How to write a genealogy

Genealogy, also known as genealogy, genealogy, genealogy book, genealogy, genealogy. It is an archival material that records the activities of family organizations. Fujian genealogy flourished in the Song Dynasty and after the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The motivation of spectrum compilation is "tracing back to the source, depending on differentiation, depending on advantages and disadvantages." The genealogy of Xie's family tree in Anxi is in the form of a bound book (thread-bound in ancient times, now it is the same as ordinary printed matter) or a chart. Many families regard genealogy as the obligation of their descendants, and the number of years to rebuild genealogy is different. Both the Ji and Li families in Pucheng, northern Fujian, stipulate that genealogy should be revised every 30 years. Fang's rule is that "if there are virtuous descendants in the genealogy, or if it has been repaired for ten or thirty years, there is no place to be buried, it will be unhappy." It is advisable to know that Confucianism is unfilial first. "(Qing Guangxu's" Minpu Fangjia Genealogy ") Similar family rules make the revision of genealogy permanent in the form of family law.

Genealogy contains different details. Usually, in addition to recording the household registration, marriage and blood relationship of the whole family, there are also the location, quantity, management and use methods of the tombs, ancestral fields and temples of the whole family, family statutes and commandments, genealogy compilation rules, various contract documents and so on. Some detailed genealogies also record important events in family history, disputes with the outside world, biographies of deserving people, biographies of celebrities who took part in imperial examinations, righteous acts and virtues.

The core content of genealogy is to record the origin of the family and the blood system. In case of blood relationship disorder and family disintegration. Liancheng's "Xinquan Zhang's Genealogy" clearly wrote at the beginning: "The genealogy of the far and near factions traces back to its source, but the genealogy of the upper and lower branches is poor, that is, it is replaced from generation to generation, and it has been verified." In order to show one's ancestry, there is a custom of recognizing China celebrities as distant ancestors. Although this kind of attached genealogy can make one's family more brilliant, it often leads to the distortion of family history and misleads future generations. Li's genealogy in Hutou, Anxi County, recognizes that his ancestor is Li Er, the founder of Taoism, and his direct line is Guo, who was adopted in Nanjing Temple as a descendant of Li. His ancestors recognized him as his brother "Guo Shu" ("Guo" is similar to Guo "), and inferred that Guo Shu was the 27th grandson of the Yellow Emperor, the 60th grandson of Guo Shu and the 87th grandson of the Yellow Emperor, and his clan came from a famous soldier in the middle Tang Dynasty. (The historical origin of the Guo family in Miao Dou, page 89 of Nanjing Literature and History Materials, No.2, He Liuzhi) These records are easy to convince the people. Others, for example, Liu Bang was the ancestor of Liu and Xiao He was the ancestor of Xiao, all of which reflected the mentality of cultivating celebrities and attaching themselves to the big family.

In genealogy, the lineages under the ancestors who moved into the family (Kaiji) are strictly and clearly arranged and should not be confused. This is usually the most historic part of the family tree. Many families in Fujian implement the surname ranking system (called "Zhao Mu" in ancient times), commonly known as "seniority". That is to say, in the same generation, a name or word must start with a unified word, and then be combined with other words to form a name or word to show the difference. For example, a father gave birth to three sons, whose names are arranged according to the word "Yong", namely "Yong Zhi", "Yong Ren" and "Yong Gui". In this way, if you look at the word "forever" in the genealogy, you can know whether it is a brother or a cousin. For those who have passed away, write a nickname on their names and add the word "Gong" to show the difference. There is a custom in Shaxian County that an adopted son cannot typeset without the consent of the patriarch and six relatives, otherwise he will be scolded as "extroverted" and discriminated against. Except for a few temporary decisions made by ancestors and parents, most of them use words according to the rankings that ancestors have chosen. The genealogy of the Qiu family in Shuangfeng Village, Nanjing County contains: Since the 21st century, it has been marked with the Chinese characters: "Writing is Chinese, and poetry is handed down from generation to generation. Create a vertical game and then describe Tibetan Jia. Glory before light, virtue will be fur. Different people have different opinions, and the wise have different opinions. Yan Yi made suggestions. In Mao Lan, Gui Fang, the new moon is thriving. Think of the emperor and bless him, and Fulu will succeed. Celebrate the surplus and accumulate, and the spectrum continues. Zong Fengzhen, 100 million years. " (The Historical Origin of the Qiu Family in Shuangfeng, page 86 of Nanjing Literature and History Materials) has been spread to the "vertical" and "obvious" generations, that is, from the 30th to the 31st. This method of arranging generations according to genealogy often leads to such a common phenomenon in rural areas. Some 70-year-old people want to call their three-year-old children "uncles" or "uncles" because of the different development speeds of lineage branches. There is a saying in Yongding: "Bald brother, uncle sitting on the floor" (that is, the old bald man of the same generation is only called "brother", and the uncle who is still in infancy should be called uncle even if he is old). In order to distinguish the age order among peers, in addition to "seniority", we must also "rank numbers". According to the genealogy of the Zhang family in Tongan Township, Yongtai County, Tian Ding was numbered in sequence and often called by his first name instead of his first name. Just as he was born the 20th in his generation, his name is "20" instead of his name. This custom is still quite popular among some local elderly people.

Different branches of families with the same surname often use the records of blood relationship ranking in genealogy to carry out "spectrum combination" activities. The Xie family in Anxi once joined dozens of branches of the Republic of China to make a big joint spectrum. After defining the generation, the descendants of each branch decided to rank the classes and draw scores to expand the family power. Xie Jia Sun Xie said in the preface to the joint score: "Joint score, turn weakness into strength, turn softness into strength, and unite as one." In addition, if there are too many branches of the genealogy, several families will repair the genealogy (family genealogy and genealogy are collectively called genealogy). If a family moves out, its genealogy will become a new one after separation.

Because genealogy is the basis of family inheritance with the same surname, it is generally only recorded as male. A few genealogies also record the so-called "virtuous women and brave women" in the clan. Some genealogies are colored with pens according to different objects. According to "Three Stories of Island Residence", "The genealogy of the whole county has been revised, and the lines involved in the genealogy map are all red and black, and the style is very strict. Red line, close relatives, although distant relatives are also true; Those with black lines beg for different surnames, that is, they can avoid revealing their official positions, which is also the method of punishing their hearts in the Spring and Autumn Period. " Those who have achieved fame and achievements or can honor their ancestors are recognized by red notes in the genealogy. Scholars who have been scholars or above in the past also use Zhu Bi to enter the genealogy. Now some newly revised genealogies are still learning along this line. In Shouning's Liu family tree, all those who go to college are marked with red lines, the names of books are marked with genealogical names (that is, names arranged according to genealogy), and adopted sons are marked with black lines (Liancheng area is marked with blue lines). We are also very particular about compiling genealogy and checking genealogy. In the past, we attached great importance to the preservation of genealogy, which should be carefully preserved, exposed regularly and carefully restored. In Xiapu area, genealogy is divided into positive spectrum and secondary spectrum (grass spectrum). The auxiliary spectrum can be consulted, but the original spectrum should be locked in a box after being repaired, and the key to unlocking should be thrown into the ancestral temple to show that the spectrum is kept by the ancestors, and it is forbidden to unlock it in the future. If the side spectrum is lost and there is something to check, you must first "sacrifice" and ask your ancestors' permission before you can unlock it.

In the old society, some clans had to offer sacrifices to their ancestors on the first and fifteenth day of the first lunar month. After the genealogy is completed, to cultivate the spirit and do merits, please ask the monk master to watch the lights; When looking at the lights, build three big shrines (paper houses) for the soul who has crossed over, and set some black shrines for the soul who has no offspring and has not crossed over. The clans in Liancheng, Fujian Province worship "Dai Tu" (that is, the genealogy written on cloth) in the first month of each year. All male members of the family should be present at the ceremony. First, "the newly married man is pictured above" (that is, the name of the newly married man is included in the spectrum), and the family in the above picture will give the author red envelopes, burn incense and set off firecrackers, and offer three sacrifices to the ancestors. If there is a big sacrifice, put the whole pig and sheep on the support in the lower hall; Followed by gongs, drums and firecrackers; After the meal, arrange the seats strictly according to seniority. Everyone sat around drinking and chatting, and the atmosphere was very good. Liancheng people call the clan gathering of the "Hundred Generations Map" in the first month "Lantern Festival".