The interest and participation in the thread How many First Cousins have you had? (which I started last Friday) has me wondering if there are other related topics about our cousins that might not be too private to discuss in at least general terms.
The latest distribution of responses in that thread
View Poll Results: How many First Cousins have you had?
This poll will close on 04-03-2014 at 10:27 AM
None 11 4.76% 4.76%
One 7 3.03% 7.79%
Two 11 4.76% 12.55%
3-5 37 16.02% 28.57%
6-10 60 25.97% 54.54%
11-15 32 13.85% 68.39%
16-20 20 8.66% 77.05%
21-30 30 12.99% 90.04%
31-50 18 7.79% 97.83%
Over 50 5 2.16% 99.99%
Voters: 231
would indicate that over half of us have 10 or fewer first cousins, and 3/4 of us have fewer than 21.
What are some other noteworthy aspects to our “extended families” that might be worth sharing?
For starters:
- How many Second Cousins can you name, and how many of them have you met?
- How spread out geographically are your First Cousins?
- Do your children (assuming you have any) know their first cousins?
- How many generations of your family still have living members?
Add to the list of questions and answer as many as you are comfortable with.
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In my case I know the names of some of my second cousins and first cousins once removed, but that’s about as deep into the family tree as I can go without looking at ancestry charts. My mother was very thorough in her family research and I know a little about the major ancestral lines on her side and my dad’s side for at least eight generations. After that, the families’ whereabouts and specific names get fuzzy.
I have met maybe five of my second cousins at those big family reunions we had when I was young. The latest one of those would have been in the 60’s or 70’s.
As for geography spread, I know for sure of seven states, and there are probably another three or four that I’m not sure about, where my generation is/are living now. An older first cousin died a few years ago, but I think the rest are still living.
My children’s mother was an only child and my only brother has had no children so my kids have NO first cousins. They may know a dozen or so more distant cousins in their age group, but I can’t swear to that.
As for living generations, I have one living blood uncle and maybe three still living aunts by marriage. The rest are gone.
What do you feel comfortable discussing about your own families?