Daily AncestorCousin
Cousin in older records could mean any relative outside the direct line, such as a niece or nephew, not only an uncle's or aunt's child.
Today cousin usually means the child of an uncle or aunt. Older usage was broader: Webster's 1828 dictionary gives a general sense of any collateral relative more distant than a brother or sister, so nieces, nephews and more distant kin could all be called cousin.
Monarchs even addressed other rulers and nobles as cousin. So when a will mentions my cousin, treat it as related somehow, and look for other records to pin down the exact link.
As seen in a recordWill recorded in a county will book, 1800s
Item. I give to my cousin Rebecca Hall, daughter of my sister Ann, ten pounds.
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Cousin." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/relationships/cousin. Last checked 2026-10-01.