For many, the first encounter with their family tree has to do with a grade school project that involves tracing relationships of one's immediate family in a rather rudimentary format. While it is true that the traditional boxes and lines of grade-school family tree projects are indeed a popular layout, they are by no means the only methods of illustrating a family tree.



Many people find that the most basic of family tree layouts can be quite limiting in scope. If you want to create a comprehensive family tree that traces multiple generations and numerous family branches, the boxes and branches approach will only get you so far. That is why many genealogists (both novice and advanced) turn to other family tree formats to trace the history of their families. Here are some of the most popular methods of creating family trees.

Pedigree charts probably have the closest resemblance to the family trees that many of us have created in school. If you want to take a more simplistic/traditional approach to family tree creation, a pedigree chart may be just what you want.

A pedigree chart shows the direct ancestry of a given individual and assigns each person in that ancestral line a number. Number 1 is the person at the end of the family tree. Numbers 2 and 3 are the father and mother (respectively), 4 and 5 are the paternal grandfather and grandmother and 6 and 7 are the maternal grandparents.

When illustrated, the pedigree chart looks somewhat like a rocket ship sitting on its side. You can view more information and illustrations of pedigree charts here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedigree_chart

Those who want to trace their family history and share it with friends and family will often use creative layouts to do so. These layouts include photo montages, scrapbooks, paintings, and other creative mediums.

A photo montage can be a great way to display your family history in video format. By creating a photo montage on DVD, you can use family pictures (both old and new) and music to illustrate the history and relationships of one's family while entertaining those who watch it.

Photo montages don't usually work well for those who want to create an extensive family tree that dates back hundreds or thousands of years, but they are perfect for those who want to create a remembrance of a few generations past for future members of the family.

Scrapbooks are another wonderful way to creatively display a family's lineage. By scrapbooking your family heirlooms and photographs, you can create a gift for future generations of your family to share. Pictures, letters, birth and marriage certificates, even locks of hair, pieces of jewelry and old family recipes can be placed in a family scrapbook.

You can find more information on scrapbooking your family tree here:

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/scrapbooks/a/family_history.htm

For those who would like to display their family history for all to see, a professional painting may be the ideal choice. There are artists who cater to those studying their genealogy and are experienced in illustrating family histories.

Once you have gathered all of your family information together, the artist can create a painting detailing your family's past. Some people choose to commission paintings that depict a family's historical migration while others have ornate and detailed trees painted with the names of family members incorporated into the branches.

You can find out more about family tree paintings here:

http://www.familytreepaintings.com

Pedigree charts probably have the closest resemblance to the family trees that many of us have created in school. If you want to take a more simplistic/traditional approach to family tree creation, a pedigree chart may be just what you want.

A pedigree chart shows the direct ancestry of a given individual and assigns each person in that ancestral line a number. Number 1 is the person at the end of the family tree. Numbers 2 and 3 are the father and mother (respectively), 4 and 5 are the paternal grandfather and grandmother and 6 and 7 are the maternal grandparents.

When illustrated, the pedigree chart looks somewhat like a rocket ship sitting on its side. You can view more information and illustrations of pedigree charts here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedigree_chart

The genogram is a type of family tree that has often been used in the psychiatry and medical fields. Unlike a traditional family tree that just illustrates names and dates, a genogram displays family relationships and medical histories.

While genograms haven't traditionally been used by genealogists, they are becoming more and more popular as people are beginning to realize the importance of tracing hereditary medical conditions. You can view more information and illustrations of genograms here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genogram

Ahnentafel charts are an increasingly-common method of recording one's family history. Because of the Ahnentafel's layout, they take up less space and those who want to record genealogies in a notebook find that Ahnentafel format to be very convenient.

An Ahnentafel chart is made up of names and numbers. When creating the chart, the number of the father is always two-times that the number given to the child. The number given to the mother is two-times the number given to the child plus one.

For example, in your Ahnentafel chart you would be given the number 1, your father the number 2 and your mother the number 3. Then your father's father would be given the number 4 and your father's mother the number 5. This would continue all the way up the tree.

The numbers in an Ahnentafel chart correlate with the numbers in an illustrated pedigree. You can view more information on Ahnentafel charts here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahnentafel

The online creation of family trees has become increasingly popular and as such, there are a wide variety of family tree makers on the Web. However, while many people were excited to see the wealth of family tree makers on the Web, the sheer number of service providers became problematic over time.

Genealogists routinely like to share information with one another to help further their research. When genealogist A would try to share information with genealogist B, there wasn't an efficient way for them to transmit the data to one another if they were using different family tree programs. That's is when GEDCOM came into play.

GEDCOM stands for Genealogy Data Communication. It is a standard file format that most of today's genealogy software is able to read. To put it simply, GEDCOM enables you to take your family tree and convert it to text format, thus enabling you to share your family tree information with other genealogists and upload any GEDCOM family tree to the family tree software of your choice (assuming you use a family tree maker that is able to read GEDCOM files).

GEDCOM was developed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The church wanted to create a uniform format for exchanging genealogical data to assist with their genealogy research. Further information on the GEDCOM standard can be found here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GEDCOM

The possibilities offered by today's family tree tools are endless. Whether you want a simple and straightforward outline of your immediate family or an in-depth collaboration of your entire bloodline, the family tree tools currently available through websites today are making today's family trees some of the most elaborate in history. There has never been a better time to start tracing your own lineage and creating your family's illustrated history.