ahnen

Ahnen is a German word with two main uses. As a noun, it refers to a person’s ancestors and is commonly used in genealogy and family history. In this sense, the word appears in compounds such as Ahnentafel, a widely used term for a pedigree chart that lists a person’s ancestors in a numbered sequence; Ahnenforschung, the study or practice of researching one’s family tree; and Ahnenreihe, a direct line of ancestors. In everyday language, die Ahnen (the ancestors) is a standard phrase in discussions of lineage, heritage, and kinship.

As a verb, ahnen means to sense or to have a premonition that something will happen, or to suspect. It is conjugated as ich ahne, du ahnst, er ahnt, wir ahnen, ihr ahnt, sie ahnen; the simple past is ich ahnte, du ahntest, er ahnte, wir ahnten, ihr ahntet, sie ahnten; the past participle is geahnt. Example: Ich ahnte, dass etwas passieren würde. This sense is distinct from the noun usage and reflects a different root meaning related to perception and foreknowledge.

In summary, ahnen can denote ancestors in genealogical contexts or describe a sense of foresight when used as a verb. The two uses are independent in meaning but share the same linguistic origin in German.