In a big city, it is not always possible to regularly communicate even with the closest relatives. Most of us know or remember the maximum of great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers. Family ties are weakening and interrupted, but a person without a family is like a tree without roots, lonely and weak.

On the Internet today there are many sites that allow you to create a template family tree with a photo using special programs. You can also download a frame for several photos and insert portraits of family members into it in Photoshop. It's fast, convenient and definitely beautiful.

But drawing up a generic diagram with your own hands has many advantages:

1. You have the opportunity to spend time on the creative process yourself, with your relatives and children.
2. You will pay tribute to your ancestors, return to the origins of your kind, learn or remember many interesting and funny stories.
3. If you chart with a photo, you organize the pictures of your family members.
4. A beautiful and neat family tree is an interesting interior decoration.
5. If you make a family tree with the birthdays of relatives, with the designation of the wedding days of the spouses, you will never forget to congratulate them.

So where do you start? How to draw a diagram correctly?

First of all, you need to figure out what kind it will have. After all, a tree is a conventional name. The pedigree can be depicted schematically, where male relatives are “leaves” in the form of squares, female relatives are round “leaves”, and the connection between them is indicated by branches - arrows. If the tree is compiled with the child, it is worth considering its decoration, depicting it in the form of a tree, cutting out and sticking photographs of relatives on its branches.
Next, decide what your pedigree will look like:

1. Descending is the most common and convenient type. Such a tree begins to be compiled from the most distant relative. Usually, this is a man, since traditionally the genus of us is transmitted through the male line. The vertical "branches" of the tree go down to its descendants, the relationship between them is indicated by the horizontal "branches".
2. Ascending is a kind of scheme used when there is little information about a person's ancestors. In the "trunk" of the tree, the person for whom it is compiled is located. And at the top, in ascending order, they place his relatives in past generations. When making out a family tree with your child (and it most often ends with great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers), stop at this option.

Now take a pen and a notebook, try to remember your relatives, if necessary, the dates of their birth, death, date of marriage, and other information. It may be necessary to raise documents for this.
No matter how detailed the family tree is, it will not work to designate all information about relatives on it. If you take the matter seriously, make a card for each relative with all the information known and important to you.
If you want to make an artistically designed family tree with photos, select the ones you will use in advance.

VIDEO: How to create a family tree correctly?

How to create a family tree for your family: a sample

Are you an active Internet user? To compile a family tree, use free programs:

• "SimTree"
• "GRAMPS"
• "GeneWeb"
• "GeneoTree"
• "Family Chronicle", "Tree of Life" (only demo versions are free)

Are you drawn to independent creativity? Take one of these diagrams as an example.

How to draw a family tree with a pencil step by step for a child?

In order to draw a family tree with a child, you will need:

• simple pencil
• eraser
• colored pencils, markers, paints
• ruler
• scissors
• photos of family members

IMPORTANT: They usually ask primary school students or preschoolers to draw a family tree. In family lessons, the child is asked to tell about all the family members shown on the diagram, so do not make the tree extensive. Show on it only those relatives whom the child knows, whom he can tell about.

1. Lay a sheet in front of you, preferably horizontally.
2. Draw a tree trunk and branches with a simple pencil.
3. Draw the crown. How realistic it is will depend on the child's age and creativity.
4. On the table at the top of the tree, mark a spot for the baby's name and / or photo.
5. Just below, identify his parents exactly as well.
6. On the branches of the trees, place relatives from the side of mom and dad, respectively (grandmothers and grandfathers, uncles, aunt, nephews, if any).
7. Draw the family tree so that the generations are ascending under each other: mom and dad, below - grandparents, even lower - great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers.
8. Draw relatives from the same generation horizontally side by side.
9. Connect all relatives with horizontal and vertical arrows.
10. Color the background as you like, the trunk and branches of the tree are brown, the leaves are green. If there are frames for photos, arrange them too.
11. Take your prepared photos, carefully cut out the portraits of family members, paste them on the appropriate places.
12. Sign the family tree. For example, "The Petrov family tree", "Anya Petrova and her family", "My family", etc.

IMPORTANT: Frames for photos of each relative can be made in the form of leaves, apples, etc., then the tree will turn out brighter and more beautiful.

VIDEO: Draw your family tree

Pedigree family tree: pencil drawing for children

Here is another example of how to draw a family tree with a pencil with a child. The principle is almost the same, but the leaf is placed vertically, and for the child the place is determined at the bottom of the tree.

Get creative with your child's family tree. Use techniques: VIDEO: DIY family tree: scrapbooking

"It is important for a person to know his roots"

V. Peskov

If you treat your family history superficially and lightly, you may at some point find yourself in an awkward situation and not be able to answer the simple question: "What kind will you be?" Earlier, representatives of the highest nobility were engaged in genealogical research with special zeal. This was simply explained - the family's pedigree (a sample of which could be provided to everyone) served as proof of their high origin.

Simpler people also kept information about their origins. Many peoples who have not yet broken away from the great umbilical cord and keep the traditions of their people (for example, Buryats, Mongols, Kazakhs, etc.), are very sensitive to the preservation of information about the genealogy. It was considered shameful not to know your ancestry until the seventh generation. All the information collected in the pedigree was and remains a source of pride. From a practical point of view, it protected people from incest.

Recently, it has become fashionable to restore the family lineage. Various computer programs and agencies come to the aid of all comers. In this article we will share how to create a family pedigree (sample # 1) on our own, without the help of professionals. Believe me, only at first this burden seems too heavy - the main thing is to start!

Step one: collect information

The first step in creating your family's pedigree is to become a meticulous journalist, greedy for any kind of information. Last names, first names and patronymics, dates of birth and death, place of residence, date of marriage, etc., etc., etc. Do not dismiss information that for some reason seems unnecessary to you now. Believe me, when the complete picture comes together, this is the puzzle that will be missing.

Look through your archival documents, ask relatives (especially the elderly). The work of collecting information can be delayed, especially if your relatives are scattered around the world. Do not neglect the epistolary genre, write letters, collect information in telephone conversations, on Skype.

Step two: draw the draft

Already at the stage of collecting information, for convenience, you need to take notes of what you heard and make diagrams. The picture below shows the "skeleton" of a family lineage, an example of the approximate location of key figures. As you can see, the scheme is simple, female personalities are indicated in round segments, male ones - in square ones. Family pedigree (sample):

For a draft of a family tree, a thin one will do as needed, you will simply glue the necessary work area.

It is very important to draw all the personalities that you learned about from the informants. Even those about whom you have practically no data. It's okay, leave an empty circle - there was a person, and sooner or later you will find information about him.

Step three: decorating the tree

How sprawling your family lineage will be (sample # 3) depends on the amount of information collected. Three or four levels (and this is one century) may well fit on a standard sheet of Whatman paper.

A start. To delve deeper into earlier times, you will need to consult archives and libraries. It will not be superfluous to contact the namesakes.

In this article, we have only superficially demonstrated how to create a family pedigree (an example is also presented in a schematic form). Your family tree can be three-dimensional, it can be illustrated with the coats of arms of clans, portraits of all relatives - everything is in your power. Family pedigree (sample) - an example of your selfless work, which will be appreciated by posterity.

The continuous connection between generations, which has existed since the beginning of time, is the guarantor of the preservation of human memory.

A documentary confirmation of such memory is the family tree - an example of anxious attitude to their roots.