Descendents

/dɪˈsɛndənts/ noun

Definition

People who are born from a particular ancestor, like your children, grandchildren, and all future generations of your family.

Etymology

From Old French 'descendre' and Latin 'descendere' (to climb down), formed from 'de-' (down) and 'scandere' (to climb). The meaning shifted metaphorically from physical descent down a slope to being born in a line from an ancestor.

Kelly Says

It's fascinating that we use the metaphor of 'climbing down' to describe birth—this comes from ancient ideas about the 'chain of being' where ancestors were thought to be higher up, and descendants descended from them. Your DNA literally carries instructions that descended from organisms hundreds of millions of years old!

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