How to Draw a Family Tree — Vertical or Horizontal, and How to Connect the Lines

Once you have gathered the family registers, the next step is to turn them into a chart. There are no fixed rules for how a family tree must be drawn, but easy-to-read family trees share a few common shapes. In this article, we introduce them.

First Decide Who to Place at the Center

A family tree starts with deciding the person to place at the center (the center person). Placing yourself at the center is the easiest to follow, but if you place an ancestor at the center, you can see “the family that grew from that person”. Even with the same records, changing the center gives you a different picture.

Grow It Vertically or Horizontally?

Traditional family trees are vertical, with the generations flowing from top to bottom. The horizontal style is more common today, and it has the advantage of fitting more easily on paper when there are many people.

Neither one is the right answer. It is enough to choose like this: vertical if you will display it by the family Buddhist altar or in the tokonoma alcove, horizontal if your family will look at it and keep adding to it.

How to Connect the Lines

• Place married couples side by side and join them with a line (some people use a double line)
• For parents and children, draw a line down from the middle of the line joining the couple
• Line up siblings on another horizontal line below that

A family tree is usually hard to read because the lines cross. When lines cross, changing the order of the siblings can sometimes fix it.

How Much to Include

If you include everyone, the tree becomes too large to read. We recommend deciding based on your purpose.

• To trace your ancestors→ Direct line only. This gives a tall, tidy shape
• To see how your relatives are connected→ Include siblings and their families. The tree spreads sideways
• To use it in an inheritance discussion→ Please consult a specialist about the scope you need

What to Write Besides Names

Name, year of birth, year of death (for those who have passed away) and relationship. With these four, you have a family tree. If there is room, adding each person's hometown makes it easier for later generations to trace.

Just one caution: for living family members, please decide together as a family how much of their date of birth and address to share before writing them in. A family tree is something you show to others.

By Hand or On Screen?

Paper lets you write freely, but every time you add one more person later, you have to redraw it. The more people there are, the harder this redrawing becomes.

On the Family Map, the lines are redrawn automatically when you add a person. You can also keep photos and special days along with it, so you can let it grow without the trouble of redrawing. If you invite your family, everyone can see the same family tree, even when living far apart.

For an overview of how to make a family tree, see What Is a Family Tree? — How to Make One, Gathering Family Registers, and Costs.

Last time, we covered how to request family registers.