Relationship guide
Understand how two people are connected.
Family relationships can sound complicated. The clearest answer combines a familiar name with the complete path through the family tree.
Begin with the shared ancestor
Most family relationships become easier to understand once you find the nearest ancestor shared by both people. Trace each person back to that ancestor, then count the generations on both sides.
Parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles
A parent is one generation above you and a grandparent is two. Your parent’s sibling is your aunt or uncle; a grandparent’s sibling is a grand-aunt or grand-uncle. Their descendants may be cousins even when everyday family language uses auntie or uncle.
What cousin numbers mean
First cousins share grandparents, second cousins share great-grandparents, and third cousins share great-great-grandparents. The cousin number describes how many generations separate each person from the shared ancestral couple.
What ‘removed’ means
Removed describes a difference in generation, not emotional distance. Your first cousin’s child is your first cousin once removed. In many families, a culturally familiar description such as distant niece, nephew, auntie or uncle may feel clearer alongside the formal term.
Follow the recorded path
A relationship label is only as reliable as the links beneath it. A useful relationship finder should show the complete person-to-person path so relatives can inspect every parent, child or spouse connection that produced the answer.
Allow for family language
Kinship language varies by culture, generation and household. Preserve the genealogical path as the source of truth, then present the formal relationship together with the language the family actually understands.