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Question:I read that Prince William of England and George W. Bush, President of the United States are 15th cousins once removed. I am not sure what that means. Thank you for your help.


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I read that Prince William of England and George W. Bush, President of the United States are 15th cousins once removed. I am not sure what that means. Thank you for your help.

If someone walked up to you and said "Howdy, I'm your third cousin, twice removed," would you have any idea what they meant? Most people have a good understanding of basic relationship words such as "mother," "father," "aunt," "uncle," "brother," and "sister." But what about the relationship terms that we don't use in everyday speech? Terms like "second cousin" and "first cousin, once removed"? We don't tend to speak about our relationships in such exact terms ("cousin" seems good enough when you are introducing one person to another), so most of us aren't familiar with what these words mean.

Relationship Terms
Sometimes, especially when working on your family history, it's handy to know how to describe your family relationships more exactly. The definitions below should help you out.

Cousin (a.k.a "first cousin")
Your first cousins are the people in your family who have two of the same grandparents as you. In other words, they are the children of your aunts and uncles.

Second Cousin
Your second cousins are the people in your family who have the same great-grandparents as you., but not the same grandparents.

Third, Fourth, and Fifth Cousins
Your third cousins have the same great-great-grandparents, fourth cousins have the same great-great-great-grandparents, and so on.

Removed
When the word "removed" is used to describe a relationship, it indicates that the two people are from different generations. You and your first cousins are in the same generation (two generations younger than your grandparents), so the word "removed" is not used to describe your relationship.

The words "once removed" mean that there is a difference of one generation. For example, your mother's first cousin is your first cousin, once removed. This is because your mother's first cousin is one generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations younger than your grandparents. This one-generation difference equals "once removed."

Twice removed means that there is a two-generation difference. You are two generations younger than a first cousin of your grandmother, so you and your grandmother's first cousin are first cousins, twice removed.

thats so bogust, the term one removed is an old country saying that means once removed is concerning a member that has been removed due to a divorce Report It


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  • I think someone is pulling your leg...

    It means there is one generation's difference between them.

    Simply there's a degree of seperation between them.

    This is how it goes:

    Let's say you have a cousin named Bob.

    You----------Bob
    Your kids = Bob's first cousin, once removed
    Your kids + Bob's kids = second cousins
    Your grandkids + Bob's kids = second cousins, once removed

    So to know that they are 15th cousins is pretty distant. They won't be meeting at a family reunion anytime soon.

    i think it means that maybe someone got divorced or something like that

    Once removed" indicates a difference of one generation.

    When the word "removed" is used to describe a relationship, it indicates that the two people are from different generations. You and your first cousins are in the same generation (two generations younger than your grandparents), so the word "removed" is not used to describe your relationship.

    The words "once removed" mean that there is a difference of one generation. For example, your mother's first cousin is your first cousin, once removed. This is because your mother's first cousin is one generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations younger than your grandparents. This one-generation difference equals "once removed."

    i think they are talking about him in office because "once removed" the country will flourish and prosper like england...