Genealogy
Many people use the terms genealogy and family history interchangeably. But in the strict sense of the words, they do not have the same meaning. One can be a family historian without being, per se, a genealogist, and one certainly can be a genealogist without being a family historian. Many, many people fall into this latter category.
Genealogy is the study of family relationships, who begat whom. It usually includes names, dates, places of birth and death, residences, etc, but basically, just the facts.
Family History, on the other hand, attempts to present a larger picture, by including additional information, such as biographical sketches, anecdotes, historical context, and any other information that may be found about the lives of your ancestors.
I consider myself to be more a family historian than a pure genealogist, though the two go hand in hand for me. I do like to trace my roots as far back as possible, and I am constantly striving to fill in the gaps where they occur. But it doesn’t do a lot for me to just know the names of my ancestors. I want to know who they were. I want to know as much about them as I can possibly find out. This is what gives you the connection to your heritage and helps define (or explain) who you are.
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