Family Tree Chart Types Explained
Not all family trees look the same. The chart you choose shapes what your family history actually shows — ancestors, descendants, or both. Here's a plain-English guide to the main family tree chart types and when to use each.
A pedigree chart starts with one person and works backward through their ancestors — parents, grandparents, great-grandparents — branching as it goes. It answers "where do I come from?" Each generation doubles (two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents), so it grows quickly into the past. It's the classic choice for tracing your roots.
Descendant chart
A descendant chart does the opposite: it starts with an ancestor (say, a great-grandfather) and works forward to show all their descendants — children, grandchildren, and so on. It answers "who all came from this couple?" and is perfect for family reunions, showing how everyone gathered is connected back to a shared ancestor.
Build your family tree — free
Kinidhi's tree maker lets you add relatives in a few taps, with the correct Telugu kinship term computed for every relative. No sign-up, nothing leaves your device, and you can download the finished tree as an image.
Open the free tree maker →Hourglass chart
An hourglass chart combines both, with one person in the middle: ancestors fan out above and descendants spread below. It gives the fullest single picture of a person's place in the family — useful when you want both your roots and your branches in one view.
Fan chart
A fan chart is a pedigree drawn as a semicircle or circle, with you at the center and each ring a further generation back. It packs many generations into a compact, attractive shape, making it a favorite for printing and display.
Which should you choose?
- Tracing your roots? Pedigree or fan.
- Mapping everyone descended from an ancestor (great for reunions)? Descendant.
- Want the complete picture around one person? Hourglass.
Many people use more than one over time — a pedigree to research backward, a descendant chart to share with the wider family.
Build your family tree — free
Kinidhi's tree maker lets you add relatives in a few taps, with the correct Telugu kinship term computed for every relative. No sign-up, nothing leaves your device, and you can download the finished tree as an image.
Open the free tree maker →Beyond the chart: relationships
Charts show structure, but a family is more than boxes and lines. Recording the exact relationship — and in Indian families, the precise kinship term for each person — captures meaning a generic chart can miss. A tool that computes the right term for every relative turns a flat diagram into a living record of how your family is actually connected.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common type of family tree chart?
The pedigree (ancestor) chart is the most common — it starts with one person and branches backward through parents and grandparents. Fan charts are a popular circular version of the same idea.
What's the difference between a pedigree and a descendant chart?
A pedigree chart works backward from one person through their ancestors. A descendant chart works forward from an ancestor to show all their descendants. One traces roots; the other maps the whole family that grew from a couple.