The Reference numbers used in the charts and on this website do have a structure to them:

• The first 2 digits are a generation number
  • To put things in to perspective
    • Our common ancestor John Maliphant (1691-1763) has the reference number 40008, so he is in generation 40
    • Harry Maliphant (1520-1592) is the earliest we believe we can connect to at present and has 36001
    • William Maliphant who died in 1362 and is buried at Upton Castle is estimated in generation 29
    • Walter Maliphant who died in 1258 is estimated in generation 26
    • Today’s new births are in generation 50/51
    • That is a 26 generation spread across some 760 years
  • We use the generation number on its own sometimes, when it helps to distinguish multiple family members with the same name
    To help clarify that it is a generation, we use the following notation: _g44 – representing the 44th generation
    
• The next 3 digits are simply a sequential number
• The first spouse has 500 added (second 600, third 700 etc)
  • Example:  40008 John’s first wife has the reference 40508 and the 2nd wife has 40608, all being part of generation 40

• Non-Maliphants (e.g. typically where the name is lost through marriage) follow the same logic, but are prefixed by the Reference number of the last Maliphant
  • Example: Mary Ann’s Reference 43019 will prefix any/all descendants further down the tree, each with their own unique suffix following the rules above, starting with her children being in generation 44