Ancient Chinese genealogy is not only numerous, but also a variety of colorful, in the process of the continuous evolution of the times, the types of genealogy with the development of society, new forms of genealogy emerge in an endless stream, according to the family tree inheritance, record different ways, can be divided into the following categories.
Knotted rope family tree
In ancient China, before the advent of writing, it experienced the era of knotted rope memories. Northeast Orunchun people, to the 17th and 18th centuries, still knotted on the mane rope, through how many knots have been tied, know that the family has several generations, five knots mean five generations, ten knots ten generations, they will represent the generation of the knot, hanging in the middle of the house wooden beam, very worshipful. The Xibe people in the northeast region, until the beginning of the 20th century, still retained the habit of recording the number of generations, numbers, men and women of the family, and had a son, tied a small bow and arrow on the rope, and tied a red cloth strip when giving birth to a daughter.
Oral genealogy
A more primitive form of genealogy than knotted rope. Ethnic minorities on the mainland, such as the Mongols, Miao, Yi, Gaoshan, etc., all maintain the habit of passing on oral genealogies, and they take the form of father-son joint names, that is, one or two words after the father's name, which is the first two words of the son's name. Generally, family members can recite 30 or 40 generations of ancestral lineages, and the most can recite more than 90 generations.
Oracle Family Tree
It is a family tree engraved on the tortoiseshell and animal bones. Produced in the Yin Shang period of oracle bone script, some of which are specifically recorded a family figure, lineage of oracle bones, such as the "Er's" oracle bone, which records the names of fourteen people in eleven generations of a family, which is a very representative oracle bone family tree, which is the earliest written family tree found in the mainland.
Bronze family tree
It is the family tree carved on the bronze, that is, the Jinwen family tree. Among the bronzes excavated from the last years of the Shang Dynasty, there are several bronzes that record the lineage of the family. Among the two bronzes unearthed from the Zhou Dynasty, there are 380-character inscriptions that record the lineage and deeds of a family for seven generations.
Genealogy of stone tablets
It is a family tree carved on a stone tablet. The so-called "carved in stone, to hang forever" As early as the Han Dynasty, this form of genealogy was more prevalent. Such as the Monument of Sun Shu Ao in the Han Dynasty. In the early years of the Republic of China, the "Mo Surname Sentinel Genealogy" was erected in the village of Trench Tang in Nandan County, Guangxi, with a total of 412 words, which not only recorded the family lineage of the Mo surname, but also recorded the family origin. Compared with the oracle bone and bronze family tree, the stone stele family tree is much more mature.
Book genealogy
That is, the family tree written and printed on paper, and it is divided into ancient books and lead printed family trees. This is the most important surviving genealogy on the mainland.
Electronic genealogy
Electronic genealogy is the perfect integration of traditional genealogy and Internet technology to repair the family tree to the Internet. Use a computer and mobile phone to view anytime, anywhere.