if i'm 28 yrs old, how many generations seperate me from an ancestor born in 1830?

Answer 1

Your answer depends upon what age your ancestors married and started having children. A generation for males is also usually somewhat older for males than females because traditionally men don't marry and start fathering children until they can financially support them. They usually, however, marry women approximately five to ten years younger than they are.

Sometimes the number of generations is also determined by a family's social class and occupations. Going back to about 1830, for example, women on my dad's side of the family on average married in their early to mid-twenties (usually to doctors or lawyers) while women on my mother's side of the family on average married in their mid to late teens (almost always to farmers). Thus, for my dad's side of the family going back to 1830 would mean five generations while going back to 1830 on my mom's side of the family would mean six generations.

Answer 2

You were born in 1979 or 1980, so there are 150 years between you and your ancestor.

If you come from a long line of teen-aged lovers whose first child was born when they were 15, 10 generations.

If you come from a long line of men who started second families when they were 60, two or three generations.

My family averages 33 years betwwen generations. If yours does, then about 4/5 generations.

This is an anecdote I sometimes tell to beginning genealogists, which is slightly related to your question. I was proud of the clothing example.

Use birth dates to identify people, not relationships. Saying "My grandfather" doesn't pin someone down. Consider:

If you are now 16 and come from a long line of teen-aged lovers, your grandfather could have been born (16 + 16 + 16) 48 years ago. He could have worn a powder-blue double-knit polyester leisure suit to a disco.

If you are now 80 and come from a long line of men who started second families when they were 60, your grandfather could have been born (80 + 60 + 60) 200 years ago. He could have worn silk knee breeches and a powdered wig to court his first wife.

Both cases are, as my father used to say, "Physically possible but highly improbable".

Answer 3

MY pggf was born 1824. My gf born 1880. My father born 1907 and me 1951. My children 1985 and 1994. We have alot of years between several generations. That is 5 generations in 170 years.

Answer 4

I believe it is generally accepted that a generation is 20 years. 1830 was 177 years ago. That would make it 8.85 generations to today. However from 1830 until you were born 28 years ago, it would be 7.45 generations.

Answer 5

Assuming a generation is 50 years then I guess 3 or 4 about. So it would be like your great grandparents could have been alive in 1830.

Answer 6

Depends upon how prolific your family has been.
Early marriages, or later in life?

I'm a generation older than you, and my great-great-grandfather was born in 1828.

I've taken my lineage back 10 generations, where I'm a decendant of three passengers from the Mayflower...

Answer 7

The only way you can know is to do the research generation by generation.

My father was my grandfather's 3rd family, grandfather was born 1864. Generations vary!

Answer 8

I'll say 25 years per generation
1830, 1855, 1880, 1905, 1930, 1955, 1980
so around 7?