A Family Tree

Each of the generations of my family tree are quite similar. My parents are about the same age, all my grandparents are about the same age, and my great-grandparent were all born around the same time, with all of my great-grandfathers passing away long before my great-grandmothers. In fact, I have known three of my four great-grandmothers, but none of my great-grandfathers were still living when I was born. Because of this, I know little about these men compared to what I know about the rest of the names that appear on my family tree. Although, because of the similar ages and places in which my great-grandparents live, much of the information I know about those that were, and are, living can be extrapolated to the other ancestors.

                Another interesting feature of my four-generation tree is that only one of my ancestors was born outside of Utah; Edward Thomas Chbat Allam was born in Syria. This plays an important role in my family history because this line ends after Edward’s parents; the line from Lebanon and Syria can’t be traced further because of the political turmoil in the Middle East. It’s this line that’s responsible for the olive skin that is characteristic of my mom’s side of the family. The rest of my family comes from a mix of European blood, with the exception of Runolfson coming from Iceland. My Icelandic ancestor Runolfur Runolfson immigrated to Spanish Fork, which is why my family has strong roots there (and such a strange last name).

                Because my family has been in Utah for many generations, most of my family still resides here, which has created an emphasis on extended family in my life. This results in extended family dinners every Sunday, close relationships with my cousins, and strong bonds with my grandparents. This part of my family tree has been extremely important to me, because these relationships have shaped who I am and the way I live my life.