What Is Heritage? Discover Your Cultural Identity • FamilySearch (2024)

Defining what is your heritage means understanding your inherited sense of family identity. Explore these questions and activities to strengthen and better express your own sense of heritage.

Defining Your Heritage

What Is Heritage? Discover Your Cultural Identity • FamilySearch (1)

The word “heritage” brings to mind different ideas for different people—and it should. Heritage is a person’s unique, inherited sense of family identity: the values, traditions, culture, and artifacts handed down by previous generations. We absorb a sense of our heritage throughout our lives as we observe and experience the things that make our family unique. Although not every inherited trait, tendency, or tradition is positive, we generally consider heritage to be the positive and meaningful elements of our family’s identity that we incorporate into our own lives and pass along to succeeding generations.

Heritage can express itself in many ways. Some families define their heritage primarily as their ethnic, cultural, or national identity. Other families can point to values that have been passed on, such as a love for education, participation in community life, a strong work ethic, or religious devotion. People may feel that an inherited aptitude—such as for music or mechanics, athletics or art—is part of their heritage.

How to Discover Your Heritage

Some people have a strong sense of their heritage. They can point to a flag hanging proudly nearby or repeat stories and traditions shared by their parents or grandparents. Some have a confident sense of the unique interests,occupations, or values found in their family.

Others may have to look a little more closely to identify traces of heritage in their lives. Asking the following questions may help people discover elements of their family’s unique legacy in their lives:

What Is Heritage? Discover Your Cultural Identity • FamilySearch (2)
  • How would I define my ethnic, cultural, or national identity? How does this identity shape my sense of who I am?
  • What traditions or rituals do I observe, either in everyday life or on special occasions? Where do those traditions come from?
  • What are my most prized values, hobbies, or interests? Did my parents, siblings, grandparents, or other relatives share these?
  • What positive traits, tendencies, or aptitudes would I use to describe my family in general? How do these traits manifest in my life?
  • What values, traits, interests, or hobbies do I have that I see in my own children or grandchildren or that I would wish to see manifested in younger generations in my family?

Another approach to discovering heritage is to search your family tree and family stories. What nations of origin or ethnic backgrounds are most prominent? If you participate in the FamilySearch Family Tree, it is easy to create a fan-chart view that highlights your ancestral birthplaces, such as the one shown below:

What Is Heritage? Discover Your Cultural Identity • FamilySearch (3)

If you already know what countries your family came from, or you just discovered it from looking at your Family Tree, you can dive into learning more about your ancestors' homelands from the list below.

September 25, 2020

Nestled in the Caucasus region, an area between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, the sunny country of Armenia is home to nearly 3 million …

November 1, 2019

Do you have a familybrigadeiro recipe or love Brazilian cheese bread? Or maybe some of your ancestors came from Brazil but you don’t know mu…

May 8, 2019

Denmark is a country that may sometimes be overlooked, but recently it has started attracting more of the limelight. Lonely Planet picked Co…

March 7, 2020

William Shakespeare called it “this other Eden.” Its history, tradition, and culture are vital and diverse. It is graced by beautiful and va…

June 26, 2020

Bula! This oft-used greeting in Fiji translates to “life,” with its longer use ni sa bula vinakatranslating to “wishing you happiness and go…

April 15, 2019

Located at the very top of Europe, Finland sometimes flies under the radar. But with its vast natural beauty, excellent education system, an…

October 18, 2020

What comes to mind when you think of France—the Eiffel tower, romance, and fashion? Or perhaps you conjure up images of the gorgeous French …

August 23, 2018

From the Roman Empire to the Renaissance to the modern day, Italy has influenced cultures globally with its great achievements. With such a …

May 22, 2021

From the sophisticated to the whimsical, Japanese culture captures it all. With centuries of iconic architecture, elegant kimonos, and sophi…

August 1, 2019

When you connect with your Mexican heritage, you discover that your ancestors are people you are related to and you can relate to. Your Mexi…

June 10, 2019

Norway—it’s the land of midnight sun and skies lit with brilliant bands of color from the northern lights, of stunningly beautiful fjords an…

December 25, 2020

Puerto Rico is a beautiful Caribbean island off the coast of the Dominican Republic. Surrounded by blue seas and with a landscape of mountai…

April 29, 2020

Fa’a Samoa, in the beautiful Samoan language, literally means “The Samoan Way.” The phrase refers to the Samoan culture and traditions that …

October 5, 2019

Do you have Scottish blood running through your veins? Scottish heritage and Scottish history is rich and expansive, and there are many ways…

November 12, 2018

What comes to your mind when you think of Sweden? Is it ABBA, the Swedish pop group that gained worldwide fame in the 70s? Or is it Sweden’s…

November 27, 2019

Do you hail from Wales? Welsh heritage is rich and vibrant—one of its nation’s symbols is even a dragon! The dragon appears on the Welsh fla…

As you explore your family tree, identify patterns by asking these kinds of questions:

  • Do historical records show patterns in your family’s occupations, especially jobs relating to certain values, interests, or skills?
  • Do you see traditions or traits echoed in the kinds of photos your family takes or what objects they have chosen to keep?
  • What values or feelings do your most important family stories impart?

If you can attend a family reunion or meet with relatives,consider asking others what is meaningful to them about your shared heritage.
Some who seek a stronger sense of cultural or ethnic identity turn to DNA testing. Ethnicity percentages, while not always reliable or specific, may help you discover your ancestral places or cultures of origin. Connecting with DNA matches can reveal heritage that has been passed down through other branches of the family.

What You Can Do to Honor Your Heritage

What Is Heritage? Discover Your Cultural Identity • FamilySearch (25)

For many people, the most meaningful way to honor their heritage is to include elements of it in their own lives. They live the positive values they were taught and pass them on to others. They may choose activities or traditions that help them feel connected to their loved ones. Heirlooms, family photos, and other tangible reminders of their heritage may be displayed in their homes. They may also create new traditions that communicate the values they hope will outlive them.

Many who want to honor their heritage spend time learning about and expanding their family tree. They may interview relatives, label old photos, gather family recipes, and write down the stories they discover so as to preserve a more lasting legacy. Some even travel to ancestral hometowns or homelands to learn more about their heritage and feel more connected to past generations.

Start or explore your family tree for free on FamilySearch.org.

Discover Your Heritage through Travel

January 1, 2020

Heritage travel, also known as heritage tourism, is the act of traveling and immersing yourself in the culture and heritage of a specific re…

What Is Heritage? Discover Your Cultural Identity • FamilySearch (2024)

FAQs

What is cultural heritage answer? ›

1 Definition of Cultural Heritage. Cultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of society inherited from past generations.

What is cultural heritage in your own words? ›

Cultural heritage includes artefacts, monuments, a group of buildings and sites, museums that have a diversity of values including symbolic, historic, artistic, aesthetic, ethnological or anthropological, scientific and social significance.

What is your cultural heritage examples? ›

Examples of cultural heritage include tangible assets such as visual art, food, clothing, and styles of architecture along with intangible assets such as legends, music, and values like generosity or respect.

What is my cultural heritage? ›

A cultural heritage is anything that was passed down from one generation to another. The heritage passed down can be tangible, like an heirloom, location, or object. It can also be intangible, like a tradition, belief, or skill. No matter what the cultural heritage looks like, it's important to know that you have one.

What is your heritage answer? ›

Defining Your Heritage

Heritage is a person's unique, inherited sense of family identity: the values, traditions, culture, and artifacts handed down by previous generations. We absorb a sense of our heritage throughout our lives as we observe and experience the things that make our family unique.

What is heritage in simple answer? ›

Heritage is the full range of our inherited traditions, monuments, objects, and culture. Most important, it is the range of contemporary activities, meanings, and behaviors that we draw from them. Heritage includes, but is much more than preserving, excavating, displaying, or restoring a collection of old things.

What are the 3 types of cultural heritage? ›

Cultural heritage includes tangible culture (such as buildings, monuments, landscapes, books, works of art, and artifacts), intangible culture (such as folklore, traditions, language, and knowledge), and natural heritage (including culturally significant landscapes, and biodiversity).

What are the 3 types of heritage? ›

The three elements used to describe historic heritage are Fabric, Stories and Culture. One or all of these things make up the historic heritage of a place.

What is heritage give an example? ›

Our heritage is what we have inherited from the past, to value and enjoy in the present, and to preserve and pass on to future generations. Our heritage comprises of: the tangible - our historical sites, buildings, monuments, objects in museums, artefacts and archives.

What are 5 examples of cultural? ›

Customs, laws, dress, architectural style, social standards and traditions are all examples of cultural elements.

How do you show your heritage? ›

5 Ways To Connect With Your Heritage
  1. Genealogical research on ancestry websites. ...
  2. Take a DNA test and dive into your genetic history. ...
  3. Cook a meal in the style of your ethno-cultural cuisine. ...
  4. Learn to speak your family's native language. ...
  5. Visit your family's country of origin.
24 Jun 2016

How do you describe cultural identity? ›

Culture is the shared characteristics of a group of people, which encompasses , place of birth, religion, language, cuisine, social behaviors, art, literature, and music.

What are the four types of heritage? ›

Such centers could cover all forms of heritage or be specialized in particular types of heritage: natural, cultural, tangible, intangible, or movable heritage.

How do you identify culturally examples? ›

The 6 ways we identify culture
  • Rituals. Similar to Independence Day rituals, we have rituals throughout our society that can be daily, weekly, monthly, or annually or even longer. ...
  • Norms. ...
  • Values. ...
  • Symbols. ...
  • Language. ...
  • Artifacts.
22 May 2020

What is cultural heritage and why is it important? ›

Cultural heritage is the heritage we have inherited: our legacy, our memories, physical places, objects and intangible beliefs and practices, and so much more. Intangible heritage can often be associated with particular tangible cultural heritage.

What is an example of family heritage? ›

Family heritage means the background that you come from. For example, you may be of a German, Chinese, or Kenyan heritage. It is likely that your heritage does not consist of just one culture because ancestry is often mixed.

What is a good sentence for heritage? ›

(1) Folk songs are part of our common heritage. (2) The book was published in association with British Heritage. (3) These buildings are part of our national heritage. (4) The building is part of our national heritage.

What are the 2 types of heritage? ›

  • There are two types of heritage cultural and natural heritage.
  • Cultural Heritage: This includes historic buildings, monuments, and collections of information on how people lived such as photos, paintings, stories, newspapers, and books.
  • Natural Heritage: This includes mountains, rivers, and any landscape.
12 Feb 2021

What is heritage in other words? ›

ancestry. nounfamily predecessors; family history. ancestor. antecedent. antecessor.

What heritage means essay? ›

“Heritage” in the broadest sense is that which is inherited. Everything which the ancestors bequeath may be called heritage: landscapes, structures, objects, traditions. Humans have understood the concept of heritage ever since they developed artefacts and language.

What word type is heritage? ›

noun. something that is handed down from the past, as a tradition:a national heritage of honor, pride, and courage.

What are 3 examples of cultural characteristics? ›

Exhibit 1-3Common Characteristics of Culture
  • Identity development (multiple identities and self-concept).
  • Rites of passage (rituals and rites that mark specific developmental milestones).
  • Broad role of sex and sexuality.
  • Images, symbols, and myths.
  • Religion and spirituality.

Why is it called cultural heritage? ›

“Heritage” is a property, something that is inherited, passed down from previous generations. In the case of “cultural heritage,” the heritage doesn't consist of money or property, but of culture, values and traditions. Cultural heritage implies a shared bond, our belonging to a community.

What are the kinds of heritage? ›

Cultural heritage
  • Archaeological site. An archaeological site is an area/place that is associated with past human activities. ...
  • Art, crafts literature and music. ...
  • Dark heritage. ...
  • Gastronomy. ...
  • Geological heritage. ...
  • Historic city centre. ...
  • Industrial heritage. ...
  • Living cultures.

How many types of heritage do we have? ›

There are three types of sites: cultural, natural, and mixed. Cultural heritage sites include hundreds of historic buildings and town sites, important archaeological sites, and works of monumental sculpture or painting.

What does your heritage mean to you? ›

Heritage encompasses many things. It's about our ethnic roots, of course, but it also includes cultural teachings and personal experiences. It's about who you are and where you have come from to get to where you are today. For me, my heritage has shaped my values, my personality, my goals, and much more.

What are the 7 types of culture? ›

There are seven elements, or parts, of a single culture. They are social organization, customs, religion, language, government, economy, and arts.

What are the 8 main types of cultural differences? ›

Cultural Inclusion Fundamentals: Eight Core Cultural Differences
  • Individualism vs. Collectivism. ...
  • Power Distance. ...
  • Uncertainty Avoidance. ...
  • Gender Egalitarianism. ...
  • Assertiveness (Cooperative vs. ...
  • Orientation to Time. ...
  • Being vs. ...
  • Indulgence vs.
9 Mar 2018

How do I write about my family heritage? ›

How to Write Your Family History
  1. Choose a Format.
  2. Define the Scope.
  3. Set Realistic Deadlines.
  4. Choose a Plot and Themes.
  5. Do Your Background Research.
  6. Don't Be Afraid to Use Records and Documents.
  7. Include an Index and Source Citations.
7 Aug 2019

What does my heritage include? ›

It includes MyHeritage family trees, photos, and members that are public – altogether 15.7 billion exclusive records from all over the world that, in most cases, are only available on MyHeritage.

Can you tell your heritage by your looks? ›

Ancestry and Genetic Admixture

Ancestry and physical appearance are highly related; it is often possible to infer an individual's recent ancestry based on physically observable features such as facial structure and skin color.

What is important cultural identity? ›

Your cultural identity is a critical piece of your personal identity (and worldview) that develops as you absorb, interpret, and adopt (or reject) the beliefs, values, behaviors, and norms of the communities in your life. Our cultural identity can evolve, as culture is ever-evolving and dynamic.

How do you ask about your cultural identity? ›

Your Identity
  1. How do you identify culturally?
  2. What does that cultural identity mean to you?
  3. Do you have more than one heritage language? ...
  4. Is your cultural heritage important to you, or one of the most important things about you? ...
  5. Did you feel more or less in touch with your heritage culture as a child than as an adult?
3 Oct 2021

How do you reflect on your own cultural identity? ›

1) Identify significant events in your life and aspects of your environment that have defined your own cultural identity, values and beliefs. 2) Reflect and list your social, cultural views and biases.

What is a heritage symbol? ›

The World Heritage emblem represents the interdependence of the world's natural and cultural diversity. It is used to identify properties protected by the World Heritage Convention and inscribed on the official World Heritage List, and represents the universal values for which the Convention stands.

What are 5 cultural characteristics? ›

Culture has five basic characteristics: It is learned, shared, based on symbols, integrated, and dynamic. All cultures share these basic features.

Why is it important to appreciate our own cultural heritage? ›

Culture and its heritage reflect and shape values, beliefs, and aspirations, thereby defining a people's national identity. It is important to preserve our cultural heritage, because it keeps our integrity as a people.

What are the values of cultural heritage? ›

The term 'heritage values' refers to the meanings and values that individuals or groups of people bestow on heritage (including collections, buildings, archaeological sites, landscapes and intangible expressions of culture, such as traditions).

Why is cultural heritage? ›

Cultural heritage has the potential to promote access to and enjoyment of cultural diversity. It can also enrich social capital and create a sense of individual and collective belonging, which helps to maintain social and territorial cohesion.

What do you mean by cultural heritage for Class 6? ›

Solution : Cultural heritage can be defined as the various tacts, skills, knowledge, art, object, etc. which have cultural importance are called Cultural heritage. Sculptures and architecture are an important part of the cultural heritage of India. The art of Sculpture and architecture are 5000 years old.

What is cultural diversity answer? ›

Cultural diversity is about appreciating that society is made up of many different groups with different interests, skills, talents and. needs. It also means that you recognise that people in society can have differing religious beliefs and sexual orientations to you.

Why is heritage so important? ›

Heritage is important because ...

Our heritage provides clues to our past and how our society has evolved. It helps us examine our history and traditions and enables us develop an awareness about ourselves. It helps us understand and explain why we are the way we are.

How do you explain heritage to a child? ›

Here are some ways to teach your children about their own heritage.
  1. Start with the Earlier Generations. ...
  2. Learn with Food. ...
  3. Virtual Visits to Museum Exhibits. ...
  4. Incorporate Traditions. ...
  5. Educate with Books and Movies. ...
  6. Learn the Language. ...
  7. Explore Your Family Tree.
1 May 2020

What are the types cultural heritage? ›

Tangible and intangible Cultural Heritage.

How do you answer cultural diversity questions? ›

When asked a question about diversity, discuss your direct experiences with people of different cultures. Refrain from saying you don't see color. Instead, explain the value of honoring diverse cultures and learning from others. If you are sincere in your answers to diversity questions, your true character will shine.

What is cultural value answer? ›

1. Cultural values are the core principles and ideals upon which an entire community exists and protect and rely upon for existence and harmonious relationship.

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