We explain what an ancestor and a descendant are, their location in the family tree and various examples.
What do ascendant and descendant mean?
The words ascendant and descendant are understood, respectively, to mean the parents and offspring of an animal or human being. In simpler terms:
- Our ancestors are those who came before us and from whom we descend: our ancestors and parents, such as our father and mother, grandfather and grandmother, etc.
- Our descendants will be those who come after us and who descend from uslike our children, grandchildren, etc.
These considerations come from the idea of the family tree, which is a generational representation of, precisely, ancestors and descendants of a family. Thus, those who are at the top of the tree, the first, are the ascendants; while those who are below, detaching themselves from those above, are the descendants.
Both words come from Latin: ascendant is made up of the voices ad- (“towards”) and scandere (“climb” or “climb”), and descendant is made up of the voices of- (“from top to bottom”) and scandere (“climb” or “climb”).
The nouns ancestry and descent are used in a similar way. The first term refers to the set of previous relatives of a person, even when they are not mentioned explicitly but in a general way: “Henry has African ancestry” (that is, his ancestors include Africans).
On the other hand, the second term refers to those who will come after him: “Henry had numerous descendants” (that is, he had many descendants, many children and grandchildren).
Other examples of sentences with both words are:
- Taking care of the planet is a responsibility towards our descendants.
- The sorcerer promised to put us in touch with ascendants.
- we are all descendants of migrants.
- In that country everyone believes they have ascendants
On the other hand, in evolutionary biology, it is common to use the word descendant with the sense that one or more species come from another previous onewhich existed before as it adapted to different environments, giving rise to new species. The latter, therefore, descend from the original species. For example: “Human beings descend from certain African primates.”
Finally, we should not confuse these words with other terms of similar meaning, such as:
- Ascending, is that which rises or ascends.
- Descending, is that which goes down or descends.
Continue with: Types of family
References
- “Ascendant” in the Language Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- “Descendant” in the Language Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- “Ascendant or descendant?” in Current Spanish.
- “Differences between nouns: “ancestry” and “descent” at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (Colombia).
- “Radication of Ascendant” in the Online Spanish Etymological Dictionary.
- “Radication of Descendant” in the Online Spanish Etymological Dictionary.
