What is a First Cousin Once Removed? | Ancestry

[@rosannelytle6428]

Very good Crista, you did a better job than I could have at explaining this concept.

[@holidayhouse03]

I got some cousins I'd like to remove... more than once.

[@thefreckledafrikan]

holidayhouse03 lmbooooo

[@phillipharris609]

holidayhouse03 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@gladysdunbar8129]

lol

[@joesmith8725]

LOL Same here. :-D

[@1GoldenBreeze]

holidayhouse03 I see what you did there!!! rofl

[@maryanndunwoody4666]

I'm constantly trying to explain this to my family members who are interested in our family tree. At some point they often get a glazed look in their eyes, shake their heads & tell me I can be the keeper of all that information. Haha! 🤣

[@Br0wnSgr]

LOL but that is great that you are diligent with it. At least they trust you to be family historian!

[@SonnySantana2099]

Mary Ann Dunwoody wait so your first cousin is the first child of the oldest sibling of your parent?

[@MSSmith1022]

I get that with my families riddle.

[@RaymondHng]

Create a family tree chart. It might help in explaining.

[@moniquereese1031]

That's how I look now!

[@KerinColson]

I always try to explain it by telling my relatives to count the g's. A great-great grandparent has 3 g's. So, third cousin.

[@lindseyormsbee]

It's not that easy though

[@macifoggs4463]

@@lindseyormsbee that was 3 years ago

[@lindseyormsbee]

@@macifoggs4463 and?? It doesn't change either statement.

[@macifoggs4463]

@@lindseyormsbee She not gonna read it

[@failyourwaytothetop]

Fascinating! A simple solution to a complex problem

[@AncestryUS]

We measure how closely two people are related using units of measurement called centimorgans. The number of centimorgans we report is our estimate of the amount of shared DNA we can attribute to a recent shared ancestor. Centimorgans are not units of physical distance, but rather, units of probability. In general, the more centimorgans two people share, the more closely related they are. To learn more click here: support.ancestry.com/s/article/Measuring-Relatedness Click here to see the DNA match categories: support.ancestry.com/s/article/AncestryDNA-Match-Categories

[@HRHDMKYT]

Ok, this was actually very educational. I always wondered what the cousin "labels" were for my mother's first cousins and their kids. We grew up visiting them a lot -- since her (older) siblings all moved to Australia after WWII, they were her only family in North America. It's also nice to know we were correct when we explained to friends that (those cousins in our same generation) were our "2nd cousins". (But we did call my Mom's cousins and their spouses "Aunt" and "Uncle", which only feels right as a sign of respect for our elders. We always knew they weren't 'real' Aunts and Uncles, since they weren't my Mom's siblings). Now I know for sure what their relationship 'title' to me and my brothers actually is. Thanks a lot!

[@BobbyVene]

Is that an Asian thing to call your Mom’s cousin aunt and uncle?

[@wandaglass2412]

Thanks, Crista! You always make the complicated topics much more fun and easier to understand!

[@lyzzpickle]

Thank you so very much, Crista , for this and your other videos. If your neck is sore, it’s because I’ve been hanging on to your every word since I received my DNA results. Cousins have always been difficult for me, but an NPE has made my understanding critically important. I appreciate your unflappable and straightforward explanations more than you know. God Bless.

[@AncestryUS]

Thank you, Lilly! Good luck to you in using this knowledge to continue to make new discoveries. (~Crista)

[@wildchook745]

Good timing explaining the cousin relationships. I was playing around with my tree last night to understand the cousin terms. It helps to know this to understand how you are related to your DNA matches.

[@esterixis]

My brain has just exploded. But, I did learn a lot! It helped to take notes, though. Thanks for the explanation. Subscribed!

[@trees8240]

I just found my father and family by using this video, your reply and constant cross checking posting my photo with reaching out to all cousins made it possible. Thanks for your life changing works!!!

[@CristaCowan]

You are so very welcome!

[@imaginenoreligion]

I've watched three videos on this. Yours is the clearest BY FAR. Thanks

[@marthastevensonwright6262]

Perfect explanation! I ALWAYS think of the vertical boxes in my head when trying to figure out cousins too!

[@Alfruna]

This answered a question about my 1st cousins and 2nd cousins children. We are a very close extended family - so I feel strange calling my cousins children cousins as well. I just call them my nieces/nephews. But at least I finally know how it's actually done. Thank you!

[@janeashley4920]

I have worked on my tree for many years and this is the first illustration I have understood completely 🙈 thank you!

[@Synth256]

Very nice video. I have struggled with the cousins designations my entire life (and I'm no spring chicken). Finally, the way you explained it clicked! Thank you so much for giving us such an excellent tutorial.

[@anthonybtwc]

This is such an awesome and simple explanation. Thank you!!!

[@janhackett7483]

Great explanation of a very confusing issue.

[@kathrynspicer3787]

EXCELLENT. All clear. I am the youngest of my siblings by many years. A 1st cousin once removed is only 15months younger. I am 1st cousin to her mother. I am now totally straight on how it works. THANKS.

[@sundownsigns]

Years ago I served on a jury and during breaks I studied a chart in the law library that explained these relationships. It cleared up this mystery.

[@Wahian1]

May be it’s easier to say- first cousins share the same grand parents. Second cousins share the same great grand parents. ( excluding the removed/generation ones)

[@denisemuhammad2382]

Thank you for sharing. This is extremely helpful.

[@AlithaMcEldon]

Let's pause at 6:28. My mother in law is "you" and married her second cousin. However if my father in law is the "you", then he married his 1st cousin once removed. How does that work?

[@AncestryUS]

At a cousin level the relationship is consistently labeled regardless of which direction you are looking at the relationship from. If someone is your 1st cousin 1x removed, you are also their 1st cousin 1x removed.

[@axjohn]

EXCELLENT explanation! One suggestion for future presentations, PLEASE bold or enhance your cursor in some way to make it more visible and obvious. Thanks. Gonna share your video with a “removed” cousin!!! 🤣🤣🤣

[@dupeaccount1647]

My grandmother was the oldest of four. My mom had me in her mid 30s. My grandma's baby brother had his kid around 50. So he's my mom's cousin or my first cousin once removed. He's about a month older (we're both 42 now and I haven't seen him since we were kids) than me so when we were always just the kid cousins when we were little. My mom still thinks he's my 2nd cousin even though I've explained this a few times already. Maybe I'll show her this and with the visual it will make more sense to her.

[@alynbailey6031]

Thank you - really clear explanation. I’ve now explained to my daughter that she has a second cousin once removed!

[@kathybeee1055]

There is a 17year gap between my oldest brother and myself. His son (my nephew) was 18months younger than me. My nephew's son/my grandnephew is 1 year younger than my youngest son. My son and grand nephew are 1st cousins once removed. Being from a large family I went to school with my 1st cousin once removed and my nephew in the late 1970s, I would refer to them as my cousin and nephew. Thank you Crista, for an easy explanation of the cousin formula.

[@AncestryUS]

Hi, David. It may mean the relationship is incorrectly set in your family tree. You can update relationships by following these instructions: support.ancestry.com/s/article/Fixing-Relationships-in-Trees?language=en_US

[@cecelliarogers7346]

I used to subscribe to the Who Cares? perspective, but now that I'm trying to narrow down DNA connections, this becomes meaningful. Thx!

[@valj3841]

Thank you very much. It was a very concise explanation.

[@ruthwright6247]

Thank you Crista Cowan.....great video ! Explains it perfectly. .....

[@Itisfinished403]

You did a really GREAT job of explaining this, thank you so much! I can hardly wait to get my results to start my research 🤗

[@WhoInspects]

Good presentation. Thank you for your explanation. I stopped watching at the point that I got the answer to the relationship I was trying to define. Thanks.

[@aprilwest4079]

You made this so easy to understand. Thank you so much.

[@AncestryUS]

You're very welcome!

[@VikkiJoSelix]

This video was awesome, thank you so much! I rewound a few spots, but I get it!

[@darlenefarmer5921]

Great Information! 👍👍👍

[@MrSquareart]

Yes I think it is great info to know.

[@buttercup141312]

What the hell... I just realized that the cousin who I always thought was just my “cousin” is really my first cousin two times removed... This ancestry stuff is so complex...

[@tantiwahopak101]

Dang then you should be old 😄

[@dreamergirlbaby]

They are your cousin whether they’re 2x removed. Slightly far down the family line but doesn’t disregard the fact that they are a cousin.

[@bridlong7763]

That was crystal clear. Thank you for this tutorial... I've even saved it into a folder on my phone for reference👍👍👍Now I'll spend the evening arguing with my Dad as he thinks his first cousin is my second cousin🤣🤣🤣

[@stephbowen4564]

Thank you so much for explaining! I never knew that this was the case. Very helpful :)

[@dreamergirlbaby]

So if my first cousin have a child that child is my first cousin once removed.

[@jmk1962]

Yes

[@conorscorner15]

Yeha and if your 1st cousin once removed has a child first cousin twice removed

[@regularjoe5517]

Wait but I thought that was a second cousin...?

[@conorscorner15]

Leticia Flowerpants yeha it is

[@fr0stb1ght34]

@@conorscorner15 no it's not. It's second cousin if we're talking about your grandparents' sibling's children. If granddad has a brother he is your grand/great uncle. Your grand-uncle's children are the 1st cousin of your parents as they are part of the same generation but different bloodline. Next, when your parents 1st cousins have kids those kids become your 2nd cousin as they are apart of a different bloodline but born in the same generation as you. But they become your parents 1st cousin once removed.

[@moccasinlanding]

THANK YOU....This tells me what I did not know, and explained it in a way I can remember.

[@pwsquare]

This is a great video. I finally get it! Now it all makes sense.

[@MrSquareart]

thank you for explaining this. I really really thought it was just something people said as a joke. I did not think it was a real thing. thank you for for cleaning that up and the knowledge is good to know.

[@jeanneh1247]

At about 5:10 children of grand aunts/uncles are added to the tree. It was said (and written) that these people are 1st cousins to my parent and their children are 2nd cousins to me. I'm confused about what the children of the grand aunts/uncles are to me. If they are 1st cousin to my parent and their children are 2nd cousin to me there doesn't seem to be a place for their relationship to me (surely not aunt/uncle).

[@AncestryUS]

The children of your grand aunts/uncles are your the 1st cousin of your parents. They are your 1st cousins 1x removed.

[@AncestryUS]

We're glad to hear you found it useful! Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

[@gingercameronfordcrouch7057]

I am having a hard time explaining to my newly connected 1C1R that we are not 2nd Cousins my mom's 1C well actually another of mom's 1C also thinks we are 2C and that is how I grew up thinking as well. It has taken some time for me to understand that and I am still trying to grasp so much more. Especially everything past basic immediate family. I didn't grow up knowing hardly anyone in my family we didn't know mom's or dad's family so all of this is so new to me and mom and moms cousins, etc.

[@rpreyer2]

I was just visiting my aunt who is ten yrs older than my dad. I spoke with my first cousins who are in the seventies and I am in the forties. I have bunch of cousins my I just call 2nd cousins. However now I see why some out removed.

[@carojayess1723]

This really helped me understand the cousin relationships. Thank you!!

[@josephclegg3562]

I had to go back and look at this several times before l got a better understanding of it.

[@OrchestralMusicMidJourneyArt]

This video was awesome. I am no longer confused. THX!!

[@melissaj1965]

Your explanation makes everything clearer. Thank you so much.

[@willacampbell9063]

First cousin once removed is all I want to know

[@thatashgirl83]

Basically your parents 1st cousin once removed is your 2nd cousin.

[@tiffanyevans3598]

Yes. The easiest way to remember is straight across is first, second, third etc. The moment you start moving diagonally, the removed come in.

[@petertosh8626]

U make me understand this thing more than anyone 🙏 thank u.

[@annemarieharm7996]

Thank you so much! This is really helpful.

[@DorisLedi]

Great explanation! Thank You!

[@reinabrowne]

thanks crista! i appreciate this. you're rad

[@richardday4088]

You really want to get the party started then throw in a set of double first cousins LOL

[@staceycoates1418]

I was just discussing this with my husband the other night! He is trying to get at least a rudimentary understanding so he doesn’t get to confused when I start talking genealogy. I know that when I furst explain cousins and removed cousins the first thing I tell them is that the number in front is how many generations to the closest common ancestor -1. So if I am the closest and it is my great grandparent that is me to my mom (1), to my grandmother (2), to my great grandmother (3). So three minus 1 = 2; those are my second cousins. The removed is how many generations that separate us. But what really through him was when I told him my mom was one of ten 1st cousins on each sided. He could understand that she had eight cousins on her dad’s side and another eight on her mom’s because she and her brother made the other two. Or that my second cousins are (in some cases) are 1st cousins to one another! That’s probably Cousins 401! But I thought this was an excellent video and I plan on sharing it with him.

[@SonnySantana2099]

wait so your first cousin is the first child of the oldest sibling of your parent?

[@danielcarneiro5483]

@@SonnySantana2099 your first cousin is the child of the sibling of your parent. Your second cousin is the grandchild of the sibling of your grandparent, your third cousin is the great grandchild of the sibling of your great grandparent, etc.

[@SonnySantana2099]

@@danielcarneiro5483 thank u

[@Br0wnSgr]

Wow thanks! I too assumped the 3 and 4th cousin incorrectly. And I have been calling my grandma's sister, my Great Aunt this WHOLE time, all of my 30+ years!

[@joesmith8725]

Uummm, siblings of your grandparents are your Great Aunts/Great Uncles.

[@josephclegg3562]

She is.

[@gaynor1721]

Some people call their grandparents siblings great aunt or great uncle. Others prefer to call them grand aunt or grand uncle, but that just complicates things.

[@danielcarneiro5483]

bro she is your great aunt. You can call her either grand-aunt or great-aunt

[@teriaugustine6464]

Thank you, Crista. I FINALLY get it.

[@cherylfurr4149]

Thank you for this video! Crista, you have a gift for explaining the impossible! Beginning with ancestry has nothing to do with time but with generations...this is why I am a solid 2C to someone 22 years older than myself! I will need to review this video several times and "play" with the chart , inserting different people to make sense of their relationship. Thank you again!

[@karennanne]

Thanks for answering those questions!

[@AncestryUS]

Hi Karen, we are happy to hear that you found this video useful.

[@ashleythorne8914]

Is there any such thing of half cousins because my grandmother and my great aunt are half sisters does that mess up anything in the family tree

[@nickmiller76]

The answer is yes. It doesn't "mess up anything", but it does obviously reduce the amount of shared DNA. For example, you would expect to share 575-1,330cM with a first cousin, but for a half first cousin you would only expect to share 215-650cM.

[@ashleythorne8914]

Thank you

[@jewillis100]

Thank you so much Crista for this video....I think the penny has finally dropped🤣

[@artwomer1184]

Thanks for a great video and explanation!

[@lynorasholistic-healing8317]

I just learned so much watching your video.... Thank you!🙂

[@AncestryUS]

That's awesome! We are happy that you are diving into your family history.

[@Angryginger2421]

Thanks I have been struggling with this

[@oshtoolman]

Outstanding explanation

[@daydreamsinmusic3050]

I was afraid that if I watched this my brain would explode ...lol. But it was good. p.s. Till my brain exploded! ...lol But seriously...Thanks!

[@EgressMan2006]

My head spun around 3 times before it was a removed cousin!

[@JLamar-tt3lh]

This video really helped me to understand my family tree and correct and error that I’ve been making for years now.

[@paolam.p.4075]

Oh, wow! Thanks! I never understood thet "removed" part before, since English is not my first language.

[@AncestryUS]

Hi Paola, and thanks for stopping by! We are thrilled to hear we have been able to help you! We wish you all the best on your research, thank you for sharing!

[@aquilaclark814]

Thx crista..you did a great job explaining this

[@mariecarty222]

Very informative. Thank you so much

[@marin803]

The English system is really complicated. I'm glad Swedish has more words for relatives.

[@SheriNewton]

Thanks for an informative video, as always. :)

[@juancalleja7908]

Great explanation, thanks a lot!

[@bennettdarren]

Can you share the Powerpoint template used in the video for creating quick trees?... This would be very helpful for flushing out quick trees.

[@AncestryUS]

It's a standard org chart template available with PowerPoint.

[@ashmorg5616]

Great thank you Crista.

[@anontantanstan]

I thought my mums cousin was my second cousin lol, thanks for clearing up the confusion

[@ammiev5702]

MushDaMalone Thats seems to be popular way to look at it when not using ancestry or DNA as a factor. That’s how my family has always said it. Once removed sounds weird and complicated, but I do try to use it when working on family tree.

[@macifoggs4463]

It is your second cousin

[@macifoggs4463]

Once removed is second cousin

[@ceeceedior21]

@@macifoggs4463 no it isn’t. Your second cousin is the child of your mom or dads first cousin

[@danielcarneiro5483]

@@ceeceedior21 the child of your mom is your sibling not second cousin lol

[@catsanctuary17]

Brilliant! Well done!!!! You have such a gift for teaching. My mind has been grouping everyone beyond 1st cousins into one big blob of cousins

[@ashablack2291]

Thanks, this was very helpful.

[@NaomiCurtis]

So very helpful. Thank you.

[@Azoreanislandgirl64]

My question is ?, should I build individual family trees under either paternal side or maternal side to show the different generation and where I and the cousins belong in the family tree? As you displayed and demonstrated on your examples. I think it would be so different and better to understand for others whom don't get the whole generational thing. Thank you for your explanation of the generational cousins placement.

[@LeeRalph100]

Thanks for the explanation. I was always told my cousins kids were my 2nd cousins. Thanks

[@tajuana_on_a_mission]

This was such an awesome video

[@alexsimon8567]

where can i get that powerpoint from... i need visuals when im adding cousins

[@Shahrdad]

I always found this a great deficit of the English language. In Persian, we have different names for each uncle and each aunt. And once you add a word to it, the relationship becomes clear, not just for which generation, but also which side of the family.

[@cokeejohnson]

That helped a lot, thank you

[@AncestryUS]

Hi Nicole, we are glad to hear this video was of some help with your research.

[@candicesalisbury5828]

Thanks you so much I totally get a better understanding of the generation once removed now. God Bless.

[@Drewman3387]

This is the best explanation

[@sladc4]

My grandmother was adopted, but I found her nephew. So he would be my first cousin first removed. If his mother was a "half" sister to my grandmother, what percentage DNA would the first cousin first removed have to me if he was a "half" vs "not half" first cousin first removed? He shares 6.51% DNA with me. Can I tell if he is a "half" with this information?

[@yudiee333]

i have a question about real old ancsestors? what if i have a great grandparent 24× and he has two children the other child im not directly decended from would be my uncle and his children would be my 1st cousins 23 tines removed? is this correct?

[@AncestryUS]

That is correct.

[@BrittonJOrwin]

Thought I’d see if I’m related to your Grandfather. He’s my 9th Cousin, Twice Removed. That means that Crista Cowan and I are 11th Cousins. How about that?

[@failyourwaytothetop]

The relationship is so distant that shared genetic material must be microscopic. With a third cousin it's down to less than 2 percent. Imagine a ninth cousin. A third cousin is a relationship shared through one pair of 16 grandparents I think.

[@JeriPaulette]

Thank you for this...

[@juanguentenguea.gonzalez737]

Thanks all of your details I appreciate it

[@stephenrobbins2038]

I’m a bit confused. Your chart has my parents cousin down as 1st cousin of parent, other charts I have seen say 1st cousin once removed. Which is correct please. Great vids by the way.

[@frankhooper7871]

Both are correct: they're your parent's 1st cousin and they're your 1st cousin once removed.

[@camabkamuvoba7467]

@@frankhooper7871 But which generation do you "remove" for them to be your 1st cousin? That's the part I can't comprehend. If you remove 1 generation, they become your "grand aunt/uncle" right? Or do you remove sideways?

[@danielcarneiro5483]

​@@camabkamuvoba7467 no. grand aunts are the siblings of your grandparents. Your grandparents and your granduncles and grandaunts are 2 generations away. your generation: You Siblings Cousins 2nd Cousins 3rd Cousins 4th Cousins 5th Cousins, 6th Cousin etc. 1 generation away: Parents Uncles and Aunts 1st Cousins Once Removed 2nd Cousins Once Removed 3rd Cousins Once Removed 4th Cousins Once Removed 5th Cousins Once Removed, 6th Cousins Once Removed, etc. 2 generations away: Grandparents Granduncles and Grandaunts 1st Cousins twice Removed 2nd Cousins twice Removed 3rd Cousins twice Removed 4th Cousins twice Removed 5th Cousins twice Removed, 6th Cousins twice Removed, etc. 3 generations away: Great Grandparents Great Granduncles and Grandaunts 1st Cousins thrice Removed 2nd Cousins thrice Removed 3rd Cousins thrice Removed 4th Cousins thrice Removed 5th Cousins thrice Removed, 6th Cousins thrice Removed, etc.

[@tabithalynn6303]

I have a long lost family member that started coming around a few years ago . His dad was my grand fathers uncle . So he would be my 1st cousin 3x removed or 2nd cousin 1x removed . What would that make him to me ?

[@pamelasharp8498]

Thank you very helpful will keep replaying till I have my head around it but thank you

[@missannettep6796]

Hi, I need help re: first cousin once removed. DNA shows I have a cousin once removed and we share 573 cm. Is he my cousin's son or my mother's cousin? Who exactly is a cousin once removed to me, my cousin's child or my mother's first cousin? Thank you!!!!

[@melaniejohnson653]

Hello and thank you for the video on 1xremoved. If my dad and uncle dont have the same father, would my uncles kid be 1st cousin? ancestry lists my cousin as once removed. Thank you.

[@cassandrataylor5463]

I love this!!!...this helped me so much.