lineage
Chain of ancestors
Lineage is a line of descent from an ancestor—the chain of people connecting you to those who came before.
It emphasizes direct succession: She traced her lineage back to the Mayflower.
The word often carries weight, suggesting heritage worth claiming: royal lineage, noble lineage.
Extended uses apply to anything with traceable origins: the lineage of an idea, the lineage of a musical genre.
Those from whom one descends
- forebearsAncestral family members
- progenitorsOriginal ancestors of a lineage
- descendantsThose who come after
- forefathersAncestral predecessors
foremothers · progeny · offspring · generations · family · clan · kinfolk · kinship
Custom passed through generations
- cultureCollective social practices
- inheritanceProperty received from ancestors
- legacyWhat's passed down
- heirloomsObjects passed through family lines
customs · birthright · provenance · folklore · roots · identity · patrimony · bequest
Ceremonial chair for sovereigns
- reignSovereign's time in power
- successionFollowing in order
- imperialRelating to supreme rule
- kingdomMonarch's ruled territory
coronation · sovereignty · monarchy · realm · crown · nobility · aristocracy · sultanate
Chart of ancestors
- recordsStored data or albums
- archivesStored historical documents
- documentationWritten proof or instructions
- researchSystematic fact-finding effort
census · registries · chronicles · surnames · genealogist · ancestry · DNA testing · birth certificates
Reproductive cultivation of organisms
- purebredOf single breed ancestry
- thoroughbredOf pure ancestral line
- stockGoods kept for sale
- sireMale animal parent
dam · studbook · kennel · registries · champion · bloodstock · stud · broodmare
Revered authority figure
- transmissionSending of information
- dharmaCosmic moral order
- apostolicOf the first disciples
- initiationFormal admission ceremony
succession · master · disciple · parampara · silsila · ordination · blessing · empowerment
ancestors
Those from whom one descends
- forebearsAncestral family members
- progenitorsOriginal ancestors of a lineage
- descendantsThose who come after
forefathers · foremothers · progeny · offspring · generations · family · clan · kinfolk · kinship · roots
tradition
Custom passed through generations
- cultureCollective social practices
- inheritanceProperty received from ancestors
- legacyWhat's passed down
heirlooms · customs · birthright · provenance · folklore · roots · identity · patrimony · bequest · relics
throne
Ceremonial chair for sovereigns
- reignSovereign's time in power
- successionFollowing in order
- imperialRelating to supreme rule
kingdom · coronation · sovereignty · monarchy · realm · crown · nobility · aristocracy · sultanate · pharaoh
family tree
Chart of ancestors
- recordsStored data or albums
- archivesStored historical documents
- documentationWritten proof or instructions
research · census · registries · chronicles · surnames · genealogist · ancestry · DNA testing · birth certificates · vital records
breeding
Reproductive cultivation of organisms
- purebredOf single breed ancestry
- thoroughbredOf pure ancestral line
- stockGoods kept for sale
sire · dam · studbook · kennel · registries · champion · bloodstock · stud · broodmare · papers
guru
Revered authority figure
- transmissionSending of information
- dharmaCosmic moral order
- apostolicOf the first disciples
initiation · succession · master · disciple · parampara · silsila · ordination · blessing · empowerment · teaching
- cultural heritagefolklore, traditions, customs, folk music revival, museum collections
- nobilityking, queen, prince, princess, duke
- Clan & Kinshipkinship, ancestry, bloodlines, blood ties, extended family
- Medieval Royaltyking, queen, prince, princess, crown
- familymother, father, parents, siblings, parent
- relativesmother, father, sister, brother, aunt
lineageposterity
Future generations collectively
descendants · progeny · issue · offspring · heirs
lineageselfhood
Individual identity, personhood
individuality · self-determination · autonomy · self-creation · tabula rasa
lineageextinction
Complete vanishing of a species
orphanhood · discontinuity · fresh start · dead end · new beginning
- linear timeDuration moving one direction
- family lineagesAncestral descent patterns
- female lineageAncestry traced through mothers
- linear thinkingStep-by-step logical progression
- linear equationsAlgebraic statements without powers
- male lineage