‘The word pedigree is a corruption of the French “pied de gru” or crane’s foot, because the typical lines and split lines (each split leading to different offspring of the one parent line) resemble the thin leg and foot of a crane.’
A pedigree chart is a chart which tells you all of the known individuals with common ancestors. An ancestor being a parent or (recursively) the parent of an ancestor (i.e., a grandparent, great-grandparent, and so on).
Two individuals have a genetic relationship if one is the ancestor of the other or if they share a common ancestor; in evolutionary theory, species who share an evolutionary ancestor are said to be of common descent.
Some cultures place great reverence on ancestors, both living and dead; contrastingly, people in more youth-oriented cultural contexts may display a lesser degree of veneration for elders. In other cultural contexts, some people seek providence from their deceased ancestors; this practice is sometimes known as ancestor worship or, more accurately, ancestor veneration.
