Genealogy

Genealogy is actually the tracing of a person's own ancestors. The idea behind genealogy is that a person traces their ancestors from themselves backwards as far as they can go. There are people who do genealogy or family history who stick strictly with facts: born, married, died, children. Other people go almost in a sideways motion and they are interested in knowing what went on in the time that a particular ancestor lived and try to actually what we call flesh out ancestors so that you have more of a feeling that you knew that person. Right now, genealogy happens to be one of the fastest growing hobbies in the world. It really took off when the movie Roots was shown on TV and hasn't slowed down since. People became very interested in their own family history and also in the age their grandparents or great grandparents lived. In the past, families often lived in one area and they lived and died within just a few miles, but nowadays you don't usually have a family that is clustered together so you don't have a large extended family close by. Most people move several times during their lives and often live in a city where they have no relatives. As we all age, we become more interested in who we are and where we came from and that is what genealogy is about. If you love mysteries and puzzles, then this is the hobby for you.