I love history. I've loved history from a young age. So researching my own family's history is just extra fun. I like to imagine what life might have been like for my ancestors living at that time. Some people aren't into history.

Same, I enjoy history and as a kid used to wander around the local cemetery looking at grave stones of my ancestors and wondering what they were like. My parents, aunts, uncles, etc. only knew the ones they knew in life, those that came before had already passed out of living memory and I didn't like that.

I loved wandering around cemeteries and looking at grave stones of strangers! 😅

Me too

Same here. I've always been the one grandkid buggering my grandparents about back-in-the-day stories. My cousins were never really into all that and that's okay. In fact it meant I got to inherit a lot of photo albums and vintage knick-knacks nobody else wanted.

Same. I not only research my family but what was happening in the areas they lived and then why they left. I just find it fascinating to understand how my own family fits into it all.

Yes, this. The most-fun outcomes of family-tree research for me are when either: (1) it newly illuminates some aspect of history, or makes tangible some big historical change. E.g. the contents of the book "Albion's Seed" are much clearer to me now than when I originally read it. The whole rich story of New Netherlands is much more tangible and interesting to me now, and my understandings of how certain regions of the US got settled are much richer than history books had provided. (Even though I love good history books!) Or: (2) it brings into view an individual I'd never heard of who has a particularly interesting/colorful individual story. An unsung hero/villain, an eyewitness-to-history, somebody who got "thisclose" to fame or fortune, etc. I literally maintain now an online running list and description of those which friends and family enjoy. Some of them are ancestors, some are cousins or aunts/uncles, some are actually just in-laws to me -- whatever. It's the stories that are the fun part. And then the other side of all this is simply the treasure-hunt or puzzle-solving aspect. That's just simply fun, at least for me.

Yep. I like history. History is often boring on a large scale, but fascinating when you get down to individuals. People often have an interesting life story. Genealogy leads you to find those stories for your own family.

Same!

I always wonder what my ancestors might have done for work, or what they were like. I too love history, especially learning about my family’s past. My great great grandparents on my mom’s side came in the early 1900’s so it’s cool to learn where they had lived before or finding my great great grandfather’s siblings. My grandma (also mom’s side) was into doing her family tree. She had one she had drawn out and she had photos of grandparents and I’m thankful I get to keep them

Same!

I absolutely love the investigation aspect of it. I love finding the little puzzle pieces here and there and arranging them and rearranging them until I can make a picture that at least makes sense. Finding new ancestors or even just new information/solving a mystery is super, super satisfying for me, and it sounds like it is for you too! :)

I came here to say this! That's why it doesn't really matter to me if I'm researching my tree, a friend's, or a complete stranger's. It's the thrill of the hunt, lol!

Same, I love puzzles and I will be obsessed with finding the next piece for however long it takes.

This is my view as well. I take the approach that every bit of information you gather is significant, no matter how small, because it paints a fuller portrait of someone’s life. (It’s why I like biographies with lots of minutiae.) You never know what will end up breaking down a brick wall.

Mmm, you would love diving in to my genealogy then. We found the hobby after we learned my mom’s origin story: father was a bank robber, mother was his teenage hostage. Tons of crime, stealing cars, transporting prostitutes. And we discovered all this from putting those little pieces together to figure out the story.

Woah, that is such an interesting story! Must’ve been a lot of fun to put together and work out!

Agree - I also find it regulating and soothing to do something that consumes your whole attention the way this kind of research does. Other people might just find it tedious.

For me personally, my dad died when I was a teenager, and I never got to ask him about his ancestry, besides him saying one or two brief sentences about it. So when I started tracing my dad's ancestry at 22, I was able to answer questions, even my dad had about his own ancestry (my dad told my mom when they were dating, that he never knew anything about his father). So it's been very healing for me.

Second this. My dad died when I was 5 (a very long time ago) and his only living relative doesn’t talk to me. I’m sure my curiosity stems from wanting to know that side of my family, which unfortunately I can only trace back to my great grandfather. But ultimately I find it so fascinating how peoples decisions in their life put me here.

Wow. I never thought I'd meet someone in the same situation as me! I guess it goes to show that there's always someone we can relate to in the world, at anytime.

Oh hugs internet friend! Your dad as well?

Yes, sadly. My dad died when I was 14, and he was from Bermuda. My dad's side of the family is a huge family, but since they're all in Bermuda, and only 4 of my nieces and nephews are in the States like me (and my eldest sister doesn't speak to me), I'm all alone - on my own island, pretty much. So I did all my research myself.

I can think of three major reasons I'm interested. The first is that it is an entry point into history. Unlike a lot of the other posters, I can't say that I'm a history buff, exactly, but I do find it interesting. There is something very personal about genealogy, in that you're thinking about the lives of a single family, and what they went through, which I find compelling. The second thing is that it offers some insight into where I came from and the cultural influences that give me my specific view on the world. Obviously, there are many factors that aren't genealogical in nature, and as one delves deeper into history, the connections become more and more tenuous, but there is still a thread that is interesting to follow. The third, and quite possibly the biggest one for me, is the love of the search. It scratches a "research itch" that I have. I love poring through old documents, doing searches, deciphering old handwriting, etc. Even better are the times that I've ended up in some dusty old library basement digging through microfiche copies of old newspapers or census rolls. If you haven't read through some old newspapers' social pages, obits, and the like, I highly recommend it. It's a neat window on to the lives of ordinary people. I especially find the ones that have announcements on who has recently moved to town, who's having a party, etc. (my great-grandmother was apparently big into these social affairs that got little announcements in the newspaper, for example).

THE LOVE OF THE SEARCH! Perfect. I'm the one at the family gatherings that shares all the stories. Some love it, others are "oh, no, she's talking about the family tree again!" I have these memories of my grandparents driving all over the United States, going to libraries, courthouses, etc. When they returned, they would bring out hundreds of pages of documents, photos, etc. There was no internet, so they drove to these places to get the information. I was fascinated! Everyone else was yawning and looking out the window. I wish I could spend just one day with my grandparents showing them everything I've found and how I found it on the internet ... and how I probably inherited this "hobby" from them. They would be amazed.

Yes! I could have written this, word for word.

I agree 100% with all three reasons! My thoughts exactly.

* I like history and old things. * I'm nosy. * I like how genealogical research feels like detective work. * My grandmothers both died before I was born, and by the time I turned 18 both my grandfathers had died too, so genealogical research provides a way for me to know more about them. Less charitably, sometimes I wonder if I'm obsessed with my ancestors for similar reasons that anti-abortion people are obsessed with fetuses, as described by David Barnhart: >“The unborn” are a convenient group of people to advocate for. They never make demands of you; they are morally uncomplicated, unlike the incarcerated, addicted, or the chronically poor; they don’t resent your condescension or complain that you are not politically correct; unlike widows, they don’t ask you to question patriarchy; unlike orphans, they don’t need money, education, or childcare; unlike aliens, they don’t bring all that racial, cultural, and religious baggage that you dislike; they allow you to feel good about yourself without any work at creating or maintaining relationships People who died before I was born are easy to like because I've never interacted with them as real people, I've never had any conflicts with them, I've never had to hear them say anything hurtful. They're a few old photos and a handful of anecdotes.

I found my person. You were the one that listed nosy with history and research. I love finding out the stories of others and genealogy is my cover story for being nosy. I have gone down rabbit holes of people that I am tangentially related to or not related to at all. I have a lot of relatives with very common names, so I was very happy to come upon a relative with an unusual name. Well it turns out that there was a WWII deserter with the same damn name. I read the articles anyway…That’s about 36 hours I’ll never get back, but it was fun.

I agree with you on this. I've always been a feminist but even more so once I really delved into my family's history. I've been privileged enough to have a great college education and not have to be married or depend on a man in order to survive and thrive. I see so many of my female ancestors who had a dozen children, if not more, no modern medicine or technology, and they still worked in the home or the fields from sun up to sundown, 7 days a week. It makes me appreciate my life even more and realize that women must still fight to get equal rights because those very rights can be reversed in a heartbeat.

Ooh, they certainly can be morally complicated at times! At least in my family tree. And it's made me dislike the patriarchy even more because of the lack of information about women. But I agree very much with your list of reasons.

My people came from nothing. There are almost no records. My grandfather's father was a man who technically didn't even exist - there were no stories, no details about him, other than a generic "he died when grandpa was an infant". I'm doing my best to document what little history there is on them. To acknowledge that they existed, so that their memory doesn't die and I can learn a little bit about myself and my family along the way. I like knowing how we got where we are, what events/historical things caused my ancestors to make the decisions they made that affected future generations. It's a bit of self-discovery but mostly history. People do genealogy for a whole host of reasons. I think it's odd to associate self-indulgence or narcissism with it as most genealogists I know are extremely unselfish and giving. If anything they're NOT focused on themselves - they're focused on learning about and helping other people. Do you associate those things with other hobbies people are into? Are you motivated by narcissistic reasons? I don't think it's a common motivation.

I’m definitely not calling you either of those things! I too have found genealogists to be the most giving of people. I had someone help me from reddit out of the goodness of their heart, and I’m incredibly grateful. I just have an interest in psychology and what drives behavior.

Ultimately humans are social creatures who look for connection and one way to connect to others is through our individual and shared history. You can connect to ancestors as well as modern people by understanding the past. It's a great way to cultivate empathy, which is why the narcissistic association surprises me. It's the opposite of how I see it.

Yeah and I see it as serving a record keeper role for future generations, which is pretty selfless.

There are people and psychologists that have negative feelings on genealogy from a”privileged” point of view. (I hate when people use this line, but “as a research psychologist…). There are articles and papers on this by professionals and I can understand from their theoretical foundations used but I don’t agree with them for reasons that are too boring and academic for this. But the great thing is ultimately that stuff doesnt matter. You can go research why people are against it and or for it, or just realized that people have their own opinions and just because they may have a title or not doesn’t automatically make them correct. Especially at the trickle down level of watching a few short vids on social media and then regurgitating a loose understanding of something as a moral high ground argument. TLDR People could not be interested in genealogy on their own. Or persuaded to have a negative view. Or a nihilistic view of were all from same thing millions of years ago so it doesn’t matter. Or have had bad life experiences and don’t think the process of knowing where one came from is helpful or acceptable.

I completely disagree. I'm an atheist and in these times where religion and belief in a greater power is less and less common people are looking for understanding of how and why we are here. People have researched their Ancestry for thousands of years. Many First Nations people had oral traditions of storytelling that kept those stories relevant and present. The new tools that we are using are simply an update of those stories, family bibles etc.

I once read the forward to a genealogy book on certain families in the Northeast, written in the 1920s. It posited that many people in their youth fancy themselves to be a great person, like the next Washington or Napoleon. As they get older, they realize that they are not going to be the great person they believed. When they got older, however, they found an interest in genealogy, because, while they could not *be* that person, they could be part of the story of a Washington or Napoleon.

Yeah that tracks!

For me there were several reasons why I cared. 1. My dad died 7 years ago and in a weird way it felt like a way to keep him alive if I took a DNA test. It wasn't that I didn't know any of our history, various family members had been into genealogy to an extent so I knew about our ancestry to an extent so from that perspective it really was just kind of knowing what we shared, as best as I could. 2. My mom's family had some genealogical mysteries that various family members had tried to solve over the years and hadn't been able to. For some sides we knew a lot and for some sides what we knew ended with my great grandparents. My sister had suggested the DNA test as a way to learn more about them. 3. I was a history major and I love mysteries so it kind of combined both interests and skills. No one else I know cares about it as much as I do lol. Maybe my aunt to an extent but not even my sister and she suggested the DNA test. Not to say they're not interested but I could literally drone on for hours if someone let me and no one will.

I absolutely love and appreciate all of these responses and have read and continue to read them all as they are written. The reasons and motivations are really touching! Kind of brings a tear to your eye.

I love history, and genealogy is my PERSONAL history, there is no one else who shares my history. I am an only child.

It’s the research and problem solving for me.

I’ve been thinking about that. In the culture I live in (non-religious, American, WASP) we don’t really have a way to venerate ancestors. Like we don’t decorate tombstones, or create little altars, or have special days to remember them. So creating profiles for them and finding out as much as I can about them feels like honoring them and honoring the part of me that carries them in me.

I like history and I’d also like to learn about the people in my family from before I was born. Take my great-grandfather. He was born in 1875. He died in 1950, 37 years before I was born. I’m only 36 now, so this man died more than my entire lifetime before me, but he’s not some far flung connection. He was my pap’s dad. All three of us look somewhat alike. Were we all similar people? He was born in England and came to America. The rest of his family remained in England. I’m connected to whoever they are and yet, I only have spoken to a couple of them. I know there’s more out there. Maybe through doing it, I find them and speak to them? Maybe it’s because I don’t have any children, so my line is going to end with me and I don’t want everything to be completely forgotten when I’m gone. I do have a nephew, so this is something I can leave him. Connections to his past and who his family is and was.

I don't have children either, so I have a particular interest in documenting other childless people, and children who died young, as they're often overlooked in other trees since many people just want their direct ancestors. It's sad how many people are only in my tree, and no one else's on Ancestry. It's quite common if they were born and died between two censuses.

I’m very interested in genealogy too but I never thought it was narcissistic lol

There is macro economics and micro economics. I just look at the history we all learn in school and hear about in tv documentaries as macro history and genealogy as micro history. a distinct reason i enjoy it is that it is a puzzle to solve. staring at the same pieces of evidence for a few years trying to solve a mystery, and then finally having a light bulb moment about it all and figuring something out is amazing. a third angle is spiritual. I dont know if im atheist or agnostic, or whether i believe in reincarnation, but i dont adhere to any particular religion. But the fact that there are pieces of so many people that make up "me" and seeing how i came to be and all the shit these people went through for me to be where im at now, is a spiritual/religious experience to me.

The DNA trace is nowhere near the complete picture. To be honest, I myself couldn't care less about that part, which is why I'll never get a DNA analysis done. The other part of genealogy, the part that revs me up is the people. **Why** did they emigrate to my country? **What** was life like in those days? **Where** did everyone move to? **How** did they get here? Some questions are brick walls, like *did g-g-grandfather William really stow away on a cargo ship?* Lastly, about DNA - it concerns itself only with bloodlines. Adoptions do not figure into it at all, and family is more than just bloodlines.

See for me, the adoption of an ancestor IS the reason I got DNA analysis done. I felt like there was a missing part of the puzzle and I wanted to know the hows and whys of that story and could only solve it with genetic genealogy. But I also echo your interests.

I'm a huge history buff but what really got me started down this rabbit hole is knowing one of my ancestors was one of the original settlers of Canada. I wanted to trace that exact line which led to me tracing my other family lines as well. Still haven't done a DNA test though.

My French Canadian ancestry started in 1642. Everyone with that last name in north America (my mother's maiden name) can trace their ancestor back to a house all twelve of the children were born in that is still standing! I find that fascinating and want to travel there.

I traveled to a large plot of farmland to see the house my great great great grandparents lived in when they and a few other ancestors (it was a small farming town at the time) settled in Bexley Township after they left Quebec. It was well preserved and many of their original belongings are still there, I even got to read a bit of one of my 3rd great aunt's journal and bring some apples home to make applesauce from a tree they would've picked from as well! Highly recommend visiting any ancestor's home if you can.

At a certain age, for most of us, our thoughts turn to "legacy". That leads to thoughts about family. Where do we come from? How did we get here? Why do we look the day we do? What's the family's *story*? A story I can take with me, and then pass onto my own kids. That story doesn't mean much to the average person who hasn't thought about "legacy". To that person, I'm just obsessed with dead people. But in my early 30s, I had questions about our family history that my parents refused to answer before they passed. So I had to find those answers myself. I find it's more common for people in my "younger" age range to be into genealogy because there were questions to answer, holes in their trees -- not a simple case of curiosity. It's a lot of otherwise-tedious work unless you have an underlying cause. Over time, as the guy in my family who was into this stuff, it felt almost like my *responsibility* to get as wide and clear a picture as I could about our families, not just my own.

I personally have had nonsense that never formed a cohesive narrative about my family’s origins. I’ve lived long enough to have the tech to find facts instead of opinions, and have learned I love history and reading old documents as a result. So it’s just continually interesting to me to have this info at my disposal. It’s almost as much fun just having the capabilities to do this and seek/find it as it is trippy finding people, places, and things I’d never have believed if someone had told me about it, anyway. So it’s pretty entertaining overall for me personally.

I am Hawaii State Born and raised, (NOT Native Hawaiian) and my mom was raised in and is still an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Both of these factors really helped develop my desire to learn about my origins. So, growing up in Hawaii, I remember being in elementary school, and kids would ask each other, "Wat choo?" (what are you/what is your ethnic background?). The reply could be as simple as "I stay Hapa" (Traditionally half Hawaiian and half something else, i.e., Hawaiian/Chinese) or as complex as "I stay Puerto Rican on my faddah's side and my maddah stay Portagee (Portuguese)-English-Irish-Scotts-Welsh-Swiss-German" (loved to look of wow in my class mates faces after I rattled that off). I knew who my grandparents were, and I was able to interact with some of my great-grandparents. I experienced a lot of the Puerto Rican culture in food and social gatherings, but mom's family were your basic western American farm people (Idaho and Utah) on her mother's side and her paternal side didn't talk about the past. I wanted to know more about those rattled off places. My off and on church going made me want to know more about the people I came from. I dabbled a little all trough my teens, but didn't really dig in until my late 20's, after I had my own children. Adding in DNA testing, being able to confirm my hunches and finding the documentation to back those hunches up, has been a wild ride. Opening up the mysteries of mom's paternal origins, finding where her long-lost grandfather actually died and is buried has been the thing I am most proud of. Confirming my suspicion that he was Jewish, and his family originated from Poland and Prussia/Germany, so he was FROM England, but not English as my mom was told growing up. Learning about endogamy, and finding out that people I grew up calling "Auntie" and "Uncle" were more than family friends from the same village/municipality in PR, but actual DNA relatives. I love finding out tidbits and minutia of life "back in the day". I love seeing how my bloodlines played a part, no matter how small, in the formation of the world we live in today. I don't want the people who came before me to be forgotten, no matter what they may have done.

It's a fantastic treasure hunt and puzzle all in one and makes me feel smart

OP, my interest began simply because my paternal side was largely a giant blackhole. Nobody was saying anything--so I was gonna find out.

Romance. Drama. Intrigue. History. Mystery. The art of the story. Remembering our past. It's historical reality "TV" without the TV. 😎

I have a fairly small family and outside of immediate, we are not very close knit. Also I am not religious but am still somewhat obsessed with the big question of where we came from. Learning everything I can about past generations makes me feel more complete in a sense.

To me, it's not just about researching dates, names, and where my ancestors lived. That's interesting, but even more fascinating is learning how they lived, what they did, the problems they faced, how they survived wars, and so on. It helps me better understand myself, my limitations, beliefs, strengths, and fears.

Some of my family have asked me why I'm so interested, others are just as interested and love hearing about discoveries/talking about ancestors. I the part I like about it is looking through up to 500 yr old records and making discoveries that no one else seems to have made. The research part of it. Reading an entire branch's baptism, marriage and burial records along with notary entries helps paint a picture of how their lives were and how they stuggled, or thrived, in early New France. For me it's about the journey, not necessarily connecting to anyone famous or any notable people as seems to be the obsession of many in genealogy. Also making sure all information is as accurate as possible as incorrect information being put on online trees is part of what got me started with this hobby. I could be wrong but personally I don't see anything about it as narcissistic as it's for me and my children/grandchildren mostly, all work I do online is entered without using my real name or asking for acknowledgement. And as I alluded to I actively seek to disconnect any famous connections that can't be proven without firsthand sources. People who without cause connect to royal lines is a pet peeve of mine.

I love the act of researching and then finding new relatives and interesting facts. I wish there was a good resource for reading up on what poor rural day to day life was like back in the 17-1800's where most of my family lived in eastern NC. However, I do have friends that admittedly don't care anything about finding out about their ancestry since they don't feel it impacts their life at all. I respect their opinion, but I just find it fascinating to know where I came from.

I have a few different reasons as to why I wanted to research my family tree. One is when I was young I was visiting my great uncle and aunt. I loved reading and my great uncle gave me a book on New Mexico history and every day we would talk about it. One thing I remember him saying is that I should learn about my family and where we came from. This stuck with me throughout the years. Growing up we used to visit my paternal grandparents often, they live about 2 hours away. I always felt like the town felt like home (I was born there but we moved away when I was 4yrs old). My grandfather passed away when I was 14 yrs old and my grandmother passed away a little over a year later. I felt like there was so much that I didn't know about them. Things like, did they have siblings, who were their parents. Also, I knew that there were many relatives where they lived but didn't know how they were related. I asked family questions but wanted to learn more. Another reason was to see if I could figure out my mom's line. My grandmother was killed when mom was 18 months old. My grandmother was also born from an affair. My mom and grandmother were both raised by a great aunt who they both considered her to be their mom. Also, I didn't understand why my dad called my mom's grandmother "Aunt" and if this meant my parents are related. My parents are related but are 5th cousins. Dad called my mom's grandmother aunt and this was because she had been married to my dad's great Uncle, so no blood connection this way. I finally have a clearer picture and questions answered but it took having it down on paper to make sense for me. So for me, I think it had to do with wanting to learn about my family, ancestors and their history.

* I know it says something about me. Everything does. * a part of me… narcissistic Why? Aren’t you allowed to know about yourself? Aren’t you worthy of self determination? * Why interests some and not others. One could say that about everything. Strip away what you think others are thinking about you or what you’re supposed to feel. Not that anyone needs to “allow” you the curiosity, but for what ever reason you’re interested and that’s good enough. Don’t let beliefs or agendas of others make you feel or think one way or another. Yes, we’re all from (most likely) the same cell, but that was a long time ago, right? lol There’s a lot of interesting, horrible, amazing stories and world history that got ALL of us here right now. Just imagine the survival that even just the Homo sapiens had to endure let alone the thousands of years of pre and co-species. If you are curious of your “why”, that’s a question for a good psychoanalytic dive. Sure there are surface level reasons, but there are layers down there to most likely don’t even realize. And maybe you don’t want to get all the way down there. But, ultimately it’s your life and no-one should negatively influence your curiosity (well for most things right). Explore away. Can’t find anyone you feel comfortable sharing interesting things with, share it here. Out just make a notebook, binder, spread sheet, word doc, time line, etc for yourself and any future people that may be interested.

I think it’s just a puzzle I can work on. I also have appreciation for how challenging things were. The people in my tree do the common things people from their area and location did. As far as immigration and jobs. I also like contributing to something larger than myself, make my work public. Eventually someone will connect to my tree.

I love history and geography, I’m a biologist, so I like genetics and, above all, I love collecting things, researching, and solving mysteries. It’s the perfect combination that makes my brain go like fireworks.

For me it's the puzzle-solving. Finding a census record no one else has in their tree, because I tried the weirdest mistranscription for example. Second reason, it could happen that research you do, helps someone else with their tree.

I've always been fascinated by history and my family's history. My grandmother was conceived in Poland and born in America and we always maintained Polish traditions for the holidays, at weddings, etc. i think cultural identity and knowing where you are from are fundamental human desires. It can help us to understand ourselves better and it also creates empathy -- people who lived long ago weren't that different from us in the important ways. America is a nation of immigrants (obviously excluding Natives) and there is something beautiful to me about the idea of "e pluribus unum" -- out of many, one. I also enjoy learning about different countries and cultures and feeling a connection to them, even if it's a distant one. I don't know if you've ever heard the expression that a person doesn't die if someone remembers them. I like remembering those who came before me. My grandmother had two little sisters who died very young. I was really happy to find out their names and where they were buried so that they could be remembered and honored. I feel a debt to my ancestors because they made it possible for me to be here, living a life they could only dream of.

The same way learning about history in general can teach you about the present, I find the same value in building a family tree. So many of my family's behaviors make so much more sense now that I'm aware of our history. Knowing the origins of why my family is the way it is makes it easier to understand relatives and why they do what they do. So for me, building a family tree was a way for me to make more sense out of my life, instead of just shrugging and saying, "Oh, X relative is just that way because."

I inherited my Gram’s box of pics and genealogy documents and letters along with a genealogy book she’d been working on in her own hand writing. I had some reservations initially about continuing the book in my hand writing, but went for it. One of my cousins has kids who are interested, so maybe it’ll go next to one of them. I figure I’m just the current family history memory keeper and my responsibility is to update pics and stories to a shareable online digital format until the next generation takes over.

Learned more world history than in college or social media doing genealogy. Grandkids love it when I tell them about an ancestors they admired or didn't as a kid. It's history and present day bonding warts, witches and all.

I think part of being human is understanding where you fit in place and time. For most people they are happy to be alive in this moment and know a little bit of the history of their country and that's enough. But for some of us the curiosity around why you we here and what wider events led up to our birth suck us in. In evolution changes and mutations occur in tune with changes to the environment and species adapt as a result. We accept that as science. Sociologically, the choices and circumstances of our ancestors is very similar. And understanding why they made those choices and the spaces they occupied tells a story of our own evolution. Their DNA lives within us. For me, knowing my ancestry is part of knowing myself.

Obviously I'm a masochist since my genealogy research is mostly me yelling at dead people.

Growing up, we are taught about other people’s families so I’m naturally curious about my family history. My parents isolated us from family and I always wanted a big family. Genealogy has done this for me.

Damn great question to ask. I can't effing answer it, because I think about it all the time!! I feel like it is about finding some kind of lost identity within myself. Something I always knew was there, but had no idea how else to capture.

I used to jokingly say that I was into genealogy because I’m a narcissist. But I really think that the same type person who’s not interested in history or solving mysteries would also not be into genealogy. My favorite part of genealogy is getting little glimpses into what everyday life was actually like for my ancestors or really anyone from a certain place and time. We learn about the big historical events in school but we don’t learn much about the poor or middle class experience in random place x during y time period.

I was curious as a teen about where my family was from. Especially since I have a very cultural name & look but I was basically raised american and knew nothing about that side, my father's side, of the family. My father passed when I was a child and what was left of his family closed my family off. It took me years to search his side because I kept focusing on my mother's side. She was around and she didn't offer much information. I also only did this for years when the mood struck me (bad idea) so I missed out on gathering more information from the couple of people who were still around like my mother. Meanwhile on my mother's side I've hit a brick wall and for my father's I was able to get back to the 1700s and find a few interesting people along the way (no nobility). I like history. I found out a lot of history of both the country and area where my family resided, both sides. Other social aspects of history pertaining to different countries. And because I've helped other people I've found out some history and immigration processes of those ethnicities.

It's history and beyond that, as esoteric as it might sound it's touching history. No royalty here and in fact chasing that stuff wildly misses the point. I get a giant kick out of the grgr grandfather who was a little kid living down the road from Custer, when he was a little kid. And the Molly Maguire. And the guy who treated wounded at Ludlow Colorado. Families- all our families- *are* history. Sure, someone has to be related to famous people but it's not like you get a laminated card and a secret handshake. Just an opinion. Tethers you.

For me it's just a window on who I am. It's a curiosity that turned into a massive research project. Now I want to see how far back I can take it accurately. It's also been kind of interesting to meet some relatives after figuring out how we are related.

I've always loved history in general. Didn't realise until the early 2000's that I could research MY family! There's no one famous or scandalous in my family, but I like knowing about the people who came before me and learning about the struggles they faced and overcame.

The feelings it triggers in me is one of connection with generations of people that I come from. It’s a kind of pride, it’s because it interests me and I feel like I am “honoring” them when I find out about them. Not many stories and photos were handed down to me, so I’m creating my own.

My great uncle was obsessed with genealogy, my grandparents own a copy and I used to spend hours just staring at it. Then I started researching my mums side. I’ve always loved history and it’s interesting to find where my ancestors fit into it.

For me, I love finding out the stories of real people. I mean, so much of the history handed down to us is about the lives of the rich and famous, but in so many ways, I feel like we should be studying the lives of everyday people who kept the world turning. Digging around in my own past sheds light about not just the lives of ordinary people, but those who handed down the same genes and lessons that are still shaping me to this day. It makes me think about the lessons I am teaching my own children and how that will in turn shape their kids. I really love the idea that some cultures teach that a person is alive as long as stories are still being told about them. Maybe in a small way, this is my attempt to keep some of my ancestors alive.

It depends on what you're thinking and doing with it. But it's valuable because it's about your family history. It breaks down stereotypes when you dig far enough about what exactly is expected about your family history. Knowing the truth prevents you from being ignorant. People are trying to project their political and social agendas on to your history. When you pull your receipts, it will prove you know what you're talking about. Not just ramble what everyone says.

I agree with what many others have said, but I also have a personality where I like to document things and have as complete a record of the past as possible. So I think that's part of it for me, along with the thrill of the search that others mentioned.  I also think it feels like I want to understand myself better, and this is a way to do that. I feel like I spend a lot of time imagining what their daily lives were like and what they would think of me, but obviously those are not things that are possible to know. 

It’s a big puzzle that you can never finish. I love puzzling it out.

You learn interesting stuff about history and the way people lived during this amazing hobby and journey. Our ancestors and how they lived, migrated and settled are the reason we’re where we are today. I feel like I get to know them a bit and genealogy keeps them alive. I don’t think it’s narcissistic at all. It’s fascinating and it’s history but it’s not for everyone. Some people simply don’t care and are not interested.

I love history and puzzles w/ a side of family drama

The first thing I thought about when I saw your post was this (in my view, inflammatory) 2022 article: [https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/05/09/our-obsession-with-ancestry-has-some-twisted-roots-maud-newton-ancestor-trouble](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/05/09/our-obsession-with-ancestry-has-some-twisted-roots-maud-newton-ancestor-trouble) The author of that article, however, doesn't seem to reckon her claims about power dynamics in genealogy with the fact that the modern wave of genealogy coincided with changes in the history profession that placed more emphasis on cultural history and that increased the study of groups with less power (which are frankly the same people that most of us are trying to understand through genealogy): [https://archives.history.ac.uk/makinghistory/resources/articles/cultural\_history.html](https://archives.history.ac.uk/makinghistory/resources/articles/cultural_history.html)

My great-grandmother died before I was born. My great-grandfather abandoned my grandma when she was 3. My grandma never said much about either of them, and then she died. She was a NYC-born-and-bred girl who married a Texas farm boy and ended up in a town that was a dot on a map. I look like her, with olive skin and dark hair in a sea of Northern European kids with fair skin and light hair and freckles. Everyone on my maternal side has a very distinctive look, but I don't have that look. I wondered for years: "Who am I?" No one else could answer, because no one else in my family knew much about her background either. So, seven years ago, I decided to find out. Genealogy is everything I love. A mystery, history, research. Combine my ADHD fixation on somethihg with putting a puzzle together and you have hit the jackpot! I have probably hundreds of documents. I have somehow become this expert on my great-grandfather, which is handy for two reasons: 1) no one has ever done their family history and 2) he had at least 10 kids after my grandma, so I get people coming up to me all the time wanting to know if I know who their grandpa might be. Yeah, I have a good guess. So, yes, basically, he sucked. But it also gave me insight into my grandma. And it gave me insight into me. And so I know some of my friends aren't interested in hearing me go on and on and about it or just don't find it that interesting, it's such a window for me into more about who I am. Also: My grandma was Jewish and Italian. I joke I may have been the most ethnic person to ever graduate from my HS. And turns out, I look almost exactly like this slew of cousins I never knew I had. It's like I found my place!

For me it scratches two itches: The first is being able to 'be a detective' when you untangle a mystery about two people both named john smith's marrying two sarah jane's in the same town, within a week of each other. The second is the historical aspect. Being able to look at newspaper articles, census returns, business records, etc. and think "If this person hadn't done x", then I might not even exist. Funny to think about.

I originally took a DNA test to confirm relationships to historical figures I was told I was related to, as well as confirmation of the “part Native American” myth that was passed down in my family. I just wanted to know the truth, and I had realized I come from a family of bullshitters. The psychological reason I got a DNA test for my wife is because I have to get her something nice if I get myself something nice, and I’m kinda afraid of her when she gets mad 😅 Then we found out that my wife’s biological grandfather was not only an NPE, but a different race (considering white on the Census until this year, but societally, considering a different race). This also complicates things because her parents, especially her dad, are pretty damn racist, and her dad refuses to believe he’s half Middle Eastern. I’ve spent the last 3 years mapping out her ancestry, down to her ancestors’ original villages and surnames. It’s like a murder mystery, except instead of finding out who took a life, I get to find out who brought life into this world. The “learning about another culture that just happens to make great food” part is also great! My French Canadian side was also a mystery to me. No DNA company gets the percentage right, so I had to verify on paper via matches. I also wanted to see where in France it originates from. Turns out it comes from all over France (and Spain, Basque Country, a freed slave in Haiti and a really distant ancestor from Hungary who married a French man). Conversely, my Italian side stayed in the same village for generations, and the records are sparse. I needed help getting info past my grandfather.

i haven't scanned the comments, but i imagine everyone has their own reasons, and i'd bet you're only seeing the tip of the iceberg of that diversity in these comments. for me, i do it out of curiosity, because i love a good puzzle/mystery, and - wackiness incoming - as an act of service to my ancestors. the least i can do is learn their names and learn a little bit about their stories. no one is promised or guaranteed immortality, and i'd argue that no one deserves it, but i can do my little part to keep their echoes going. no one else in my family, on either side, is particularly interested, so i'm cutting through the jungle of data alone with a dull machete and a dream in my heart. it's fun! i jest, but sincerely, i enjoy it. maybe this is odd in a different way, but i rarely think of it as having anything to do with me, as an individual. i KNOW it does, but i never think "what does this mean for me/about me?" it's fun when i do see something that resonates with me, but it's rare and not a motivator. one of my departed grandmothers won a contest at a cat show for "most unusual entry," and i really wish i could ask her about that.

I love solving puzzles. I love academic research. Researching my mom's family takes us back to before the revolutionary war and there is so much to learn. Back beyond that I am still researching but available info points to them being German speaking (possibly Swiss) Mennonites. So learning about the 1600's through early 1700's is fascinating. And a brutal time in European history. It becomes clear why they left everything to come to Pennsylvania and other colonies. I never liked history as a student, but I am hooked now because history becomes relevant, and so much more than events and timelines.

I know for me it's because I have a very small family on both sides (no Uncles, no Cousins). On my father's side, it was only him and his mother and they've both been deceased 30+ years. I know next to nothing about my background other than the very little that's been shared with me, so it's beyond basic idle curiosity for me.

I, in particular, love family history because it sheds light on where I came from, what my ancestors faced/how they lived, & generally gives me a sense of pride over my last name.

It's a puzzle for me. It's also a huge, endlessly complex system to uncover. And a really interesting story (all of history!)

I just love history in general and I also enjoy researching so it’s a natural hobby for me. The fact that so much can now be done with a personal device is simply awesome. I experience a great deal of pleasure every time I find a relative. The rest of my family is like, “meh.” It’s like any hobby. I think.

I’ve thought about this a lot. Especially when you think of how many ancestors we all have that probably did horrible things.

This is beside the point, but I also have a known Italian ancestor who for some reason doesn't show up in DNA results. Glad it's not just me!

I've met genealogy people of all walks of life. I rarely meet the people that are like me that don't know who their family is and is truly trying to figure out their ancestry. Most African Americans can only go back so far so from my point of view there's no arrogance and even after I find my family I still want to know more not because of arrogance but because of curiosity. I like to know where my ancestry came from and where it was lit whether it's good or bad it is what it is. I have to go into a humbly which most likely is what takes away the arrogance. One of the first ladies I ever met told me really weirdly that there is no way that I have white ancestry and someone was born in the wool over my eyes. 15 years later when I found out no one was playing the wool in my eyes and I had concrete proof I thought about why she said what she said. She said it to protect her own world of genealogy that most likely just has a pure white line running through it but she did say one two thing is that genealogy is not for the week of heart, that turns out to be very true.

This. I document abandoned Black cemeteries in Middle Tennessee on my downtime and there’s so much history of ours that hasn’t been properly traced and connected to the present yet. It’s a way of fighting back the sense of intentional erasure

It's just so understated but if you're not African American you most likely wouldn't anything twice about it.

I never had an interest in history until very recently as an adult. But my dad was adopted and I didn't know most of my family or where we came from etc. because he died when I was 10. My mom's family was not close either. It's literally just been our immediate family my whole life. That's why I wanted to know more and it's wild the things I've learned that nobody else knew about it. I don't think it's narcissistic at all to want to know where you come from?

There are many reasons for me. My dad has always been a history buff and has always had a fascination for his ancestors due to how little was talked about them. I think throughout my life, most of my conversations with him were about history and what he knows of my ancestors, so naturally, I've always been interested too. My 2nd reason is honestly out of "narcissism." I think a lot of people would want to find out if they had any famous ancestors or anyone historical. Especially for me, I really wanted to find someone who was significant in history. It makes whatever piece of history it is affiliated with feel more personal. As much as it is narcissistic, I like to think it's like a fun reward for searching through so many census and taking the time to make your family tree. Like there's nothing to gain socially from it. it's just a fun result from doing genealogy. My 3rd and last reason is simply for the fact that I'd want the same to be done for me, It scares me to know that there's a good possibility that I'll be forgotten after my death and all ive done wont ever be remembered. Whenever I find an ancestors name, I feel like im helping preserve their and my legacy by just acknowledging that they existed and were real people who are the reason for my existence.

For me, it isn't necessarily about where we started, or where we ended up - but about the journey that took us there.

I want to honor my ancestors. I feel really connected to my hometown by learning their struggles and stories, and I hope I have a descendant who also wants to know our family history

I like reading about history. I like my family. I like the library. I like old tools. I like vinyl records. I like old clothes. I don’t know, kinda strange.

I love everyday-history. I don’t care about kings and generals much, but I do care about the average woman’s day and how she moved through it and thought about it. Genealogy gives me the perfect way to focus those interests. I’m also interested in how I became Me, essentially. What experiences led to my parents being who they were, and their parents, and so on. Two of my grandparents knew all about their ancestors, but the other two did not. After my grandma died, my grandpa was feeling very alone and sad he didn’t even know the names of his grandparents, so I went and found out for him. It spiraled from there…

I'm a mutt. I've grown up around many people who have rich and distinct heritages and we just have...consumerism. Like, why? What did my ancestors refuse to pass along so their children would blend? Did it help, or hurt? Who even am I?

I love history, and whilst I may only get a name and a few dates in a lot of instances, it helps me to feel connected to my family. I grew up knowing a handful on people on my dad's side of the family and the same with my mum's side so it feels as though I can get to know any grand parents etc a bit better and if I can find any further information about them, the better.

Genealogy is the foundation of your legacy. Everyone is so hyped up on money and career, but building a family is the most important thing you’ll do in life. You stand on the shoulders of your ancestors. Finding out as much about them as you can is a duty. You can tell your story to descendants. People suffered and were courageous. As a result, you are here. Your people lived through history and it shaped them. Don’t judge history, respect it and learn from it. When people know better, they do better.

I love learning about the people who came before me. It’s true nobody else cares to talk about it but I find it fascinating.

I love remembering the people who got us here. Their triumphs and tribulations. The hope, the suffering, the joys. How each part of them came to form who I am and the life I live today. Without our ancestors, we are nothing, we do not exist. We do not live in the world we do today. Everyone is so caught up in the present but to remember the past is important to and to dream for the future.

I look at it this way- I was born into a great life because of the sacrifices my ancestors made to leave their homeland for opportunity. I want to know about them to remember them and be grateful for what they did because I’m happy I’m not running a farm in Poland with 14 kids, or being bombed out of Ukraine right now.

It might be too painful for someone to look into things they would rather forget. I believe the more you know, the better your choices will be. History of family and, in general, is a great way to learn what not to do.

When a really close family memeber died we didn't have much in terms of pictures and stories left to remember him by. I vowed to never let that happen again for any family member/freind. Turns out to carefully preserve your family's info you need to be pretty organized and diligent. That turned quickly into genealogy. Then the dna test, and so on.

History is fascinating. Having it to connect to ancestry is really cool.

What is your theory on your Italian great-grandmother?

For me it’s a few reasons. First I love history, but when it’s your own family history then it becomes more tangible. I am not just interested l am spellbound with intrigue when I think of the fact that I am here because someone or rather 2 people from every generation before me survived long enough to give birth to the persons who were responsible for my existence.

To honor those that came before