How many years is a generation?

Question:

How many years is a generation?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: The challenge here is the birth order of the child. If you are descended from a long line of first born children, 25 years is a good average to use. If you're descended from the babies of the family, then 35 years is more appropriate.

As a working estimate, use a between 25 years and 35 years to a generation. A child born in 2000 should have his father born around 1965 to1975. His grandfather should be born around 1930 (35 years/generation) to 1950 (25 years/generation).

The further back in time you go, the more inaccurate this kind of guesstimate becomes. If you try to calculate a great great grandfather from a child born in 2000 you have between 1860 (35 years/generation) and 1900 (25 years/generation).