Genealogy or Family Tree studies.
When trying to trace our ancestors there are several things to consider -
Where do we find the information about our ancestors?
Well it does depend a bit on when they lived.
For living relatives we could ask them. And also there are official records, though these may well be covered by data protection protocols to avoid identity theft.
For people born in 20th century - There are official records of their births, marriages, wills and deaths. There are electoral registers which will give their address and the names of other people eligible to vote at the same address. There are trade directories, street directories and telephone directories. There may be published details of their birth, marriages and deaths in local newspapers. There may be published obituaries. There may be headstones in cemeteries. There are probably family photographs and heirlooms.
For people born from about 1850 to 1901 - There are official records of their birth marriage and death which are available for a fee. There are also census records which (depending on the year of the census) may give the names, age, profession, place of birth and relationships of all people living at a particular address on the day f the census. There may also be parish records and published newspaper records. There may be headstones in cemeteries.
For people born before about 1850 - There are no official civil records, so we have to rely on parish records kept by the church. Parish records for many areas have been indexed in IGI and some have been published. There may be headstones in cemeteries and graveyards. There may be some published records if they were famous. If they were wealthy there may be records of their wills. There may be company records or accounts from large estates.
Mike Horne, 2008.