decedents
Those who died
Decedents are people who have died.
The term is almost exclusively legal, appearing in wills, estate documents, and probate proceedings: The decedent's assets will be distributed according to the will.
Outside legal contexts, the simpler "the deceased" or just "the dead" is more natural.
One who makes bequests
- intestateHaving made no will
- probateWill validation proceedings
- estateProperty and grounds
- beneficiaryDesignated asset receiver
executor · will · testament · trust · devisee · legatee · codicil · inheritance
Those connected by blood
siblings · grandchildren · next of kin · surviving · widow · widower · orphan · dependents
Those from whom one descends
- forebearsAncestral family members
- progenitorsOriginal ancestors of a lineage
- forefathersAncestral predecessors
- foremothersFemale ancestors collectively
heritage · bloodline · pedigree · genealogy · family tree · roots · antecedents · patriarchs
testator
One who makes bequests
beneficiary · executor · will · testament · trust · devisee · legatee · codicil · inheritance · bequest
relatives
Those connected by blood
parents · siblings · grandchildren · next of kin · surviving · widow · widower · orphan · dependents · household
ancestors
Those from whom one descends
- forebearsAncestral family members
- progenitorsOriginal ancestors of a lineage
- forefathersAncestral predecessors
foremothers · heritage · bloodline · pedigree · genealogy · family tree · roots · antecedents · patriarchs · matriarchs
- inheritanceinheritance, inheritances, heir, heirs, heiress
- probateexecutor, probate court, probate, beneficiary, executors
decedentsheirs
Those who inherit
beneficiaries · inheritors · legatees · devisees · successors